Rebirth and Redeath

This chapter discusses the cycle of birth and death in Buddhism. It is important to distinguish rebirth from reincarnation. Reincarnation is the transfer of a soul from body to body. Rebirth, on the other hand, is a cycle of many births and deaths, without any soul linking them. It is commonly called rebirth but it could equally well be redeath since each lifetime involves both a birth and a death. In many traditional forms of Buddhism, this cycle of rebirth and redeath includes supernatural being and places. Many traditional Buddhists think of these places and beings as real. In fact, this is central to many traditional statements of the central problem Buddhism aims to solve; these different kinds of lives all make up what is called samsara. Beings are constantly being born and dying in these different realms, over and over and over. On this traditional understanding, Buddhism solves the problem by ending this cycle of birth and death. The solution, sometimes called nirvana, is about getting out of the cycle.