Action and Rebirth

by Geshe Sonam Rinchen

Ignorance gives impetus to an action by providing the motivating force. Ignorance precedes the second link, formative action, functioning in a causal capacity, and it is also present with the action. This ignorance can be of two kinds: ignorance regarding the fundamental nature of things and ignorance regarding the connection between actions and their effects. Both may accompany formative action, but when a virtuous action is performed, the second type of ignorance regarding the connection between actions and their effects is absent. The contemporaneous motivating ignorance pushes the action through to its conclusion. If ignorance about the connection between actions and their effects is present, virtuous action will not occur.

A negative action, such as killing, may be motivated by desire, anger, or confusion. We may slaughter an animal because of our desire to eat meat. If someone has harmed us, we may kill that person out of anger and the wish to take revenge. We may wrongly believe that blood sacrifice will bring us good fortune. These are examples of the motivating forces that can cause us to act. Lack of mercy and aggression are active when we kill for any of these reasons. Although ignorance is present, this ignorance is not the kind that forms the first of the twelve links — that ignorance is always the instinctive misconception of our own self.

How do the disturbing emotions arise from the misconception of the self? First there is a very vivid sense of self. When the innate sense of this larger-than-life “I” is present, a particularly sharp distinction is made between oneself and others. There is, of course, an “I” and there are “others,” but when the misconception is operating, these two are viewed in a special way that gives rise both to strong attachment to the self together with everything we consider to be on our side, and to aversion towards anything we see as other and hostile. From that distinction and from the strong sense of “me” and “mine” comes a clinging to my happiness and the happiness of those associated with me and fear and repugnance to anything that threatens it.

Then we act — physically, verbally, or mentally — to insure our happiness, to prevent others from interfering with it, and to protect ourselves from what we perceive as harm. Meritorious, demeritorious, or unfluctuating actions that are the result of ignorance keep us within cyclic existence. We have taken rebirth over and over again throughout time without beginning. Helplessly we keep experiencing all the suffering associated with cyclic existence. To break out of this process we must stop the formative actions that yield their results enabled by craving and grasping. This can only be done by ridding ourselves of attachment and hostility and the underlying ignorance.

In this context particular emphasis is laid on getting rid of the attachment or craving. Freeing ourselves from this is no easy matter because our notion of the self is deeply entrenched and habitual. It will be of no help to look outwards. We must look for the root of cyclic existence within ourselves, examine how the misconception arises, how it serves as a foundation for the other disturbing attitudes and emotions, and how it can be uprooted.

All ordinary living beings have this misconception and act under its influence. Exalted beings have direct perception of reality as it actually is, and though they may still have confusion, it no longer influences their actions, so they do not act in ways that perpetuate their existence in the round of rebirth.

We create many positive and negative actions. Are all the actions we perform the kind that will give rise to another rebirth with a suffering body and mind? Is there ever a time when we are not creating actions that will give rise to further cyclic existence? We act even in our dreams. Will these actions, too, perpetuate cyclic existence?

Through appreciating the marvellous qualities of enlightenment, we may aspire to become enlightened ourselves and create meritorious actions for that purpose. Or having heard about the many disadvantages of cyclic existence and thought about them, we may perform virtuous actions with a strong antipathy to our present condition and with a wish to free ourselves. We may receive teachings on emptiness and, with our own limited understanding, contemplate it and try to recall the nature of reality when we act.

Will these positive actions produce a good rebirth? If so, are all of these actions simply producing further cyclic existence, albeit in one of the better states? Is the attainment of high status, namely a good rebirth, necessarily the result of formative actions? Aren’t the actions we have just mentioned, such as those motivated by the wish for freedom from cyclic existence, for liberation and enlightenment, the antidote to cyclic existence?

