Dancing David
Penultimate Amazing
There have been many questions regarding the nature of the buddhists beliefs in rebirth, karma and reincarnation. They are as varied as the buddhists who think and believe in them. There are the religious buddhists who believe that karma can lead a soul to be reborn in a new physical body, there are the materialists whop believe that karma c consists solely of the consequences of our actions.
The teachings are exemplified by the buddhist’s icon of the wheel of life, which represents the three errors, the six realms and the twelve links/fetters. Overall it is meant to represent in metaphorical form the way that karma interacts and leads to rebirth or incarnation. For the religious buddhists it represents the course of life and the way that the soul is bound to a new material existence, to a materialist buddhist it represents the interaction of actions in creating the rebirth of attachment and desire.
There are multiple representations of the wheel, it consists of three concentric rings that are held by the great demon Yama/Mara.
In the center of the wheel are three animals that represent the three errors of thought and act.
The three animals:
The rooster: represents attachment.
The pig :represents ignorance.
The snake :represents aversion.
The three animals represent the unconditioned human, and the three errors that lead to suffering.
The six realms of beings
(Starting at the top and moving around clockwise)
The devas: Gods or celestial beings. They engage in consumption, meditation and creation.
The asuras: The jealous gods or the god wannabes, they are shown as trying to storm heaven.
The animals: The usual unhappy kingdom of living dying, eating.
The hell beings: Suffering demons who create misery.
The prettas: or ‘hungry ghosts’ they are the souls that crave rebirth. They are portrayed as drinking sand and eating food that turns to swords.
The humans: A town with various activities, usually has a man carrying a corpse.
To the religious buddhists this exemplifies the various stages of reincarnation, to materialists it represents the forms of actions or being.
The twelve links/fetters
A blind man with a stick: ignorance
A potter making pots: karmic creation
A monkey in a tree: the consciousness
Three people in a boat: Name, form and being
The empty house: perception
A man and woman embracing: contact
A person with an arrow in their eye: sensation
A woman offering a man a drink: craving
A pregnant woman: conception
The monkey gathering fruit: accumulation
The woman giving birth : birth into life
A man carrying a corpse: death
To the religious buddhist’s these represent the acts of a life leading to further reincarnation.
To a materialist buddhist they represent a metaphorical account of how we create suffering.
The teachings are exemplified by the buddhist’s icon of the wheel of life, which represents the three errors, the six realms and the twelve links/fetters. Overall it is meant to represent in metaphorical form the way that karma interacts and leads to rebirth or incarnation. For the religious buddhists it represents the course of life and the way that the soul is bound to a new material existence, to a materialist buddhist it represents the interaction of actions in creating the rebirth of attachment and desire.
There are multiple representations of the wheel, it consists of three concentric rings that are held by the great demon Yama/Mara.
In the center of the wheel are three animals that represent the three errors of thought and act.
The three animals:
The rooster: represents attachment.
The pig :represents ignorance.
The snake :represents aversion.
The three animals represent the unconditioned human, and the three errors that lead to suffering.
The six realms of beings
(Starting at the top and moving around clockwise)
The devas: Gods or celestial beings. They engage in consumption, meditation and creation.
The asuras: The jealous gods or the god wannabes, they are shown as trying to storm heaven.
The animals: The usual unhappy kingdom of living dying, eating.
The hell beings: Suffering demons who create misery.
The prettas: or ‘hungry ghosts’ they are the souls that crave rebirth. They are portrayed as drinking sand and eating food that turns to swords.
The humans: A town with various activities, usually has a man carrying a corpse.
To the religious buddhists this exemplifies the various stages of reincarnation, to materialists it represents the forms of actions or being.
The twelve links/fetters
A blind man with a stick: ignorance
A potter making pots: karmic creation
A monkey in a tree: the consciousness
Three people in a boat: Name, form and being
The empty house: perception
A man and woman embracing: contact
A person with an arrow in their eye: sensation
A woman offering a man a drink: craving
A pregnant woman: conception
The monkey gathering fruit: accumulation
The woman giving birth : birth into life
A man carrying a corpse: death
To the religious buddhist’s these represent the acts of a life leading to further reincarnation.
To a materialist buddhist they represent a metaphorical account of how we create suffering.
