Re-birth

I find the taking the teachings on rebirth literally helps me in developing renunciation, understanding bodhicitta and emptiness. If others look on these teachings more metaphorically, who am I to say they are wrong. As yet, I have not recalled previous rebirths nor unravelled all the workings of karma: when I do, I'll know for sure (perhaps after a few more lifetimes...)

Rudy
Thanks for your reply. Now I get to my main point. How can one ensure rebirth into a more Buddhist surrounding? I came to Buddhism late in life so I don't have much time to become enlightened - wish I could! If one is re-born into a non-Buddhist environment - Christian - Islamic - one might go through a whole life without even coming into contact with the Dharma. I practice as hard as I can by meditating, following the Eightfold Path and the Five Precepts and reading all I can about Buddhism (I have no means of joining a Buddhist group in person) but this problem really bothers me.
With Metta
Robert (Maintop)

I agree with Gary, but in order to create actual karma, merely wishing is a very weak basis. In other words, it is important to do positive actions and then dedicate the merit to the goal you wish.

This can be any kind of positive action; whether it is a traditional action such as reciting sutras or prayers, donating food or money to the Sangha etc., or any other positive action, like helping a neighbor, giving a handful of food to a beggar, whatever.

Ideally, you set a proper motivation before the action, then act, then dedicate the merit, and ideally, you can then also rejoice your merit and the fortune of the person you helped.

The best results will come though from a non-selfish motivation: so rather then just asking 'may I be reborn in a Buddhist country', it would be best if you could add for example, 'so that I may be able to study and practice Buddhism, and have the wisdom to help others in the best possible way'. The first part is necessary, because just being born in a Buddhist country is not enough: you could be born in a Christian or Muslim minority, and be as far off your goal as you can get! The second part is extremely important though, more important then any of the other parts: if you dedicate your energy ultimately to the welfare of others, you actually create the causes for Buddhahood, not just for being born somewhere convenient...
Even if you are born in a Christian country and never hear of Buddhism, but you behave as a good Christian, you can create much more positive karma then when you are born in a Buddhist country but earn your living as a criminal.

So try to do good actions and dedicate the merit, but take sufficient time to think over what you really wish to happen. You probably heard some of the many fairy-tales that deal with wishes: if you wish the wrong thing, chances are that you get it!

Beyond the above, wishing for a good rebirth is actually the most short-sighted way to use Buddhism.
A much more extensive wish is for the liberation from samsara (the cycle of life) as an Arhat, who can teach other people the path to liberation.
The best and most extensive wish in Buddhism is to want to help all other sentient beings becoming free from suffering, and to become a Buddha yourself to be able to lead them to enlightenment. If you make this your wish, there is really nothing more important to wish for.
Perhaps you can have an experience in a non-Buddhist country that brings you much further on your spiritual path then you would ever have in a Buddhist country? The very best next life for yourself and others could be something very different from what you expect right now.

Over the years I have developed some thoughts on this, which is slightly off topic, but I think it's important anyway.

First and most important we need to decide what is "proof". If you are talking about reading it on CNN or having it proven in a laboratory setting I think it is going to be a while. For me, a preponderance of evidence gives me the degree of confidence I need to posit rebirth as a likely phenomenon.

I derive this preponderance of evidence from 4 sources:

1. The vast amount of studies done on past life experience. There are literally thousands of documented cases and studies done by Universities.

2. The vast amount of studies on near death experiences. There are similarly many serious studies done on this subject.

3. Clairvoyant abilities which abound but are more difficult to discern unless one personally experiences it.

4. Our personal experiences which we would find difficult to explain without considering the interaction of consciousness outside of our physical form.

Remember 2 very important things when considering this.

1. Don't be lazy. If you don't read the literature and decide for yourself what is convincing these methods will not work for you.

2. You don't need to be convinced that ALL of these events have occurred. In fact, if only ONE of them are real then that is sufficient proof.

Jeff

Finally I would add that it helps me to think about the Bodhisatva commitment. To me the prospect of asking to experience countless rebirths, to remain until cyclic existence ends in order to alleviate the suffering of sentient beings and guide them to enlightenment, this was always much more frightening than the idea of non-existence or a single disadvantaged rebirth. But whatever frightens you or me, when we face our fears, we find they come from misunderstanding, a misapprehension that runs deep, but is delusion just the same. In truth eternity and the suffering and potential happiness of all being is here, now. Without rebirth, that could not be true, but it is the truth of it that really calms the mind.

Let`s take it from another angle:

Why is it difficult to believe in rebirth and what makes it easy to believe that `when we die everything is over` ?

Let`s say it is the lack of proof.
Which proof do we have that everything is over when we die ?

Tamara

Bristollad wrote:

``Proof that its all over when we die: the body including the brain stops functioning. ``

Aha, o.k. ......so the fact that the body stops functioning might be taken as proof that `everything is over`......


Padmasabhava has a different view on this and describes something that goes beyond life and death.

As our human brain works with concepts, he tries to describe the undescribable in this way:

``````Empty in essence and cognizant in nature, `its` capacity suffused with awareness, `it` endures as luminous inner space.

From there displays manifest:
The (eight) gates of spontaneously present nature appearing as pure AND impure.

When the pure gate, in six modes (six realms) of appearance manifests outworldly as shapes, colors and so forth, to be unaware of your own nature is ignorance.``````

In this few lines everything about `mind`, samsara and nirvana is said.

Tamara

Matt wrote:

``so I bet others are feeling this one way or another as well.``

Answer: Yes, they are

The questions is, why am I posting Padmasambhava`s view on things here in the thread about rebirth ?

This is to show that at some point moving beyond the question of rebirth/not rebirth is necessary. We will probably never have 100% proof if there is re-birth or not.

We have to be bold to acknowledge that our view is as limited as the ant`s crawling over my table right now.

And that there were and are people on this planet who went way beyond or small greedy, upset, whining way of seeing things. That`s formidable and inspiring.

Next step: Practice.

Which practice?
Go along what inspires you.

Tamara

Not just students of Padmasambhava but everyone who tries to follow the Dharma eventually comes back to looking at the nature of their mind for that is where the practice is done