Buddhism
Buddha's Core Teachings
Karma and Rebirth in Buddhism
What is Karma in Buddhism?
Birth, rebirth, and death are the beginnings and ends to the entrance and exit of the six different worlds through the state of consciousness, with no end, unless one has attained nirvana. The true meaning of karma in Buddhism is the willful action taken by someone, which is things people choose to say or do, which sets karma in motion (O'Brien, “Buddhism and Karma”). Many religions in India taught that karma operated as past actions influencing the present and the present actions influencing the future, however, Buddhism interprets the past having some influence on the present, but the present is also being shaped by a being's actions in the present moment as well (O'Brien, “Buddhism and Karma”). This allows beings to feel powerful, as they have the power to change their situation in that very instance through changing their current behavior
What is Rebirth?
What is Karma?
Karma is the process in which a person's actions, whether it is good or bad, decide their fate in the upcoming future. Karma is essentially cause and effect relating to an individuals day to day decision and actions taken.
Reincarnation is defined as the transmigration of a soul to another body after death (O'Brien, “Rebirth”). This understanding of reincarnation is not a teaching of the Buddha, as the Buddha taught an important doctrine called the Anatman. This doctrine taught that there is no self or no soul in the sense of a permanent being within an individual existence. What we think of as our identity, our characteristics, and ego are short term creations that do not remain after death, therefore, there is no rebirth of a soul from life to life in an endless cycle (O'Brien, “Rebirth”). Buddhism focuses on the rebirth or renewal of the illusion of "me" that individuals have. In every moment an individual is born, decayed, and dead, the illusion of "me" or the five skandhas are constantly renewed through this cycle. Each moment creates a new version of an individual, as nothing in life is permanent and circumstances are always shifting (O'Brien, Rebirth). Each of these moments can be thought of as a domino effect, as each thought-moment creates the next and so on. From moment to moment, beings experience different conscious states of mind. These conscious states of mind are reborn and they are determined as a result of one's karma. It is a process of actions and reaction, karma brings out rebirth.