and poet, Cato was considered to be the leader of a new school of thought in poetry that emphasized mythological epics and lyrics rather than traditional dramas. In his day, he was thought to be a very talented writer. Although he was frequently complimented for his work by his contemporaries, he died very poor.
An eighteen-year-old boy was told that two of his previous incarnations would be extremely influential in the present: one as the Roman poet, Cato, and the other as the American politician, Cassius Marcellus Clay. (See also “Clay, Cassius Marcellus.”) In addition to writing, he was encouraged to study international relations and political science. As to whether or not he could match the reputation he had achieved in the past was dependent upon his application in the present:
This might apply especially to those experiences when the entity was the politician, Clay; which bring into the present experience of the entity the ability as a speaker, a leader, one with a special interest in political science, or political economics, or those things that would have to do with the activities of peoples in many walks of life, rather than in that as would pertain to mechanics. However, from other experiences in the earth we find that such has been a part of the entity’s application, in things pertaining to engineering.
But in the Roman activity as Cato, the entity was a writer of verse, a describer of those conditions which prompted the activities of the Romans in their surge through the varied lands, as well as the promptings of the activities of those in authority, with little thought of the producer of those influences brought into the experiences of others—a people to be ruled!
Thus we find, as the entity analyzes self and its activities and its sojourns in the earth, there will be found the abilities to write—whether as a reporter, or of verse, or of prose, as a description of activities of groups or sects or the like; these are of particular interest to the entity.
2162-1
His past lives had provided him with innate talents with both the arts and writing and in leading people. In Jerusalem, [2162] had been a soldier and an architect. In ancient Egypt he had been a builder of some of the temples where he had gained the ability to direct others.
At the time of the reading, [2162] was a student at Harvard. There are no additional follow-up reports as to the direction the young man’s life took.
Cecilia, Saint
ca. Second or Third Century
Case 2156
Considered the patron of music and musicians, Saint Cecilia became a martyr for refusing to worship the Roman gods. One of the most famous saints of the early church, she is revered for her virginity, for her conversion of others to the faith, and for her distribution of possessions to the poor. According to legend, because of her faith, Cecilia was ordered to be burned; however, the flames could not harm her. As a result, she was beheaded.
The mother of a four-and-a-half-year-old daughter obtained a life reading for her child. Others had commented that the young girl often appeared to be in touch with something beyond the everyday world. Repeatedly, she had been called a “wonder child” and a “little prophet.” From the time the child had learned to speak, she had demonstrated an amazing psychic ability. In one instance, [2156] and her mother were sitting at the rear of a bus. The woman had just removed her daughter’s leggings and overshoes and had convinced the girl to take a nap. Suddenly, the child jumped to her feet and demanded to have her winter attire put back on. The mother obliged and had no sooner finished when the whole rear end of the bus burst into flames. The bus was stopped in the midst of a heavy snowstorm, and everyone got out to safety. Cayce confirmed that the little girl was a very special soul:
Before this (in its sojourns) we find the entity was among those who were given a special service in the early activities of the Church, in the bringing of spiritual concepts into the minds of individuals through music.
Then the entity was Saint Cecilia—or as Celia the entity was first known, and then known for its abilities in the teaching and ministering to those in the various stages of man’s expression and development there—in the Roman activity and experience of the early Church; for the entity brought hope, patience, understanding.
Thus we will find hours in the present oft when music—that is of the nature that brings into association those forces of the celestial as well as the mental and spiritual—will be the greater channel in which the entity may enable, or be enabled, to give the expressions of those messages, those lessons that will be so much a help, and bring hope, in the minds of others.
2156-1
According to the reading, the child’s intuitive skills came from her life as a prophetess. In ancient Egypt, she had developed great talents with music that could bring harmony into the lives of others. At the same time, she had learned to manifest spirituality through dance and rhythm, and had assisted women in preparing for childbirth. In the Holy Land, she had been a very spiritual woman and had therefore been able to give birth to a great spiritual leader. In the past she had also found beauty in “the music of the spheres, in the voice of nature itself.” (2156-2)
Sensitive to the point of picking up on the thoughts of others, the child needed to be raised in as stable an environment as possible, her parents were advised. Her intuition could develop further to where it would eventually provide much assistance to humankind. Cayce also stated that [2156] could eventually become a great healer, both as a counselor and with the use of laying on of hands. The girl’s parents were encouraged to give their child a musical outlet, which would assist her both mentally and spiritually.
Later, the girl’s mother wrote that her husband was not at all supportive of their daughter’s psychic ability and had done “everything under the sun to combat [it].” The parents later separated and the child went to live with her father, where she abandoned her psychic abilities. The last report on file, from 1960, states that [2156] had married and was living in Pennsylvania with her husband. At the time, both were involved in a wholesale distributing business.
Clay, Cassius Marcellus
1810-1903
Case 2162
Cassius Marcellus Clay was an American abolitionist, politician, and diplomat. The son of a slaveholder, he became a member of the Kentucky legislature but was defeated in 1841 because of his opposition to slavery. He established an anti-slavery publication, True American, later renamed The Examiner. He served as U.S. minister to Russia and helped to negotiate the purchase of Alaska in 1867. Shortly before his death, he was declared legally insane.
In 1940, a woman got a life reading as a birthday present for her son. The young man was told that his talents with writing and in working with people could be traced primarily to past lives he had lived as the American politician, Cassius Marcellus Clay, as well as the Roman poet, Valerius Cato. (See also “Cato, Valerius.”)
Clay, Henry
1777-1852
Case 3155
In the decades prior to the Civil War, Henry Clay was known as one of the most influential political leaders in the United States. A champion of economic reform and development, he served in both the U.S. Senate and the House of Representatives and was secretary of state under President John Quincy Adams. Clay rose to fame as a master of political compromise and was instrumental in the creation of the Missouri Compromise (1820) and the Compromise of 1850, both of which resolved bitter disputes over the expansion of slavery.
A forty-eight-year-old financial advisor was told that he had often been instrumental in the affairs of human history. From a lifetime in ancient Rome, he had become a champion of freedom of speech and freedom of worship and possessed great talents as an orator. He had also served as a politician in several incarnations,