...Reincarnation “In my past life, my dad and mom called me Lax Minairon and one day I killed a man.” These words belong to Bishan Chand - little boy from India who was born in a family of poor peasants. We could imagine the astonishment of his parents when he told them about his past life-experiences. In that family, they used to count every penny but when the child started talking he began to accuse his dad of living in poverty, to insist on some expensive food and to ask silk clothes as he wore in his previous life. For decades, psychiatric hospitals saw many cases when the patient declared himself Hitler or Napoleon. Usually, when we hear such foolish ideas we say that the person has “mental illness” that affects his/her mood, thoughts or behaviors. Psychiatrists from around the world don’t take seriously all the affirmations of their patients. They believe that there are just hallucinations. Do they all represent a figment of imagination? That’s the question. American psychologist Ian Stevenson for many years was investigating the theme of reincarnation. He collected many proves which say that this phenomenon perhaps is not invented. The audit of the case of Bishan Chand showed that the boy has not lied and that a man called Lax Minairon existed once. The idea of reincarnation is significantly expressed in Hinduism. It says that the human being is born once and never truly dies: from reincarnation in reincarnation, he changes...
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...“if you believe in karma and reincarnation, you have more morals than believing in nothing” Personally, I agree with this statement, this is because believing in karma and reincarnation makes a person think in a long term perspective, this means they will think about their actions and positivity and how it may affect them later on or even in another life. The basic idea of karma seems to pop up in a lot of places, for example it doesn’t matter how religious you are or even if you’re not a hindu, it’s the fascinating idea itself . Reincarnation is also a very captivating idea, “You were. You will be” the initiative of the natural process of recycling human energy through birth, growth, decay and death. Reasons for view: People may agree with my belief because if we chose to ignore the workings of karma, we tend to create many problems for ourselves. For example, if we like to have something expensive, but we cannot afford it, it becomes very tempting to steal. If we are smart enough, we may never be caught stealing. However, by stealing, (according to the law of karma) we create problematic situations for ourselves in the future, like poverty, or being the victim of robbers. Therefore, if we chose to ignore karma, the results of our actions will still haunt us. Another reason why I agree with karma is the idea of ultimate justice as everyone will harvest the results of their actions and even if karma would not exist, as long as I try to avoid negative actions, the world...
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...Brock 1 PHI 210 World Religions 2 February 2016 A Deeper Look into the Similarities and Differences of the Belief in Karma and Reincarnation in Hinduism, Buddhism and Sikhism “All of the religions in the world, while they may differ in other respects, unitedly proclaim that nothing lives in this world but Truth” –Mohandas Gandhi. Hinduism, Buddhism and Sikhism are three major world religions that differ on many different levels, but they all collectively provide hope and meaning to the lives of people all over the world. The Marriam-Webster dictionary defines karma as the force generated by a person’s actions held in Hinduism and Buddhism to perpetuate transmigration and in its ethical consequences to determine the nature of the person’s next existence. Reincarnation is defined by the Marriam-Webster dictionary as rebirth in new bodies or forms of life; especially: a rebirth of a soul in a new human body. Karma and reincarnation are core concepts in the Indian religions, although their specific views on each vary. The Hindu’s view of karma is causality in which good deeds, words, thoughts and commands lead to beneficial effects for a person, and bad deeds, words, thoughts and commands lead to harmful effects. Hinduism beliefs say that karma is the force of punitive justice that Brock 2 encourages believers to behave according to Dharma, the moral order of the universe. Karma is an essential portion of the Hindu worldview because Hinduism governs not only individuals...
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...ESSAY Ian Stevenson and Cases of the Reincarnation Type JIM B. TUCKER Division of Perceptual Studies Department of Psychiatry and Neurobehavioral Sciences University of Virginia Charlottesville, VA e-mail: jbt8n@virginia.edu Ian Stevenson began studying children who claim to remember previous lives— an endeavor that will surely be remembered as the primary focus of his life’s work—almost by accident. Enjoying a successful mainstream career with some 60 publications in the medical and psychiatric literature to his credit, he had become chairman of the Department of Psychiatry and Neurology at the University of Virginia in 1957. The following year, the American Society for Psychical Research announced a contest in honor of William James for the best essay on‘‘the topic of paranormal mental phenomena and their relationship to the problem of survival of the human personality after bodily death.’’ Ian, who had said when he interviewed for the chairman position that he had an interest in parapsychology, had been intrigued by the concept of reincarnation and in his readings had come across reports of individuals claiming to have memories of previous lives, or‘‘apparent memories of former incarnations,’’ as he called them. The reports came from a number of sources, such as books, magazines, and newspapers. Ian analyzed 44 of them as a group in a paper that won the contest and was subsequently published in 1960 (Stevenson, 1960a,b). He was impressed with the similarities...
