Past the Past:
Book II- Upon A Time In France
By James I Kepner
James I. Kepner continues the luminous spiritual memoir begun in About Time, tracing the soul’s remembrance across centuries. In fifteenth-century France, Étienne returns home transformed by Druidic teachings and is drawn into a love that becomes his initiation. Centuries later, a mysterious painting reawakens those memories in the author’s modern life, bridging past and present through revelation and grace.
What if your soul remembers more than your mind dares to imagine?
In Past the Past, James I. Kepner continues the luminous spiritual memoir begun in About Time, following the soul’s journey through love, transformation, and awakening across centuries.
In fifteenth-century France, Étienne returns home transformed by Druidic teachings, only to face danger, devotion, and the awakening of a love that becomes alchemy itself. Centuries later, a mysterious painting in the author’s life reopens the door to that past—revealing how memory, energy, and destiny intertwine beyond the reach of time.
A meditation on the continuity of consciousness and the power of remembrance, Past the Past invites readers to explore their own more profound knowing—to trust that what feels ancient within us is not fantasy, but the soul’s long conversation with itself.
“A breathtaking memoir of mystery and transformation—of love that transcends lifetimes, and of the deep alchemy through which the soul awakens to itself.”
Jim Kepner is an author, psychologist, and international trainer based in Shaker Heights, Ohio.
Body Process: working with the body in psychotherapy (1987/99), considered a classic text in Gestalt therapy and in the area of body-oriented psychotherapy.
Healing Tasks: psychotherapy with adult survivors of childhood abuse (1995), which presents a holistic and holographic model for understanding the healing-as-growth in the process of recovery from childhood trauma.
Upon a Time in France: What if the key to awakening lies not ahead of us, but behind—woven through the lives we have already lived?
Upon a Time in France is a spiritual memoir series by James I. Kepner that explores the continuity of consciousness through the intertwined stories of a fifteenth-century life and the author’s present-day remembrance of it.
In About Time, the journey begins with the rediscovery of a past life as Étienne, a young apprentice in Renaissance France studying alchemy under his master Édouard. Guided by mentors both ancient and modern, Kepner’s exploration of subtle energy and healing opens into a profound “alchemy of the soul,” revealing how experiences across lifetimes shape our growth and purpose.
In Past the Past, that remembrance deepens. Étienne returns from initiation to face love, loss, and transformation, while in the present, the author’s encounter with a haunting “Spirit Guide” painting reawakens those memories, bridging centuries of learning and love.
Together, these books form a living meditation on the nature of time, memory, and the evolving soul — an invitation to see that the journey of healing and awakening is never limited to a single lifetime, but is the unfolding story of consciousness itself.
James I Kepner
Author
Profoundly moving on many levels. I have read About Time over and over, continuing to find deeper and deeper meaning. The author has shared his gift of insight and memory about a time of darkness in France where abiding love from important teachers allowed Etienne to heal past soul injuries and continue to grow. The story is compelling and the lessons from that time are very important for the evolution of consciousness that is occurring in this age… A beautifully written story that is hard to put down…
Penny Friedman
Transporting and transformative. The story is a captivating page-turner and truly hard to put down. But it's so much more than just a story... The energy of the teachings embedded in it vibrate through the pages. There is so much to learn about how to carry and nurture the light during dark times. I now own both the Kindle edition and a paperback so that I can loan it to friends.
Melanie W.
A page-turning story that elicits mystical energy. It is rare to find a book like this in which the words on the page carry spiritual energy. About Time- Book 1 was a compelling read; I cared about the people in the story, and wanted to keep reading to find out what would happen next. Equally as valuable, reading About Time- Book 1 allowed me to quiet my culturally-taught belief that experience is only “real” if it is rational and logical, and be drawn into a more spiritual energy. From this energy, it was easier to learn the many important spiritual/life lessons that Dr. Kepner describes. What a gift! I very much look forward to Book 2.
Laurie
A timely story about how we exist in time. A fun read about intrigue, adventure and magic in the fifteenth century as 'remembered' by the 21st century author. But it’s also a bigger story about how and what and perhaps why we remember… previous lifetimes…it evokes in the reader the sense that the boundaries of time are not distinct, and invites us to feel into the edges to remember our own past stories.
Amazon customer
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