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Demystifying Reincarnation

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Who are we? What is our life meant for? What happens to us after death?
Demystifying Reincarnation explores questions of our identity and destiny scientifically, historically and philosophically.
Scientifically, pioneering researchers have documented fascinating cases of:
Children who recollect past lives, giving details that they had no normal way of knowing.
People who, despite being medically unconscious, were conscious of their vicinity and beyond.
Historically, the principle of reincarnation has enjoyed acceptance in most parts of the globe throughout the ages—a list of its advocates looks like an intellectual who’s who of world history.
Philosophically, reincarnation is the bedrock of a profound world view that reflects our intuitive sense of justice, our innate need for hope and our universal longing for immortality.
Demystifying Reincarnation expands our understanding of what it means to be human and reveals new horizons for our deepest aspirations.

252 pages, Paperback

Published March 1, 2017

32 people are currently reading
184 people want to read

About the author

Chaitanya Charan Das

20 books63 followers
Chaitanya Charan Das is a monk, spiritual mentor and author.

Building on his engineering degree from the Government College of Engineering, Pune, he has studied extensively the philosophical and sociological ramifications of modern science. Complementing his scientific education is his keen spiritual sensitivity honed by systematic and sympathetic study of the bhakti tradition for over two decades.

He has been an invited speaker at several international conferences on the interface of science and spirituality, including the World Peace Conference 2006 and World Peace Congress 2008 organized by UNESCO. Based in India, he has given talks at colleges and companies all over the world from Australia to America. His writings appear regularly in several Indian newspapers including the reputed Speaking Tree column in The Times of India. Apart from 300 analytical articles (available at www.thespiritualscientist.com) and 1600 inspirational daily meditations on the Bhagavad-gita (available at www.gitadaily.com).

He is the author of 16 books on a wide variety of subjects ranging from Science and spirituality, socio-cultural analysis of religion, and the ancient texts of India, especially the Ramayana, Mahabharata and Bhagavad-gita:
1. 10 Leadership Sutras from Bhagavad Gita;
2. Timeless Insights on Today's Issues;
3. Science & Spirituality;
4. ENERGY - Your Sutra for positive Thinking;
5. My Little Bhakti Companion
6. Idol Worship Or Ideal Worship ?
7. RECESSION - Adversity or Opportunity
8. Why do we need a TEMPLE?
9. Frequently Unanswered Questions
10. GK for PK
11. Gita For Daily Enrichment eBook (Gita Daily Series Book 1)
12. The Eye to See the "I" (Gita Daily Series Book 2)
13. Belong (Gita daily series 3)
14. The Spiritual Scientist - 1
15. The Spiritual Scientist - 2
16. OMG - Re-answering the questions
17. Prabhupada: The movements that made the movement
18. Demystifying Reincarnation
19. Mind It!
20. Inner Change
21. Wisdom - From Ramayana on Life & Relationships
22. The Searching Eye
23. Gita Wisdom through Quotes

He is a member of ISKCON’s leading intellectual body, the Shastric Advisory Council, which offers scriptural advice to the GBC (Governing Body Commissioner). He is an associate editor of Back to Godhead, ISKCON’s global magazine. His writings in English have been translated into several foreign languages including German, Chinese and Romanian and several Indian languages including Kannada, Telugu, Bengali, Hindi and Marathi.

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5 stars
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Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews
Profile Image for Sheetal Maurya - Godse (Halo of Books) .
324 reviews29 followers
June 25, 2017
Have you ever believed in reincarnation, souls, and past life memories? Many of you must be thinking that all these are utter nonsense and who talks about these in the modern age. If you are also among them then this book will definitely help you to change your perception. I am really thankful to the publisher for providing this copy of a book in exchange for an honest review. So let’s check what this book offers.

Summary:

This book divides into various chapters; each chapter has its own importance and follows the previous chapters.

This book starts with the various true examples of the people claiming to remember their past life in an accurate way. The author has accumulated such amazing cases which make you rethink on this subject. He has also explained the chances of forgery in such cases, which is almost zero as people do not gain anything from such propaganda.

After this, the author has presented some very strange and interesting near death experiences (NDE) across the world. One such case among these is of a person who is born-blind but clearly able to see during NDE. He has also given various aspects which researchers have found can cause the NDE, however, none of them give any concrete explanation.

