In life, there are incredible and inexplicable coincidences that lead people to naturally contemplate the mysterious aspects of fate. Can these strange coincidences be explained as mere games of destiny, or do scientists have other hypotheses regarding this mystery?
People with Strange Coincidences
In reality, we are familiar with random coincidences among blood relatives, such as twins. However, these similarities do not stop at people from the same family; they also occur among complete strangers, transcending all boundaries of space and time. Below are some real cases from around the world, instances that scientists have yet to provide adequate explanations for.
The Story of Emperor Umberto and the Innkeeper
Once, King Umberto I of Italy entered a restaurant in the city of Monza. When the innkeeper personally came out to greet him, King Umberto was astonished to recognize something strange. He and the innkeeper looked exactly alike, from their names to their faces and body shapes. Thus, two men from vastly different social classes began to reflect on the events of their lives. Strangely enough, their life events mirrored each other as if they had shared a common fate:
King Umberto I (1844-1900). (Image: lsg.musin.de)
- Both were born on the same day, month, and year (March 14, 1844).
- Both married women named Margherita and held their weddings on April 22, 1866. Their firstborn sons were both named Vittorio.
- The innkeeper opened his restaurant on the exact day King Umberto was crowned.
- In 1866, both received medals. The time the innkeeper served in the military coincided with King Umberto’s military service as a colonel.
- In 1870, both were promoted: the innkeeper became a sergeant while King Umberto became the commander-in-chief of the army.
After realizing these strange coincidences with the innkeeper, the king pondered deeply, questioning why he and the innkeeper shared such similarities yet were so different in social status. Was he the luckiest man on earth while the innkeeper was destined for misfortune? Believing that the innkeeper Umberto bore all the bad luck for him, the next morning, Emperor Umberto ordered the innkeeper to be knighted.
However, the following day, when the innkeeper arrived at the palace to meet the emperor, he was shot three times in the chest by a murderer, killing him instantly. Upon receiving the tragic news, the king went to pay his respects to the strange innkeeper. But as the emperor stepped down from his carriage, a crazed assassin appeared out of nowhere and shot three bullets into the king’s chest, causing him to collapse and die immediately. This true story about Emperor Umberto and the innkeeper caused a stir in Italy for a time.
The Story of Presidents Kennedy and Lincoln
The famous American coincidence is the story of two presidents, John Kennedy and Abraham Lincoln, which would not be noteworthy if Kennedy and Lincoln were merely the only two presidents with surnames containing seven letters. However, the fates of these two presidents are intertwined with inexplicable similarities.
The fates of these two presidents are connected by inexplicable similarities (Image: visitingdc.com & camera.it)
- Abraham Lincoln was elected president in 1860; J.F. Kennedy was elected in 1960.
- In the race for the White House, Lincoln defeated opponent Stephen Douglas, born in 1813, while Kennedy’s opponent was Richard Nixon, born in 1913.
- Both presidents’ wives suffered miscarriages during their time in the White House.
- Both were assassinated on a Friday and shot in the head.
- Lincoln’s secretary was named Kennedy, while Kennedy’s secretary was named Lincoln.
- Both had vice presidents with the surname Johnson, who succeeded them after their assassinations: Andrew Johnson succeeded Lincoln, born in 1808, and Lyndon Johnson succeeded Kennedy, born in 1908. Both their names contain 13 letters.
- John Wilkes Booth, who assassinated Lincoln, was born in 1839, while Lee Harvey Oswald, who assassinated Kennedy, was born in 1939. Both their names contain 15 letters.
- Lincoln was shot in front of a theater named “Ford,” while Kennedy was shot in a car named “Lincoln,” manufactured by Ford.
Scientific Explanations
The above are two of the most famous coincidences in the world. Moreover, history records many similar stories. Why do such inexplicable coincidences occur? Many people believe that it is merely an illusion of the mind, that people are exaggerating the issue. However, many others believe that “there is a divine influence at play.” Does this way of thinking seem unscientific? Then how can we explain these seemingly “spontaneous” arrangements of fate?
According to scientists studying reincarnation phenomena, in our daily lives, we sometimes see people who, although not related by blood or siblings, love each other deeply. They live together as if they were inseparable. When one experiences illness or hardship, the other becomes deeply worried, as if an invisible thread binds them together. Some maintain this close bond even until death.
In the spiritual worldview, when these individuals die, their souls remember the old affections of their past lives, and when reincarnating, depending on karma, they may encounter the likeness of a new body, appearing as two strangers who share similar personalities and preferences. Sometimes they may even resemble each other in face and gestures, or due to the principle of “like attracts like,” they are reborn at the same time to conveniently meet.
Thus, there are cases where individuals are born on the same year, month, day, and hour, and sometimes they fulfill their wishes only to be separated precisely at a certain date and time. In the special case of the two U.S. presidents Lincoln and Kennedy, the answer remains a speculation that this could be an image of reincarnation or transformation of President Lincoln himself. This idea has been mentioned in ancient texts such as the Tibetan and Egyptian Books of the Dead: “There are people who, upon dying, feel that they have not fulfilled their earthly duties, so they are determined to be reborn.”
Could it be that President Abraham Lincoln, who spent his life fighting for justice, compassion, and against racial discrimination, felt he had not completed his mission and was determined to return to the earthly realm as President Kennedy, with the cycle of life repeating itself as if projecting a film of his former self, Lincoln?
Through these arguments and explanations, the issue may not have been fully rationalized or clarified. However, nonetheless, some of these explanations indicate the causal relationships between various phenomena.
If today we see the emergence of events on this planet, it is certain that what we observe has its causes. Yet sometimes those causes may not be recognized by the normal senses of humanity and cannot yet be proven by science, leading to limitations in explanations. Nevertheless, this is just one of many mysteries of the Earth waiting for humanity to explore.
