If reincarnation exists would you even want to come back to the material world?

Question

I don't know if I would even want to come back. Life is tough, even for those who supposedly have it good. According to the Hindus and Buddhists, life is samsara, meaning suffering. Yes, there are joys in living life, but with these attachments come the fall of them being taken away.

Nothing can be held onto in life. Maybe that is why certain religions developed the concept of putting your treasures in heaven where neither moth or rust can destroy.

I don't know, maybe a little suffering here and there is not so bad. It really depends on whether you have a down to earth life affirming philosophy or one that is more so escapist. Maybe as we spend time on the ethereal plane we recharge enough to desire a return.

Whatever the case I hope I am born into a vegetarian family and or culture that is also for the most part tolerant of various lifestyles and religions/philosophies.

Answer 1

Reincarnation does exist, but it is not for us to decide to come back to the material world. It all depends on our actions (Karma).

All religions are tolerant of other religions. It is the fanatics who are the problem.

You can influence how your next life will be by trying to be who you want to be. Try and be a vegetarian in this life. Be tolerant to others in this life. Just be good. Your next life will definitely be better than this one. Then finally you will discover how to stop reincarnating. You will realize you are God and that you were God all along, even when you thought you were a mere mortal.

Think of life as a movie where every form of life is played by only one actor. One actor in multiple, simultaneous roles. That actor is God.

Answer 2

Let us try a little introspection here-- nothing too hard. At birth, our bodies are small, our minds undeveloped, etc and as our bodies grow and our minds and personalities develop, do we become different people? If you commit a crime when you a teenager but are not caught until you are an adult, can you tell the judge that it wasn't you that committed the crime because your body has completely changed?

According to the biology every cell in our bodies is completely replaced every 7 years. So if we are the body, then we have become a completely different person every 7 years. But since we all know we are the same person despite whatever changes the mind and body go through, the logical conclusion is that we are NOT the body or the mind. We are the consciousness that illuminates and animates the body. Actually, to be more accurate, we are soul, called the jiva in Sanskrit, and the symptom of the soul is consciousness.

Now to understand reincarnation, which is more accurately called transmigration of the soul, is simple. Even in the duration of this life, our soul remains the same even though the body changes constantly. Therefore, what is the big deal to understand that at the time of death, the soul, the same soul, can transmigrate to another body to take birth again?

So a person can believe or not believe in reincarnation, it doesn't matter. The fact is that our bodies are constantly changing, yet we remain the same. This is reincarnation in action right before your eyes. The same materials that make up your present body are the same materials that constitute every body so there is no trick to getting another body. They are all the same stuff.

What befuddles people about reincarnation is that they are ignorant of the mechanics and the laws that govern it. This is where karma comes in. Karma is simply the mechanism that determines where, how, and when you will get your next body and its based upon the thoughts and actions you do at every moment in this life. All this is not working blindly by chance. Its all working under the direction of the Supreme Lord who is witnessing everything from the heart of every living being.

I hope this helps you to sort this out a little. You can investigate further in the Bhagavad-gita As It Is. Available for reading online at: http://www.krishna.com/e-books/

Answer 3

Many believe that each person is made mostly of a bunch of energy (your soul) that keeps coming back into human form until it learns certain lessons. If this is really true, then the real you isn't you as you know yourself...you're really some other invisible being; living inside of your body temporarily. Kinda weird, huh??
The soul's lessons are things that most religions refer to...like helping others, tolerance, honesty, and more. Life's goal is to choose actions to grow your soul. Circumstances are opportunities for growth. No circumstance is really "good" or "bad". Our behavior in response to life's circumstances is what is good or bad.
When the soul is between bodies (heaven) there is only peace, freedom & love (a little vacation). Our soul has an infinite amount of energy which creates personal power. Many see this energy as part of the energy called "God". .Most people don't tap into this energy. You can tap into the energy by developing an awareness of spiritual principles & then reacting to life based on those. Many meditate to determine what their souls lessons are that have to be learned.Try and think of a life where you have everything you'd want. (money, travel, fame, glamour, etc, etc) Then you'd be happy, right? What people don't know is that for some strange reason, acting on spiritual principles (which can sometimes be no fun) will propel you into a happiness at a level beyond even this.This isn't to say you shouldn't go out & have fun. We're put into mortal form for many reasons
What about the innocent people dying or suffering?. You gotta remember, each of us are only a few molecules in an infinite space of molecules. Painful things happen to our small little selves to balance a picture bigger than we can comprehend. It's sorta like suffering the pain & loss of amputation in order to survive. People are often "amputated" to create an opportunity of growth for those who remain.

Answer 4

If reincarnation exists, I suppose I would want to come back as a human being, but maybe to less materialistic days -

Answer 5

I would definitely come back, as my current self if possible

Answer 6

THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS REINCARNATION!!! AND IF THERE WAS, NO, I WOULD NOT WANT TO COME BACK AT ALL AS ANYTHING OR ANYONE!!!!!!