These are meritorious actions based on turning away from cyclic existence. If we think everything we do at present is simply going to give rise to further cyclic existence, it is very discouraging. We should understand that it is possible for us at this moment to perform actions that will not do this, which is why so much emphasis is laid on motivation. Not all thought is counterproductive. The result of our actions depends upon our intention, and thoughts that are directed towards the attainment of liberation, for instance, are constructive thoughts. If they are strong enough, the actions which arise from them will act as causes for freedom from cyclic existence.

In the chapter on perseverance in his Way of the Bodhisattva Shantideva says:

Take advantage of this human boat;

Free yourself from sorrow’s mighty stream!

This vessel will be later hard to find.

The time that you have now, you fool, is not for sleep!

Using this good body and mind in the right way, we can free ourselves from suffering. No other rebirth offers us such an opportunity. As an animal we have no chance of liberation or enlightenment. To accomplish this task we will need at least several more rebirths, for even though it is possible to do it in one lifetime, if we consider our own intelligence and the amount of effort we are prepared to make, it will certainly take time. So we must try in every way to insure that we take the kind of rebirths in the future that can provide us with the very best conditions for practice.

Unless we enjoy the favourable circumstances that make good consistent practice possible, we will not see any significant results, no matter how much effort we make to gain insights. A number of factors make a human rebirth special and privileged. The eight freedoms and ten riches distinguish a precious human life from an ordinary one. There are also eight assets which result from positive past actions and seven distinguishing attributes. Ideally we possess a working basis endowed with the “four wheels” that can speed us towards enlightenment in the Great Vehicle.

Possession of the eight freedoms and ten riches means that we are free from all kinds of hindrances that prevent practice and enjoy conducive circumstances that support it. The eight assets that come from past virtue are a long life span, an attractive appearance, birth into a good family, authority and wealth, trustworthy speech, a strong body and mind, and being male. If one possesses these eight, one also probably has the seven features that distinguish a high state of rebirth. The “four wheels” are to live in a conducive place; to have a relationship with an excellent or holy being; to admire and take an interest in excellent activities, such as the pursuit of liberation and enlightenment, with a strong aspiration to practice accordingly; and to have created a good store of positive energy.

We should examine whether we enjoy all these advantages and make sure that we will have them in the future as well. A good body and mind are essential, but we also need a long life, otherwise there will not be enough time to accomplish anything in our practices. We need time now and sufficient time in the future. Just praying for this is not enough. We have to create the causes that give rise to a long life. Just as most of us like to be attractive to others and to have a good appearance now, we will also want that in the future. This is not frivolous because if we look nice, we can more easily create relationships with others and through that find many opportunities to help them. It will also make it easier to get whatever material support we need to sustain our practice.

Patience gives rise to an attractive appearance. This is self-evident because people who are even-tempered, calm, and patient attract others, even though they may not be beautiful in a conventional sense. Those who are truly patient are also loving, which makes them very appealing. When we get upset and angry, we are not at all attractive to others. If we wish to have certain qualities, we have to make effort to develop them, since things do not just happen causelessly. One of the assets mentioned in this context is that we will be born with status. This is desirable because the ability to command respect and esteem will decrease the obstacles we face when working for others. Such status is the result of showing respect to those who possess admirable qualities and have done good. We must, therefore, avoid denigrating and condescending conduct towards others.

We also need sufficient resources to practice without having to worry about daily necessities. If we have plenty, we can easily attract others through generosity and do many things for their benefit.

Our speech should be honest and convey what needs to be said in a sincere way. Our own actions should accord with the advice we give others. These qualities will serve us well now and in the future, so we should take this precious opportunity to create their causes now. We need the best possible conditions if we are to use our body and mind to free ourselves.

