When it comes to reincarnation, there are two types of people – the ones that believe, and the ones that don’t.  The idea that we inhabit many different identities over many different lifetimes is a topic that has been pondered and discussed through the ages, and there are a number of spiritual traditions, such as Buddhism and Hinduism, that include the concept of reincarnation in their teachings.  So, what does A Course in Miracles have to say about it?

 

Let’s address the level of the world first.  There are various passages throughout the Course that allude to the idea that we live a great many different lifetimes within the dream.  In the section Revelation, Time and Miracles it reads, the miracle substitutes for learning that might have taken thousands of years (T-1.II.6:7).  And in the Manual for Teachers – each one saves a thousand years of time as the world judges it (ACIM, M-1.2:13).  These passages all refer to the Course’s claim that if you practice the spiritual path it sets out, you will save very large amounts of time – in fact, lifetimes worth of time.  This is only possible of course, if we do indeed live multiple lifetimes. 

 

Now let’s look at the second level- the level of truth.  The Course directly addresses the topic of reincarnation in section 24 of the Teacher’s Manual.  It says, in the ultimate sense, reincarnation is impossible.  There is no past or future, and the idea of birth into a body has no meaning either once or many times.  Reincarnation cannot, then, be true in any real sense (M-24.1:1-3).  Why is it impossible?  It is impossible because at no single instant does the body exist at all (ACIM, T-18.VII.3:1).  The body is an illusion – a projection of the mind.  Being just a projection, it isn’t actually there, and it is impossible for us to be within something that doesn’t exist.  Yes, it appears to us that we are experiencing being in a body, but the Course teaches that this is a false experience.

 

We can think of it this way.  You are in bed at night, and you are having a dream.  In this dream, you are identified with the figure that features in it, and you believe you are this figure.  You also believe that what is happening in this dream is your life.  Then you wake up and the dream is over.  But the next night you have yet another dream, and in this dream, you are a completely different figure, living a completely different life.  Again, you believe this is you. And on and on it goes, night after night, character after character, dream after dream.  Reincarnation is the same.

 

Our mind is asleep, dreaming of our current lifetime, and we think this is who we are.  When this particular dream is over and we appear to die, we just go on to a new dream.  Sure, in-between bodily lives it may appear that we are travelling around in spirit form, having all these adventures and making all these plans, but this too is just a part of the dream.  All your time is spent in dreaming. Your sleeping and your waking dreams have different forms, and that is all. Their content is the same (T-18.II.5:12-14).  We are merely shifting from one dream state to another.  Then it appears we enter back into a different body, in a different time and place, as a different person – or other form – with a completely new life.  But we aren’t really in a body.  There is no body!  Only a dream of a body.  We are merely engrossed in a seemingly never-ending procession of dream lives, continually going from one to the next, and in our sleeping state we believe it is true. 

 

To be honest, it doesn’t really matter if you believe in the idea of reincarnation or not, and you can still be a student of the Course no matter what side of the fence you sit on.  As it tells us, the way to salvation can be found by those who believe in reincarnation and by those who do not.  The idea cannot, therefore, be regarded as essential to the curriculum (M-24.2:5-6).  But whether you do or don’t believe, it’s important to realise what purpose you are using this belief for.  The Course tells us, our only question should be, “Is the concept helpful?”  And that depends, of course, on what it is used for.  If it is used to strengthen the recognition of the eternal nature of life, it is helpful indeed (M-24.1:4-6).  So, if your belief in reincarnation helps you to feel and connect with the eternal truth within you, it can be a very helpful tool in aiding your path to awakening.  All beliefs that lead to progress should be honored (M-24.6:11).

 

But we are cautioned that the idea of reincarnation can also be misused in the service of the wrong mind, which will only aid in making the illusion appear more real to you.  This happens when we use the concept to distract our mind with the past or the future.  We may be looking to past lives to figure out what is wrong with us now or using various past lifetimes to bolster our sense of pride and importance.  Equally, we could be basing our present actions and deeds around working towards some future life benefits.  In this way, the idea of reincarnation can distract us from the forgiveness lessons that we are supposed to be working on now, keeping us focused on the dream and delaying us on our path. 

 

We want to remember whether we believe in reincarnation or not, our ultimate goal as Course students is to awaken from the dream, not to get caught up in various aspects of it we find fascinating and exciting, thus making it more real for us.  The only way to do this is to work on where we are right now, on the lifetime we think we are currently in.   The emphasis of this course always remains the same;-it is at this moment that complete salvation is offered you, and it is at this moment that you can accept it. This is still your one responsibility. Atonement might be equated with total escape from the past and total lack of interest in the future. Heaven is here. There is nowhere else. Heaven is now. There is no other time (M-24.6:1-7).