After this, the author moves on to tell about the ‘The mysterious phenomenon of consciousness’. This chapter will give you answers to the various questions like who is the owner of the body? When the body changes, who is the ‘I’ that remains the same? How do our memories stay intact despite the constant regeneration of our brain cells?

The next chapter concentrates about the various examples of reincarnation in world history and in various religions. This chapter is really worth to read which gives you an insight how each religion depicts the same message through different depiction.

Further chapters answer all the question of reincarnation, NDE and existence of the soul in a scientific yet Vedic way taking various verses from the ancient Veda and Bhagavad Gita.

The last three appendixes are something very practical and interesting to read, which is applicable in today’s world. ‘Ghost demystified’ is a very logical interpretation by the author and great way to end this book.

My perception:

This book is very useful to read. You will get answers to various questions which must be in your mind but there is no one who can make you understand these. With Demystifying Reincarnation the author has given an in-depth focus on soul and its mystery. This book makes way through the scientific and spiritual way. This book is very well researched and I need to admire the author’s effort to write on a totally different subject. Apart from all these, I also got to know that our Veda’s are so ahead of time. This book will be able to change your lookout and will help you to believe in good karma.

You hardly come across with such books; if you have not yet read this then do pick it up. I am sure this book will illuminate your mind and conscience.

Read more such book reviews on our blog Halo of Books - Book reviews

Happy Reading :)
Profile Image for Siddhesh Patankar.
1 review
July 5, 2017
There's not only one thing that I liked about this book. The cover is so attractive that it pulls you towards reading the book.

While reincarnation has made into a laughingstock by Indian movies, this book is an eye-opening for those who sincerely want to understand the mystery of reincarnation.

Book's overview

First three chapters will deal with all various possibilities that people tend to reject reincarnation as fake. These sections of the book will give you insights on convincing and irrefutable cases which prove reincarnation is real, breaking all the prejudice and give readers dose of reality.

Once you finished chapter three, naturally a question will pop up in your mind. What is that which reincarnate?

Chapter four to six deals with consciousness. That it is not an abstract phenomenon but the real "you." When you finish chapter six, a new perceptive about life will unlock before you. The taboo subject for science or materialism.

Chapter seven to nine makes this book unique among all well-researched books on reincarnation. There are many books which have various cases of reincarnation, but if you go deeper into the concept of reincarnation. You will find, it's just endless cycle of coming back into a body. This book, however, will bestow you the ancient knowledge of India which deals with reincarnation and how to make sense of it.

Just like Bhagavad Gita is an integral part of Mahabharat, without it Mahabharat is meaningless. Similarly without understanding last three chapters of Demystifying Reincarnation, early six chapters won't give you a perfect understanding.

Demystifying Reincarnation is one of the best books I've ever read. Looking forward to read more books by Chaitanya Charan Das.

One sentence about the author: a man with oceanic knowledge.
Profile Image for Anil Saini.
18 reviews
December 2, 2017
The book mainly deals with the concepts of soul and reincarnation and how these two are related. Using the stories of real people from other scholarly works, it first attempts to convince the reader of reincarnation, a phenomenon not given its due space in scientific community due to its largely non-materialistic nature. Then, it uses the concept of soul as propounded in Vedic literature to account for reincarnation and a related concept of Near Death Experience (NDE).
While the author has presented the empirical evidence vis-a-vis reincarnation and NDE in a logical manner, the arguments he gives to establish the supremacy of Vedic interpretation (explanation) of reincarnation over the scientific method do not seem compelling. Additionally, to attain enlightenment (moksha), the book exclusively suggests Bhakti Yoga, and fails to mention other ways of achieving the same results.
Profile Image for Aman Mittal.
Author 1 book73 followers
August 10, 2017

Are you looking for a spiritual read in from an easter philosophy point of view? Then do dive in this post and you might find something intriguing. Does the words reincarnation, and past life interest you? Do you believe in them? Chaitanya Charan's latest book Demystifying Reincarnation puts a thoughtful point of view on aforementioned terms in the modern world.

