Shanti Devi, India's most famous reincarnationist, is back with a shocking new story about how she came to be.

 

Shanti Devi’s reincarnation remains one of the most intriguing and best-documented cases ever that aroused curiosity not only in India but around the world.

Shanti Devi’s case is especially noteworthy because it is one of the most extensively investigated cases, having been scrutinized by hundreds of scholars, critics, saints, and eminent personalities from India and abroad.

Who was Shanti Devi

Born on December 11, 1926, in New Delhi, India, Devi was like any other child of her age. However, at the age of four, she made a strange claim that startled her parents. She claimed, “she had lived before“!

Is Shanti Devi’s Reincarnation Real or Fiction?

Her story has been the subject of scrutiny by many scientists and researchers. While some believed her claims, others tried to prove the case was fake.

When Sture Lonnerstrand, a critic, heard about the case, he traveled all the way to India from Sweden to expose the case as a “fake,” but after an extensive investigation, he concluded, This is the only fully explained and proven case of reincarnation there has been.”

Was Shanti Devi a Reincarnation of Lugdi Devi?

The girl claimed that she was in fact Lugdi Devi of Mathura, a north Indian town in India, where she used to live with her husband. Shanti Devi further claimed that her husband owned a cloth shop in Mathura, and she had a son with him.

The parents initially ignored her claims and did not take them seriously. However, they could not do it for long as she repeatedly talked about her past life incidents with them.

She shared three unique features about her husband – he was fair, wore glasses, and had a big wart on his left cheek. She also stated her husband’s shop was located right in front of the Dwarkadhish temple in Mathura.

She also narrated intricate details of her death after the birth of her child in the past life. These details puzzled her parents and they consulted their family physician to verify these claims. The physician was stunned to see a little girl narrate such a complicated surgical procedure with ease. This incident led the parents into believing her rebirth claims.

As the girl grew older, she continued insisting to be taken to Mathura for a meeting with her husband and son. However, she never used to mention the name of her husband as it was customary in those days for wives to not take their husband’s name. When asked about the name of her past life husband, she would blush and say that she would easily recognize him upon seeing him.

Young Shanti Devi. Wiki Commons

Once, Bishanchand, her distant relative, who was a school teacher in Delhi, told her if she tells him the name of her past life husband, he will take her to Mathura. She gave into his lure and whispered into his ear the name Pandit Kedarnath Chaube as her husband.

Bishanchand wrote a letter to Pandit Kedarnath Chaube, mentioning all the claims made by the girl, and requested him to visit Delhi for a meeting with her. Kedarnath confirmed most of her claims and requested that one of his relatives, Pandit Kanjimal, who lived in Delhi, be allowed to meet this girl.

A meeting with Kanjimal was arranged during which She recognized him as her husband’s cousin and also gave some details about her house in Mathura and also informed him of the location where she had buried some money. Kanjimal was so impressed that he went to Mathura to persuade Kedarnath to visit Delhi and meet Shanti.

Kedarnath came to Delhi with Lugdi’s son, Navneet Lal, and his present wife. To mislead Shanti, Kanjimal introduced Kedarnath as the latter’s elder brother. However, she immediately recognized him as her past life husband.

The girl was emotionally overwhelmed by seeing Navneet, the son in her previous life. During his stay in Delhi, Kedarnath found her behavior similar to that of Lugdi in many ways. After the meeting, Kedarnath got convinced that she was indeed his wife Lugdi Bai because she had shared so many things that no one except Lugdi could have known.

She was upset about the return of Kedarnath to Mathura and begged her parents to let her go to Mathura with him, but her parents refused.

Shanti Devi’s Incarnation Story Intrigues Mahatma Gandhi

Shanti Devi’s story was widely covered in the mainline media. The story spread like a wildfire all over the country. When the news reached Mahatma Gandhi, he called and spoke to Shanti, after which he requested her to stay in his ashram.

Newspaper Headline. Psi Encyclopedia

Mahatma Gandhi appoints a committee to verify the girl’s claim

For the first time in history, a committee of fifteen prominent people, including journalists, parliamentarians, and national leaders, was constituted to investigate the veracity of Shanti Devi’s claims.

