Reincarnation: Theory Of Rebirth

By Sri Swami Sivananda

Man can be compared to a plant. He grows and flourishes like a plant and dies in the end but not completely. The plant also grows and flourishes and dies in the end. It leaves behind it the seed which produces a new plant. Man leaves when dying his Karma behind—the good or bad actions of his life. The physical body may die and disintegrate, but the impressions of his actions do not die. He has to take birth again to enjoy the fruits of these actions. No life can be the first, for it is the fruits of previous actions, nor the last, for its actions must be expiated in the next life following. Therefore, Samsara or phenomenal existence is without beginning and an end. But there is no Samsara for a Jivanmukta or liberated sage who is resting in his own Sat-Chit-Ananda Svarupa.

When a man dies he carries with him the permanent Linga Sarira, which is made up of five Jnana Indriyas, five karma Indriyas, five Pranas, Manas (mind), Buddhi, Chitta and Ahamkara and the changing Karmasraya (receptacle of works), the actions of the soul, which determines the formation of the next life.

Sri Jnana Dev, the reputed Yogi of Alandi, wrote his commentary on the Gita, Jnanesvari, when he was only sixteen years old. He was a born Siddha. You can also become a Siddha if you try in right earnest. What one has attained can be achieved by another also.

If a new-born child who has not done any wrong action in this birth undergoes great suffering, this is the fruit of some evil deed done in the previous birth. If you ask, how the person was induced to do a wrong action in this former birth, the answer is that it was the result of some wrong action done in a birth still anterior and so on.

Many intelligent fathers have sons with dull intellect. If a shepherd boy gave you some food and water in your previous birth when you were dying of starvation, he will be born in this birth as your son, with a dull intellect to enjoy your property.

When creatures are born, they evince a desire to suck the breast and show an instinct of terror. Therefore it follows that they remember the sucking of the breast and the pains experienced in the previous birth. This shows that there is rebirth.

Even a child exhibits Harsha (exhilaration), Soka (grief), fear, anger, pleasure and pain. The Dharma-adharma Samskaras of this birth cannot be the cause of these. The Samskaras of the previous birth must have a support (Asraya). From this we can clearly infer the existence of Jiva in the previous birth, and the Jiva is Anadi, or beginning-less. If you do not accept that the Jiva is Anadi, the two defects, viz., Kritanasa and Akritabhyagama will creep in. Pleasure and pain which are the fruits of virtuous and vicious actions done previously will pass away without being enjoyed. This is Kritanasa (loss of merited reward). So also, one will have to enjoy the pleasure and pain, the fruits of good and evil actions, which were not done by him previously. This is Akritabhyagama (receiving unmerited reward). In order to get rid of these two defects, we will have to accept that the Jiva is Anadi or beginningless. Else, life would be unaccountable.

Some Yogic students ask me: “How long should one practise Sirshasana or Paschimottanasana or Kumbhaka or Mahamudra, to awaken Kundalini? Nothing is mentioned on this point in any book on Yoga”. A student starts his Sadhana from the point or stage he left in his previous birth. That is the reason why Lord Krishna says to Arjuna: “Or he may be born in a family of wise Yogins. There he recovereth the characteristics belonging to his former body and with these he again laboureth for perfection, O Joy of the Kurus” (Ch. VI: 42, 43). It all depends upon the degree of purity, stage of evolution, the degree of purification of Nadis and the Pranayama Kosa, degree of Vairagya and yearning for liberation.

Some are born with purity and other requisites of realisation on account of their having undergone the necessary discipline in their past life. They are born Siddhas. Guru Nanak, Jnana Dev, Vama Deva, Ashtavakra were all adepts from their very boyhood. Guru Nanak asked his teacher in the school when he was a boy, about the significance of OM. Vama Deva delivered a lecture on Vedanta when he was dwelling in his mother’s womb.

Man does actions with the expectation of getting fruits and so he takes a birth to enjoy the fruits of his actions. In the next birth, he does some more actions and he has to take another birth. In this manner the Samsaric wheel is revolving from eternity to eternity. When one gets knowledge of the Self, he is liberated from this round of births and deaths. Karma is beginningless and Samsara also is beginningless. When a man does actions without expectation of fruits in selfless spirit, all the fetters of Karma get loosened gradually.

Die to live. Kill this little ‘I’ and attain immortality. Live in Brahman. You will live for ever. Possess Atman. You will have eternal life. Identify yourself with your soul. You will cross the ocean of death or Samsara. Rest in your Satchidananda Svarupa. You will have everlasting life.

A leech moves on a blade of grass and reaches the end of the blade. It first catches hold of another blade with the forepart of its body and then draws its hindpart on to it. Even so, the Jivatman (individual soul) abandons the present body at the time of death, fashions the future body by his thought and then enters into that body.

A good or bad deed always brings its good or bad fruits. You will find in Mahabharata: “Just as a calf finds out its mother among a thousand cows, so also an action that was performed in a previous birth follows the doer.”

Yadrisam kriyate karma tadrisam bhujyate phalam,

Yadrisam vapyate, bijam tadrisam prapyate phalam.

Just as the fruit corresponds to the seed that has been sown, so also the fruit of the actions that are performed by us correspond to the nature of the actions that we perform. This is an infallible law of nature. He who has sown the seed of a mango tree cannot expect a jack fruit. He who has done evil actions throughout his life cannot expect happiness, peace and prosperity in his next life.

“Many are the times we have been together in the past, and also been separated and so again shall it be in the future. Even as a heap of grain removed from granary to granary ever assumes new order of arrangement and new combination, so is the case with Jiva (human being) in the universe through his arrangement” (Yoga Vasishtha).

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This was an excerpt from the book What Becomes Of The Soul After Death by Sri Swami Sivananda.

The death and dying and the life after death has always fascinated man. We want to now the truth behind near death experiences and become certain that there really is a life after death.

Many books have been written on the subject of death, but most of the works deal mainly with the astral or other spirit world. It has mostly been the study of the conditions in the Pretaloka which is merely one among the numerous supramundane planes or lokas beyond the grave. Spiritualism, seance and the testimony of recognised mediums have for most part featured prominently in all such works.

What Becomes Of The Soul After Death by Swami Sivanandaji Maharaj is a departure from the usual line in that it is based, to a great extent, upon authoritative scriptural texts and upon knowledge derived through reasoning, deep reflection and personal meditation. It throws a flood of light upon all aspects of life after death not adequately dealt with in other works. The book also gives valuable information about the different beliefs on this subject, of the various races and religions.

The book is dealing with rebirth, the soul, reincarnation, moksha, heaven and hell, karma and different lokas. It even includes death poems and death poetry, giving a complete picture and a new face of death. For more material see this link: What Becomes Of The Soul After Death.

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