Signs of future rebirth

Forum for discussion of Tibetan Buddhism. Questions specific to one school are best posted in the appropriate sub-forum.
Post Reply
User avatar
mechashivaz
Posts: 154
Joined: Tue Jul 25, 2017 9:50 pm

Signs of future rebirth

Post by mechashivaz »

Are there any texts in English that deal with how one could know of their next rebirth? I've heard stories of lamas being able to tell people where they'll be reborn and where to look for their next incarnation. Or similarly, how do those searching for a recently reborn tulku know where to look? thanks!
Varis
Posts: 428
Joined: Tue Jul 11, 2017 5:09 am

Re: Signs of future rebirth

Post by Varis »

Reach the 8th bhumi and you'll be able to choose your next rebirth.
"I have never encountered a person who committed bad deeds." ― Ven. Jìngkōng
User avatar
FiveSkandhas
Posts: 917
Joined: Sat Jun 29, 2019 6:40 pm

Re: Signs of future rebirth

Post by FiveSkandhas »

You might find this of interest:

How to become a tulku

https://palisuttas.wordpress.com/2013/0 ... e-a-tulku/



.
"One should cultivate contemplation in one’s foibles. The foibles are like fish, and contemplation is like fishing hooks. If there are no fish, then the fishing hooks have no use. The bigger the fish is, the better the result we will get. As long as the fishing hooks keep at it, all foibles will eventually be contained and controlled at will." -Zhiyi

"Just be kind." -Atisha
User avatar
Losal Samten
Posts: 1591
Joined: Mon Mar 24, 2014 4:05 pm

Re: Signs of future rebirth

Post by Losal Samten »

This sutra goes over the various delineations of the realms and the causes that make one take birth there. It's quite detailed.

https://read.84000.co/translation/toh287.html
Lacking mindfulness, we commit every wrong. - Nyoshul Khen Rinpoche
འ༔ ཨ༔ ཧ༔ ཤ༔ ས༔ མ༔
ཨོཾ་ཧ་ནུ་པྷ་ཤ་བྷ་ར་ཧེ་ཡེ་སྭཱ་ཧཱ།།
ཨཱོཾ་མ་ཏྲི་མུ་ཡེ་སལེ་འདུ།།
User avatar
Sādhaka
Posts: 1277
Joined: Sat Jan 16, 2016 4:39 pm

Re: Signs of future rebirth

Post by Sādhaka »

Losal Samten wrote: Fri May 07, 2021 3:16 am This sutra goes over the various delineations of the realms and the causes that make one take birth there. It's quite detailed.

https://read.84000.co/translation/toh287.html
Nice.
User avatar
PadmaVonSamba
Posts: 9437
Joined: Sat May 14, 2011 1:41 am

Re: Signs of future rebirth

Post by PadmaVonSamba »

Keep in mind, everything is conditional.

Suppose you could look into a magic mirror of crystal ball and see the specific details, the place and parents and so on, of your next rebirth.

But, if you were to then look into that same mirror or crystal ball a month from now, the details of your rebirth would be different than before. Maybe slightly different, and maybe very different.

It’s like fishing in a lake. Each day, same lake, same fishing spot, same type of bait, but maybe a different kind of fish each day. There are a lot of variables!

A good analogy story to the process of rebirth is that of two wagons, each carrying the same amount of lumber (wood), driving on a bumpy road that runs along side of a river.

The lumber in the first wagon is loose. Just a lot of wood boards stacked in the back. It runs over a very big bump, topples over, and all of the wood boards fall into the river and are scattered, washing up here and there on the river banks downstream. Most of the wood is never found.

The lumber in the second wagon is tied together. That wagon also hits a bump, tips over, and it’s contents spills into the river. However, because the wood is bundled together with strong rope, it becomes like a raft and floats down stream until it washes up on the “other shore” of the river bank. But it is easy to find.

In this analogy, the wood represents the composites qualities of the mind of the person who dies. The wood falling into the river symbolizes the death of the person. The strong rope represents one’s meditative practice and the discipline and control of one’s mind. The force of the river which carries the wood downstream refers to karma.