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...Hindu Beliefs About Samsara (Reincarnation) Samsara (reincarnation) is the cycle of birth, death, and rebirth. As long as people are part of samsara, they will feel pain and death. To end samsara, your soul must escape from the cycle of rebirth and merge with Brahman. It may take many lifetimes to break free from samsara. To escape from samsara, people have to follow the basic beliefs of Hinduism. The beliefs are doing good actions for karma, they follow their dharma by behaving correctly and performing their social duties, and finally worshipping Brahman and other deities that represent different personalities of Brahman. Back in the ancient times, the Indians would go on holy journeys to sacred places like the Ganges and Saraswati Rivers...
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...The question often occurs where an individual will travel to after death. Buddhists and Hindus both believe in reincarnation and salvation. This is dependent on the deeds an individual has led during his/her prior life. An individual's actions and performance in life before death, is the direct result on the outcome of their great beyond, whether it be human or an animal. The belief in karma is also a similarity between the two religion. This can be connected to prior decisions that were made in a lifetime. The belief in karma is put into play in the sense of immoral decisions affecting the judgement of future happenings. Karma is Sanskrit for “actions,” and is a concept common in both Hinduism and Buddhism. This means that our own actions causes an equivalent effect on our lives. This is inescapable. Thus, those belonging to this belief, will determine their own fate. In Buddhism, as well as, in Hinduism, it is the negative effects of karma that keep a person bound in the cycle of reincarnations. Therefore, the goal of both religions is to achieve hierarchy in re-birth....
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...Matthew R. Horton REL 350 Line #62453 2/16/05 The Path of the Gods and the Path to the Fathers: Reincarnation and Liberation in the Chandogya Upanishad The Chandogya Upanishad, in slokas 5.3-10, contains a lecture given by the King of Pancala to the Brahmin Guatama on the process of reincarnation and the path of liberation from rebirth, describing them as the paths to the fathers and path of the gods, respectively. The King uses the metaphor of the sacrificial fire to describe the creation of an incarnate being by the Gods, the fates of the dead, and the causes of rebirth. Finally, the King tells Guatama how to avoid the path to the fathers leading to rebirth, praising those who seek the path of the gods, which lead to Brahman. The fire sacrifice of the gods is presented as the cause of the entire process of creation. The Vedic idea of the primordial sacrifice is transformed into an overarching metaphor for the process of the transmigration of the Atman and its inevitable realization of Brahman, the Absolute Spirit. These ideas are prevalent in later Hindu scriptures, most particularly in the Bhagavad Gita, and this Upanishad is thus a bridge between the Vedic use of the concept of sacrifice as a sacred act of oblation to attain pragmatically conceived ends (more cows, good sons, a favorable afterlife, etc.) and the later yogic use of the concept to denote the offering of the senses into the fire or renunciation, leading to union with Brahman. The Chandogya...
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...Reincarnation in Hinduism When comparing Hinduism and Catholicism, it is revealed that the two are very different. Catholic’s believe that when people die, they will pass on to either heaven, hell, or purgatory. People of the Hindu faith believe in reincarnation. They believe that once a person dies, the soul will return new body to continue its journey to enlightenment. Whether it’s a cat, fly, divine figure, or a human, a new lesson will be learned through each body and experiences. It is believed that a person’s soul will learn and experience new things throughout each cycle. The cycle a soul passes through is called “Samsara.” This cycle is not limited to just humans. A person’s soul can be reincarnated as anything that “lives.”...
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...either by birth or chooses this form of worship. Hinduism is made up of beliefs that have changed through the centuries and the new additions to the belief system can be one of many reasons for its lacking a uniting belief system. According to Fisher (2005), there are “extreme variations within the Hinduism system of Santana Dharma which has been shown throughout time. Some scholars argue that there are no central traditions that can be called Hinduism proper” (pg 69). Forms of worship can be diverse depending on the village visited in India or in any other country. While American’s see life according to historical events. Hindus see life according to what they will become and history as unimportant. Reincarnation Reincarnation it the teaching “that the soul leaves the dead body and enters a new one. At death one takes birth again and again into countless bodies including animals or any other...
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...eternal oneness”. (Weider/Gutierrez p.67) The Hindu religion has four goals in the meaning/purpose of life. Pleasure, wealth, harmony and liberation. The first two consume the individual as it causes evil and suffering. The other two fulfill the individual. True salvation is to abandon the evil desires (pleasure and wealth) and become liberated (moksha). (Hindson/Caner p.263) Hindus believe that they should release all evil desires and egos and therefore they live through spiritual practices. Yoga, mental discipline and good deeds to all life forms. (Hindson/Carner p.264) Hindus believe in karma and by doing good deeds you receive good karma. Hindus believe in reincarnation, which is where you are born again in a new different body. (Merriam-Webster) Life is an illusion and to end the cycle of reincarnation one but eliminate all desires. You can do this by doing good deeds which leads to good karma and climbing the ladder of existence, ultimately wanting to reach Nirana. (Weider/Gutierrez p.69) (Hinderson/Caner p.263) Part Two: Hinduism much like Christianity both believe in God and that god created them. However, the...
