...and the thread would probably end if a lurker didn't show up. By the way, this has been an excellent thread.
I would like to add two ideas that struck me as a watched this exchange. The first is that the idea of karma.
from
wikipedia.org - Karma "Karma (Sanskrit: from the root ** "to do", [meaning deed] meaning action, effect, destiny) is a term that comprises the entire cycle of cause and effect. Karma is a sum of all that an individual has done, is currently doing and will do. The effects of all deeds actively create present and future experiences, thus making one responsible for one's own life, and the pain in others. In religions that incorporate reincarnation, karma extends through one's present life and all past and future lives as well."
In my opinion a better definition would be that your past actions limit your future possibilities. In other words, expanding one's consciousness would not be possible, or would not move above a certain level, depending on how a person lives their lives. And learning to forgive oneself for past actions (removing guilt) over actions we took or did not take in the past (when, presumably, we were less evolved) is also an important step.
The second is the idea of reincarnation, but that probably is deserving of a whole new thread.
Coyote
