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Saṃsāra (Sanskrit, Pali; also samsara) is a Buddhist term that literally means "continuous movement" and is commonly translated as "cyclic existence", "cycle of existence", etc. Within Buddhism, samsara is defined as the continual repetitive cycle of birth and death that arises from ordinary beings' grasping and fixating on a self and experiences. Specifically, samsara refers to the process of cycling through one rebirth after another within the six realms of existence,[1] where each realm can be understood as either a physical realm or a psychological state characterized by a particular type of suffering. Samsara arises out of avidya (ignorance) and is characterized by dukkha (suffering, anxiety, dissatisfaction). In the Buddhist view, liberation from samsara is possible by following the Buddhist path.
Samsara is the continual repetitive cycle of birth and death that arises from ordinary beings' grasping and fixating on a self and experiences. Specifically, samsara refers to the process of cycling through one rebirth after another within the six realms of existence.[1][2] Each of these six realms can be understood as a physical realm or a psychological state characterized by a specific type of suffering.
The nineteenth century Tibetan lama Patrul Rinpoche explains the cyclic nature of samsara as follows:[8]
Contemporary scholar Rupert Gethin emphasizes this point as follows:[4]
Samsara arises out of avidya (ignorance) and is characterized by dukkha (suffering, anxiety, dissatisfaction).
Buddhist cosmology typically identifies six realms of existence: gods, demi-gods, humans, animals, hungry ghosts and hells.[1] These realms can be understood both as psychological states and as aspects of Buddhist cosmology.[3]
These six realms are typically divided into three higher realms and three lower realms: the three higher realms are the realms of the gods, demi-gods, and humans; the three lower realms are the realms of the animals, hungry ghosts and hell beings. These realms can be described briefly as follows:[4]
Among the six realms, the human realm is considered to offer the best opportunity to practice the dharma, thereby offering the best chance to attain liberation from samsara. Dzongsar Khyentse explains:
From the Buddhist point of view, the realms of samsara are descriptions of both psychological states of mind and physical cosmological realms. From the Buddhist perspective, rebirth in the different realms is determined by our karma, which is directly determined by our psychological states. For example, a feeling of anger can be said to lead to "rebirth" into a new "realm": this rebirth can be viewed on an instantaneous level, in which being angry can make someone feel very "heated", or on a longer-term level, in which a habitual tendency to anger can cause someone to be reborn into a "heated" situation. An extreme habituation to anger and violence can lead to rebirth in one of the "hell realms". On the other hand, feelings of compassion and love can lead to rebirth in the realms where these feelings are dominant (such as certain god realms, or particular situations within the human or animal realms).
Rupert Gethin explains this equivalence of cosmology and psychology from the Buddhist perspective. Gethin states:[16]
Generally speaking, each realm is said to be the result of one of the six main negative emotions: pride, jealousy, desire, ignorance, greed, and anger. Dzongsar Jamyang Khyentse explains:[13]
Contemporary Buddhist teacher Thubten Chodron emphasizes that samsara is not a place or external environment, but rather samsara refers to one's own body and mind under the influence of kleshas (disturbing emotions) and karma. Thubten Chodron states:[web 3]
Samsara is characterized by dukkha (suffering, anxiety, dissatisfaction).[10]
Samsara is also characterized by impermanence. Contemporary scholar Paul Williams explains:
From the Buddhist point of view, all beings have been suffering in samsara for an unimaginable period of time, and they will continue to do so until they attain liberation.[2] For example, the Assu Sutta of the Pali Canon states:[web 4]
The nature of samsara is a habitual, repetitive pattern. Ajahn Sucitto explains:
The root cause of samsara is ignorance (avidya)–belief in a single, independently-existing self.[12] Ignorance gives rise to the three poisons, which lead to the creation of karma, which leads to rebirth in the six realms of existence.[23]
In the Buddhist view, beings can liberate themselves from samsara by following the Buddhist path. For example, the Dalai Lama explains:
The Dalai Lama also emphasizes the importance of understanding the nature of samsara in order to be liberated from it. He states: "one must understand the nature and patterns of the general sufferings that pervade all of samsara, as well as the specific sufferings of the individual realms, particularly the three lower realms.[25]
Saṃsāra is the recurring cycle of rebirth throughout the six realms. Some non-Buddhist traditions believe that when one goes through the process of rebirth that there is a permanent self (i.e. a soul or atman) that is reborn. In the Buddhist view, there is not a permanent, instrinsically existing soul or atman. In the Buddhist view, there is a transfer of consciousness from one life to the next, but this consciousness is a continuum (e.g. a continually evolving stream of consciousness) rather than a permanent entity. One example used to explain this transfer of consciousness from one life to the next is that it is "Like a billiard ball hitting another billiard ball. While nothing physical transfers, the speed and direction of the second ball relate directly to the first."[web 5] Thus, the previous life has a direct impact on the next life.
