Past life regression techniques

In original Pali Buddhism, there is no such thing as "recollecting past lives". The Pali term wrongly translated as "past lives" is "pubbenivāsa", which literally means "past dwellings" or "past abodes".

Therefore, in original Buddhism, "recollecting past abodes" literally means recollecting in the past when the mind mistakenly or ignorantly clung to one or more of the five aggregates as "self".

In original Buddhism, the word "birth" ("jati") means to create the idea of a "self" or "a being", either internally or externally. When the Buddha recollected his myriad past abodes & births, he recollected each time in the past the wrong view of "self" arose in his formerly ignorant mind.

In conclusion, the Buddhist practise of "recollecting past abodes" is literally explained & described in the sutta SN 22.79 (as translated by Bhikkhu Bodhi). It literally means recollecting in the past when the mind mistakenly or ignorantly clung to one or more of the five aggregates as "self".

Householder Phiost

DN 2: Samaññaphala Sutta — The Fruits of the Contemplative Life King Ajatasattu asks the Buddha, "What are the fruits of the contemplative life, visible in the here and now?" The Buddha replies by painting a comprehensive portrait of the Buddhist path of training, illustrating each stage of the training with vivid similes.

describes well the way to the higher knowledge, right from the beginning, gained on the way to release.

The door to the deathless is open for those having not fallen into one of the 6 grave faults, and the Devas will go one to open access, for one on the journey toward the deathless.

(Note that this is not given for trade, exchange, stacks or entertainment, but to escape the wheel, the yoke by putting on it.)

Dhammadhatu's response should not have been downgraded. It is also a correct answer to the question. It does appear as though the intent was to carp rather than teach as concerns differentiating the use of 'lives' vs. 'abodes' (we are told in many places, e.g. SN I, 1.25, http://buddhadust.net/dhamma-vinaya/pts/sn/01_sagv/sn01.01.021-030.rhyc.pts.htm#sn.1.1.25 that understanding the distinction, we may use conventional speech - how many here would understand the question if asked in terms of 'abodes'?), but the fact remains that the sutta cited is instructive. Without recognition that it is past identification with the khandhas that is being spoken of when one speaks of having recollected a past 'abode', the practice would be going in the direction of ego-building - 'proneness to notions of a self or soul'.

ajahn brahm has a few videos as QA on this

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_4BFX_qhhyk

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HGo0NbOROFY

There are two methods for seeing past lives:

1. Through phenomena, and
2. Through time (or chronologically)

The 'through phenomena' method is not exactly a method. It is more of a chance thing, but it is also easier. In this case, a sight (or other sense-stimulation) occurs and one has a deja vu experience ("I've done this before"), but without the doubt. At this time bending down the mind (or focusing on, or concentrating on) the feeling and the phenomena, a previous occasion when this phenomena occured will come to mind. If pressed further details will appear.

Then you will have to fight your programming and half the other Buddhists in the world who tell you that there is no such thing as rebirth and that you are just imagining things. Would that I had a mind with such an imaginative power!

The chronological method is by way of a yonisomanisikaro=like tracing back of the events of this life from the present moment back to birth, back through one's time in the womb, the time of one's conception, to the previous life. This is rightly an aspect of your setting up of mind (satipatthana). It is also exactly similar to Casteneda's Don Juan's 'recapitulation' method where you start in the present moment, and review every detail to extract yourself from all attachments found there and then move back in time.

More or less unrestricted chronological viewing Past Lives is one of three 'visions' that are obtained by the Arahant, but anyone can experience awareness of past life events through phenomena.

In Buddhist studies you will find that viewing past lives is to be accomplished from the fourth jhāna. But this is just the optimal method.

The formula for the Buddhist seeing past lives can be found in multiple suttas worded similarly to:

He recollects a variety of former habitations, that is to say

One birth, two births, three births, four births, five births, ten births, twenty births, thirty births, forty births, fifty births, a hundred births, a thousand births, a hundred thousand births, and many an eon of integration and many an eon of disintegration and many an eon of integration-disintegration:

'Such a one was I by name, having such and such a clan, such and such a colour, so I was nourished, such and such pleasant and painful experiences were mine, so did the span of life end.

Passing from this, I came to be in another state where I was such a one by name, having such and such a clan, such and such a colour, so I was nourished, such and such pleasant and painful experiences were mine, so did the span of life end.

Passing from this, I arose here.'

Thus he recollects divers former habitations in all their modes and detail.

A helpful and cautionary Sutta which discusses the method for this and other powers is AN 9.35 (Hare's translation linked-to here:) http://buddhadust.net/dhamma-vinaya/pts/an/09_nines/an09.035.hare.pts.htm