I am attempting to build a samsaran wizard, specialized in the focused specializations school of "Life". Rather than the Shards of the Past racial trait, I'm using the Mystic Past Life, and applying it to the Bard class to add various cure spells to my wizard class spell list.

The concept is a Samsaran wizard who, through his various past lives, has discovered a method for successfully casting the various cure spells. He is dismayed and slightly insulted that most truely dedicated magical healers in the world only gain their power through either a divine force, or through some other suspect spiritual power. He believes that true spellcasters (generously including sorcerers in that description) should be capable of healing, without the benefit or intervention of some patron deity or spirit.

So he has embarked on a quest of the flesh, intent on discovering healing magic, and then disseminating his findings to other enterprising arcane casters. Possibly even founding a society of purely arcane healers.

Mechanically he is a 2nd level samsaran wizard with an Int of 18. The Mystic Past Life ability has added 5 spells to his wizard spell list from the bard spell list: Cure Light Wounds, Cure Moderate Wounds, Cure Serious Wounds, and Cure Critical Wounds. I'd like the fifth spell to be a good buff that is not normally on the sor/wiz list that would allow me to tag multiple allies. Mass Cure Light and Mass Cure Mod are good, but I'd prefer something lower level for the higher chance I'd be able to cast it at some point.

I'm looking for feats, traits, spells, and possibly even magic items that would fit the theme. Unfortunately, most necromancer spells do -not- fit the theme. Spectral Hand will be very useful, but most other necromancer spells don't really fit the theme.

While technically a necromancer, my character does not deal with undead. He would consider the practice and manipulation of corpses and undeath to be evil and decidedly vile.

Any suggestions would be appreciated.

It's to bad you're not running with the Arcane Spellcaster Varient from the UA. You could select any spell as an Arcane spell.

Very neat. I like it. Obviously being able to cast those very importantly lets you use wands of those spells without a Use Magic Device check.

For the 5th spell, taking Heroism at 2nd (Bard) rather than 3rd (Wizard) or Greater Heroism at 5th (Bard) rather than 6th (Wizard) would be good. Those can be used on creature touched, not just self. Hold Person (2), Hold Monster (4) are also both a level sooner for Bard than Wizard spell list.

I can certainly understand the "I'd like to use it, not sure how many levels I'll get to" - immediacy benefit. With Heal not available... Heroes Feast at 6 would be one to consider if you're willing to wait.

Good hope is also a solid choice for a group-benefiting buff spell not normally on the Sorc/Wiz list.

In terms of magic items, as mentioned, cure wands would be very useful, since you wouldn't need a UMD check to use them... if you pick up Craft Wand, you can even make/recharge them yourself. Standard wizard magic items (Int-increasing items and so on) of course will always be helpful, and if you're going with a bonded object rather than a familiar, an amulet of spell cunning could be a handy thing to pick up, giving you more slots to use for cure/buff spells.

In terms of traits, the Sacred Touch trait (As a standard action, you may automatically stabilize a dying creature merely by touching it) could be explained as the constant experimentation with arcane healing imbuing your very touch with healing energies. Hedge Wizard (Whenever you craft a magic item, you reduce the required gp cost to make the item by 5%) could also be useful if you plan on crafting your own cure wands.

In terms of the undead and manipulation of corpses, does your character simply find it vile and dislike it, or does he actively champion against such things as a way of improving the reputation of necromancy magic by destroying the commonly-known versions of it (manipulation/creation of undead) using the lesser-known versions of it (basic life-force manipulation)?

Sacred Touch is a great mention for a trait. And the other side of that coin, being somehow influenced by divine power at birth and having a healing/stabilizing touch could have partially been the inspiration for the experimentation with arcane healing.

Lone Wolf (I think)- is a campain trait for at least some campaigns that allows you +1 to Fort saves and a 50% stabilization chance (no matter how far below 0 hp you are). Which is nice as any healing will stabilize anyone else, but for someone who likely won't have a ton of Con or high Fort save - having a 50% stabilization chance no matter how negative your hp is - is a major thing.

Depending on how sparse such things may be to come across, Rich Parents for a Wand of Cure Light Wounds to start with might be a nice thing - and again - might have been partial inspiration to the arcane / healing studies.

Good Hope, Heroism, and Greater Heroism are all good enough for me to reconsider slotting enchantment as one of my opposed schools.

Wands of cure, natch.
I was thinking the familiar, since it could deliver touch spells for me. But a bonded amulet... that thing is handy. And for 5000g? Nice. I get spectral hand anyway.
I'd originally bypassed Sacred Touch because the samsaran have stabilize as a spell-like ability 1/day. But the trait is far more useful on a long term basis, and can be easily explained as a natural extension of the racial spell-like ability. And hedge wizard is hardly a question. I'll definitely be focusing on some magic item creation... I was planning on trading Scribe Scroll for the Arcane Builder variant. Arcane Builder-Potion at 1st, the feat at 3rd, and Arcane Builder-Wondrous and Craft Wondrous at 5th.
My character is a very understated individual. He might state his disdain of undeath as, "I disapprove of it as inelegant and brute-force method of necromancy."

In reality, he's actually deeply offended both personally, morally, and spiritually by the thought of wresting the peaceful from their graves and forcing them into a mockery of life. He would go out of his way to end the efforts of a more traditional necromancer, by force if need be.

He sees the act of godless healing as a refined and elegant form of the necromancy school. A -true- necromancer will use works of the flesh to improve the lives of his person and his community. A true wizard is one who performs these services to the public (for a modest sum, of course).