Chapter 8-4 The Law of Reincarnation
"Do not speak of everything turning to emptiness, for before turning, all is but a dream."
—— Su-Shi, "Xi Jiang Yue"
To understand this topic, one must first be aware of two fundamentally different viewpoints: one is the belief in "one-life theory", and the other is the belief in "multiple-lives theory". If you are the former, we respect that, and you may skip this chapter. If you are the latter, you already understand the principles of "conservation of cosmic energy", and the eternal life of all things—neither created nor destroyed.
Adherents of "one-life theory" base their understanding of world on a limited time scale. They are unaware of what happened before birth and indifferent to what happens after death. For things they have not seen or experienced firsthand, they choose to adopt an attitude: "Those who know nothing have nothing to fear".
We tend to selectively forget past events. For instance, Lou Ye's movie "An Unfinished Film" takes us back to the Spring Festival of 2020, recounting the 3 years of the COVID-19 pandemic that seemed like a nightmare for many. Without the "deep-seated pain" of losing loved ones, many people would have more or less selectively "forgotten" it. Years later, to our descendants and their descendants, it will merely be a "legend" from the past.
Various religions, including Buddhism, Taoism, Islam, Christianity, and Judaism, have concepts of reincarnation, with nearly identical meanings, and the differences are negligible. The Bible describes Jesus being crucified and resurrecting 3 days later. Buddhist scriptures describe Shakyamuni achieving nirvana and manifesting as the tantric deity Vajrakilaya（秽迹金刚）. All religious theologies share a common trait: they transcend death, viewing it not only as the end of one stage but also the beginning of the next. After death, a person is believed to be reborn as a new life.
The premise of accepting reincarnation is the belief in the "immortality of soul". Leading scientists and philosophers continue to explore the mysteries of the soul. Philosophers such as Socrates, Pythagoras, Plato, and Schopenhauer all affirmed the immortality of soul. Schopenhauer's perspective on death is intriguing. He suggested that: while our physical bodies may cease to exist, there's more to our existence beyond the material realm. This idea resonates with various philosophical and spiritual beliefs.
These viewpoints closely align with the Buddhist teachings that state "One should perceive the nature of Dharma realm; everything is created by the mind" and "All appearances are illusory".
The Russian "Mars Boy" Boriska, when talking about reincarnation, said: "There is a special spatial dimension around a person that can record and preserve everything you have done throughout the life. After a person dies, this recorded image can be retrieved, and all the experiences of life, like a slow-motion film, including the details of thoughts and actions, can be displayed. After judgment, based on different categorization patterns, punishment and honor are the results, and the sublimation of pain and happiness becomes apparent. The pain of punishment in Hell is even more real than the pain you experienced on Earth; you will regret all the wrongs you have done. You will enter a time-space dimension with a very slow time field to repay the wrongs committed during the life. Besides compensating for physical pain of the victims, you must also repay their spiritual pain, which is an extremely painful cyclical process. This means that the significance of your existence on Earth is to lay the foundation for sublimation, not for pleasure of life."
Buddhism believes that all sentient beings in the world receive karmic retribution for their good and bad deeds, leading to six possible paths of rebirth, known as the "Six Paths of Reincarnation"（六道轮回）. They are categorized into 3 paths of goodness and 3 paths of suffering. The 3 paths of goodness are Deva (Heavenly Existence,梵天), Asura (Malevolent nature spirits,阿修罗), and Manusya (Human Existence). The 3 realms of suffering are Tiryagyoni (Animal), Presta (Hungry Ghost), and Naraka (Hell).
In the context of these Six Paths, Human Path serves as the central point. Depending on the morality of one's actions in life, individuals may be reborn into different paths. If one practices virtue and goodness throughout his life, he will be reborn in Deva. If one is generous but still seeks fame and victory, he will be reborn in Asura. If one develops anger and ignorance, he will fall into Tiryagyoni. Losing moral integrity leads to rebirth in Presta. Those who commit serious offenses, such as "Five Heinous Crimes" and "Ten Evil Acts", are reborn into Naraka.
The life and death of karmic body is not entirely identical to the life and death of physical body, but the death of physical body inevitably ends current karmic body. A karmic body can also undergo reincarnation without the death of the physical body, either when the karmic merit is exhausted or when it is replaced by a new karmic body. The previous karmic body is called former intermediate body, and the subsequent one is called the latter intermediate body, with the interim period referred to as the intermediate karmic body（中阴身）. As long as one is within the Six Paths, they cannot escape the cycle of birth and death, where good and evil deeds lead to corresponding retributions, highlighting the clear "Law of Causality".
