Chapter 15: Death is a Revolving Door

There is no greater tragedy than the death of a child, no greater agony, no grief that tears more viciously at the soul and rips at the heart.

When a child dies, parents search desperately for meaning in the torment. They cry in anguish, "How could God be so cruel as to take my child?" They grope in vain for reasons: "What did my baby do to deserve this?" Inevitably they blame themselves, crushing their spirits with incredible guilt: "What did I do to deserve this?" If we believe that we have only one life to live, the death of a child seems a senseless, unfathomable waste.

Nothing can erase the sorrow and pain of such a terrible loss. But if we believe that death is not the end, that we live more than once, and that souls—especially those of children—are reborn quickly, we may take solace in the thought that the child will soon be back on Earth.

Parents do not have to lose faith in the order and justice of the universe if they believe that their child's death has a purpose, however harsh the grief is at the time. Every death is a supreme karmic event for the soul who passes on, as well as for those left behind to suffer the loss. We can trust the logic of the cosmic pattern that the death has meaning, even if that meaning is hidden from us. This eases the despair a little and, as time passes, can lead us to see much deeper meaning in our lives than we ever saw before.

Reincarnation offers plausible hope for a real, honest-to- goodness miracle. It is entirely possible that a child lost to death may turn around and be reborn into the same family—a cosmic turnabout. As these next two cases show, fervent prayer and stubborn faith also play their healing part.