What is so different about you lately?

I have gotten that question from many people, and to be honest I do feel different. There have been many people and events that have influenced my life and who I am today. However, upon reflection I can point to one event that forever changed my life, because it changed my perception of it.

You are probably thinking that it was a traumatic and disastrous event, but it wasn't.

It was a past-life regression. Yup, one of those things that you have probably read or heard about where someone hypnotizes you and guides you back in time to an earlier life so that you can recall what happened.

A spiritual teacher who had been coaching me for some time had offered to do this for me, and because I trusted her implicitly I agreed to submit myself to the experience. Even though she had my trust I was still somewhat apprehensive, not liking the idea of being "hypnotized". I quote the word for emphasis because now I understand that hypnosis is not about losing control. It is about allowing suggestions to guide you towards a realization. No one can tell you a lie and make you believe it because you are in a hypnotic state. Only Hollywood movies do that.

Anyhow, the past-life regression (or PLR) was just a vehicle to carry me towards my realization of parts of myself. The change of perception about all of life came afterwards. It came because I realized that my beliefs about life, and more importantly death, were completely based on what society has led me to believe.

Death in today's society is synonymous with extinction in the minds of most people. Society says that "You only have one life to live", and that "Life is not a dress-rehearsal".

However, once I realized that I had lived many times before there was no reason to believe that I wouldn't live countless more lifetimes.

Think about that for a moment. Really think about what that means.

I am an eternal and immortal being in the spiritual sense. Therefore "death" as I had come to know it from society's definition did not exist.

I am no different from anyone else on the planet. So the same conclusion must apply to you as well. This means that we have all been lied to by any faith, religion or society that we have ever been involved with.

When a foundational belief about death changes, then the feelings, emotions, and thoughts that were based on that belief must also change.

So, to finally answer the original question, here is a short list of some of thoughts that have changed for me, and as a result I have become a different person.

- We are all here to fulfill an agenda, a sort of list of contracts. Most of us do not know what our contracts are, but if we follow our inner voice then we usually do the right thing. When our contracts have been fulfilled, we "graduate" to another set of contracts. This "graduation" is death. We return home to plan our next visit to Earth (or maybe somewhere else?).

- There is no such thing as a cruel and uncaring God. Since we are all reborn into an infinite number of lifetimes, all of what we perceive as suffering and tragedy is actually not that at all. Every misery that we suffer is actually a lesson to further us on our path of spiritual evolution. I am not suggesting that as a result of this belief that I have become uncaring or unsympathetic to the situations that I see around me. Instead, I have realized that attaching to drama only creates more drama. Rather, I recognize the drama for what it is, bless whoever is involved with the hope that they will find the highest good in the situation for all involved, and then I move on.

- I do not ever have to be afraid ever again. Since my spirit is immortal, nothing that happens to me is ever lost or forgotten. In a true sense, no ever ever "really" gets hurt in any way. See the point above if this is not entirely clear.

- I have realized that what you focus on grows, and what you ignore fades away.

I hope that my ramblings have somehow served to answer the question, and that my discoveries may help you in some way. May the creator of all that is bless you with joy and peace!