The question in regard of an individual's reality, fate, is explored by every single person on this planet depending on the situation they find themselves in. These situation do play a major part because upon reminding these questions to ourselves, a chain of thoughts emerge from nowhere and our brain neurons get back to work. To summarise it, Fyodor Dostevsky's Crime and Punishment is a great example.

The principle of reincarnation and past lives may not accepted by current modern world but it has been its scope has been global over various centuries. Different civilizations dwelling over different parts of world have had similar experiences in philosophical terms. This what Chaitanya Charan explore in this book in the starting chapters. He has considered every major religion to provide a basic understanding to his readers over the term "reincarnation".

The book is divided into various chapters and each significant chapter follows the previous one in terms of importance. I will advise you to not to skip any of them if you decide to read on with this book. In these chapters he has provided various anecdotes to people remembering accurate fragments of their past lives. If all I have said till yet has not been intriguing to you at all, these early chapters will develop that foundation.

Some of these studies are well researched and supported by real incidents. Moving on, he tries to answer, in philosophical as well technical terminology the major question the whole humanity wonders, the question regarding the soul and the owner of an individual's body.

At last, the author tries to demystify the terror regarding the ghosts with, I think, a logical perception of his own and a very satisfying ending to this particular book. In philosophical terms, the author has done a great job, in scientific terms, many of the topics discussed in this book have no proof but then again, not everything is already explained and we as the whole solitary body are trying to find that "proof".

The book will definitely have an effect over your perceptions whether only in philosophical terms, as it did on mine. If you are looking for a blend between philosophy and spirituality, this book might be worth it.

4 out of 5!
Profile Image for Alceste.
378 reviews
July 3, 2022

Are you looking for a spiritual read in from an easter philosophy point of view? Then do dive in this post and you might find something intriguing. Does the words reincarnation, and past life interest you? Do you believe in them? Chaitanya Charan's latest book Demystifying Reincarnation puts a thoughtful point of view on aforementioned terms in the modern world.

The question in regard of an individual's reality, fate, is explored by every single person on this planet depending on the situation they find themselves in. These situation do play a major part because upon reminding these questions to ourselves, a chain of thoughts emerge from nowhere and our brain neurons get back to work. To summarise it, Fyodor Dostevsky's Crime and Punishment is a great example.

The principle of reincarnation and past lives may not accepted by current modern world but it has been its scope has been global over various centuries. Different civilizations dwelling over different parts of world have had similar experiences in philosophical terms. This what Chaitanya Charan explore in this book in the starting chapters. He has considered every major religion to provide a basic understanding to his readers over the term "reincarnation".

The book is divided into various chapters and each significant chapter follows the previous one in terms of importance. I will advise you to not to skip any of them if you decide to read on with this book. In these chapters he has provided various anecdotes to people remembering accurate fragments of their past lives. If all I have said till yet has not been intriguing to you at all, these early chapters will develop that foundation.

Some of these studies are well researched and supported by real incidents. Moving on, he tries to answer, in philosophical as well technical terminology the major question the whole humanity wonders, the question regarding the soul and the owner of an individual's body.

At last, the author tries to demystify the terror regarding the ghosts with, I think, a logical perception of his own and a very satisfying ending to this particular book. In philosophical terms, the author has done a great job, in scientific terms, many of the topics discussed in this book have no proof but then again, not everything is already explained and we as the whole solitary body are trying to find that "proof".

The book will definitely have an effect over your perceptions whether only in philosophical terms, as it did on mine. If you are looking for a blend between philosophy and spirituality, this book might be worth it.

4 out of 5!
Profile Image for Abhilash Ruhela.
625 reviews63 followers
May 4, 2017
It’s not always that you can freely recommend a book that is based upon spirituality or the world that is not so common among the majority to others. But as it is said that when there’s no great example to give, create one. It is in this line that the book written by Chaitanya Charan named “Demystifying Reincarnation” falls. How many of us consider reincarnation a possibility or a sensible stuff? None of us. But what will you do when a 240-pages book is only giving you real and true accounts of the cases and proving the point that reincarnation is a common phenomenon? We can only accept the truth silently. That’s what this book has been able to do with the readers who could not have ever believed that they will start believing in something like reincarnation and ghosts at the end of it.

