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Saṃsāra means to perpetually wander, to pass through states of existence. The historical origins of a concept of a cycle of repeated reincarnation are obscure but the idea appears frequently in religious and philosophical texts in both India and ancient Greece during the middle of the first millennium B.C.E.[2] Orphism, Platonism, Jainism and Buddhism all discuss the transmigration of beings from one life to another. The concept of reincarnation is present in the early Vedic texts such as the Rig Veda but some scholars speculate it to have originated from the Shramana traditions. Several scholars believe that reincarnation was adopted from this religious culture by Brahmin orthodoxy, and Brahmins first wrote down scriptures containing these ideas in the early (Aitereya) Upanishads.[3][4][5][6][7][8] Cycle of rebirth The concept of samsara is closely associated with the belief that the ignorant person continues to be born and reborn in various realms in the form of a human, animal, or other being (depending on karma).[9] Jainism maintains that one who accrues a significant amount of bad karma can also be reborn as a plant or even as a rock,[10] and similar concepts can be found in Purāṇas, in the Bhagavadgītā, in the Manusmṛti[11] and in similar texts. Nonetheless, most philosophic traditions of Hinduism and Buddhism[12] maintain that plants and even more obviously rocks cannot be included in samsāra since they lack the possibility of experience (bhoga) and, hence, of karma. In Buddhism, consciousness per se survives the death of the body and acts as the basis for arisal of a new personality in a new body conducive to the expression of a combination of accumulated habits volitional (Saṅkhāras) and mindset at the moment of death (which are themselves affected by previous volitional impulses). In other Indian religions, the volitional impulses accrued from the present life are transmitted through a structured consciousness popularly known as the soul, which, after an intermediate period (in Tibetan called the bardo), attaches to a new body and is reborn. This cyclical process ends with the attainment of liberation moksha. If one lives in extremely evil ways, however, one may be reborn as an animal or other unfortunate being.[9] Samsāra in Hinduism In Hinduism, it is avidya, or ignorance, of one's true self that leads to ego-consciousness of the body and the phenomenal world. This grounds one in kāma (desire) and the perpetual chain of karma and reincarnation. Through egotism and desire one creates the causes for future becoming. The state of illusion that gives rise to this is known as Maya. Through ascetic practice one finally attains sanctity and liberation (moksha or mukti). Broadly speaking, the celibate holy life (brahmacarya) which leads to liberation is a path of self-purification by which the effects of negative karmas are avoided. The Hindu Yoga traditions hold various beliefs. Moksha may be achieved by love of Ishwar/God (see bhakti movement, see Mirabai), by psycho-physical meditation (Raja Yoga), by discrimination of what is real and unreal through intense contemplation (Jnana Yoga), and through Karma Yoga, the path of selfless action that subverts the ego and enforces understanding of the unity of all. The Rig Vedic, Yajur Vedic and Atharva Vedic Upanishads like Aiteraya Upanishad, Taittiriya Upanishad, Swetaswatara Upanishad, Mundaka Upanishad etc. contain the most ancient ideas on Reincarnation of soul.[13][14][15] Hence, based on this, the earliest known texts to have spoken about karma, sansara and Moksha or Mukti, are the Vedas and other Dharmic Texts. (Dharmic Texts stands for the Vedas, Ithihasas and Puranas). The Vedas describe Karma as the result of enjoying the sensory pleasures of this material universe.[16] Saṅsāra in Jainism Main article: Samsara (Jainism) Further information: Karma in Jainism In Jainism, Saṅsāra is the worldly life characterized by continuous rebirths and reincarnations in various realms of existence. Saṃsāra is described as mundane existence, full of suffering and misery and hence is considered undesirable and worth renunciation. The Samsāra is without any beginning and the soul finds itself in bondage with its karma since the beginningless time. Moksha is the only liberation from samsāra. Samsara in Buddhism Main article: Saṃsāra (Buddhism) Within Buddhism, samsara is defined as the continual repetitive cycle of birth, death, and intermediate bardo state that arises from ordinary beings' generating and fixating on a mistaken concept of self and experiences. Samsara arises out of wrong knowledge about reality (avidya) and is characterized by dukkha (failure, suffering, anxiety, dissatisfaction). In the Buddhist view, liberation from samsara is possible by following the Buddhist path. Generally, there are six realms of samsara. These include: Gods, Asuras, Hungry Ghosts, Hell Beings, Animals and Humans.[17] Saṅsāra in Sikhism In Sikhism, it is thought that due to actions here and now and interactions with fellow humans, people obtain the chance of Union with Akal. Through controlling the 5 thieves Kaam, Krodh, Moh, Lobh and Hankaar, they are able to achieve the state of the Gurmukh or "God willed" as opposed to Manmukh or "selfwilled". Human life in Sikhism is deemed to be the highest form of life and the only form of life capable of being a Gurmukh. In popular culture Samsara is a book of poetry by Erica Anzalone. Samsara is a fragrance produced by Guerlain. "Samsara" appears in the manga series Naruto, in which there is a Dōjutsu called the Rinnegan. In English, Rinnegan literally means the Samsara Eye, and allows the user to potentially completely master all five basic nature transformations that form the basis of ninjutsu, life and death, and various other abilities. Corpse Party: Book of Shadows contains a track named "Escaping Samsara" in its list of playable soundtracks. Samsara is frequently referenced in the Shin Megami Tensei: Digital Devil Saga video game series, of which the plot revolves around one point; to reach a paradise called Nirvana. "Samsara" is the name of a move in Persona 3 and Persona 4; the move causes a 100% instant kill for all enemies without a resistance to light. "Samsara" is the title of the opening track of the album Deep Blue by Parkway Drive. Samsara is a 2011 non-narrative documentary film, directed by Ron Fricke and produced by Mark Magidson. "Samsara" is a 1989 historical novel written by Alexandra Jones (ISBN-13: 978-0708842041). "Escape from Samsara" was the name of a promotional event ran occasionally during the mid late 1990's by the London club The Fridge, which espoused "Peace, Love and respect". Saṃsāra or Sangsāra (Sanskrit: संसार) (in Tibetan called 'khor ba (pronounced kɔrwɔ [IPA] in many Tibetan dialects), meaning "continuous flow"), is the repeating cycle of birth, life and death (reincarnation) within Hinduism, Buddhism, Bön, Jainism, Taoism,[1] and Yârsân. In Sikhism this concept is slightly different and looks at one's actions in the present and consequences in the present. The image that you see to the left does not illustrate Samsara. Ignore that. It illustrates Buddhism's 6 realms and the circle in the middle illustrates good and bad karma. According to the view of these religions, a person's current life is only one of many—stretching back before birth into past existences and reaching forward beyond death into future incarnations. During the course of each life the quality of the actions (karma) performed determine the future destiny of each person. The Buddha taught that there is no beginning to this cycle but that it can be ended through perceiving reality. The goal of these religions is to realize this truth, the achievement of which (like ripening of a fruit) is mokshaor liberation. In popular use, Samsara [a westernized spelling] may refer to the world (in the sense of the various worldly activities which occupy ordinary, ignorant human beings), the various sufferings thereof; or (mistakenly) the unsettled and agitated mind through which reality is perceived |
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