[willie24]

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however, if no memory of past life (or premonition of future life) is required, then "reincarnation?" becomes philosophical rather than factual.


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If you mean that "philosophical" deals with desires or nice sounding things that border on reality but are not ever it then I'll disagree. "Philosophical" deals with truth or better yet "wisdom" and is not a carnival side show.As the word states it speaks to the "love of wisdom". This really comes to the individual and not some broad abstraction as "philosophy".

Reincarnation and Karma speaks to Morality.Man's destiny is a moral tone poem whose essence is Love.

When space, time and other scientific abstractions are treated as the "only real" then concepts such as "big bang" progressing to a death of "only heat" obfuscate the reality of the Moral. Without the Moral Man is a "fifth wheel" , watching the universal progression without being a part of the same.

We are "within nature" and if you consider yourself in any way involved with "morality" then a good logical conclusion is that "nature" is also involved with "morality". Around you is "nature" which is your karma. Your position and place on earth, your family, clan, nation and race, all karmic. Your very body is karmic and related to destiny.

Love frees one from earthly karma and in this Man becomes free, new and nobled. Karma is not a burden to be shunned but a great joy to be greeted and transformed, for in this comes the renewal of Man.

As an addition, yes, you planned your karma. What man can complain he is only a "atom of infinity" when he planned his house and now lives in it? Karma is Morality redeemed and is a boon to mankind.

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actually, i was not using "philosophical" as a putdown. i meant that the question of reincarnation, given my parameters on the definition, is one of philosophy, as opposed to "hard scientific fact." in other words, it can not be proven or disproven. it is a way of thinking about something rather than a material reality etc.

your idea of "karma" is interesting. it has never occured to me, and doesn't strike me as an obvious truth - most notably because i don't believe that there is any such thing as morality. one being's morality is another's demise. but i certainly admit that it could be true, given the truth of a certain set of assumptions.