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...A controversial topic around the world today is the question of what happens after death, and more specifically, the mystery of a potential next life. Scientific research is in the process of applying itself to beliefs of reincarnation and remembrances of past life situations. Pioneered by the University of Virginia, and continuing on for almost fifty years now, researchers have collected thousands of cases from around the globe to support their claims, though the topic is still subject to extreme skepticism. They have created a possible explanation for these occurrences, one theory involving quantum physics as related to the human consciousness. The conducted research seeks an explanation for seemingly impossible events as believed by the...
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...born. The Question of Identity is answered by the Hinduism worldview as everything is spiritual/sacred in life. Some believe “that a man’s soul is eternal and when he reaches a state of Nirvana, their soul (Atman) will become one with Brahman (Hinduism’s concept of eternal soul).” (Weidler & Gutierrez, 2011) Hinduism believes in reincarnation, which is determined by karma. The Question of Meaning or Purpose is answered by the Hinduism’s worldview as they view everything as an illusion. People usually believe that is a person doesn’t learn to understand this concept that they will stay in the lifecycle of birth, death, and rebirth. “Like a dream or a mirage, our life and everything around us does not really exist as we know it.” (Weidler & Gutierrez, 2011). The Question of Morality is answered by how they strive to be in a state of perfection, also known as moksha. To get there, they must release all wrong and evil doings. They do this by doing practices, yoga, dharma, etc. Once they achieve these practices, they will have a more desirable reincarnation. To answer the Question of Destiny, Hindus believe in reincarnation. Reincarnation is where the current body is dead and enters a new body. The kind of life they live next will depend on their previous life and decisions. Once they are in Nirvana, the highest place, they will then...
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...Origin- It has been stated that matter has always existed and given enough time and chance, of things going on around us. However “Naturalism” assumes that God does not exist. Pantheists believe everything goes through a cycle of birth, life, death, and rebirth, until one reaches the state of Nirvana. Theism believe the only one God exist, and is usually personal and relates to all humankind in a very close way. The Bible says “In the beginning God created the heaven and earth.” (Genesis 1:1) 2. The Question of Identity- naturalism is ideas mankind is a product of evolutionary forces. They look to understand through scientific theory. Pantheists view all life to be sacred or spiritual in nature. Also, the teach of life cycles call “reincarnation.” They believe good karma will have better outcome for future life to get to Nirvana. Bad karma being “reborn” into a lower life form. Theism...
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...an afterlife state which is between heaven and hell the Catholic Church calls ‘purgatory.’ The theological teaching is that after a time of purgation, the spirit will eventually be progress and will go to heaven. There are other Christians, the Protestants, who do not accept purgatory. Catholic theology also states that sinners can confess their sins to Catholic priests and those sins are forgiven for ever – it does not matter how grave the sins might be – including genocide – if the sinner truly repents, he will be forgiven. Buddha accepted the basic Hindu doctrines of reincarnation and karma, as well as the notion that the ultimate goal of the religious life is to escape the cycle of death and rebirth. Buddha asserted that what keeps us bound to the death/rebirth process is desire, desire in the sense of wanting or craving anything in the world. Hence, the goal of getting off the Ferris wheel of reincarnation necessarily involves freeing oneself from desire. Nirvana is the Buddhist term for liberation. Nirvana literally means extinction, and it refers to the extinction of all craving, an extinction that allows one to become liberated. Where Buddha departed most radically from Hinduism was in his doctrine of "anatta", the notion that individuals do not possess eternal souls. Instead of eternal souls, individuals consist of a "bundle" of habits, memories,...
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...Buddhism and Hinduism are two very comparable religions. One way that Buddhism and Hinduism are similar is that they both believe in a type of reincarnation. In Buddhism, reincarnation centers around their idea of Karma, which is the sum of a person's actions in this and previous states of existence, and is ultimately viewed as deciding their fate in future existences. This means that their actions have consequences. Every good thing a person does affects them in a positive way, and every bad thing a person does affects them in a negative way. As a person continues their lives making these choices, their Karma is always changing. According to Buddhism religion, followers of Buddhism continue to make these better choices, which in turn makes their Karma better, until they have reached the point that their mind becomes free and pure. This is when Buddhist reach the state of Nirvana, which is the ultimate happiness, and Buddhists lose their sense of self and become released from the cycle of rebirth. Nirvana is the ultimate goal of Buddhism, as their fluctuating Karma is their idea of rebirth or reincarnating, until they have reached their ultimate happiness in the state of Nirvana In Hinduism, the idea of reincarnation is more of the traditional cycle of life, death, and rebirth. Hindus believe that their souls are pure and everlasting, and what they do in one life directly correlates with what there next life will hold. A Hindu’s soul will reincarnate into a being repeatedly...
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