Book Review
The Little Book of the Soul by Ian Lawton. 2nd edition,
Rational Spirituality Press, 2008. Available via the internet from the author
at: www.ianlawton.com and free online in
text and video on You Tube.
This little book is a treasure-trove full of fascinating accounts of recent
research into the possibility of continuing existence after death and the
possibility that reincarnation may be real. Ian Lawton is a respected authority
on the Inter-Life and his approach is one of looking at rational explanation of
research based on hypnotic regressions, childhood experiences, and therapeutic
interviews from health professionals and researchers of different types all over
the world. He cites cases such as that of James Lenninger of
Louisiana,
who at the age of two in the year 2000 started recounting vivid stories of a
previous life as an American fighter pilot shot down in the battle of
Iwo Jima in 1945. The little boy’s statements have been thoroughly
researched and found to be correct to the tiniest detail. The author analyzes
the work of pioneering Australian reincarnation and inter-life researcher Peter Ramster.
He regressed four Sydney
housewives into what they said were previous lives and then researched the
validity of what they said, took them to Europe to check
their claims in person, and made a fascinating documentary film about the whole
experience. Lawton says that
Ramster’s work especially gives cause to believe that some people indeed do
remember the details of previous life experience and this lends credence to the
idea of continuing existence after death.
Perhaps the most interesting part of
the book is the author’s conclusions based on his years of patient research of
such cases. His conclusions include: the soul survives independent of the
physical body; souls have many lives not just one; our many lives are not linked
by a karmic law of action and reaction – this conclusion is in contrast to the
teachings of theosophy and most, if not all the world’s great religions; we
reincarnate so that we can grow in experience; the only judgment after death
comes from ourselves; we are responsible for all aspects of our lives because we
plan and choose them during our inter-life experiences; we always have free will
to deviate from our life plan; we are all One and all God; soul consciousness is
holographic and represents the part and the whole at the same time; the aim of
"the Source" is to experience all that is and can be. These conclusions, and
Lawton’s analysis of them based on actual testimony of
people who say they have experience of after-life and reincarnation, makes
fascinating reading and listening to on You Tube where the whole book is
available as a series of videos of the author reading his book. Ian Lawton’s
ideas are developed further in his other books including: The Wisdom of
the Soul, The Big Book of the Soul, and Genesis Unveiled
which are all available from his informative website at
www.ianlawton.com. –
Andrew Rooke (from Theosophy Downunder, Summer 2009)
Book Reviews