Questions tagged [rebirth]
The coming into existence of another being based on conditions arising from a previous existence. This is commonly confused with reincarnation. Reincarnation is the passing of a soul or spirit into a new body. Buddhism denies the concept of a soul, spirit or permanent self therefore in Buddhism rebirth occurs but there is no-one who is reborn.
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Is there a way to help us remember our previous life?
There have been claims that some people can remember their previous life, their life before they are reborn. I can't say these are true or not.
Is it possible to remember our previous life?
If so, ...
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Not seeing the wood, for the trees
How can I clearly see the lessons my soul needs to learn this lifetime? I am a householder who has a wonderful life in New Zealand. There have been difficult times too, but even though, as a child I ...
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Can a human being reside both in this world and Nirvana at the same time?
I've heard Samsara as the term to describe a world with suffering. And it's my simple understanding that Nirvana is the absence of suffering. Correct me if I'm mistaken.
My question is fairly simple, ...
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Where do Hell Guards fall?
While searching some Buddhist inspired pictures of Naraka I often found hell guards torturing others... Question is where are they on the rebirth cycle. Are they ausras? And if they are created to ...
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Do Theravada monks search for reincarnation of teachers?
I know this is very common among Mahayanas, specialy in Tibet where they search for their old teachers (Lamas) all call them Rinpoche.
Is this also a practice in Theravada Buddhism?
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Is there any explanation on why only humans and animals do not remember previous life?
I have heard from a Buddhist monk that hungry ghosts usually return to their familis searching for food, which makes me believe they have easy access to memories of their previous life. Some hell ...
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Does memory persist across different births of an individual?
I've read that the Buddha could remember his past life. Does this means that the memory of a person lasts across different life times?
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What is the substantial cause of an instance of consciousness?
Context: I'm considered a skeptic of rebirth in my tradition which is the Gelug branch of Tibetan Buddhism. I'm asking this question to help me understand what other traditions think. In my tradition ...
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Buddhism, Reincarnation, and Doubt
Is it possible to maintain certain skeptical doubts about literal reincarnation and continue to work towards stream-entry, assuming one's practice is sincere and vigilant?
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Did the Buddha mean this by "rebirth"?
I suspect the Buddha used the term "rebirth" in a sense different from its traditional meaning. Probably he meant that our sense of separate self is repeatedly being born, decaying, dying and being ...
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What is happening to Lord Buddha after "parinirvana"?
We all know that after Lord Buddha's parinirvana, he will never be born again. So my question is, if Lord Buddha does not have a rebirth after parinirvana, what is actually happening to him (after ...
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Is rebirth/reincarnation central to Buddhism?
Would you characterize belief in rebirth as a central component of Buddhism?
Are there Buddhists who do not believe in it?
How is this concept understood, i.e., what does rebirth mean (in as much ...
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Where do “new” humans come from?
If all of us are re-incarnations of prior human beings, how do we account for the growing population? Where do “new” humans come from?
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Does the "nature" of a person move with her to the next life?
Imagine a person that is very calm, generous, doesn't like to harm others etc. If this person gets a rebirth in the human realm will he/she develop the same characteristcs?
The point is that Kamma ...
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Afterlife in Buddhism and Hinduism
Where does the ideology of afterlife in Buddhism and Hinduism come from and why are they different?
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Can a being be reborn into more that one body in Tibetan Buddhism?
I was reading that both the Dalai Lama and Karmapa are both rebirths (emanations) of the Bodhisattva Avalokiteśvara. Also there are other lamas who are also emanations of Avalokiteśvara.
So is ...
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What is passed from life to life in the process of rebirth?
As a practising Buddhist, I am often asked this question: what is passed from life to life in the process of rebirth?
I have several answers to this depending on my audience - e.g. lessons to be ...
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Stream winner reborn as human
If someone enters the stream and becomes a sotapanna (stream winner), then he would have at most, seven lifetimes left. What the stream is, is defined in this answer as:
This noble eightfold path — ...
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Is it right to use the term rebirth in the Buddhist context?
As I delve into the Buddhist literature deeper and deeper, particularly the Theravāda sutta literature, I am getting convinced more and more that when we use the term ‘rebirth’, and more so, the ...
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Law of Karma in the Buddha's own words
Where can I find the law of karma and rebirth in Buddha's own words?
Which scripture mentions it explicitly, as told by Buddha, and accepted by all sects of Buddhism?
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Buddhism and past lives?
The idea of having more than one life in Buddhism is regarded not just as a theory but a truth that can be experienced and verified If this is so, what was the technique used by the Buddha to ...
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Rebirth versus genetic recombination
Humans like nearly all other species have their genetic base as a mixture 50:50 from the genes of their father and from the genes of their mother. Each generation represents a new combination of genes ...
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What is the role of karma in rebirth?
Rebirth is not reincarnation. How then does the karma of an individual affect their rebirth?
In reincarnation, an individual's karma results in a better or worse next life for their soul. But in ...
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Is there a finite amount of beings?
According to the Buddhist teachings all beings are subject to Samsara and one can escape Samsara as he finds enlightenment.
But if all beings were ultimately to be reborn, with exception of those ...
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Does the Nihilism view (natthika-dithi) actually deny rebirths?
Is the Nihilism view (natthika-dithi) actually denying rebirths?
In Fuller's The Notion of Diṭṭhi in Theravāda Buddhism: The Point of View, in the translation of the Sāmaññaphala-sutta, natthika-...
