Retreats

Karma and Re-Becoming

Learning what Buddhism teaches

The Buddhist teaching on karma tells us that the way we choose to act, speak and think has a significant influence on our unfolding experiences. And unlike what some other religions believe, the Buddhist teaching on karma is that not everything that happens to you is due to your karma. Some things are due to bacteria, electricity, and hard-wired nerves and muscle in the body. Karma is none of these things, but rather our intentional willed actions. In order for you to create karma, you need to choose. But interestingly, choosing not to choose would be a choice!

And although we might loosely talk about re-birth, the Buddhist teaching is more like re-becoming. I know ... you're asking ... what is the difference? Well, most people hear re-birth and they think 'they' are re-born. But from the Buddhist perspective, there is no inherent fixed little soul inside it all which gets re-born. Instead, it is just that the process that is 'you' continues in a different way. A bit like a candle flame which can be transferred from one candle to another. The flame of the newly lit candle is not the same flame as that of the previous candle, but neither is it fair to say that it is a completely different flame. Our lived experience allows for such ambiguities even if our logical mind wants to remove them and get a definitive answer.

If you want to see an engaging introduction to Karma, I'd suggest you watch this video created by Aryajit.

If you want to explore this topic more, sign up for this event. I'd love to have you along. Only prerequisite is that you already know how to meditate, but otherwise everyone is welcome.

When

Cost