Expert: Justin Choo - 3/9/2005

Question
"The entity is there..."  What entity?  You imply that consciousness dissolves (although the Buddha was couscious of past lives?), but something persists.  What is this eternal something, and why don't you want to call it a soul?
Followup To
Question -
The Buddha proclaimed the self to be empty.  Also, though He neverly expressly denied it, the evidence is that he denied the existence of a soul.  But the Buddha accepted reincarnation and in the Suttas recalled a number of his past lives.  Since there is no soul, what is being reincarnated?
Answer -
Hi George,

Thank you for asking me.

The Buddha's axiom is in this statement:
"Not the same, and yet not different"
It is just like the electric current; there is a continuous flow of current, but the current before and the current now, are not the same, and yet not different.  Another example is like a lighted candle. Although the light appears to be the same, it is actually not so because the candle is continuously burning.

The Buddha pointed out that there was no PERMANENT AND UNCHANGING entity.  The entity is there, but is in a continuous state of flux.  Therefore there cannot be an unchanging and eternal soul.  The Buddha also denied that there was absolutely nothing, because there IS definitely some thing.  There is this process of becoming, sustaining, and dissolving.  

This process of becoming, sustaining, and dissolving is the characteristic of the mind.  It is the consciousness that ticks away, just like the movie film that contains the individual frames.  It is this consciousness that takes on different life forms depening on the nature of the accumulated kamma.  Rebirth is this process of becoming.  "Reincarnation" implies an unchanging entity.  "Rebirth" points to a continuous process of the stream of consciousness.

Hope I have answered your question.  Please come back if you need further clarification.

Smile from justinchoo :-)  

Answer
Hi George,

Welcome again.

Your question:
"The entity is there..." What entity? You imply that consciousness dissolves (although the Buddha was couscious of past lives???), but something persists. What is this eternal something, and why don't you want to call it a soul?

My comment:
Consciousness never dissolves.  Take the example of a river.  Consciousness is like the flowing river.  It is always there.  But the water you see in the river is not the same water.  The "entity" is the "river".  The "consciousness" is the river.  The flowing stream of water is the life continuum.  To insist that there is a permanent soul is just like insisting that the stream of water must be the same permanent water.  
This "eternal something" is the flowing water which makes up the river.

It is a very profound concept of reality.  Perhaps it takes time for one to understand after a period of serious contemplation and analysis.  It takes time and patience to understand the profound teachings of the Buddha.

This is the best I can explain.  Hope you are not disappointed with my explanation.  Keep on searching and with patience you will find the truth.

Smile from justinchoo :-)