Expert: Laurie McLauglin - 2/19/2009

Question
I understand the believe about suffering, craving, the different realms of existence,re-birth, etc., but why does all this exist at all and how does Buddhism explain the need for it at all? In other words, what's the purpose for this existence at all? Why not just have Nirvana for everyone now without all the suffering and re-birth necessary to get there via the hells, hungry ghosts, animal realms, etc.?

Answer
Hello, Russ. Thank you for letting my answer your question, which is a good one.

Although you did not ask this question directly, your questions imply that you want to know how suffering and different realms got started in the first place. The Buddhists (at least the Mahayana ones, for that is the only group I am really familiar with) believe that we have existed since beginningless time. Buddhists believe that a thing arises from the causes and conditions of the previous moment of that things existence. In other words, my thoughts and self came into being in dependence on causes and conditions of myself a moment ago. That every moment comes into being based on the causes and conditions of the previous moment.  This in Mahayana Buddhism is called dependent arising. So, there is, (to the best of my knowledge)no belief that at the beginning there was nothing or even at the beginning there was nirvana because to the Buddhists, logically, there can be no beginning if everything came from something else.

The reason we continue to exist in the six realms of existence is based on karma. As long as we continue to create the karma for being reborn into the six desire realms or any other realm, we will continue to be reborn there. So the reason for it is based on our karma. We create the need by our actions.

So the purpose of this life is to purify that karma so that we can end the cycle. There are a few ways to purify it. The two major ones (that I know about) are that one can pacify one’s mind through meditation to stop harmful actions and thoughts from arising and manifesting and then do good works with good intentions to stop any further negative karma from arising.   Secondly, one can do purification practices like prostrating and doing certain prayers in order to reduce and/or eliminate one’s negative karma.

The reason we cannot have nirvana now and instead must endure all the suffering of the various realms is that by our actions and intentions we have created the cause for that not to be.  Karma is simply the law of cause and effect.  If we had created the cause for there to be only nirvana, then logically, there would be only nirvana.  But somehow, the causes for all the realms of suffering and desire were created and now we must create the cause for them to cease.

Most people however, it seems from my side, tend to think of this world as something that exists apart from ourselves and over which we really have no control.  Buddhists believe that we create our own existence and we can change it. If we are tired of the suffering we see all around us, all we have to do, according the Ghandi, is be the change we want to see in the world.  According to Buddha, in order to end the suffering, we should understand the four noble truths and follow the eightfold path.  This will bring forth an end to suffering, allow us to stop creating future negative karma thereby ending the need for us to abide in samsara and allow us to find nirvana.

I hope this answered your question at least to some extent. Please do not hesitate to ask any further questions.