For most people, death is like the story of the first wagon. Rebirth is unpredictable. Our qualities basically scatter, and depending on the karma, can resurface anywhere. Animal realm, ghost realm, any number of situations in human realm, etc.

However, for lamas, yogis and those who have trained their minds, when they die, it is like the wood tied together with strong rope. Their qualities do not dissipate. They are reborn, you might say, “intact”.

Keep in mind, there is no ultimate thing which is a “self” that is reborn. When one takes rebirth, it is actually the various qualities which are reborn again. It’s like carrying dozen eggs home from the grocery store. Yes, they are all in a single carton, but really, it is twelve separate eggs. If you can keep them from breaking, then you will have the same carton of eggs intact when you get home.

I think the link posted previously, referencing Berzin, is very good. There needs to be a conscious effort, a strong conviction about it. Perhaps, close to the moment of death, one can foresee the conditions for one’s rebirth. But I think this takes a lot of meditative practice.
EMPTIFUL.
An inward outlook produces outward insight.
Brunelleschi
Posts: 465
Joined: Tue May 05, 2015 4:09 pm

Re: Signs of future rebirth

Post by Brunelleschi »

PadmaVonSamba wrote: Fri May 07, 2021 11:24 am For most people, death is like the story of the first wagon. Rebirth is unpredictable. Our qualities basically scatter, and depending on the karma, can resurface anywhere. Animal realm, ghost realm, any number of situations in human realm, etc.

However, for lamas, yogis and those who have trained their minds, when they die, it is like the wood tied together with strong rope. Their qualities do not dissipate. They are reborn, you might say, “intact”.

Keep in mind, there is no ultimate thing which is a “self” that is reborn. When one takes rebirth, it is actually the various qualities which are reborn again. It’s like carrying dozen eggs home from the grocery store. Yes, they are all in a single carton, but really, it is twelve separate eggs. If you can keep them from breaking, then you will have the same carton of eggs intact when you get home.
Hi Padma, great analogies. Can you explain a little bit further what you mean by this?

I mean, undoubtedly in Buddhism single and unique consciousness is taught, no?
Malcolm
Posts: 42974
Joined: Thu Nov 11, 2010 2:19 am

Re: Signs of future rebirth

Post by Malcolm »

PadmaVonSamba wrote: Fri May 07, 2021 11:24 amWhen one takes rebirth, it is actually the various qualities which are reborn again. It’s like carrying dozen eggs home from the grocery store.
If you consider afflicted aggregates qualities...
bhava
Posts: 62
Joined: Sat Mar 26, 2016 5:12 pm

Re: Signs of future rebirth

Post by bhava »

Try to look into: The Tibetan Book of the Dead, trans. by Elio Guarisco, foreword by Chogyal Namkhai Norbu: "At the moment of death, signs occur that indicate, in which realm the deceased is going to be reborn. The Tantra Great Secret Union of the Sun and Moon describe these signs as follows: If the heat ebbs from the head and right hand quivers, these signs indicate that the dying person will be born as a god"....
Moreover, from the same source, "Moreover, from the fourth week (in the bardo of becoming) onward propensities from the karma of past actions, that will determine the rebirth of the deceased become stronger and visions and impressions connected with them will become more intense.."
User avatar
PadmaVonSamba
Posts: 9437
Joined: Sat May 14, 2011 1:41 am

Re: Signs of future rebirth

Post by PadmaVonSamba »

Brunelleschi wrote: Fri May 07, 2021 7:07 pmin Buddhism single and unique consciousness is taught, no?
What is experienced can be either original unborn mind, which is single and unique, or else the various kleshas and karmic baggage, imprints on the alaya Vijñana and so forth, and all of that which is all composites.
EMPTIFUL.
An inward outlook produces outward insight.
PeterC
Posts: 5190
Joined: Tue May 20, 2014 12:38 pm

Re: Signs of future rebirth

Post by PeterC »