Like us, animals try to avoid the suffering of pain, and practitioners in many spiritual traditions endeavour to overcome preoccupation with ordinary or contaminated pleasure, which is untrustworthy and subject to change. Buddhist practice is unique in providing us with the means to free ourselves from the constraints of having this kind of body and mind, which are the result of contaminated actions and disturbing emotions and constitute the pervasive suffering of conditioning. These compulsive actions and the disturbing emotions are the second noble truth, the true sources of suffering that bind us to cyclic existence and make true suffering, the first noble truth, inevitable. A deeper exploration of the four noble truths brings us to the teaching on the twelve links of dependent arising, which is a cherished treasure among the jewels of the Buddha’s teachings and is worth thinking about again and again.

As we have seen, when ignorance regarding the fundamental nature of things and ignorance regarding the connection between actions and their effects are both present, the result is a negative action which leads to a bad rebirth. In other cases, only the former but not the latter kind of ignorance is present. We could be aware that positive actions lead to happiness but mistake the happiness of good rebirths for real happiness without recognising the suffering entailed. As a result we might perform all kinds of positive actions in order to be reborn as a human or celestial being. These are meritorious actions that are still underlain by the misconception of the self.

Formative action in this context means action motivated by ignorance belonging to the same set of twelve links, since several sets of the twelve links ordinarily are operating simultaneously. This action will project a number of factors that also belong to the same set of twelve links. Action, according to the lower schools of tenets, refers to the mental factor of intention; however, from the Prasangika point of view, physical and verbal actions have physical form. Action can be created through any of the three doors of body, speech, and mind.

Demeritorious action consists of such actions as the seven harmful activities of body and speech, while meritorious action is virtuous action which avoids these seven. Unfluctuating action refers to practices of deep concentration that give rise to rebirth in the upper realms of celestial beings in deep states of absorption. This kind of action can only be created if we have accomplished a calmly abiding mind. Formative action forms the next existence. The action does this even though the person may be totally unaware or unmindful of its consequences.

The moment the action ceases, it leaves an imprint on consciousness. The third link is called consciousness and refers to that moment when the action stops and the seed is implanted. This is consciousness at the time of the cause, or causal consciousness. Consciousness at the moment of conception in the rebirth resulting from this imprint is referred to as resultant consciousness.

Ignorance, formative action, and consciousness are the three projecting causes. The results they project are name and form, the six sources, contact, and feeling. Craving and grasping, like moisture and a fertile growing medium, activate the seed-like imprint so that it begins to grow.

We all have a vast store of imprints from the countless positive and negative actions we have performed. Only mental consciousness, not any of the five kinds of sensory consciousness, acts as the storehouse. Although this consciousness changes moment by moment, it continues in an unbroken continuity, whereas there are periods, such as during sleep, when the different kinds of sensory consciousness stop operating. Whether we take a good or bad rebirth depends on what sort of imprint ripens. Since mental consciousness continues on to that new rebirth, the person imputed to that consciousness does so too.

Conditioned by formative action,

Consciousness enters rebirths.

When consciousness has entered,

Name and form come into being.

A variety of causes and conditions produce each moment of consciousness, but here Nagarjuna emphasises how formative action determines which kind of rebirth the consciousness will enter. How does consciousness continue on?

It does so when the death process is complete and the moment of death occurs. This is simultaneous with the beginning of the intermediate state. In the case of a human rebirth, the being of the intermediate state ceases to exist at the moment when consciousness enters the fertilised ovum in the womb of the mother. The end of the intermediate existence and the beginning of the human existence are simultaneous. The final moment of the death process is like deep sleep; the intermediate state is like dreaming and conception like waking.

The fourth link, name and form, describes the moment of conception. “Name” refers to the four aggregates of feeling, discrimination, compositional factors, and consciousness, while “form” refers to the physical embryo. The entity of the being has come into existence, after which development takes place.

Just as barley seed or rice seed yield their own specific crop, the imprints implanted on consciousness through performing actions yield their own particular results in the form of good or bad rebirths. When rebirth in the desire realm or form realm occurs, all five aggregates are present from the very beginning. In the formless realm the four aggregates associated with mental activity are present, but since beings in that realm have no actual physical form, the physical aspect is present only as a potential.