Expert: Bodhicitta - 2/23/2005

Question
Greetings!

I seek 2 answers... for now

One: When our loved ones die, they will later reencarnate or
reborn, but the time that passes between one phase and the other is
relative, the time that passes in the superior realms is
different from the time spent here on earth, so when our time comes
will we still have the chance to see those people before they
be reborned again?


Second: The actual population of this planet is very large
10 billion i guess, well a few hundred years ago there was only a
fraction of that population. So, when it comes to the spiritual side
of life what happens in the process of reencarnation? I mean, where
do all thoses new souls came from? Right now, it seems that there´s
more people coming to life than people exiting life...


I thought about it for quite some time, i think that there´s an
overall evolution, mineral evolves to vegetal, vegetal evolves to
animal, an then animal evolves to animal itself in the form of Human
Existence...
But as all, this might be just another wrong line of thinking.


I seek knowledge... Can you help me?

Answer
Hi Thomas
Thanks for your questions. These are good questions.
I wonder where you are and how old you are? I am always interested in who is asking the question. I now get questions from every part of the world and every age group.

But let me give you some answers from the point of view of Buddhism.

First of all Buddhism would propose to you that you meditate  and find out directly the answers to these and other questions which fall outside the bounds of mundane
experience. In some ways the answers require our minds
to move from ordinary notions of this and that, me and you, self and other, and ordinary ideas of place and time. These experiences of non conceptual thought are only possible through meditation so I put this
to you as something you  should consider. Anyone can tell you answers but really finding out for yourself through
experience is really the only way finally.

But the traditions of Buddhism that come from great meditators of the past have alot to say on the questions you raise and I will share a little bit of this with you.

One
---
When we or our loved ones die there are many possibilities.
The Universe in Buddhist and Hindu philosophy is truly vast
and behaves in ways beyond normal notions in Western science.  The way our being can manifest and behave is truly vast and multifaceted. The idea that we would
die maybe enter some intermediate state of existence and then be reborn into the same world some time in the future
is one very crude view of how the universe works. we cant say that that couldnt be your experience either. Especially if you or your culture had strong belief that the Universe worked that way. In which case you might meet loved ones in this intermediate state.

However Buddhist meditation masters point out that the Universe is far stranger than this. Often it is said that
in life we are like people in a dream. The whole world
is our dream world. When we awake , the world disappears, the people disappear, the whole idea of our lives disappear. Where did they go? Where were they anyways? They were no where. Could we enter such a dream world again later in its history or in a similar or slightly different world - yes of course. We all have had dreams we have entered again night after night. How would we find out that we were dreaming and awake- well meditation is the only way.

Two
----
According to Buddhist and Indian ideas of cosmology the Universe is vast beyond all comprehension. The numbers used in Indian texts to describe the numbers of worlds in the Universe are vaster than anything Western science would give. Some of these worlds are populated with life,
In fact from a Buddhist point of view matter doesnt evolve
independent of life. Life is always present. There is no such thing as an inanimate universe. Some form of subtle life is always present. So really there is never a problem
with 10 billion beings and where they came from. 10 billion is a very small number. There are probably that many microbe organisms in your body at the moment anyways!

What you say about evolution is quite interesting. There is something in that from a Buddhist view point. But as I say there is no such thing as inanimate material universe
in Buddhism. The universe goes through cycles where life is sometimes present in human like forms and bodies and sometimes its present as formless minds.But
life is always present.

Hope that is of some help to you. Keep asking good questions. The question is the gateway to truth.

Bodhicitta