Reclaiming Your Nunkarma Skill Set
We talk a lot about the downside of nun karma — those vows made in a past lifetime that have stayed with us, no longer relevant, yet quietly blocking our goals and sense of fulfillment. I’ve written about it, coached clients through it, and wrestled with it myself.
But there is another, brighter side to realigning with a past life of any type: the chance to get back in touch with our nifty skills and knowledge base. If the soul keeps receipts of its debts, it surely keeps a record of its assets too.
Let me share what opened this up for me.
In my primary school years, I attended a rural Catholic school operated by the Felician nuns — affectionately known as “the happy nuns.” Most of all, I remember Sister Mary Camille, a young, enthusiastic teacher who saw the best in her pupils. She saw qualities in me that others might have thought were simply weird — and she acknowledged them. She thought my choice of odd colors for a painting of a poinsettia was special. She rewarded me for being kind to the preschoolers, letting them find my Easter eggs on hunt day because the older boys had found the lion’s share.
But it wasn’t only what she did. There was always something deeply familiar about her voice, and about the lessons she presented. She taught through experience, and I recognize now that one of the things she taught was how we are one with God — some presence always on my side. The lessons felt very old and very familiar, like remembering rather than learning.
On reflection, I wonder if a past life as a nun is where my current worldview of oneness stems from — this deep knowing that we are all connected. I feel it most when I think of her, of those inspirational lessons, and I imagine that perhaps we sang together once, in the cloisters of some old convent, delirious with thoughts of the divine.
And even science hints at this. Researchers at the University of Virginia have spent decades studying children who report past-life memories, finding that these children sometimes show stronger verbal skills, intelligence, and memory. Their work also notes that such memories are often cued by things seen, heard, or smelled — much the way Sister Mary Camille’s voice felt instantly, inexplicably familiar to me. And mainstream psychology confirms the power of the mechanism itself: reconnecting with positive, meaningful memories strengthens our sense of self-continuity, well-being, and even physical health. Whatever you believe about past lives, the principle holds — what we carry forward from the past can nourish us now.[pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih]
So how do you begin reclaiming yours? A few basic starting points:
- Notice your unexplained ease. What comes naturally that you were never taught? That ease may be the signature of a past-life skill.
- Follow the resonance. A strong sense of familiarity with a person, place, era, or tradition can be a breadcrumb trail back to a life where you thrived.
- Realign through self-inquiry. In Life Repatterning work, we identify the positive qualities held in a past-life field — faith, courage, devotion, oneness — and consciously resonate with them now.
- Release the vow, keep the virtue. This is my favorite part. You can let go of the vow of poverty, silence, or obedience while keeping the simplicity, depth, and devotion that came with it.
Your past lives are not just a ledger of limitations. They are a treasure chest. The same field that carried forward your blocks also carried forward your brilliance.
So the next time nunkarma comes up, ask a different question. Not “what vow is holding me back?” but “what gift is waiting for me to claim it?”
I’d love to hear what comes up for you — perhaps a teacher, a place, or a voice that felt inexplicably like home. Share in the comments.
Carolyn Winter
Founder The Life Repatterning System | Author: Toggle Your Patterns
The Nun Karma Repatterning 
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