Here is a no exhaustive list of all those who, through centuries, believed in reincarnation. I shall mention here only individuals, not religions universally known for their adherence to the successive rebirth principle, as the Buddhism and Hinduism. It seems that the world of before Christian era was generally reincarnationist.
The Greek
 | Apollonius of Tyane, philosopher, |
| Aristotle, philosopher, |
| Jamblichus, philosopher, |
| Plato, philosopher, |
| Plotinius, philosopher |
| Plutarch, biographer and philosopher |
| Pythagoras, mathematician, |
| Socrates, philosopher, |
The Roman
| Cicero, speaker, politician, philosopher, |
| Julian, emperor |
| Ovid, poet, |
| Virgil, poet, author of the epic poem " Aeneid " |
Fathers of the church
| Clement of Alexandria, Greek theologian, |
| Saint Augustine, bishop of Nippone, |
| Saint Gregory of Nyssa, bishop of Cappadocia |
| Saint Gregory of Nazianzen, bishop of Constantinople, |
| Origen, Alexandrine theologian, The one of the famous council of Constantinople in 553 |
It is from this date, let's recall it that the concept of the reincarnation, as well as the one of the preexistence of the soul, were banished of teachings of the church. And the Gnostic Christians who professed these doctrines were vowed to the anathema.
The idea of the reincarnation had died for masses in West. From then on and until the half of the XIXe century, it will be favorably welcomed by philosophers, writers and some daring theologians. Yet there were some spiritual groups to perpetuate the beliefs and the ancient traditions, but most of them were pursued, slaughtered and burnt by the Inquisition, the others concealed themselves on the secret society table setting.
The mystical Orders
| The Catharists, burnt, |
| The Templars, burnt, |
| The Freemasons, secret society, |
| The Rosicrusians, secret society, |
| Giordano Bruno, philosopher, poet and
Italian dramatist He was condemned to the stake |
| Dante, Italian poet, author of the famous " Divine Comedy ", |
| Leonardo da Vinci, Italian painter, sculptor, inventor, etc. |
| William Shakespeare, poet and English dramatist |
| Spinoza, Dutch philosopher, |
| Frederick the Great, king of Prussia, |
| Benjamin Franklin, American politician, scientist and philosopher |
| Goethe, German writer, |
| Emmanuel Kant, German philosopher, |
| Voltaire, French writer, |
Artists
| Edgar Allan Poe, American poet, storyteller and critical |
| Honore de Balzac, French writer, |
| Charles Dickens, English writer, |
| Fiodor Dostoïevski, Russian writer, |
| Gustave Flaubert, French writer, |
| Khalil Gibran, Lebanese writer and poet |
| Heinrich Heine, German lyric poet and publiciste |
| Victor Hugo, French writer, |
| James Joyce, Irish poet and novelist |
| Rudyard Kipling, English novelist and poet |
| Jack London, American novelist, |
| Gustav Mahler, Austrian composer, |
| Somerset Maugham, English novelist and dramatist |
| Herman Melville, American writer, author of " Moby Dick ", |
| Henry Miller, American novelist, |
| Gérard de Nerval, French poet and writer |
| George Sand, French writer, |
| George Bernard Shaw, Irish writer and dramatist |
| Léon Tolstoï, Russian writer and dramatist |
| Richard Wagner, German composer, |
Celebrities
| The Dalaï Lama, 14th of the name, spiritual chief of the Tibetan Buddhism, |
| Henry Ford, American businessman, |
| Gandhi, Indian politician and apostle of non-violence |
| Charles Lindbergh, American aviator, |
| Shirley Mc Laine, American actress, author of several books on the reincarnation |
| George S. Patton, American general, hero of World War II, |
| Elizabeth of Wittelbach " Sissi ", Empress of Austria |
Scientists
| Thomas Edison, American inventor, |
| Camille Flammarion, French astronomer, |
| Carl Jung, Swiss psychologist and psychiatrist |
| J. B. Rhine, American parapsychologist, It is his that one owes " Rhine " cards used for experiences of telepathy |
| Ian Stevenson, psychiatrist and American
parapsychologist Author of the work " 20 cases suggestive of reincarnation " |
Insiders
| Edgar Cayce, famous American clairvoyant, |
| Aron Abrahamsen, American
engineer and clairvoyant, Norwegian native |
| Helena P. Blavatsky, founder of the theosophical society |
| Allan Kardec, founder of the spiritist society |
| Rudolf Steiner, founder of anthroposophical movement |
| Gérard Encausse " Papus ", French doctor and occultist |
