Question about rebirth?

[edwhys211]

Many people in the west (including me) have trouble differentiating rebirth and reincarnation. In Buddhism, what is rebirth? I have heard many people say it is your consciousness transferring to a new being, but I read on another forum that it is your mind improving and you are being reborn in a different way, still in your present life. Which one is correct, if any?

I have also read that there are different dimensions or something where you are reborn into. heaven, hell, animal, human, ghost. What is this about? Is this just a possible belief/concept, or did Buddha teach this?

Thank you

[cooran]

Hello Ed,

This previous thread may be a start:

Sorry...What's the difference? (Reincarnation Vs Rebirth)
viewtopic.php?f=24&t=215

with metta
Chris

[Yana]

Reincarnation means there's a permanent soul being transferred.Like a man changing a set of clothes.The man is still the same.The man or the soul is a permanent entity.

Rebirth means nothings the same.There is no man,no soul.The only thing that's being transferred through the relinking consciousness is kamma.Kamma is the reason you look a certain way,born to a certain family,grow up in a certain environment,etc.In fact everything you are now is constituted by kamma. There are other laws governing existence besides kamma like genetics etc..but kamma/volition is really the reason you keep existing.And it's no different when the rebirth process happens.

[cooran]

Hello Ed, and all,

A few teachings for your information:

Dhamma without Rebirth?
http://www.accesstoinsight.org/lib/auth ... ay_06.html
Does Rebirth make sense?
http://www.accesstoinsight.org/lib/auth ... ay_46.html
The Truth of Rebirth and why it matters for Buddhist practice
http://www.accesstoinsight.org/lib/auth ... birth.html
Buddhism and Death
http://www.accesstoinsight.org/lib/auth ... el261.html
Kamma and Rebirth
http://www.accesstoinsight.org/lib/auth ... 4.html#ch2

with metta
Chris

[dude]

where you are reborn into. heaven, hell, animal, human, ghost. What is this about? Is this just a possible belief/concept, or did Buddha teach this?

Yes, the Buddha taught that living beings (and we humans are living beings) are born into conditions dependent on past causes, and after death with the dissolution of the body, move on to better or worse conditions dependent on causes made in this lifetime.
However, life, which is inherent in and gives rise to all living beings, never came into existence at some time in the past nor will it cease to exist in the future. Your life, which is in no way separate from or something other than the life of all living beings, never started. It will never end.
I've never been able to wholly make this a part of myself, and if I ever do I imagine I will have won and no longer have to suffer, but I find that I can relate to it and make use of it through contemplation.

[DAWN]

There is no - 'the one who is rebron'.
There is just - 'rebirth'.

[Jayantha-NJ]

I've been taught that even the term "rebirth" does not fit right and using "re becoming" or just "becoming" makes the most sense. In the end I think it is mostly a semantic thing more then anything else. The main difference is that in Buddhism there is no transmigrating permanent soul.