Buddhism Teachings – The six realms of rebirth
October 25th, 2008
From the book “Transform your life” Geshe-la teachs about the six realms of rebirth, or the six realms of samsara, or even the six possibilities of rebirth, in which realm we will reborn and what are the causes that will give us that state of rebirth.
“…To form a mental image of the six realms, we can compare them to the floors of a large, old house. In this analogy the house represents samsara, the cycle of contaminated rebirth. The house has three storeys above ground, and three below. Deluded sentient beings are like the inhabitants of this house. They are continually moving up and down the house, sometimes living above ground, sometimes below.
The ground floor corresponds to the human realm. Above, on the first floor, is the realm of the demi-gods – non-human beings who are continually at war with the gods. In terms of power and prosperity they are superior to humans, but they are so obsessed with jealousy and violence that their lives have little spiritual value.
On the top floor live the gods. The lower classes of gods, the desire realm gods, live a life of ease and luxury, devoting their time to enjoyment and the satisfaction of their desires. Though their world is a paradise and their lifespan is very long, they are not inmortal and they eventually fall to lower states. Since their lives are filled with distractions, ir is difficult for them to find the motivation to engage in spiritual practice. From a spiritual point of view, a human life is much more meaningful than a god’s life.
Higher than the desire realm gods are the gods of the form and formless realms. Having passed beyond sensual desire, the form realm gods experience the refined bliss of meditative absorption and possess bodies made of light. Transcending even these subtle forms, the gods of the formless realm abide without form in subtle consciousness that resembles infinite space. Though their minds are the purest and most exalted within samsara, they have not overcome the ignorance of self-grasping, which is the root of samsara, and so, after experiencing bliss for many aeons, eventually their lives end and they are once again reborn in the lower states of samsara. Like the other gods, they consume the merit they have created in the past and make little or no spiritual progress.”
So, which form of samsara’s being do you want to be? Which realms do you want to remain in?
Only human form can help us to attain Nirvana.
L&K
Marcelo
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