Reincarnation

[Guest _Peace_]

Hi.. hope you're all well..

I'm not a sikh, but would like to know a little more about sikhism and what it's about.. I'm particularly interested to learn about the concept of reincarnation. I have a few questions, I'm hoping some of you would be kind enough to answer them for me..

Before I begin, I must apologise for my questioning style. It may come across as a little disputatious/argumentative, but it is not so. I hope none of you take any offence.

1) From the little/basic knowledge I have about it, reincarnation is a continuous cycle of rebirth into different creatures (and plants?) based on karma and deeds of one's previous life. So do Hindus, Buddhist, Sikhs (and others who believe in reincarnation) therefore believe that animals have the intelligence to distinguish between good and bad? and have the ability to carry out good and bad deeds? and the power to think rationally? And have morals and principles?

From my own personal beliefs, animals don't have that ability, so I wonder.. how then does an animal elevate to a higher social being (ie: a human) in their 'next lives' if they cannot physically prove themsleves to be worthy?

2) How come we don't remember our 'previous lives'? Doesn't that then defeat the whole point of reincarnation? What's the point of being punished/rewarded if we don't know that we are being punished/rewarded?

3) What exactly is a soul? To my understanding, the soul is some kind of spiritual/immaterial entity, which has a consciousness of some sort.. and therefore emotion, thought, and personality. It essentially makes up our personalities, right? So it is intelligent? Why then, if animals take on human spirits, aren't those animals intelligent?

Because yeah perhaps animals do have souls.. but their souls are not as intelligent as human souls.. and when an animal takes on the soul of a human, surely then they're taking on intellectual characteristics of humans..?

Thankyou in advance

[Pheena]

Hi.. hope you're all well..

I'm not a sikh, but would like to know a little more about sikhism and what it's about.. I'm particularly interested to learn about the concept of reincarnation. I have a few questions, I'm hoping some of you would be kind enough to answer them for me..

Before I begin, I must apologise for my questioning style. It may come across as a little disputatious/argumentative, but it is not so. I hope none of you take any offence.

1) From the little/basic knowledge I have about it, reincarnation is a continuous cycle of rebirth into different creatures (and plants?) based on karma and deeds of one's previous life. So do Hindus, Buddhist, Sikhs (and others who believe in reincarnation) therefore believe that animals have the intelligence to distinguish between good and bad? and have the ability to carry out good and bad deeds? and the power to think rationally? And have morals and principles?

From my own personal beliefs, animals don't have that ability, so I wonder.. how then does an animal elevate to a higher social being (ie: a human) in their 'next lives' if they cannot physically prove themsleves to be worthy?

Three daily rituals are enjoined on the orthodox Hindu. One is BHUTA YAJNA, an offering of food to the animal kingdom. This ceremony symbolizes man's realization of his obligations to less evolved forms of creation, instinctively tied to bodily identifications which also corrode human life, but lacking in that quality of liberating reason which is peculiar to humanity. BHUTA YAJNA thus reinforces man's readiness to succor the weak, as he in turn is comforted by countless solicitudes of higher unseen beings. Man is also under bond for rejuvenating gifts of nature, prodigal in earth, sea, and sky. The evolutionary barrier of incommunicability among nature, animals, man, and astral angels is thus overcome by offices of silent love.

As one does not become a human simply because of the physical bodies is of a human. To become a human you must outgrow your Animalistic behaviours that is present within our mind(eat, sleep and procreate). We must transencd our ancestorial needs and desire. There are also plenty of 'Humans' who behave like animals.

Now when i say we must grow from these thing, that does not mean we leave them behind, as we don't eat, sleep or have sex. In one sense yes, we must rise above them to regain our full potential which does not revolve around our primordial desires. The potential that exists within this human body is far greater than other animals. Animals are bound by the laws of nature, as is man, but Man also has the capability to deviate from those laws. This authority has been granted to Man. Animals cannot deviate from these laws to which they are bound because they are incapable of grasping their full potential which is limited by their mental ablities and their bodies, unlike Man. Man too is bound, but he is able to tap into his higher mental albity and he contain within the body necessary nerve connections that are capable of opening windows to a new divine reality. These are often refered to as Chakras.

Nature gives you this Human body so that they may reach your full potential. You can even call it an evolution of your consciousness. If you even after attaining this Human body revert back to your animalistic behaviours, you are then reincarnated into an animal where you must again climb up the ladder to attain this human body. This is not due to God demoting you, rather your own actions. And it is your Karma which determines how long you remain in the Animal life cycle, or then sometimes, just sometimes a Mystic, a Master may bestow his grace, his compassion upon an Soul that he removes his karma and grants a soul a human body in his next birth.

One day I fed the pet earlier than usual, as I had to attend to some business in the town of Ranchi. Although I cautioned the boys not to feed the fawn until my return, one of them was disobedient, and gave the baby deer a large quantity of milk. When I came back in the evening, sad news greeted me: "The little fawn is nearly dead, through over feeding."

In tears, I placed the apparently lifeless pet on my lap. I prayed piteously to God to spare its life. Hours later, the small creature opened its eyes, stood up, and walked feebly. The whole school shouted for joy.