If you want to know what you did in your last life, look at where you ended up in this one. (Cleary we all did ok because we were born as humans and met the dharma: but we weren’t particularly clever or diligent, because we didn’t achieve liberation in that lifetime or in the bardo afterwards.) And if you really want to know where you will end up in the next life, look at what you’re doing with this one.
Malcolm
Posts: 42974
Joined: Thu Nov 11, 2010 2:19 am

Re: Signs of future rebirth

Post by Malcolm »

PeterC wrote: Sat May 08, 2021 3:40 pm because we didn’t achieve liberation in that lifetime or in the bardo afterwards.)
And we didn't even manage rebirth in a natural nirmanakāya buddhafield, sheesh!
User avatar
mechashivaz
Posts: 154
Joined: Tue Jul 25, 2017 9:50 pm

Re: Signs of future rebirth

Post by mechashivaz »

Malcolm wrote: Sat May 08, 2021 3:56 pm
PeterC wrote: Sat May 08, 2021 3:40 pm because we didn’t achieve liberation in that lifetime or in the bardo afterwards.)
And we didn't even manage rebirth in a natural nirmanakāya buddhafield, sheesh!
I've heard it takes much longer to attain liberation in a pure land, so wouldn't it be better to take rebirth in a realm like our current one?
User avatar
heart
Posts: 6287
Joined: Fri Jan 08, 2010 1:55 pm

Re: Signs of future rebirth

Post by heart »

mechashivaz wrote: Sat May 08, 2021 4:22 pm
Malcolm wrote: Sat May 08, 2021 3:56 pm
PeterC wrote: Sat May 08, 2021 3:40 pm because we didn’t achieve liberation in that lifetime or in the bardo afterwards.)
And we didn't even manage rebirth in a natural nirmanakāya buddhafield, sheesh!
I've heard it takes much longer to attain liberation in a pure land, so wouldn't it be better to take rebirth in a realm like our current one?
been there, done that.

/magnus
"We are all here to help each other go through this thing, whatever it is."
~Kurt Vonnegut

"The principal practice is Guruyoga. But we need to understand that any secondary practice combined with Guruyoga becomes a principal practice." ChNNR (Teachings on Thun and Ganapuja)
Malcolm
Posts: 42974
Joined: Thu Nov 11, 2010 2:19 am

Re: Signs of future rebirth

Post by Malcolm »

heart wrote: Sat May 08, 2021 8:01 pm
mechashivaz wrote: Sat May 08, 2021 4:22 pm
Malcolm wrote: Sat May 08, 2021 3:56 pm

And we didn't even manage rebirth in a natural nirmanakāya buddhafield, sheesh!
I've heard it takes much longer to attain liberation in a pure land, so wouldn't it be better to take rebirth in a realm like our current one?
been there, done that.

/magnus
:rolling: :rolling: :rolling:

But did you get the t-shirt?
User avatar
heart
Posts: 6287
Joined: Fri Jan 08, 2010 1:55 pm

Re: Signs of future rebirth

Post by heart »

Malcolm wrote: Sat May 08, 2021 9:05 pm
heart wrote: Sat May 08, 2021 8:01 pm
mechashivaz wrote: Sat May 08, 2021 4:22 pm

I've heard it takes much longer to attain liberation in a pure land, so wouldn't it be better to take rebirth in a realm like our current one?
been there, done that.

/magnus
:rolling: :rolling: :rolling:

But did you get the t-shirt?
yeah :smile:
"We are all here to help each other go through this thing, whatever it is."
~Kurt Vonnegut

"The principal practice is Guruyoga. But we need to understand that any secondary practice combined with Guruyoga becomes a principal practice." ChNNR (Teachings on Thun and Ganapuja)
User avatar
PadmaVonSamba
Posts: 9437
Joined: Sat May 14, 2011 1:41 am

Re: Signs of future rebirth

Post by PadmaVonSamba »

Personally, I have a real intention on returning to, let’s say, ‘...continue where I left off...” at the point when I die.
I don’t know at all if that will happen or not, but I figure it doesn’t hurt to make that aspiration.
EMPTIFUL.
An inward outlook produces outward insight.
Post Reply

Return to “Tibetan Buddhism”