Editing Reincarnation (section)

===Renaissance and Early Modern period===
While reincarnation has been a matter of faith in some communities from an early date it has also frequently been argued for on principle, as Plato does when he argues that the number of souls must be finite because souls are indestructible,<ref>"the souls must always be the same, for if none be destroyed they will not diminish in number". Republic X, 611. The Republic of Plato By Plato, Benjamin Jowett Edition: 3 Published by Clarendon press, 1888.</ref> [[Benjamin Franklin]] held a similar view.<ref>In a letter to his friend [[George Whatley]] written 23 May 1785: {{cite journal|jstor = 25057231|title = Death Effects: Revisiting the Conceit of Franklin's "Memoir"|journal = Early American Literature|volume = 36|issue = 2|pages = 201–234|last1 = Kennedy|first1 = Jennifer T.|year = 2001|doi = 10.1353/eal.2001.0016|s2cid = 161799223}}</ref> Sometimes such convictions, as in Socrates' case, arise from a more general personal faith, at other times from anecdotal evidence such as Plato makes Socrates offer in the ''[[Myth of Er]]''.

During the [[Renaissance]] translations of Plato, the [[Hermetica]] and other works fostered new European interest in reincarnation. [[Marsilio Ficino]]<ref>Marsilio Ficino, ''Platonic Theology'', 17.3–4</ref> argued that Plato's references to reincarnation were intended allegorically, Shakespeare alluded to the doctrine of reincarnation<ref>"Again, Rosalind in "As You Like It" (Act III., Scene 2), says: ''I was never so be-rhimed that I can remember since Pythagoras's time, when I was an Irish rat"''—alluding to the doctrine of the transmigration of souls." William H. Grattan Flood, quoted at [http://www.libraryireland.com/IrishMusic/XVII-2.php Libraryireland.com] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090421065024/http://www.libraryireland.com/IrishMusic/XVII-2.php |date=2009-04-21 }}</ref> but [[Giordano Bruno]] was burned at the stake by authorities after being found guilty of heresy by the [[Roman Inquisition]] for his teachings.<ref>Boulting, 1914. pp. 163–164</ref> But the Greek philosophical works remained available and, particularly in north Europe, were discussed by groups such as the [[Cambridge Platonists]]. [[Emanuel Swedenborg]] believed that we leave the physical world once, but then go through several lives in the spiritual world—a kind of hybrid of Christian tradition and the popular view of reincarnation.<ref>{{cite web |title=Swedenborg and Life Recap: Do We Reincarnate? 3/6/2017 |date=10 March 2017 |url=https://swedenborg.com/recap-do-we-reincarnate/ |access-date=24 October 2019 |publisher=Swedenborg Foundation}}</ref>