The Phenomenology of ‘Solved’ Reincarnation Stories Among Druze in Israel: Private Self, Symbolic Type and Daily Life

This article examines the self-concept of the person who experienced Notq -the Druze phenomenon of remembering and talking about previous life. We focus on ‘solved’ stories- ones in which the person identifies his/her previous incarnation. The central question of this study is: What is the phenomenological experience of a person who has had Notq? In-depth semi-structured interviews were conducted with twenty-three Israeli Druze adults. The findings expose the Notq’s experience and its manifestations throughout ‘Notq’s life career’. The findings also show that Notq provides psychological resources which create a symbolic type who represents the central ethos of the Druze. In the discussion we argue that Notq can be perceived as a cultural idiom providing unique psychological and cultural resources. This study contributes to the research of psychology and culture by examining the Druze belief in reincarnation, the interpretation of cultural idioms and cautions against treating them as idioms of distress.