palingenesis

American  

[pal-in-jen-uh-sis] / ˌpæl ɪnˈdʒɛn ə sɪs /

noun

1. rebirth; regeneration.

2. Biology.

   1. embryonic development that reproduces the ancestral features of the species.

   2. Obsolete. the supposed generation of organisms from others preformed in the germ cells.

3. baptism in the Christian faith.

4. the doctrine of transmigration of souls.

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palingenesis British  

/ ˌpælɪnˈdʒɛnɪsɪs /

noun

1. Christianity spiritual rebirth through metempsychosis of Christian baptism

2. biology another name for recapitulation

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Other Word Forms

• palingenesian
  adjective
• palingenetic
  adjective
• palingenetically
  adverb

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Etymology

Origin of palingenesis

1615–25; < New Latin < Greek pálin again + génesis genesis

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

palingenesis

The plot is a palingenesis of Dostoevsky's Crime and Punishment.

From Time Magazine Archive

Mary had heard, and in the palingenesis disclosed she saw space wrapped in a luminous atmosphere, such as she fancied lay behind the sun.

From Mary Magdalen by Edgar Saltus

After having spoken of natural palingenesis, he concludes—"And thus we see how little cause there is to attribute these appearances to the return of souls to earth, or to demons, as do some ignorant persons."

From The Phantom World or, The philosophy of spirits, apparitions, &c, &c. by Henry Christmas

If we pass from India to Egypt, the land of mystery, we again find the world-wide doctrine of palingenesis hidden beneath the same veil.

From Reincarnation A Study in Human Evolution by Fred Rothwell

The idea of palingenesis appears to have no little significance for the existence of the homunculus production.

From Hidden Symbolism of Alchemy and the Occult Arts by Smith Ely Jelliffe

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