In the Buddhist "Diagram of Six Paths of Reincarnation" (Figure 8.4), the innermost circle depicts a dove, a snake, and a pig, representing the 3 poisons in Buddhism: greed(desire), anger (aversion), and ignorance (delusion). These 3 poisons are considered the root causes of the suffering in the cycle of reincarnation.
Figure 8.4: The Diagram of Six Paths of Reincarnation in Beijing Lama Temple
The slightly larger white half-circle around the center contains 3 upward-facing human figures, representing the intermediate karmic body destined for rebirth into Deva, Asura and Manusya. The black half-circle represents the beings who, due to negative karma generated by greed, anger, and ignorance, are destined for rebirth into Tiryagyoni, Presta and Naraka. Their downward-facing heads symbolize their painful descent into these lower paths.
The outer circle is divided into 6 sections representing the 6 realms, with Deva and Asura having fewer inhabitants compared to Manusya and the Tiryagyoni. The outermost circle depicts "12 Causality Links", which represents the operating process of the cycle of reincarnation.
Based on previous research and empirical evidence, as human beings, we are reborn into Manusya, and must at least "passively obey" the following 3 implicit rules (or laws).
(1) Sealing of Memories
The book "Ruthless Underworld Law" explains that: "all souls returning to the underworld must drink Meng-Po's soup（孟婆汤）before reincarnation, which causes them to forget their past lives and to live anew according to their karmic forces with new family members. Human nature is inherently intelligent, possessing various thorough analytical abilities. If people do not drink Meng-Po's soup and forget everything from their past, even if they are reborn through reincarnation, they might recall fragments of their past lives under certain specific conditions and circumstances. This would disrupt their immediate family and friends' relationships, causing social chaos."
A person's memories of past lives are unsealed in their intermediate state after death, so many souls originally full of worries and resentment understand what happened before, recognize the influence of causality, and let go of their entanglements.
In fact, the "Sealing of Memories" is one of the laws in Manusya. Even descending gods are not exception. Gautama Siddhartha, Princess Miaoshan, Mazo Lin Mo, Laozi... all underwent trials in the real world without being aware of their true past identities.
However, it seems the system may sometimes have (intentional?) bugs, as a very small number of people retain past life memories. Those with divine abilities or "remote viewing" capabilities can "see" their past lives. As mentioned before, beyond the four-dimensional space, time becomes a variable that can be traversed freely. Connecting with higher dimensions often allow one to "sense" past lives. For example, Taiwanese writer Lv Yingzhong claims to communicate with sages like Shakyamuni and Laozi, recording their thoughts in books such as "Buddha's Quantum World" and "Laozi Does Not For"(discussed in Chapter 13)...
Dreams possess attributes of higher dimensions. The length of time in dreams and in reality is not equal. Many people have experienced dreams where they feel a long time has passed, but upon waking, they realize they have only slept for a short while. Moreover, some individuals frequently witness glimpses of the past or future in dreams, encounter long-lost relatives, or revisit familiar scenes. "Professional hypnotists" employ specific techniques to awaken past life memories in subjects for spiritual healing, depicted vividly in movies like "Inception" and "The Hypnotist".
- The Inertia of Reincarnation
The "inertia of reincarnation" can be understood as the habits formed through repeated experiences over multiple lifetimes. These habits can be either good or bad. For example, if a person has been a quiet scholar in several lifetimes, they will likely be drawn to a scholarly family in their next life, making studying an easy task for them. Similarly, if a person has been fond of drinking over several lifetimes, they will likely have a natural inclination and tolerance for alcohol in their next life. Moreover, physical appearances like the body shape and facial features are often similar in different lives. Additionally, experiences from previous lives may be replayed in the current life, akin to retaking an exam until the lesson is learned.
The most typical example is the concept of "Love": familial love and romantic love. In terms of familial love, a father and son in a past life may reincarnate with their roles reversed. Due to past karmic ties, they may care for or be cared for by each other, repay favors or repay debts, often remaining family members for multiple lifetimes. In marriages, it is said, "A thousand miles of marriage is tied by a single thread". Many couples from past lives are still involved in this life because they still owe each other. Some romantic entanglements and love triangles may also be rooted in unresolved past life relationships. As depicted in "Dream of the Red Chamber", which famously states: "Fortune and misfortune are predetermined; separation and reunion are all fated." No one can escape the control of destiny; relationships begin and end as destined.
