Do you have to believe in reincarnation/rebirth to be a Buddhist? (A Lay or "non monk or Buddhist )
by 
Jillian
ANSWERS: 3
-
I don't think so, because some forms of Buddhism seem to actually discourage hard and fast beliefs. It also depends what you believe ''rebirth'' and ''reincarnation'' to be about. There are many different branches of Buddhism, and they've all got varying themes and ideas about this kind of thing. Most people take rebirth and reincarnation to mean the idea that your soul is somehow born into another body after you die, but some strands of Buddhism don't actually seem to care or put much energy into forming ideas about this. For example in Zen, they tend to be very much about focussing on awareness, the here and now, *being* here and now. Reincarnation and focussing on future or past lives contradicts this notion somewhat. However a metaphorical rebirth, if you take it as the process of awakening to your true self in this life, would indeed be a theme. Whereas in Theravada Buddhism they seem to be all about being reborn in an actual body several times depending on which stage of enlightenment you've reached. So ultimately it seems to depend on how you define those words and which branch of Buddhism you join.
-
No. buddhism has many forms and not all believe in rebirth
-
Erased by user.
RELATED QUESTIONS
Copyright 2023, Wired Ivy, LLC