Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Reincarnation - or rebirth as they often prefer to call it. But not transmigration of souls. Or at least the basic Buddhist text teaches that there is no soul, and no incorporeal self, but the feeling of identity is an illusion brought about by attachment to things and desires.
I am aware that this does not entirely suit the people and there is a very prevalent but quite un -scriptural belief that an essential identity and even a soul exists that gets reborn.
This is just the Theravada view. I am no expert in Mahayana, but what little I have gathered suggests that the continuation of the soul after death and its rebirth into another body is found even in the scriptures particular to Mahayana.
Reincarnation, no; rebirth, yes. Rebirth is the continuation of the subtlest part of consciousness, which is different than the transmigration of the soul (in certain Hindu schools of thought).
Nope, but some Buddhists do believe in 'rebirth.'
This point of rebirth is heavily debated within the Buddhist community but based on the core principles of Buddhism, I believe the concept of rebirth do not fit in with Buddhism proper.
Reincarnation - or rebirth as they often prefer to call it. But not transmigration of souls. Or at least the basic Buddhist text teaches that there is no soul, and no incorporeal self, but the feeling of identity is an illusion brought about by attachment to things and desires.
I am aware that this does not entirely suit the people and there is a very prevalent but quite un -scriptural belief that an essential identity and even a soul exists that gets reborn.
This is just the Theravada view. I am no expert in Mahayana, but what little I have gathered suggests that the continuation of the soul after death and its rebirth into another body is found even in the scriptures particular to Mahayana.
A very interesting book on this subject is How Buddhism Acquired a Soul on the Way to China by Jungnok Park (Bristol, CT 2012). It is a paperback. Part III discusses the development of the idea of a self in Chinese Buddhism.
Then this poses a logical question.
What exactly has Gautam become aware of, when he became aware of his previous existences? As that was part of his staged process to enlightenment.
Logically, if there is nothing to re-exist, then what re-existed through his previous lives and up to the time he became enlightened? Nothing?
Oh, but it is not re-existence. It is rebirth. Ok, rebirth of what, if nothing is? As somehow, something keeps spinning on the wheel of samsar, so something clearly IS. Something that is capable of 1. physically existing 2. going through death 3. re-entering another body > #1>#2>#3.......
Either base principle of teaching - every human is suffering during countless re-existences on the wheel of samsar or, there is nothing to re-enter into a body every time and then premise said before is simply pointless.
it can not be both - re-exist and not be.
Something somewhere in the above posts does not make sense.
Thast said, I had is said way too many times and no one pays attention. Reincarnate only chosen Selfs. The rest re-exists. Buddha is said to re-incarnate, as in - Buddha The Teacher - because he chose not to enter the Realm of Permanence until the last human is enlightened, but this is likely a nice legend, just like Christ second coming. But ever since, buddhist specialists diligently search for his incarnation every time a new one is needed. Same goes for Dalai Lama. Something like position for eternity.
But that's them. So I know 2 that allegedly re-ncarnate, mentioned above and one to be re-incarnated, as in Christ.
Btw, I do not care what buddhist scholars came up with in 2400 years after his death. legends, theories, opinions and what not built upon his legacy. I care about common sense. Just like he said. So if something re-exists on the wheel - it's pretty darn much so exists.
Buddhism rejects the term ‘transmigration’ or ‘reincarnation’ altogether, but why? Literally, ‘trans-’ is a prefix meaning through or across. And transmigration denotes the movement or conveyance from place to place. If we mention that a soul would transmigrate from a body to another new body, it means the same ‘unchanging’ soul does the movement or conveyance throughout the time stream (past, present and future).
However, in a conventional reality, no ‘unchanging’ soul would transmigrate from one body to another and on this pretext, Buddhism upholds the term ‘rebirth’ or ‘re-arising.’ The Buddha sees in no transmigration of all things or matters but instead, in the constant and continuous transformation of all things or matters via the process of permeation (diffusion). Just like the orientation of energy in the cosmos i.e. energy would only transform - to transform is to change, to change is to become, and to become is to reborn. So energy is ever ‘reborn’ all the time in the dependent nature. By understanding well and observing thoroughly into the characteristics of energy, one could gain insight into the nature and its orientation.
In the case of rebirth, an individual soul does not migrate from a physical body into another one. No, it just won’t fit at all. Every individual or thing that exists would not be the same - it could only be in a similar condition e.g. twins are similar but never the same individuals (likewise, no two minds are the same). Every individual is unique respectively and no individuals would be the same even though they do share some sort of the same genes before time. For example, you may have heard in various stories whereby a spirit or ghost has the ability to possess into the body of an individual but it never absolutely overtakes the soul of the possessed individual. This is because one cannot simply exchange the soul at one’s whim and fancy. Even individuals with the most powerful magic charm could not perform this feat. Another example will be the human organ transplant cases, whereby the new recipients need to take immunosuppressive drugs to treat any transplant rejections – live long.
In Buddhism, rebirth refers to evolving consciousness or stream of consciousness of a person (upon death) and the new consciousness arising in the same person (in the new person) is neither identical to, nor entirely different from, the old consciousness, but forms part of a causal continuum or stream with it. The basic cause for this persistent re-arising of personality is the abiding of consciousness in ignorance; when ignorance is uprooted, rebirth ceases. For example, a flame is transferred from one candle to another, or a fire spreads from one field to another. In the same way that it depends on the original fire, there is a conditioned relationship between one life and the next; they are not identical but neither are they completely distinct.
And it is possible for rebirth to take place from a single source into different identities at any various point of time, just like how the genetic lineage works for generations. This is how we explain the destiny of being siblings, being life partners, being close friends in one’s lifetime. Somehow or somewhere before time, the so-called relevant individuals are inherited from the similar sources of predecessor. Thus in the present lifetime one has the opportunity to meet and know with the relevant beings and not the other non-relevant beings (as per the law of attraction).
Ultimately, it is the wonder of nature that every created object or thing is neither identical to, nor entirely different from each other. This is how the conventional reality works i.e. not in-linear but in inter-dependence, inter-woven and inter-relation since the dawn of time in a very comprehensive and complicated network of existence. At the end of the day, the inter-connectedness of all things or matters in the nature is what the principle of emptiness is all about - as per the teachings of the Buddha.
That is an excellent summation of traditional Buddhism and the concept of rebirth. Considering anatta, circumlocutions are necessary to understand how rebirth can occur when there is nothing to rebirth, i.e, no atman as understood in Hinduism.
This is a difficult and confusing topic, thanks for your take on it...
Because you are confusing atman with Conscious Self. Maybe look deeper into what atman exactly is. I am not going to do your homework. Ehi passico. When you understand what atman is, understanding of what an-atman is comes easy. then, understanding of what re-exists is easy too. Actually, while I am on it, it is very easy concept. Simple and logical, very scientific.
Unless you simply want to drool over "unfathomed depths of mysterious teaching". But that is cup of tea I mentioned in your other post. Your body mind speaking.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
