Many Lives, Many Masters

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Summary: Many Lives, Many Masters
Review: I "accidentally' picked up this book to read while sitting with a relative who was hospitalized. Prior to reading this book I had no thoughts or knowledge about reincarnation other than I thought it was just a bunch of "hokey". Dr. Weiss presents his research with such intelligence and logic that it is hard not to believe. This book has changed my outlook on life and death. Whether one can believe in reincarnation or not this book certainly provides evidence that there is more to our existence than what we really know.

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Summary: Life Changing Experience
Review: Reading this book was indeed a life changing experience for me. It completely changed my views on life and death, and made me look at things from a different perspective. I no longer fear death, because i am convinced that we are eternal and that our physical death is not the end of our being. I also now believe in reincarnation and that some can recall their past life experiences. The book made me realize what a vast world it is, and how easy it is to let it slip by without appreciating it and using it to our full advantage. I now am more inspired to do charity work, to spend time with loved ones, and most importantly to explore and expand my inner self. I highly recommend this book for anyone sixteen years of age or older. I guarantee that it will greatly impact your life.

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Summary: good hypothesis...but
Review: Brian L Weiss has written a highly readable book that answers many questions about life. Or does it? He informs us that he is a well reputed psychiatrist who leads a patient back in time to remember her past lives. In between these lives, the "masters" speak to him, through his patient, in a different voice(male,of course). It's too bad that John Denver is no longer alive to play the lead role in the movie version. If the book has the effect of curing sick people, great going Dr Weiss.

But if it has the effect of making us all think suffering is good for us, and then go out and make others suffer for their "health", watch out.

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Summary: Step back for a second...
Review: First, I am an Atheist. Belief in a "God" leads unavoidably to the question, "What does he want from me?" which question has not been answered ("He" hasn't told us) and which question is the result of most of the pain in the world (People think he has told them). That is my essential argument against the idea of "God".

I _am_, however willing to accept the idea that there are other dimensions, paranormal occurrences, and things we don't understand. It was in this spirit that I read this book. In surfing through all the reviews, one thing is certain: Many people have been comforted and empowered by it. The fact is that from a pragmatic standpoint, Dr. Weiss has helped many people feel happier and more comfortable by writing this book.

Now, having said that, I must say that it's obviously a sham. Lots of people have noticed the B.C. comment, which I suppose could be explained away in that it sounds as if Catherine was not _always_ in the body or consciousness of the person. That is to say she was often observing the situation as herself, I.E. "Catherine" and commenting on the scene (I am wearing x, I appear to be a farmer, etc.). In this way, one could explain that inconsistency. What _cannot_ be explained, however, and what _must_ be explained, is why a supposed "scientist" would not have tried to tie her down to _specifics_ in regard to her past lives. "Oh, you're a Nazi pilot? What is your full name? What battle is it that you were just in? What is your flight designation? What is the name of your commanding officer? To whom have you written so that I may perhaps search for a letter from you in my own world?" I was amazed at how few _last_ names are given, or how little interest the Dr. had in actually chasing down these people Catherine had been. This would have been the first thing I (or any scientist) would have done, and his failure to do so discredits his whole book. I was also irritated by the fact that the whole system revolves around Planet Earth in the ridiculous Lion King "Circle of Life" way. "Nature never destroys itself" except when an asteroid smashes into the planet and wipes out 80% of the life on it. Also, why aren't these "souls" living lives on other planets? Surely there's life out there, right? It's still the same universe, right? Why are they just hanging around on earth? It's silly.

Suppose for a second, given the fact that the book _has_ helped many people, and that the ideas presented within are really beautiful and compelling, that the Dr. _knew_ this would be the case. Suppose for a second that he sold it with such a great story because he felt that helping people pragmatically, as the person who quoted Tony Robbins (puh-lease!) mentioned, is the best way to heal them. "Reality has nothing to do with it," he thinks to himself. "It's efficacy and pragmatism that will help them." If so, it appears he was right. I am happy for them and for him. I remain skeptical, but I am not and never was, fearful of death.

