Lora Y. (islewalker) reviewed on 3/17/2011 + 29 more book reviews

Helpful Score: 2

This is the first book of Dr. Micheal Newton I have read and I gotta say I am confused by this guy.

On the one hand, in 1996 he wrote this book, compiling the hypnotic regression sessions of patients in order to put together his own understanding of what happens between losing one life and planning and going into the next.

He first began by realizing that past lives of patients can affect their current life. Soon he began piecing together consistencies between patient's accounts and making a narrative about what normally happens during these lives-between-lives. So, considering it was 15 years ago, I applaud him.

On the other hand, he has this weird kind of rigidity about how he sees this information. He has labeled all his patients as "beginning soul, intermediate soul and advanced soul" --and seems to have absolutely no qualms about labelling his patients that way.

He pushed for the colors of entities and sets a heirarchy of white energy souls (lowest), then blue energy souls and finally the purple ones. [In chakras, and in the vibrational energy of colors, white is actually higher energy than purple, so I'm not sure about this one.]

At each report of his patients, he seems to want to see a conspiracy of control at the top of the chain and rigid rules. For instance, when a guide or Oversoul or someone in the chain shows the soul choices that would fit his needs, Newton sees it as the guide rigging the choices to a few, even though the patients (souls) constantly tell him that no one is ever FORCED to make or not make a decision.

In one interview with an Advanced Soul, she is reporting that she joins the members of her company at one point. He asks how many there are and jumps to the conclusion that her Master Guide is in charge of them. She says they are her responsibility. She says the group is made of two "different progressions (levels)." He says, "And yet, you are the spiritual teacher for all nine?"

"I prefer to call myself a watcher. Three of my company are also watchers." she says. "Well, who are the other six?" She answers "(matter of factly) People who don't watch."

"I want to clarify this using my terms, if you will, Thece. If you are a senior watcher, three of your company must be what I would call junior guides?"

"Yes, but the words senior and junior--that portrays us an authoritarian, which we are not!"

Time and time again his patients convey to him that this is NOT a rigid thing, that it depends on the needs, abilities, desires, skills of each soul. But he rolls on.

He seemed to miss entirely the beauty of the system, the uniqueness of each soul. He entirely misses that each soul is unique, and therefore each unique energy combination has unique creativity to contribute to the multiverse-- that can't be contributed by anyone else. Each soul experiences consciousness (and non-consciousness) in a unique way. And that is the beauty of it.

He insists on seeing this as a rigid set of rules, a rigid heirarchy instead of the most loving way to grow souls. He is a Doctor of Counseling, not a Psychiatrist. I could understand if he were a psychiatrist since they become so entrenched in medical dogma in getting their degrees. But he's a counselor,a shrink. He just seems so..unbending.

The book, however, is well-organized. He does a great job of chosing patient sessions which illustrate his points. He uses exactly enough of the session.

And some of the sessions were very, very moving. Each one added to my understanding and many made me wonder about my own choices, weaknesses, past lives.

So all in all, this is a very good book. I'd be interested if anyone else had this response to the way it's written.

Maybe it's just me. ;)

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