Kamma at Death and Rebirth
“Like travellers we make our way through life beginning in our mother’s womb. At some point or another we will have to disembark at the journey’s end. Each holding on to kamma’s ticket, we are bound for our respective destination.”
In “Kamma at Death and Rebirth” Sayadaw Dr. Nandamāla explains simply and succinctly the process at this journey’s end whereby kamma takes over us just before death to sow its seed for the next life. Along the way Sayadaw clears up some common misconceptions about ghosts, an interim life before rebirth, reincarnation, and so on. He asks “Who is it who shifts from one life to the next?” and “Who is it who performs kamma and receives its result?” ̵ in dismissing the notion of a permanent entity or soul. Issues about cloning and the efficacy of prayer to stop kamma are also raised.
At the end he concludes that kamma will take us to a destination that befits our actions and deeds carried out in this life: as shown in the age-old adage of “You reap what you sow”.
Sayadaw Dr. Nandamāla’s aim is to distinguish the original teachings of the Buddha from the other doctrines, especially those which share the same terms like ‘saṃsāra’, ‘kamma’ and ‘kamma-result’ with Theravāda Buddhism.
Hopefully this book will help readers further their understanding of, and clear any confusion and doubt about this subject.