This method was an extremely useful one in my classes, particularly for people who failed to regress using any other method. I began using it so that these people would have a taste of what a regression felt like. To my surprise, most of these people began with an imaginary scene but then moved on to an actual past life.

I am not sure why this should be the case. Perhaps these people had a subconscious fear about letting go and returning to a past life. Once they discovered how enjoyable the process was, they lost this fear, and were able to effortlessly move back to a previous existence. Perhaps the imaginary experience caused them to remember certain incidents that brought back past-life memories.

However, the reasons do not matter. What is important is that the imagination meditation works extremely well, and enables many people to rediscover their past lives.

Step One—The Time and the Setting
Spend some time thinking about periods of history that particularly interest you. It might be during the French Revolution. Perhaps Imperial Rome intrigues you. Maybe a lifetime in Atlantis. Some people deliberately choose a time of excitement,while others prefer a period of peace.

You might choose the time and place when a particular hero of yours was alive.If you are interested in drama, you might choose the London that William Shakespeare lived and worked in. You might decide to live in the Europe of Nostradamus. You might like to be on the small ship that Christopher Columbus crossed the Atlantic in. It makes no difference what time or place you choose, just as long as it appeals to you.

The time and place may have no bearing on your past lives. It is simply a starting point for the meditation. All the same, it is amazing how often people choose a time that interests them and then find themselves experiencing a past life in that period. No doubt this explains why they were interested in that particular period of history.

Step Two—Progressive Relaxation
Choose a time when you are not likely to be disturbed. Make yourself as comfortable as possible and then go through a progressive relaxation to ensure that you are completely relaxed. If you have learned how to meditate,you might choose to start off with a meditation. Alternatively, you might decide to first tense and then relax all of the muscles in your body, starting with your toes and gradually working your way up through your body. It does not matter which method you use, just as long as you feel totally relaxed at the end of it.

Step Three—Imaginary Past Life
Once you are completely relaxed, inhale deeply and exhale slowly.Tell yourself that you are going to move back through time and space to the period you decided on in step one.

Once you are there,visualize the scene as clearly as possible. People experience things in different ways. There is no need to worry if you do not see it as clearly as you would like. Some people see it so clearly that they would swear that they were inside the scene. Other people see very little, but experience it in other ways. They might feel the scene, or be unusually aware of all the sounds and smells.

Once you become familiar with the scene you are in,you can move backward or forward through time. You can see yourself at home, at work, or at play.

There is no need to hurry. Spend several minutes exploring the period in history that you chose. You will find it a fascinating experience, and will feel as if you are actually living in that time and place.

Step Four—Return to a Valid Past Life
Step three serves two purposes. First, it allows you to experience the sights, sounds, tastes, and other experiences of a period in history. In other words,it is virtually the same as a real past life. This prepares you for the real past-life experiences to come. Second, it enables you to relax even further.

Take another deep breath in and exhale slowly. With your eyes closed, visualize yourself as you are, sitting or lying down. In your mind’s eye see the scene as clearly as you can.

Once you can see yourself in your imagination, picture a bank of fog gradually sweeping over you until you are completely enveloped in fog. Wait until the scene in your mind is a swirling mass of white fog and you can no longer see yourself.

Take a long deep breath in and let it out as slowly as you can, at the same time allowing the fog to slowly move away. As the fog disappears, you will no longer see yourself sitting or lying down quietly. Instead you will be inside a scene from one of your past lives.

Allow a minute or two to become familiar with the scene you find yourself within. Experience it in as many different ways as you can. Look around and see it, feel it, smell it, and even taste it. When you are ready, move forward or backward in this past life,and explore it in as much detail as you wish.

Remember to visit scenes that reveal who you loved the most in that lifetime, what you did for a living, how you spent your time, what lessons needed to be learned,and what karma was created and paid back.

Some scenes will be happy, while others might be neutral or painful. You can move back from the painful ones and observe them from a distance. You can move completely away if you wish, but it is better to learn the bad aspects of your previous lives as well as the good.

Step Five—Return to the Present
When you have learned all that you need to know in this session, return to the present by counting silently from one to five. Remain quiet with your eyes closed for a minute or so, and then count up to five again and open your eyes.

Now that you have experienced a valid past life, you will be able to return to it again whenever you wish. However, that may not be necessary. Memories will flow into your conscious mind over the next few days now that the memories have been unlocked.

If you have not been able to return to your past lives using the other methods, you will find that this will cease to be a problem, now that you have succeeded using this method. Some people prefer to continue using this method, but others like to experiment with other ways of returning to explore their past lives. I enjoy experimenting with different techniques, but it is not necessary. All you need is one method that works for you.
 

From Practical Guide to Past-Life Memories, by Richard Webster