I will submit to you a meditation that I call still mind. I have used it as the only meditation that I do currently and I have opened up quite a few past life memories and things. At least that's what I think they are. At least I never learned this stuff in this life but when I look for it there it is in real life books and stuff and on this site.
First I use breathing techniques to focus my mind and block out the outside things around me. Assume your preferred meditation position. Inhale to a count of seven hold your breath to a count of seven exhale to a count of seven and hold for a count of seven. If you are not disciplined or you have medical issues and what not you can start with a four two four two format and build to a six three six three and then a sevens. Or you can use some other focusing technique but the focusing is important. If I don't block the outside stuff out and get to the deep layers of my mind it doesn't work. Do this for two or three cycles and then drop to just inhale hold exhale. Then drop to just inhale exhale moving to fewer numbers all the way to just one in and one out which is your normal breathing. By this time you should be pretty relaxed. Remember if you feel light headed or anything then stop right away. Now count one in one out two in two out ect up to ten. Once this is accomplished let your mind go blank. Just sit in this relaxed state. If you fall asleep it's ok. If a thought comes to mind just observe it and let it go on like a river. If you lose the emptiness or your mind starts running like normal stop and start counting to ten again. After practicing this for awhile I started to get flashes of past life memory and knowledge when I read things or saw things. I have seen at least what I believe to be two past lives for me before I came to this one. You will probably only see the important things or the things that really affected you so don't expect to get full play by play highlight reels or libraries of info on stuff.
Some people feel that one can do it through meditation and/or dreamwork, but in my opinion this is not a reliable way to go about it. Often when we are trying to meditate we are led astray by our own needs and desires and we see things we wish had happened rather than those things that really happened.
There is also some risk involved in doing this on your own. It is entirely possible to experience your own death during such past life regressions. This can be extremely disturbing when you don't have someone with you who can help you separate the "then" from the "now".
The best and safest way to go about a past life regression is to find someone who is skilled at leading you into the sort of deep trance work that will give you the clearest connection to a specific past even, and who is also experienced in dealing with the sorts of problems that might arise during a regression such as death or frightening events. If you have a local metaphysical shop you might check with them to see if there is someone like that in your area.
I would also suggest that you not do past life regressions just for the fun of it. The whole idea is to figure out which lives held lessons you were supposed to be learning. It is a tool for spiritual growth not a toy to be played with at a whim.
Also, remember that most of us were never famous people in our past lives. The vast majority of our lives were led as peasants and just plain ordinary folk. If someone starts telling you that you are a reincarnation of a bunch of famous people they probably don't know what they are talking about.
