Rebirth and keeping one's practice

[zenman]

I am new to Buddhism and I have this question: Suppose in this life I try to practice according to the Buddha's teachings but at the very end of my life I am still not a Sotapanna, and off I go to be reborn. Let's say I am reborn again as a human, then will I still be able to pick up where I left off in this life and continue practicing, or will my progress be "reset" in some sense and I will have to begin again from scratch ? If that is the case then would it mean that I either have to be able to enter the stream in this life, or wait for an indefinite amount of time before I can encounter the Buddha's teachings again?

I think I have read somewhere in the Pali suttas that wondering about "where will I be" or "what will be my future states" is inappropriate attention, i.e. one should just abandon such thoughts. However, sometimes I feel that having a little bit of assurance provides me more energy for practice. I would love to hear your thoughts. Thank you.

[SarathW]

"Have no fear, Mahanama! Have no fear! Your death will not be a bad one, your demise will not be bad. If one's mind has long been nurtured with conviction, nurtured with virtue, nurtured with learning, nurtured with relinquishment, nurtured with discernment, then when the body — endowed with form, composed of the four primary elements, born from mother & father, nourished with rice & porridge, subject to inconstancy, rubbing, pressing, dissolution, & dispersion — is eaten by crows, vultures, hawks, dogs, hyenas, or all sorts of creatures, nevertheless the mind — long nurtured with conviction, nurtured with virtue, learning, relinquishment, & discernment — rises upward and separates out.

https://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitak ... .than.html

[mjaviem]

...inappropriate attention, i.e. one should just abandon such thoughts. However, sometimes I feel that having a little bit of assurance provides me more energy for practice. I would love to hear your thoughts. Thank you.

Here is your assurance to provide energy to practise:

...
“But mendicant, how do you develop it?”

“In this case, sir, I think: ‘Oh, if I’d only live as long as it takes to breathe out after breathing in, or to breathe in after breathing out, I’d focus on the Buddha’s instructions and I could really achieve a lot.’ That’s how I develop mindfulness of death.”
...

[Joe.c]

…

Whatever you have developed in term of good habits will never be lost if you have maintained in your daily life for 24/7. Similarly to your bad habits. But any materials (house, money) that you accumulate may get lost once you move one.

Do you know that one who has perfected morality, there is no fear?

I suggest keep practice 5 precepts daily and seek “Good people”. When you see good people, you will hear true dhamma.

Good people = One who practice and maintain morality/sila, samadhi and panna for 24/7. Not easy to find nowadays.

If one hasn’t entered the stream, one may still go to lower realms.

Good luck.

[Sam Vara]

If one is not sotapanna, nor reborn into this world, one's meritorious deeds are not without effect. They will come to fruition at some point.

[Motova]

I am new to Buddhism and I have this question: Suppose in this life I try to practice according to the Buddha's teachings but at the very end of my life I am still not a Sotapanna, and off I go to be reborn. Let's say I am reborn again as a human, then will I still be able to pick up where I left off in this life and continue practicing, or will my progress be "reset" in some sense and I will have to begin again from scratch ? If that is the case then would it mean that I either have to be able to enter the stream in this life, or wait for an indefinite amount of time before I can encounter the Buddha's teachings again?

I think I have read somewhere in the Pali suttas that wondering about "where will I be" or "what will be my future states" is inappropriate attention, i.e. one should just abandon such thoughts. However, sometimes I feel that having a little bit of assurance provides me more energy for practice. I would love to hear your thoughts. Thank you.

My understanding is just taking refuge can secure happy rebirths in the higher realms until one's liberation, although I forget what sutta says this.

Search "puja" in sutta central and you can find many suttas that say an individual secured only happy higher rebirths until their liberation due to offering a mental or physical object to the Buddha.

[SarathW]

“Mendicants, the eye is impermanent, perishing, and changing. The ear, nose, tongue, body, and mind are impermanent, perishing, and changing. Someone who has faith and confidence in these principles is called a follower by faith. They’ve arrived at inevitability regarding the right path, they’ve arrived at the level of the good person, and they’ve transcended the level of the bad person. They can’t do any deed which would make them be reborn in hell, the animal realm, or the ghost realm. They can’t die without realizing the fruit of stream-entry.
https://suttacentral.net/sn25.1/en/sujato

viewtopic.php?t=34710&hilit=good+news

[2600htz]

Hi:

Its not a yes or no answer.

Take in consideration we all have been in samsara infinite amounts of time. We all have met previous buddhas in the past.

Probably you will lose every sutta/theorical knowledge. The wisdom, meditation attainments, faith, etc. Will stick more. You might be reborn in a very good situation but not be able to practice "buddhism" for many lifes. You might be reborn in a bad situation but become a buddhism since birth. Who knows.

Thats why sotapanna stage is so important.

Regards