Life Before Life: A Scientific
Investigation of Childrens Memories
of Previous Lives by Dr. Jim Tucker
Very Worthy Read, Scientific Research At Its Most Compelling!
An extraordinarily important examination of scientific research into young
childrens reports of past-life memories (Larry Dossey, author of The
Extraordinary Healing Power of Ordinary Things)This book covers forty
years of research begun by Dr. Ian Stevenson. Written by his colleague
and successor, it presents details of some of the 2500 cases of children
who have reported memories of previous lives. The children usually begin
talking about a past life at the age of two or three. They may talk about a
previous family, things they did when they were big, or the way they died in
their previous life. Their statements often correspond to a particular
deceased individual, and some children have recognized family members
of that person. Many children have birthmarks or defects that match
wounds on the body of the deceased.Life Before Life presents this
research in an unbiased manner. It is not intended to prove reincarnation

but is an exploration of the possibility that consciousness continues after
the brain dies.This provocative and fascinating book will challenge and
ultimately change readers understanding of life and death.
Personal Review: Life Before Life: A Scientific Investigation of
Childrens Memories of Previous Lives by Dr. Jim Tucker
As a practicing research scientist, let me note that most in the West are
unaware of the substantial empirical scientific research that has been
conducted on rebirth/reincarnation during the past 50-80 years. Admittedly,
it is not possible to use the Gold Standard, randomized double blind
studies, on children who have memories of past lives. however, Ian
Stevenson, the founder of the University of Virginia's Division of Perceptual
Studies, was a thorough and meticulous scientific researcher who always
sought alternative explanations using every tool available to him.
Fortunately, his rigorous methods have guided the continuing research
both at Virginia and elsewhere around the world where his findings have
stimulated further research.
Tucker, in this book, takes every argument ever put forth against
rebirth/reincarnation or against the compiled evidence, and subjects it to
rational scrutiny, seeking to close every hole in the argument either for or
against. As a logician and practicing empirical researcher for 25 years, my
judgment is that he was completely successful about 95 percent of the
time, and at least partially successful in all cases.
Some evidence I found extremely interesting includes:
* Love appears to endure (across lives), as apparently does Anger in
some cases,.
* The two fetal awareness cases should interest "right to life"
supporters.
* Only very limited evidence supports the Buddhist/Hindu concept of
Kamma/Karma. Admittedly, the Buddha did state that Kamma is far to
complicated to even begin to think about before awakening. Apparently,
kamma, as Malidoma Some stated, is something that "Knowledge Can't
Eat."
* The fact that almost all recorded cases indicate rebirth/reincarnation
between nine and 15 months after death supports the Buddha's stance of
continuous rebirth.
On the Nature of the Research Evidence
Note that over 2,500 cases are on record at Virginia, and other research is
available from other reputable universities around the world. Note also that
some evidence is quite strong, such as the 30 or so cases where Buddhist
monks (or others) wrote down what a child said about their past life before
anyone sought to determine whether these statements hold up in the "real
world." Solved cases are those where people or situations from the former
life are verified by traveling to the place the child claims to have lived and
died, and checking the accuracy of their statements. Another strong set of
evidence relates to birthmarks. There are cases where forensic evidence

shows where bullets entered and left a dead person's body, and the child
in a different town, who claims to have been that person, exhibits puckered
birthmarks of the same size and in the same places (entry smaller than
exit). Stevenson finally made this research available to those of us who
lack vast wealth in: Where Reincarnation and Biology Intersect. Of course,
most cases provide weaker empirical evidence than these two types
(roughly 98%). However, almost all of these are investigated using the best
scientific research techniques available for the situations, so most are as
empirically strong as they possibly can be. Further, Tucker evaluates
consistencies in findings, identifies inconsistencies and is finally able,
thanks to the recent entry of some 1,800 of these cases into a database, to
compile statistics that allow us to understand trends and consistencies
across cases and to conduct specific analyses relative to arguments
against this.
A Couple of Additional, Somewhat Tangential Notes
Fortunately, as scientific research has evolved following on the
development of Quantum Mechanics and widespread Anthropological and
other Qualitative research, social scientists today are beginning to
understand that human demographic and ethnographic behaviors, and
what people say, may be more important than what happens with rats in
controlled experiments. Thus, mixed methods has become the a desired
scientific paradigm in research on human beings, and I can personally
vouch for the fact that NSF reviewers, when evaluating grant proposals,
prefer that approach. Much of the research described by Tucker could be
termed systematic qualitative.
For More 5 Star Customer Reviews and Lowest Price:
Life Before Life: A Scientific Investigation of Childrens Memories of Previous Lives by
Dr. Jim Tucker 5 Star Customer Reviews and Lowest Price!