hey have
faded into nothingness now, and they are to all intents and purposes
_lost_ to you. But _are_ they lost? Not at all. You are what you are
because of the results of these experiences. Your character has been
moulded and shaped, little by little, by these apparently forgotten
pains, pleasures, sorrows and happinesses. This trial strengthened you
along certain lines; that one changed your point of view and made you
see things with a broader sweep of vision. This grief caused you to
feel the pain of others; that disappointment spurred you on to new
endeavors. And each and every one of them left a permanent mark upon
your personality--upon your character. All men are what they are by
reason of what they have lived through and out. And though these
happenings, scenes, circumstances, occurrences, experiences, have faded
from the memory, their effects are indelibly imprinted upon the fabric
of the character, and the man of to-day is different from what he would
have been had the happening or experience not entered into his life.

And this same rule applies to the characteristics brought over from
past incarnations. You have not the memory of the experiences, but you
have the fruit in the shape of "characteristics," tastes, inclinations,
etc. You have a tendency toward certain things, and a distaste for
others. Certain things attract, while others repel you. All of these
things are the result of your experiences in former incarnations. Your
very taste and inclination toward occult studies which has caused you
to read these lessons is your legacy from some former life in which
some one spoke a word or two to you regarding the subject, and
attracted your interest and desire. You learned some little about the
subject then--perhaps much--and developed a desire for more knowledge
along these lines, which manifesting in your present life has brought
you in contact with further instruction. The same inclination will lead
to further advancement in this life, and still greater opportunities in
future incarnations. Nearly every one who reads these lines has felt
that much of this occult instruction imparted is but a "re-learning" of
something previously known, although many of the things taught have
never been heard before in this life. You pick up a book and read
something, and know at once that it is so, because in some vague way
you have a consciousness of having studied and worked out the problem
in some past period of your l