This book is, to my knowledge, the first work that uses astrology to analyze cases of reincarnation from the Holocaust period. I believe that Miriam Slozberg’s work is an important contribution to the area of past-life studies. She approaches astrology as a science and, like any science, the proof is in the results of the experiment. The people whose cases are covered in this book were born between 1947 and 2002, a span of many decades, and yet they have surprising similarities in their natal charts. (For those of you who have always wondered about my chart, here’s your chance: my case is included. I am the one who was born in 1947.)
Now, I must warn that this is a rather technical (although quite readable) book, in that it goes into painstaking detail about the configurations of stars and planets for each case. We are not just talking sun and moon signs here. Slozberg covers every possible aspect of ALL the planets and how they interact. As a non-astrologer, I had to just take her word for these analyses, but I will say that they fit the actual biographies very well. In my own case, she had only my name, birth date, and place of birth when she started. And, of course, she knew I was author of Beyond the Ashes: Cases of Reincarnation from the Holocaust. But very little is published about my childhood or my personal life, so she could not have gleaned those details from other sources. What she came up with (and it is accurate) had to have come from her study of my chart.
Some readers may be wondering why a rabbi would endorse a book on astrology. Judaism has always been somewhat divided on the topic of “the occult.” There are Jewish forms of astrology, with some scholars endorsing it and others rejecting it as superstition. I do not believe, as the pagans did, that planets actually affect us as gods. Rather, I view astrology as a sort of cosmic clock. After all, we mark time by the cycles of the moon and sun, so why not bigger cycles based on other orbits? “And God said, Let there be lights in the firmament of the heaven to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days, and years… and it was so.” (Genesis 1:14)
But the bottom line is, that Judaism is very lenient when it comes to healing techniques. One may eat forbidden foods if prescribed by a doctor, and the rabbis of old said that one may even consult a pagan sorcerer if there is a chance for a cure. Maimonides in the 12th century had already recognized the “mind over matter” power of the placebo effect, where a powerful belief can, in and of itself, bring healing. This book is about healing, and if astrology brings healing to some people with Holocaust past-life memories and moves them toward greater inner peace, then it is of value here.
You can purchase this book on Amazon.