9. REBIRTH
D: The śāstra-s say that rebirth exists. Is there any rational evidence in favour of this?
A: Yes. There are many logical reasons supporting rebirth. One person suffers much in this world, while another lives happily. What is the cause? We see such differences even in young children who have done nothing in the present birth to justify such joy or misery. In order to properly account for such differences, one must accept the existence of rebirth. It is only proper to say that we suffer now as a result of sins committed by us in our previous births and that we have joy now due to the virtuous deeds of our past.
Some people have memories of their previous births. I learn that scientists are investigating this aspect. Some of the investigated persons who recalled their previous births described certain incidents and scenes that were subsequently verified. Without prior experiences, how could such memories be present? Such memories support the existence of rebirth.
Our śāstra-s prescribe certain prāyaścitta-s (expiations) to get rid of some diseases. On the performance of the ordained expiatory karma-s, cures are seen. How can the remedial karma-s directed to nullify the sins of a previous birth cure a disease of this birth if there were no rebirth at all? If it is said that mere faith cures the disease, it cannot be explained why, when the prāyaścitta-s are performed with faith but not in accordance with the prescriptions, the desired result is not obtained.
Some children extraordinarily exhibit certain skills. They could not have acquired their proficiency in the few years of their present life. Their parents or grandparents may not have developed the same skills. They should, therefore, have developed their skills in an earlier life. The case of such precocious children favours the existence of rebirth.
If we do not accept rebirth, we would be forced to conclude that, “Īśvara is partial for He has kept some people happy and some others unhappy. He has no mercy either because beings experience misery.” Nobody associates such defects with Īśvara. So, it is logical to accept rebirth.
A newborn babe drinks its mother’s milk even without being taught by anyone to do so. This is because of its knowledge that satisfaction can be obtained from mother’s milk. Not even a fool would involve himself in an action if he does not find utility in it. Therefore, even the child trying to drink its mother’s milk should be aware of the satisfaction that it will be obtaining thereby. Such an awareness could not have arisen in this birth prior to its suckling for the first time. Therefore, the child should have acquired that knowledge only in the previous birth. This too serves to establish the existence of rebirth.
If we do not accept rebirth, it has to be said that after death a man shall dwell forever in heaven or in hell. Is this logical? Not at all. As a general rule, that which has a beginning must have an end. Therefore, stay in heaven has to have an end since it has a beginning.
Further, consider the case of a baby that has suffered a premature death. It could have acquired neither puṇya nor pāpa. Will the baby be condemned to hell, or will it make its way to heaven? If its destination is hell, it has to take up punishment for no fault on its part. If we accept the other alternative, heaven, we are led to concede that the baby experiences heavenly pleasures even though it has no puṇya to its credit. If there were a rule that one without puṇya or pāpa would be in heaven forever after death, every mother would do well to kill her baby as soon as it is born! The non-acceptance of rebirth would result in such absurd conclusions.
What I have mentioned here are just a few reasons from amongst a host of them that establish rebirth on a logical basis.
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❑ Discourses of Acharyal
In the life of My Guru, one special feature was that He did not acquire the knowledge of the Truth from the teaching of someone. It manifested right from His birth.
Arjuna asked, “O Kṛṣṇa! What end does a person attain who is endowed with faith but who does not strive and whose mind has slipped from yoga without his having attained perfection in yoga?”
The Lord answered, “He who has failed in yoga is born in the house of the pure and affluent. Alternatively, he is born in the family of wise yogin-s. Such a birth is indeed very difficult to obtain in this world. There, he gains the knowledge that was acquired in the previous birth.”
We see some people having different kinds of mental tendencies. Some, owing to tendencies stemming from past lives, perform only good deeds. Some others, regardless of how much competence they possess, constantly do what is wrong. Why? In accordance with Duryodhana’s statement, “I act as impelled by some god who abides in my heart”, they are dragged by the force of past actions.
In the case of My Guru, His introversion did not stem subsequent to His taking saṁnyāsa, studying the śāstra-s and practising spiritual disciplines. It manifested right from His birth.
How does one become a Mahāpuruṣa or a great soul? When the accumulated good tendencies of numerous previous lives manifest in a person, in a particular life, that person becomes a Mahāpuruṣa.
Manu has said that no matter how old one is, one must not cease to learn. A person may get the doubt, “I am old. There is no occasion for me to utilise in this life what I have learned. Must I then strive merely to end up straining myself? Is it not much better for me to sleep happily instead?” To this, Manu says, “Knowledge must be acquired by the wise, with dedication, though they may be old. Though it may not yield any fruit now, it will be easy to acquire in another birth.”
No matter what your age may be, you must learn. While the learning may not be beneficial in this life, you may again be born as a human in a future life. You may then get an opportunity to acquire knowledge. If mental impressions of past learning are there, the mind instantaneously grasps what is taught.
The śāstra-s state, as illustrated by the verse of Manu just considered, that efforts made in previous lives to acquire knowledge play a vital role in determining the ease with which we acquire knowledge now. So, if we are able to easily acquire knowledge, it can be inferred that we must have developed suitable mental impressions in a previous birth. Thus, on seeing a sage, we infer, “This man must have essentially perfected himself in his previous life. However, owing to some obstacle to his enjoying the fruit of his effort and getting liberated, he has been reborn and so is now present before us.”
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Let us consider some other arguments to substantiate the stance of the Veda-s for establishing the existence of the Ātman apart from the body. It is said, “One man experiences troubles right from his birth, while another is happy. What is the reason? How does the first act occur? How does the body subsist? Why is there no knowledge after death? In the cases of lamps, seeds, sprouts etc., it is seen that when the causes are similar, the nature of the objects produced is also uniform. If it is said that the variation is due to karma, then it is clear that Ātman must have existed earlier.”
This requires elucidation. Though human bodies are of the same kind, some experience sorrow, disease and the like right from birth while some others having wealth remain happy. Why is it so? It has to be perforce conceded that virtue and sin are the causes. If merit and demerit are respectively responsible for pleasure and pain, these experiences could not have existed right from birth. After all, the cause and the effect cannot come into being at the same instant. Hence, virtue and sin must have been acquired in a previous birth.
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❑ Experiences of Devotees
Acharyal has said, ‘‘The negative effects of sins done in the previous births can be reduced to a great extent by means of medicines, japa, homa, pūjā, dhyāna and satsaṅga (company of great souls)’’. In the case of certain devotees, Acharyal Himself prescribed the expiatory rites to be performed for freedom from their afflictions.
During the early ‘90s, I was suffering severely from vertigo. When I had attacks, I would not be able to stand, sit or even lie down owing to the dizziness, and could feel my eyeballs going round and round at a fast pace. Allopathy did not help. Homeopathy proved futile and Āyurveda too failed.
Accompanied by my father, I went to Sringeri to have the darśana of Acharyal. My father informed Acharyal of my problem and asked Him as to what must be done to combat it.
Acharyal immediately sent for a certain book. When it was brought, He started to look through its pages. While looking into the book, He said to my father, “This problem is troubling her because in some earlier birth, she did not complete a vrata (sacred vow) she had undertaken.” I was seated a little away, and was thinking about Acharyal’s statement. He lifted His head up slightly and looking at me over His glasses, clarified, “This is given in the book!” Thereafter, He prescribed a prāyaścitta (expiatory rite) consisting of a homa, which He explained to my father.
The prāyaścitta detailed by Acharyal was later performed by my father, after which I became completely free of the ailment.
[A disciple]
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