Indeed, life is but a grand dream, with each passing season bringing its own changes!
- All Sentient Beings Tend to Decline
According to the "Law of Entropy Increase" discussed in Chapter 4, in a closed, isolated system, heat always flows from a hot object to a cold object, and this process is irreversible. If the universe is also a closed system with constant energy, then the "Law of Entropy Increase" tells us that the universe is not eternal, and eventual outcome of all things will be decay and death. This scientific principle coincides remarkably with the Buddhist concept of the universe's "formation, existence, decay and emptiness" and the human life's "birth, aging, sickness and death".
If the soul is also an energy body, without external work or energy increase, it cannot escape the law of "Reincarnation Entropy Increase", which leads to energy depletion and increasing disorder. How difficult is this test of life? Even the Buddha endured 500 lifetimes of trials, having his limbs cut off and his ears and nose severed by King Kali, so how can we expect life to be easy for us?
From a phenomenological perspective, if a person does not do what the heavenly "Tao" has assigned to his life, then his destiny will worsen with each reincarnation. A typical example of past life memory shows that a person who was a high-ranking, influential figure in their previous life might become an ordinary person in this life due to a lack of accumulated merit. For the vast majority of people, life seems to be a process of consuming their accumulated merit and fortune.
The human body must be maintained or it will die; the human life must be controlled or it will be wasted; the human soul must be upgraded or it will degenerate. When talking about the meaning of life, the Japanese entrepreneur Kazuo Inamori did not mention that he created two Fortune 500 companies, but said: "The meaning of life is that when you leave, your soul is at a higher level than when you came."
In another perspective, if we compare each person's life to a game of battling monsters and leveling up, you are given specific energy and "assignments" when you are born. For instance, if your energy level is 50 at birth, and you do well in this life, your energy level will be increased to 60 when you die, and you will earn "innate" capital for your next life. If your energy value is only 40 when this life is exhausted, then in your next life, you will have to start from 40 or lower, likely drawn by similar karmic forces to face similar challenges, possibly under worse conditions. If you have 50 energy when you come and 50 when you die, and it seems that there is no increase or decrease, then it seems you have "wasted" this life, and undoubtedly "lived in vain".
The most terrifying scenario involves repeatedly defying heavenly principles, harming others for personal gain, and damaging moral integrity. Your energy level will be quickly reduced to zero or even negative, the King of Hell must prematurely collect your exam paper, sentencing you to punishment. You will have to "rebuild" from scratch for hundreds of thousands of kalpas, and difficult to be a human again.
Life is nothing more than a play that we need to keep going through. There are not so many coincidences in life. Seemingly coincidences, happiness and misfortune are just the plot arrangement of the script. No matter what role or situation you find yourself in, being able to quickly adapt to your role and perform it well means you are doing what life requires. At the same time, you should not become too deeply immersed in the play; recognizing the "emptiness" of your surroundings and protecting your body, mind, and soul is the higher way to live.
The Eight Sufferings of life are: birth, aging, sickness, death, being unable to obtain what one desires, meeting with those one hates, parting from loved ones, and the flourishing of five aggregates. From the first cry of a newborn, it is clear that one cannot avoid the various sufferings of the human world. I often see patients in the hospital, their eyes devoid of light, tormented by illness, or elderly people in the ICU clinging to life through ventilators and machines, finding life worse than death, with days passing like years. If they and their families could understand the essence of life, knowing that "life is endless, so we do not truly die, nor are we ever truly born", then the fear of the end of life could be alleviated, bringing earlier relief to both patients and their loved ones. "If they knew they had lived countless times before and would live countless times again in the future, they might feel much more secure."
Fate alternates, the world unpredicted, everything is ever-changing but predetermined, and the future cannot be forced.
As I watch the smile on my 3-year-old son XiaoAi's face, I always hope that his lighthearted and fearless smile may last longer. Watching my 12-year-old son Coco's tears, I genuinely hope he can face his script, accept his role with ease, and bravely overcome the obstacles.
If there are destined imperfections, please face them positively and become a better version of yourselves as soon as possible. One day, you will be able to achieve a state where circumstances follow your heart, where clarity of mind reveals true nature, and where everything that once seemed contrary to your wishes turns out to be life's best arrangement.