The Committee travels to Mathura – The City of Lugdi Devi

The committee traveled with the girl to Mathura, where she recognized the family members of Kedarnath and the deceased Lugdi Devi. She was able to substantiate all her claims in the presence of the committee members. The commission finally concluded, though controversially, that Shanti Devi was indeed a reincarnation of Lugdi Devi.

Shanti Devi talks about the afterlife in interviews

Apart from her vivid memories of her previous life, she narrated considerable details about the time period between Lugdi’s death and her subsequent rebirth as Shanti.

Mr. B.C. Nahata, who was a rationalist and a staunch disbeliever in reincarnation, met Shanti in 1936. He wrote a booklet expressing his reservations and arguments against the case. Mr. Nahata interrogated Shanti Devi on February 22, 1936. The relevant sections are as follows:

Q: Tell us: what did you experience at the time of death?
A: Smoke. Three men wearing yellow clothes. I went with them till the Third plane. To the fourth, I went alone.

Q: What did you see there?
A: There are saints (Sadhus) at all three places.

Q: What did you see in the fourth place?
A: Krishanaji was sitting on a throne. (The suffix ‘ji expresses veneration.)

Q: What else was there?
A: In front, there was a saint.

Q: Did he have any beard or long plaits of hair?
A: He had a white beard. There were many saints.

Q: What else was there?
A: Krishana ji had a paper in his hand and was reading from it.

Q: What was he reading?
A: I don’t know about other things, but I know he read out ‘ House Number 565 (The Number of the house Shanti Devi is residing in these days is 565)

Q: What happened then?
A: I returned to a black cell.

Q: Were those three persons with you while returning?
A: No.

Q: What was there on your way?
A: Staircases of Gold and silver.

Q: Did you remain hungry in the dark cell?
A: No, I didn’t feel any hunger or thirst.

Shanti Devi in her old age. Wiki Commons

Shanti Devi’s Hypnotic Test

On April 13, 1936, a hypnotic test was conducted by Mr. Jagdish Mitra, confirming some of the answers stated above. The relevant sections from the hypnotic test are as follows:

Girl: Lugdi is dead. Now Lugdi is getting up from her bed.
Hypnotist: Whether Lugdi is getting up or her soul? The body is already dead.

Girl: Yes, the body is on the bed. Her soul is getting up. Four men wearing yellow underwear are standing. They have thrones also. And there are three saints in blue, black and white clothes.

Girl: Now Lugdi has reached God. She had a chit (a piece of paper with a written note) in hand. She is showing the chit to God. Bad people are crying.

Hypnotist: What is Lugdi doing now?
Girl: Now Lugdi is coming downstairs of gold and silver now.

Dr. Ian Stevenson interviews Shanti along with his team

On February 3, 1986, Dr. Ian Stevenson, Dr. K.S. Rawat and Dr. Satwant Pasricha interviewed Shanti Devi at her home in Delhi. The following are the relevant sections from the interview:

Shanti Devi: Before my death, I saw dazzling light. ‘. Very dazzling. Four persons, very handsome boys, with large yellow garments. They came with a square-shaped vessel and sort of roomal (handkerchief) or whatever you call it. All of a sudden, light came out from the body that I was and they put this light into that vessel and took me up, up, and up.

Then again these four persons came and put me in the vessel. Then they descended me through a very bright staircase and then I came into a cell-dark cell.

On October 30, 1987, Dr. Rawat interviewed Shanti Devi again (this time, alone). In addition to the various details she had given previously, she mentioned a river and the appearances of the souls present on the fourth plane. She said, “They took me up. There was a river. It was quite clean and pure like milk.”

Where is Shanti Devi Now?

She lived with her family and never married. All through her life, she gave numerous interviews that spoke about the experiences of her past life as Lugdi Devi.

Shanti Devi died on December 27, 1987, at the age of 61 leaving behind a fascinating tale that continues to live.

I also interviewed Shanti Devi, her father, and other pertinent witnesses, including Kedarnath, the husband claimed in her previous life. My research indicates that she made at least 24 statements of her memories that matched the verified facts.

Dr. Ian Stevenson

We cannot say for sure if this tale of rebirth is real or fiction, but her case is perhaps one of the most heavily investigated and famous reincarnation cases in the world!