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Is there person without consciousness?
If we consider person(Arthma) as a consciousness. When undergoing an operation, we are temporarily unconscious. Then what happens to that person while unconscious?
Some related discussion are here:
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Husband and wife for hundreds of times of consecutive rebirth. How?
In Theravada Buddhism, once a person dies he or she will be reborn immediately. Each person dies at a different time. How is it possible for a husband and a wife to meet again in the future ...
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Not remembering past life(s)?
I wanted to ask how Buddhism explains why we don't remember our past lives?
Why bother with the Buddhist path when we will not remember this temporary life in our next? I heard that for example ...
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Buddhism and bacteria
Buddhist teachings tell that all intentional killing is negative karma. So, what about bacteria? Are bacteria considered to be sentient beings? Is using antibiotics negative karma?
Is it possible to ...
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Five precepts and lower realms
My understanding is that, although we are practicing five precepts in this life, there is no guarantee we will not be reborn in lower realm, it is possible to take rebirth in lower realm in the next ...
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How does the force of ones karma determine where the mind stream goes?
"On the other hand, superior Bodhisattvas, who have attained the path of seeing, are not reborn through the force of their karma and destructive emotions, but due to the power of their compassion ...
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Is there any buddhist explanation for deja vu?
I'm not sure we will find that in the pali canon (per haps in Abidhamma?), but is there any thera/senior bikkhu that wrote about it? Is it related to past lifes or any special power of the mind?
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What would be the secular interpretation for the Assu Sutta and the Mata Sutta?
How would Secular Buddhists and other Buddhists who reject rebirth, interpret the following suttas, which describe:
An ocean of tears?
Everyone being someone we have know in the past?
From Assu ...
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Can one take rebirth as an insect?
I have always wondered if insects belongs to the animal realm in Buddhism, and I have yet to read stories about rebirth as an insect, such as a butterfly, a mosquito, or a praying mantis.
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Does Buddhism teach about "Parallel worlds"
I have heard something called "Mangala Sakwala" (The special universe or galaxy where lord Buddhas are born)
This is a real puzzle for me because does it mean that there are many other worlds like ...
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With my interpretation of 'rebirth', can I become a Buddhist and become accepted within a Buddhist community?
I am just beginning and in need of help and advice on rebirth.
I'm struggling for direction in life. I felt a connection with Buddhism in my day to day life and decided to pursue it further, In the ...
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Rebirth as cycle of consciousness?
Wikipedia's article on Rebirth (Buddhism) says,
Buddhist meditation teachers suggest that observation reveals consciousness as a sequence of conscious moments rather than a continuum of awareness[...
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How is a Dalai Lama chosen? And can it be a woman?
The 14th Dalai Lama is about 80 now. How will the next one be chosen or elected? Does the Dalai Lama himself decide, and has this already been decided? Are they, like the Catholics, 'voting' on ...
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Is there an interpretation of the 12 nidanas that occurs just over one lifetime?
Is there an interpretation of the 12 nidanas (shown on the outside of the wheel below) that is compatible with a lack of belief in rebirth. For instance in the 12 nidanas there are the links
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Heterosexual attraction in rebirth process?
In his book "Tibetan Buddhism from the ground up", Alan Wallace describes a part of the (human) rebirth process as follows:
"In [this vision] one sees (...) [the parents-to-be] in the ...
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How can people meet again after rebirth?
Prince Siddhartha & Princess Yashodhara met in a lot of lives as partners. How are people intended to meet their present life relations in the next life? Is the desire needed to be wished upon?
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Does Buddhism explain the past karma, and rebirth, of a short-lived fetus?
When the rebirth-linking consciousness arises in the fetus (I read elsewhere at around 26 weeks), but the fetus dies (somehow) prior to or during birth, is it possible to understand why this kind of ...
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What is the difference between "Bhāva" and "Ātman" in Pali
I have read in Buddhist text, Buddhism is about "Bhāva" and not "Ātman".
What is the difference between "Bhāva" and "Ātman"?
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Is rebirth scientifically proven?
I am from a Buddhist family, in which my parents believe in Buddhism a lot (100%).
But after learning tech, science, and IT in the last five years, what I feel is the idea of rebirth is nothing more ...
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Rarity of the Human World
I've read in Buddhist texts that being born into the human world is a rare and privileged event.
If that's the case, then why are killers and "bad" people allowed to be born into the human world?
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Why do beings, even in lower/hell realms, like their lives?
As to Lord Buddha beings suffer because they were born:
Jaathi pachchaya jara marana soka paridewa dukka domanassa upayasa sambhawanthi
From birth as a requisite condition, then aging & death, ...
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The time between kalpas
When a world system has gone through devolution and is in statis, before the next evolution, where are all the beings from that world system? I've read some of them are born into brahman realms, but ...
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Explain consciousness (viññāna) to non-Buddhists
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In discussions on Buddhist term consciousness (viññāna) with non-Buddhists, it's imperative to start with talking about life in general because---to my understanding---life after all is the ...
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Does rebirth or reincarnation occur in Buddhism?
How is the concept of rebirth or reincarnation handled in Buddhism? Does it occur? Will everyone be reborn? Are people always reborn as people?
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Can new beings come into existence without this existence being a rebirth?
Can beings that have come into existence that have never been reborn before, like comes into existence without that existence being a rebirth, or "its first birth".
Or is every being's ...
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