The Buddha’s teachings
offers the most satisfactory explanation of where man came from and where he is
going. When we die, the mind, with all the tendencies, preferences, abilities
and characteristics that have been developed and conditioned in this life, re-establishes
itself in a new being. Thus the new individual grows and develops a personality
conditioned both by the mental characteristics that have been carried over from
the previous life and by the new environment. The personality will change and be
modified by conscious effort and conditioning factors like education, parental
influence and society but once again at death, it will re-establish itself as
life in a new being. This process of dying and being reborn will continue until
the conditions that cause it, the mental factors of craving and ignorance,
cease. When they do, instead of being reborn, the mind attains a state called
Nirvana.
HOW DOES THE MIND GO FROM ONE BODY TO
ANOTHER?
When a person is
dying, he begins to lose conscious control of his mental processes. There comes
a time when his actions and habits locked away in his memories are released. In
many instances, there arises in his mind a mental image. This image is totally involuntarily
and is produced by his karma or past actions. Thus depending upon the nature of
the particular karma that produces this image, the person may see dark shadowy
figures, frightening images, or he may see his relatives or perhaps visions of
scenic beauty. Quite often, he will cry out at these visions or remark about
them to his visitors. Even though the physical body may be weak these thought
units are very strong as death approaches. When the body finally breaks down at
the point of death these energies are released as mental energy. As energy
cannot be destroyed they have to re-establish themselves in a new body thus
causing the phenomenon of rebirth.
Think of it being like
radio waves which are not made up of words and music but energy at different
frequencies, which are transmitted, travel instantaneously through space, are
picked up by the receiver from where the radio produces them as words and
music. It is the same with the mind. At death, mental energy travels through
space, is picked up by the fertilized egg of the future mother, is reborn as a
new being and manifests as a new personality.
Thus it is important
that a dying person is comforted and reminded of his good deeds. He should not
be made confused and visitors should not overtly grieve in his presence.
Neither should unfamiliar ideas like a new religion be introduced to him. The
Buddha advises that when one is fearful, he should recall to mind
the Buddha, the Dhamma and the Sangha.
IS ONE ALWAYS REBORN AS A HUMAN BEING?
No, there are several
realms into which one can be reborn. Some people are reborn in heavenly planes,
some are reborn in hell planes, some may be reborn as ghosts and as animals.
Heaven is not a place but a state of existence where one has a subtle body and
where the mind experiences mainly pleasure. Some religions strive very hard to
be reborn in a heavenly existence mistakenly believing it to be a permanent
state. But it is not. Like all conditioned states, heaven is impermanent and
when one’s life span there is finished, one could well be reborn again as a
human. Hell, likewise, is not a place but a state of existence where one has a
subtle body and where the mind experiences mainly anxiety and distress. Being a
ghost, again, is a state of existence where the body is subtle and where the
mind is continually plagued by longing and dissatisfaction. So heavenly beings
experience mainly pleasure, hell beings and ghosts experience mainly pain and
human beings experience usually a mixture of both. So the main difference between
the human realm and other realms is the body type and the quality of
experience.
“Those
who imagine evil where there is none, and do not see evil where it is —
upholding false views, they go to states of woe. Those who discern the wrong as
wrong and the right as right — upholding right views, they go to realms of bliss. ~ Dhammapada 318, 319”
WHAT DECIDES WHERE WE WILL BE
REBORN?
The most important
factor, but not the only one, influencing where we will be reborn and what sort
of life we shall have, is karma. The word karma means ‘action’ and refers
to our intentional mental actions. In other words, what we are is determined
very much by how we have thought and acted in the past. Likewise, how we think
and act now will influence how we will be in the future. Just as radio waves
will be picked up by a radio tuned to its particular frequency, the mental
energies released at the time of death will naturally be re-established in a
new material body that most suits it. Thus, the gentle, loving type of person shall
be reborn in a heavenly realm or as a human being in a comfortable environment.
The anxious, worried or extremely cruel type of person is reborn in a hell
realm, or as an animal, or as a human being born in extremely difficult
environment.
Not only is there
scientific evidence to support the phenomena of rebirth, it is the only
after-life theory that has any evidence to support it. During the last 30 years
parapsychologists have been studying reports that some people have vivid
memories of their former lives. Professor Ian Stevenson of the University of
Virginia’s Department of Psychology has described dozens of cases of this type
in his books. He is an accredited scientist whose 25 year study of people who
remember former lives is very strong evidence for rebirth.
This post was
republished from e-buddhism.
You can find the original post here.
Featured image source
Also source from enlightenhuman.com
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