what is buddhism evidence of reincarnation?

last SG · 2007-06-04T12:30:14+00:00

That's not a scientific method but a methodological method.

january SG

i would like buddhists to explain their beliefs

An Eternal Now SG

Isn’t there some topics on this already?

Skibi SG

Originally posted by january:
i would like buddhists to explain their beliefs

Can you find out for yourself?

Herzog_Zwei SG

Some scientific explaination would be nice, especially if I can execute physical testing.

january SG

seeing is believing?

do you know that there is something call illusion trick.
Do you know that there is a thing call magic trick.

Can you see molecules with your naked eyes?

Phaze SG

I'm not up to date on this topic. As you can probably tell, the area where I have the most exposure is Christianity.

There appear to be some experiments that seem to point to evidence for reincarnation.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reincarnation_research

As with any wikipedia article, take it with a grain of salt and look up the references.

My view is that it is very unlikely as there seems to be no mechanism for reincarnation. Even supernatural events but have an effect on the physical world and we don't have any evidence for that. Also, unless we can have some good testable hypothesis, it's very hard to prove that reincarnation does occur.

I suppose, based on the article, more research is warranted though.

An Eternal Now SG

Originally posted by Phaze:
I'm not up to date on this topic. As you can probably tell, the area where I have the most exposure is Christianity.

There appear to be some experiments that seem to point to evidence for reincarnation.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reincarnation_research

As with any wikipedia article, take it with a grain of salt and look up the references.

My view is that it is very unlikely as there seems to be no mechanism for reincarnation. Even supernatural events but have an effect on the physical world and we don't have any evidence for that. Also, unless we can have some good testable hypothesis, it's very hard to prove that reincarnation does occur.

I suppose, based on the article, more research is warranted though.

It seems you haven't read the references then.

An Eternal Now SG

For those interested, do read the previous discussions on rebirth in the Atheist Unite forum and my own Buddhist forum:

Belief in Reincarnation Tied to Memory Errors

why do people believe in past lives?

buddhism is alright but still faulty.....

and many more

Herzog_Zwei SG

I would call that pseudo science indoctrination. Mr. Green

Phaze SG

You are correct. I did not look up the references. As I mentioned, this has not been a particular focus of mine.

I'm not exactly sure what you have issue with? I said that there appears to be evidence that supports reincarnation. However, no one has produced a scientific, testable hypothesis for a mechanism of reincarnation. Are you saying that the statement is wrong? And that had I done a literature review, I would have found a peer reviewed paper that at least suggested such a mechanism?

mancha SG

There are instances of ppl who report that they have recollection of their past lives.All these are of course hearsay reports and are to be viewed with "a pinch of salt".
Nonetheless they are there, and it is up to you to find them and form your opinion.
Unless you come across an example first hand, you will be skeptical.

To digress to the the human mind (mind, mind you, not the brain!).
It is reported that the best of us use at most 10% of our mental capacity. What about the other 90%? What is it for? Is it unused? Blocked off? Do they store past experiences? Are we evolving into increasing our mental capacity?

Perhaps you might find your answer there, in the mind.

january SG

another similar thing is astral projections where people claim out of body experiences.

all this evidence are actually just mind stuff what. related key terms are psychological effects, neurology, fallacies, illusions, causality, correlation, belief system.

i have not read the research evidence for reincarnation though.

january SG

There is no magic in the mind bah. maximising ur mind would means think faster, become smarter, more inventive and more logical. THe wisdom and knowledge gained from these things will then bring benefits to the person.

past memories, power to time travel, power to fly, power to produce web like spiderman, power to become wolverine. all this is possible if you want to be that creative but i think its still far fetched. lets leave it for the movie industry to come up wtih such scripts.

Phaze SG

The 10% thing is a myth. The topic is discussed at http://www.csicop.org/si/9903/ten-percent-myth.html

And I completely agree with what you said about hearsay reports. Evidence from personal testimony is usually very unreliable. That is why you need to have research with the proper methodology.

I don't think I need to come across an example first hand. I've never been to moon but I accept that the moon exists and that man has landed on the moon. What I do require is evidence that is testable and repeatable.

Obviously, we use our mind to find all answers. But we need to use our minds to come up with experiments that allow us to gather evidence. Human intuition is often wrong and is not reliable when used by itself.

The universe is stranger than we know. Some would argue that it's stranger than we can know. That is why we need science and the scientific method to help us describe and understand our universe.

Phaze SG

I mentioned in my previous post that the claim that we only use "10% of mental capacity" is a myth.

However, even if that were true, it is not evidence for reincarnation.

What is it for? We just don't know. Making up explanations does not answer the question.

ExtraVehicular SG

What evidence do you have to prove that you are a intelligent being, january? As far as I have seen, there is none.

798 SG

fyi, there r evidence showing reincarnation do exist, pls read more books n get ur facts right before making a fool of urself. Very Happy

Phaze SG

References please.

You can always find a book somewhere that supports any claim. There are whole books written on flat earth theory. There are people who believe that moon landings were a hoax and they have written books and produced documentaries on that as well.

While there may be evidence supporting the possiblity of reincarnation, I know of no study that proves it conclusively. If there were, it would have major implications on every area of science.

798 SG

too lazy to find. if u have time, u should read AEN's quoto of the 3 links. indeed of being too stubborn head n continue to be ignorance.

keep in mind dat energy cannot be create or destroy, they will transfer into another form.

An Eternal Now SG

When there is proof and evidences you can't call it that way.

Don't criticise before you know the subject.