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Summary: Amazing
Review: This book is definitely food for thought and discussion when it comes to reincarnation, past life regression and the validity of using past life regression in diagnosing and healing current problems. This story of Dr. Weiss and Catherine will not soon be forgotten.

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Summary: Fiction? Non-fiction? Believable? or not....
Review: A friend who is very interested in the idea of reincarnation and past lives passed me this book as a sort of introduction to the subject. The author, a psychiatrist who considers himself both mainstream and well-reputed, finds himself with a patient (a basically healthy young woman) who is having trouble coping with a couple of very unnatural fears. Under hypnosis the doctor finds the woman describing in detail, events in previous lives (some hundreds of years ago in countries like Spain and Egypt). Over the course of many months, he works with her while she is hypnotized, to better understand from which lives she has 'learned' a given fear and to work through the event that causes the fear. While a fun sort of tale, I found it completely unbelievable in large part because the patient was just incredibly blasé about what would be seen by most people as an amazing phenomena - being able to go back and relate with supposed accuracy and detail numerous past lives. She was almost sheep-like in her manner - sort of just following along with the doctor as these sessions were revealing some extraordinary events. A good introduction to the idea of past lives, perhaps, but nothing more than an interesting psychological tale.

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Summary: amazing
Review: I was very skeptical when I first started reading this book and I still would like to hang on to the belief that it is all BS but it just makes so much sense that I have no choice but to consider that this is a true story. When I was finished reading it I was really convinced that it was all true. There is always a possibility that this guy is putting us on but I don't believe that to be true. This is a truly eye opening account of the meaning of each of our lives not just the whole picture of all of us but the individual person as well. It has really given me a different outlook and opened my mind to the possibility that there is so much more out there than the majority of us realize. I would highly recommend this book to anyone looking for insight into why we do the things we do. I am going to make sure that everyone in my family reads this book.

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Summary: the truth
Review: I have not read the book, but I believe it will be an extraordinary book. I do have every intention of purchasing one. I have great respect for anyone thinking "out of the box" to find answers for present day obstacles. One response to the person with a Hindu's perspective of reincarnation. It is a cultural perspective in which we each hold our own individual truth. Perhaps we should all put aside our own cultural upbringing and at times ignorance and embrace the diversity of our humanity. The truth is not in one text nor one person, but many text and many Masters.

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Summary: I am sorry to say I think this book is a sham
Review: I regret to say I feel this book is a sham. I do not make this judgement lightly. This is why:

-The patient gives past life dates, from the perspective of that lifetime, in BC format, something that's impossible to have known in those lifetimes. In other reviews of this book, the idea is advanced that perhaps she states these BC dates are made from the knowledge of her current incarnation. I have to say I find that improbable, as the book goes to trouble to show that when she is regressed into a lifetime she is *in that time* and experiences and feels and knows only what she knew in that incarnation, unless asked very specifically if she knows someone (meaning knows someone now that she knew then.) -In the very first session, when the first strange memory comes through, though the author goes to great lengths to establish himself as a rigidly linear, logical scientist who knew nothing of reincarnation, he somehow knows to advance her to her time of death. He has somehow figured out that this random mental imagery is a past life, though he says he knew nothing about this prior to researching the subject after the first hypnotism session. -The book is too pat... It's too shallow to be genuine. The subject matter, reincarnation and the time between-lives, is as deep a spiritual and emotionally moving a matter as it gets. Though the author mouths the words, he's very brusque about it, and the real *feeling* is absent. Perhaps it's just that the author is incapable of really expressing this sort of thing on paper, but I doubt that's the case. Frankly, I regret to say the book reads just as if it were fiction trying to be passed off as truth.

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Summary: Logic
Review: Can you remember your third birthday, or your second or first? Do you remember being born? No? How can you remember a last live if you cannot even remember parts of this one! Brian Weiss shows you in this book how he discoverred reincarnation purely by coincidence (or was it).