Transcript Document

Samsara
Recap
So far we have been looking at the way Buddhists see
human life, the Human Condition.
Life is Suffering (1st Noble Truth)
The cause of suffering
are the 3 Marks of
Existence, Anatta, Anicca
and Dukkha.
A way to view the Human
Condition and suffering is
the ‘Wheel of Life’
So what is Samsara?
Samsāra is the Sanskrit and Pāli term for
"continuous movement" or "continuous flowing“,
but refers in Buddhism to the cycle of birth and
death which all beings in the universe experience
and which can only be escaped through
enlightenment. Samsāra is associated with
suffering and is generally considered the
opposite of nirvāna or nibbāna.
Samsara Facts
1. Samsara has no real beginning, it’s always
been going on, as long as there were living
things.
2. Samsara will continue forever as long as
nothing is done.
3. That means that you’re condemned to live
lives of suffering and misery until the end
of time.
Cause and Effect
Dependant Origination is the term used to describe how a
persons situation in life is an effect of an earlier cause.
Just like a pool ball, it can only move when it’s been hit.
But this is actually good news
as it means we are in control
of our own fate. We can
decide what kind of life we
have now and will have in the
future.
Therefore Samsara isn’t inevitable; we can escape the
cycle of rebirth.
The Right Cause for the Right Effect
Things happen to us in our lives which we can’t
control. But no matter how difficult our lives
are, we always have control over our actions.
We can choose to be good and to try and help
others, or we can be spiteful and mean.
Good actions and thoughts are going to not
only benefit others, but they benefit ourselves
and begin us on the path to freedom from
Samsara.
A Game of Consequences
Think of two or three actions which might be
the result of a moral action.
What is the cause of the bad actions (greed?
hatred? ignorance?)
What is the cause of the good actions (nonattachement?kindness?understanding?)
Try to come up with at least 3 moral decisions
and the actions to go with them.
Summary
Samsara is the cyle of rebirth.
Samsara is associated with suffering and can only
be escaped through enlightenment.
Samsara has no beginning or end – so could last
forever.
Wheel of Life is not to be understood literally.
Wheel represent Dependant Origination
Dependant Origination means we control our own
fate (cause & effect)
At the centre of the wheel is the three poisons