But a deep lesson came to me that night, one I can never forget. I stayed up with the fawn until two o'clock, when I fell asleep. The deer appeared in a dream, and spoke to me:

"You are holding me back. Please let me go; let me go!"

"All right," I answered in the dream.

I awoke immediately, and cried out, "Boys, the deer is dying!" The children rushed to my side.

I ran to the corner of the room where I had placed the pet. It made a last effort to rise, stumbled toward me, then dropped at my feet, dead.

According to the mass karma which guides and regulates the destinies of animals, the deer's life was over, and it was ready to progress to a higher form. But by my deep attachment, which I later realized was selfish, and by my fervent prayers, I had been able to hold it in the limitations of the animal form from which the soul was

struggling for release. The soul of the deer made its plea in a dream because, without my loving permission, it either would not or could not go. As soon as I agreed, it departed. All sorrow left me; I realized anew that God wants His children to love everything as a part of Him, and not to feel delusively that death ends all. The ignorant man sees only the unsurmountable wall of death, hiding, seemingly forever, his cherished friends. But the man of unattachment, he who loves others as expressions of the Lord, understands that at death the dear ones have only returned

for a breathing-space of joy in Him.

2) How come we don't remember our 'previous lives'? Doesn't that then defeat the whole point of reincarnation? What's the point of being punished/rewarded if we don't know that we are being punished/rewarded?

Nature provides us a curtain that blocks out our past lifes for a good reason. The question is do you really want to know what you were in your past life? Are you prepared to face the reality of who and what you were? If you found out that the woman you married, the mother you have in this life was an enemy of your, someone you disliked, someone who harmed you in your past life? Will you be able to move on in this life? Will you not carry with you the animosity or the hatred that you had in your past life into this one? How could you live your life at ease knowing you were born out of a woman who harmed you in your past life?

A story i heard of a woman who disliked her mother very much for reasons unknown to her. Her mother on the other hand wanted only love from her daughter. But her daughter despised her and was unable to give that love to her. After sometime in meditation she became aware of her past life where she found out that her mother in this life had killed her in her past life. The mother now suffers as she only seeks love from her, but she does not recieves it. The daughter cannot stand her due to the past life tragedy that occured to her.

So next time there is a natural tendency to Love or dislike someone, do not simply dismiss it. There is a reason behind why we often tend to dislike or like someone without any provocation.

The moment you know your past lives, there will be a spiritual revolution and evolution. Then you will start from where you had left off in your last life; otherwise you will get lost in endless lives and reach nowhere. There will only be a repetition.

There has to be a link, a communication, between this life and the previous one. Whatsoever you had

achieved in your previous life should come to be known, and you should have the capacity to take the

next step forwards….

Nowadays the difficulty is this: it is not very difficult to make you remember your previous births, but

the thing called courage has been lost. It is possible to make you remember your previous births only if

you have achieved the capacity to remain undisturbed in the midst of the very difficult memories of this

life. Otherwise it is not possible….

When no memory of this life can be a cause of anxiety to you, only then can you be led into the

memories of past lives. Otherwise those memories may become great traumas for you, and the door to

such traumas cannot be opened unless you have the capacity and worthiness to face them.

3) What exactly is a soul? To my understanding, the soul is some kind of spiritual/immaterial entity, which has a consciousness of some sort.. and therefore emotion, thought, and personality. It essentially makes up our personalities, right? So it is intelligent? Why then, if animals take on human spirits, aren't those animals intelligent?

Because yeah perhaps animals do have souls.. but their souls are not as intelligent as human souls.. and when an animal takes on the soul of a human, surely then they're taking on intellectual characteristics of humans..?

You are the Soul, a drop of the Divine ocean, a spark of the Divine flame. As to what it is, one cannot use words to describe it. Where words are used, limitations are imposed. You must experience yourself to know what exacty you are.

[Guest Guest]

Awesome reply!

i jus have a question about the above.(i am probabalygoing off topic here...so im sorry peace)

what is one to do if one is in that situation where u dislike or like someone for no reason at all?(cuz of the mindz limitations)

[Pheena]

Awesome reply!

i jus have a question about the above.(i am probabalygoing off topic here...so im sorry peace)

what is one to do if one is in that situation where u dislike or like someone for no reason at all?(cuz of the mindz limitations)

Compassion helps eradicates past life animosities; an eye for an eye, hate for hate continues the cycle of karma. It must stop somewhere, someone must rise above it and express Patience, Compassion, Love.

You cannot always engage in a dialogue to resolve the situation that you clearly have no idea how it began. If dislike is there for someone for an unknown reason, then personally i'd do a small prayer alone asking for forgiveness and forgiving others even if you don't know what you did wrong or what they did wrong.

I do not know what mistake I may have comitted or what the other has done to me, but I ask for forgiveness anyways, allow us my beloved mother (God) to remove this darkness of hatred from our hearts. Thank God for the opportunity to make ammends, thank him for the oppotunity to delve into prayer.

So next time you see that person who you dislike, in your heart forgive him/her.