The book starts with narrating different true incidents along with its sources to introduce us with the real examples around us where the individual claims to have a previous birth. Post narration of the incidents, author starts the debate if in any ways it can be proved that the stories are false. And then the way each and every point is put, discussed, debated and concluded, only makes you fall in love with each and every page of this book.

Later on, author discusses different scenarios like Near Death experiences, hallucination etc. to prove more points about how these things are also related with the reincarnation. The references of the Bhagavad Gita are made very aptly to make us believe in the concepts that the author discusses. Author has also quoted the Holy books of the religion other than Hinduism to let the reader know that almost all the religion endorses reincarnation either directly or indirectly. The diagrammatic representation to explain few complex theories regarding the soul, mind and body makes it very easy for the reader to interpret the virtual structure within us.

In the end, the way ghosts are discussed is surely the best ending that this book could have ever had. Talking about any kind of drawbacks, I just didn’t enjoy Appendixes as it all went above my mediocre brain. Haha! Overall, this book is something you shouldn’t miss if you have always been skeptical about the concept of reincarnation and previous births. I give this book 4.5* out of 5.

Thanks.

ABHILASH RUHELA – VEERU!!!
1 review
November 5, 2019
The most exhaustive and cogent explanation on reincarnation

The content is superb! Very exhaustive and written in a very east to understand English. Was very impressed and a recommended read for anyone who is curious to know more about this esoteric topic. Please see the chapters below and you can be assured all your questions on reincarnation will be answered-

CHAPTER ONE: PAST-LIFE MEMORIES—KNOWLEDGE FROM NORMAL SOURCES? 


CHAPTER TWO: PAST-LIFE MEMORIES—GUESSWORK OR EXAGGERATION? 


CHAPTER FOUR: NEAR-DEATH EXPERIENCES 


CHAPTER FIVE: THE MYSTERIOUS PHENOMENON OF CONSCIOUSNESS Intuitive 


CHAPTER SIX: REINCARNATION IN WORLD HISTORY  


CHAPTER SEVEN: SOUL-SEARCHING—THE VEDIC WAY 


CHAPTER EIGHT: REINCARNATION—THE HOWS AND THE WHYS Do Animals Have Souls? 


CHAPTER NINE: THE FREEDOMS OF THE REINCARNATION WORLDVIEW 


APPENDIX ONE: THE COMEBACK OF THE SOUL  


APPENDIX TWO: ON MACHINE CONSCIOUSNESS 


APPENDIX THREE: GHOSTS DEMYSTIFIED

Profile Image for Ravi K. Avadhanula.
71 reviews
April 18, 2020
His Holiness Chaitanya Charan Ji distilled the essence of his many devoted years of research on reincarnation in this volume. References and validations given are very much useful to dive deep into the subject. One needs acute understanding to know and comprehend what has been given in the book. Only an authentic Guru-blessed being could assimilate and interpret such a subtle concept like reincarnation, otherwise even the thought of it is a dare.
11 reviews1 follower
January 25, 2021
Truly Demystifyied

A rational and open minded take on After life concepts of Reincarnation and NDEs. Beautifully explained on how Vedantic knowledge can be of great help for advanced studies on Afterlife and for enrichment of wholistic living. A sincere call to the scientific community to persuade study of Spirit guiding the matter. Lovely read. Thoroughly enjoyed.
Profile Image for Krishna.
48 reviews7 followers
May 21, 2017
A very research oriented work presented with the help of more than enough strong real life instances, it convinced me that there exists an invisible power - the consciousness or the soul, that only a few intellectuals have studied or acknowledged.
A very fast read indeed.
6 reviews
September 11, 2022
Excellent Read

Answers all common myths relating to transition from death to rebirth. Very clear and concise presentation on the subject of reincarnation. Overall a great good read. But still many questions still needs answers on the subject of reincarnation.
20 reviews1 follower
January 4, 2018
Indeed a well written book

It is a well researched and clearly written book. Author seems to be having first hand knowledge in the subject. Good read for spiritual people
Profile Image for Arunayan Sharma.
Author 3 books32 followers
August 23, 2020
If you are confused, depressed and deflected from life than this book is for you. Read this to reinvent yourself.
1 review
April 16, 2022
simple and practical

Author has provided simple and practical ways of relating nde to reincarnation and then on the practical benefits of the same
Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews

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