Questions from an interested person

#$%^&* SG

Dear all,

Thank you for taking the effort in putting up this wonderful forum. I just want to say that what you've done is really wonderful and is very much appreciated.

I have some questions, if you can kindly help me in answering,

I once watch a TV program and the Buddhist bhikku/ monk was saying that if somebody take drugs in this life, and become a serious junkie, he will be reborn/ reincarnated in the next life as an idiot/ retard.

There are several of such similar encounters that I remember about Buddhist teachings. I wonder, what is exactly the flow, or how should I say, the connection, of what somebody does now, with the next life? Is there a relationship?

This is my first question, and many thanks for taking the time to read and reply to my post.

Best regards,
#$%^&*

yamizi SG

Good morning interested person,

Just to share my understanding.

Life is a continum flow. The relationship of our next life to our present is because it's our conciousness still have the 'want' to be reborn. This 'want' is much due to our kamma.

I will not agree with what the monk says about becoming idiot/retard in the next life simply because one is a serious substance abuser in this very life. Now I may appreciate the monk may be using such scare tactics as a deterent mean but I will not say it is the best way to stop people from abusing drugs.

I will say if one does become a habitual substance abuser, it does have negative effect on the person in the future. This is so because very deeply impacted habits may be brought over to future lives. Now this habit may affect the behaviour and characteristics of one's future reborn.

And whatever kamma that one had accumulated in this life, it may not necessary mean it will only take effect in the very next life. With the appropriate conditions meeting, the effect may come just few minutes/hours/days/months/years or even say 4589 lives' later.

When the Lord instructed the 5 precepts on us, it is much so to deal with our present lives. The first 4 aims to mould as socially responsible people as to mutually respect one another's lives, property, integrity and honesty. The last is aim to keep our mind in a clear state so that we will have lesser chance in commiting the first 4.

Buddha-Dhamma is a practical approach in adjusting our lives and gear towards not only spiritual maturity but as well as character development. The past was already over, the future is yet to come; only the present is in our hands.

Instead of worrying about our future rebirths, why not look into our present and see what can we do to improve ourselves here and now?

=)

An Eternal Now SG

Actually I believe what the Bhikkhu said is possible.. although I cannot verify it myself because I do not have powers to read people's past life. But I heard of a similar story.

I would like to share a with you a true story which was told by a Venerable. There was a Venerable who had the powers to know a person's previous existence. There was a couple who had a child with low mental capabilities and they asked the venerable why was that so. The Venerable answered - that child of yours was a drug lord in the previous life and has caused much mental delusions and intoxications to others, and therefore that was his karma. The parents then asked abruptly, if that was the case then why were they affected too? (to have the responsibility to take care of that child). The Venerable continued, "let me finish explaining. You two were his accomplice in selling the drugs while he was the mastermind and therefore it was your karmic consequence for having him as your child." Therefore I think whatever child was borned, that was his karma, by karmic association. He should accept it, give extra love and patience to bringing up their child.

Because one loves that intoxicated state, in that intoxicated state the mental ability and clarity is reduced to the level of retard/idiot, and so he plants many karmic seeds of mentally intoxicated/'retarded' karma into his 8th consciousness, which may ripen in another lifetime.

Well it's up to you to believe, I dont mean that I know this will definitely happen to those drug abusers because I do not have such powers to see people's past life, but I'm saying it is a possibility. And if the drug abuser commits greater crimes while under the influence of drugs or alcohol, that's even worse, he might fall into the lower realms. So karma should not be taken lightly.

An Eternal Now SG

Anyway as for your question what is the exact flow of your karma to the next life, in Buddhism karma is one of the four things that cannot be comprehended by the mind, only a Buddha can completely comprehend the workings of karma. These four things are known as the four imponderables, meaning, don't try to speculate them (because it will cause more confusion and we will not get it). There was a great Arhant, who achieved Nirvana, who tried to figure out the workings of karma for years but did not succeed. I think it is Mogallana. He could see into plenty of lifetimes and also see into future lifetimes, but still could not figure out completely the workings of karma.

It is true that there are some people who have clairvoyant abilities and can see past and future lives, they may be able to tell some of your karmic causes for your present state, but it is also limited, it requires very high level of wisdom that we cannot access to completely see the workings of karma.

And so to conclude I do agree very much with what Yamizi said that we should focus on living up to the dharma teachings in the present.

sinweiy SG

Originally posted by #$%^&*:
I wonder, what is exactly the flow, or how should I say, the connection, of what somebody does now, with the next life? Is there a relationship?

Best regards,
#$%^&*[/b]

might want to study the law of karma>

http://www.geocities.com/Athens/Academy/9280/kamma.htm

Good, Evil and Beyond
Kamma in the Buddha's Teaching
P. A. Payutto
Translated by Bruce Evans

esp.

http://www.geocities.com/Athens/Academy/9280/kamma3.htm#Results

Results of kamma on different levels
Probably the most misunderstood aspect of the whole subject of kamma is the way it yields results, as summarized in the principle, "Good actions bring good results, bad actions bring bad results." Is this really true? To some, it seems that in "the real world" there are many who obtain good results from bad actions and bad results from good actions. This kind of understanding arises from confusion between "Social Preference" and the law of kamma. The confusion can be readily seen from the way people misunderstand even the meaning of the words, "good actions bring good results." Instead of understanding the meaning as "in performing good actions, there is goodness," or "good actions bring about good results in accordance with the law of kamma," they take the meaning to be "good actions result in good things." Bearing this in mind, let us now consider the matter in more depth......

An Eternal Now SG

Seems like sinweiy has provided a very good url. Anyway forgot to add, there certainly is a connection between our present life and our karma whether created from previous lifetimes or the present lifetime. In fact, our entire life pretty much manifests according to our karma, and also the kind of rebirth we took too. For example in order to ensure that you will at least reborn in the human realm in the next life and not fall to the lower realms the very least is that we must abide to the five precepts. But as to the precise result of our karma or the precise working of karma, it is not something we should speculate. Only bodhisattvas know. But very basically, all our thoughts speech and acts will result in mind, speech and action karma. Anything done with intent, volition, will result in karma except neutral acts like walking which does not have much karmic results. All our thoughts, speech and action will plant seeds into our eighth consciousness, which is also known as the storehouse consciousness. And when the conditions are there, the karmic seeds in the eighth consciousness will ripen.