The driving force behind rebirth in the six realms of samsara is karma.[13] Sogyal Rinpoche explains:[31]
In the Buddhist view, therefore, the type of birth we have in this life is determined by our actions or karma from our previous life; and the circumstances of our future rebirth are determined by our actions in this life.[14] This view does not imply any blame or judgement of beings who are born into difficult circumstances or into the lower realms. From the Buddhist point of view, all beings have been circling in samsara from beginningless time, sometimes in the upper realms, sometimes in the lower realms, so there is no justification for judging beings who are less fortunate then ourselves, since we have all experienced every type of misfortune and good fortune in our previous lifetimes.[8]
In the Buddhist view, a proper understanding of samsara will lead one to have compassion for all beings, including ourselves, who are trapped in this cycle of birth and death.
Thubten Chodron explains that a proper understanding of samsara can help us take responsibility for our present situation, but without blaming ourselves. Thubten Chodron states:[web 3]
Thubten Chodron emphasizes that the cause for our rebirth in samsara are the kleshas (disturbing emotions) that lead to the creation of karma. If we can overcome our kleshas, then we will no longer generate the karma that leads to rebirth in the six realms.[web 3]
The consciousness that transfers from life to life is identified as vinnana in early Buddhist texts. These texts assert that when vinnana is pacified, then liberation is attained. Contemporary scholar William Waldron explains:[32][web 6]
Waldron emphasizes the close connection between consciousness, karmic activities, and the cycle of rebirth. He states: "The cessation of vinnana is here closely identified with the destruction and cessation of "karmic activities" (anabhisankhara, S III, 53), which, we shall see, are necessary for the continued perpetuation of cyclic existence."[32]
Later schools of Buddhist thought refined the concept of vinnana, and identified the specific aspect of consciousness that transfers from life to life as one of eight types of conscious called the ālaya-vijñāna.
It is taught in Mahayana Buddhism that the main impetus to pursuing nirvana and enlightenment is compassion for all beings. The goal is to reach a level of development that enables one to ultimately benefit all sentient beings.
Within the Tibetan Buddhist tradition, reflecting on the defects of samsara is a key aspect of spiritual practice. In particular, this reflection is one of the "four mind-changers"–a series of reflections on four topics: the preciousness of human birth; impermanence; the defects of samsara; and karma.
The reflection on samsara emphasizes that we have been wandering in samsara since beginningless time. For example, Patrul Rinpoche states:[33]
Within this reflection, spiritual practitioners cultivate compassion by reflecting on the fact that all beings have been their own mother in a previous life. For example, Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche states:[34]
Contemporary Tibetan teachers have acknowledged that many Western students have difficult relationships with their mothers, and they emphasize that the main point of the above contemplation is to reflect that all beings have been extremely kind to you at some point in your previous lives, and to generate the wish to repay that kindness.
In the Tibetan tradition, it is believed that there are Bodhisattvas who could achieve enlightenment, but because of their great compassion (Bodhicitta or Karuṇā),[35] instead of entering into nirvana, they have vowed to be reborn in samsara until they have freed all the countless sentient beings of all of the six realms of samsara.[web 7] For example, many Tibetan Buddhists believe that the Dalai Lama is an incarnation Avalokiteśvara (Tibetan: Chenrezik), the Bodhisattva of compassion.[web 8]
The following table provides brief descriptions of the term samsara given by various contemporary Buddhist teachers and scholars:
Gautama Buddha, Tibetan Buddhism, Sīla, Mahayana, Hinduism
Buddhism, India, Pali, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar
Buddhism, Dāna, Gautama Buddha, Pali, Pāramitā
Gautama Buddha, Buddhism, Early Buddhist schools, Vinaya Pitaka, Sutta Pitaka
Buddhism, Mongolia, Bon, Gautama Buddha, Vajrayana
Buddhism, Gautama Buddha, Śīla, Nirvana, Pali
Buddhism, Gautama Buddha, Tibetan Buddhism, Śīla, Nirvana
Buddhism, Pali, Gautama Buddha, Nirvana, Pali Canon
Buddhism, Gautama Buddha, Tibetan Buddhism, Śīla, Pali