[Embodied]

Hello all,

One can understand how micca-dhitti-gati can lead us to unfavorable or even tragic bhava, also still in our actual life but what about gati which is viewed as favorable ? Example : the gati of doing sports intensely ? My take is that there is no problem as much one doens’t develop a craving for it (yes, it happens…)…?

Pls note: my questions above are related only with the possibility of behaving in a way which contributes to a good rebirth…

Thank you

[Lal]

Good question, Embodied. To get an idea of how gati affect future bhava, let us consider the following gati:

-one who kills humans for pleasure (psychopaths) – worst niraya (hell) gati
-one who kills animals for pleasure – niraya gati (higher niraya realms)
-one who likes to enjoy sex by raping – niraya gati
-one who likes to have sex with inappropriate partners (outside marriage, children) – preta bhava, animal bhava
-one who indulges in excess sense pleasures (drugs, drinking, even over-eating) – preta bhava (higher preta realms). Those who are intensely engaged in sports, music, entertainment (and thus keep help others attached to sense pleasures) also preta bhava. This is a subtle point that may not be obvious.
-one who gains pleasure by acts that affect many (arsonists, those who recklessly damage environment by polluting waterways, etc) – usually cows, pigs, mules, chicken, etc who pay back with their milk, work, and lives (for meat).
-one who enjoy sense pleasures gained with legitimate means and do not over-indulge – human and deva bhava
-one who does meritorious deeds but without comprehension of Tilakkhana – human and deva bhava (better jati than the above category). Some of these will lead to tihetuka births that makes comprehension of Dhamma easier).
-one who does meritorious deeds but with comprehension of Tilakkhana – human and deva bhava (better jati than the above category; tihetuka births that makes comprehension of Dhamma easier). These are the ones who are at least Sotapanna Anugamis.
-one who likes to learn Dhamma concepts and “dig deeper” but without comprehension of Tilakkhana – human and deva bhava.
-one who likes to learn Dhamma concepts and “dig deeper” with comprehension of Tilakkhana – human and deva bhava. (better jati than the above category; tihetuka births that makes comprehension of Dhamma easier). These are the ones who are at least Sotapanna Anugamis.
-one who cultivates anariya rupavacara jhana – rupa bhava (16 rupavacara realms)
-one who cultivates anariya arupavacara jhana – arupa bhava (4 arupavacara realms)

Of course, those are just general guidelines. There are innumerable gati when getting down to details. But we just need an idea about the general trends.
It is always god to keep in mind “upadana paccaya bhava” and also “pati icca leading to sama uppada”: What one enjoys/likes is likely to lead to corresponding bhava.

You all can add to this list other tendencies people have, and what kinds of bhava could result from such tendencies. This is a good meditation subject. This is what is described by Paticca Samuppada.

[Tobias G]

Which gathi leads to other animal bhava like whales, snails, worms, bacteria?

[Lal]

@Tobias:
Those big animals like whales and elephants had been body builders/ politicians etc who think very highly of themselves. Of course, I am not saying all bodybuilders and politicians will becomes whales and elephants. But one can such mentality common among some of them.

Those who are lazy and cultivate such thoughts (sankhara) are likely to be born snails, asuras, etc. These variations come from the mixing of various different gati.

Those very low lifeforms like worms (and other microscopic living beings) arise due to those who do very lowly things. Excess or deviant sexual tendencies may lead to births as worms, among other causes. Worms have both male and female reproductive organs. During sexual intercourse among earthworms, both sets of sex organs are used by both worms.

That is why there are innumerable variety of lifeforms. But we can guess some general trends. Many of Pali and Sinhala words for animals have these meanings embedded in the word itself (this is called “pada nirukti“).

For example, the Sinhala word for cow is “haraka”, which comes from “hara + ka”, where “hara” is “essence” or “goodness” and “ka” means destroy. They had intentionally and recklessly destroyed environment or common properties and now are paying back with their milk and meat.

By the way, bacteria is probably not sentient: “Beings that have no centralized nervous systems are not sentient. This includes bacteria, archaea, protists, fungi, plants and certain animals.”
That quote from: “What beings are not conscious“. I cannot say this article is 100% compatible with Buddha Dhamma. I just saw it. But the general trend seems to be correct.

[cubibobi]

Hi all,

I hope this question is suitable here: has anyone found a way to make cockroaches go away?

When I see one in my home, I use a container to catch and release it. However, my gati of wanting to kill them is strong (I almost called an exterminator a couple of times). If I can make them go away then the killing gati will come up less (I hope).

I’ve been reading the gandhabba and abhidhamma posts, so I checked out this forum. It’s fascinating to see the various kamma and correlated rebirths listed in this thread.

Thank you,
Lang

[Lal]

Cubibobi said: “has anyone found a way to make cockroaches go away?”
And “When I see one in my home, I use a container to catch and release it. However, my gati of wanting to kill them is strong”.

There are several aspects to this issue.

1. Part of the answer to the first question is in the second statement. Even if you have not killed those cockroaches, you have the intention to kill them. So, you are constantly generating vaci sankhara (conscious thoughts about killing them), and more bad kamma vipaka for future. This is an important point that many people do not understand: “Correct Meaning of Vacī Sankhāra“.

– So, you are aggravating the problem by not looking at the root causes for the problem.

2. Nothing happens without one or more causes. Problems with cockroaches is not that different from problems due to ailments or getting injured. They have the causes in past kamma, and some of them (like getting cancer) are hard to avoid.

– On the other hand, even if CAUSES are there, for something to happen, suitable CONDITIONS must be there too. Therefore, by understanding these causes (past kamma), and by not making the suitable conditions for them to bring their vipaka, one can avoid/get rid of some of these problems.
– For example, if one keeps the house not clean, that makes the environment suitable for insects to thrive. Just think about leaving the dishes unwashed in a sink for a couple of days. Things will start to grow, and you may even notice insects/flies starting to breed.
– The importance of suitable conditions to bring kamma vipaka is discussed at, “Annantara and Samanantara Paccaya“.

3. Sometimes, if the situation has really gotten worse, one may need to take drastic one-time action to remove those bad conditions, because leaving them “as is” could lead to even more bad consequences. In this case, it could lead to bad health effects for the people who live in the house. Each person to needs to weigh out the consequences of possible actions and make decisions on how to handle the particular situation.

– Once our Gotama Buddha, when he was a Bodhisattva, was a captain of a ship. While in the middle of the ocean, one crew member persuaded half of the crew to kill the captain and his half of the crew and to take over the ship. The Bodhisattva came to know about the plot. He thought through the consequences and killed the rebel leader. The rebellion stopped and the journey was completed without anymore incidents. If he had not done that many more lives would have been lost. Of course, the Bodhisattva accrued a strong bad kamma vipaka for the killing. But the alternative could have been for many more people to lose their lives.

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