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Dear Lal,
I have a question related to sakkāya diṭṭhi and the concept of rebirth. If I have clearly understood and accepted that the five aggregates (pañcakkhandha) are not “mine” and that there is no unchanging self (attā), then why should I be concerned about what happens in a future rebirth?
For example, if after death, there is no “me” continuing into a next existence — but instead, a new stream of viññāṇa arises with different identity, conditions, and form (say, a “John” or a dog) — then what connection do I have with that future being? Why should I care?
I understand that future bhava arises due to avijjā, taṇhā, and saṅkhāra, but if I have let go of sakkāya diṭṭhi and see these five aggregates as not-self, then what’s the motivation for being concerned about any arising in the future?
Would really appreciate your insight to clarify this apparent contradiction.
With much gratitude,
— buddhas_desciple
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1. Do you care about suffering?
- The Bodhisatta strived to find and stop the root causes of suffering. He did not investigate whether a “self” or “me” exists in reality.
- His investigations led to attaining Buddhahood. That is when he discovered the actual reality of existence, i.e., the fact that there is no “me” in ultimate reality is a byproduct of solving the root causes of suffering.
- The Buddha emphasized that he teaches the following: “In the past, as today, what I describe is suffering and the cessation of suffering.” See “Alagaddūpama Sutta (MN 22).”
- Similar statements are in several suttās. See, for example, “Titthāyatana Sutta (AN 3.61).”
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2. There is another critical point.
- One should not focus on whether a “self” or “me” exists in ultimate reality (especially at the beginning).
- Focusing on that can lead to stress and even mental issues. We have discussed one such case recently in this forum.
- Only at or above the Anāgāmi stage will one realize the truth of that ultimate reality.
3. This is why I stated the sequence of handling diṭṭhi, taṇhā, and māna (issue of a “me”) in that order. To quote from yesterday’s post, “Etaṁ mama, esohamasmi, eso me attā’ti – Connection to Taṇhā, Māna, Diṭṭhi“:
“14. Thus, attachment to sensory inputs occurs with taṇhā, māna, and diṭṭhi.
- The latter (diṭṭhi) is specifically sakkāya diṭṭhi. One first removes sakkāya diṭṭhi (and the associated vicikicchā and silabbata parāmāsa) at the Sotapanna stage.
- Taṇhā manifests as kāma rāga, rupa rāga, and arupa rāga. Kāma rāga (tendency to attach to sensual pleasures and associated paṭigha) is removed at the Anāgāmi stage. Rupa rāga (craving jhānic pleasures) and arupa rāga (craving arupa samāpatti pleasures) are removed at the Arahant stage.
- Removal of kāma rāga and paṭigha stops rebirths in kāma loka. Removal of rupa rāga and arupa rāga also stops rebirths in rupa and arupa loka, respectively; those “jhānic/samāpatti pleasures” are also mind-made.
- Finally, māna (sense of “me”) is also removed at the Arahant stage.“
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I have updated the post “Etaṁ mama, esohamasmi, eso me attā’ti – Connection to Taṇhā, Māna, Diṭṭhi“ to discuss the above.
- I think it is a valid point to discuss. Thank you for bringing it up.
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No “me” doesn’t mean “nothing”. The cittas that flow in the seat of mind are real and existing, and the conditions that shape the associated cetasikas characterize the dynamic sensory experience. I’ve found the fire analogy to be quite helpful – as long as you have oxygen, fuel, and necessary temperature, it will continue to burn. But zoom in and there is no “fire” to be found. It is a result of causes coming together to bring in their effect which will stop manifesting as soon as any of the necessary causes are removed. The illusory perception of “me” is a default flaw that has always existed but understanding how causes and conditions shape mental phenomena is a lot more beneficial. Much of our sensory experiences are out of our control, but they are also not arbitrary.
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Yes, if you mean that the flow of life is real and will be there as long as the fuel (raga, dosa, moha) to feed it is there.
- An Arahant lives until the end of the physical body that he/she was born with. That physical body was born before attaining Arahanthood and will survive until the kammic energy it came with is exhausted. Once the physical body dies, all fuel is exhausted, and the lifestream of the Arahant ends—no more rebirths in any of the 31 realms in this world.
- On the other hand, a puthujjana (average human) — or even a Noble Person below the Arahant stage — would have more fuel to sustain another life at the death of the physical body. But a Sotapanna would not have fuel to initiate a rebirth in an apaya; an Anagami would not have fuel to initiate a rebirth in the kama loka.
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You will experience suffering as you, but not as your actual “me”.
You got the wrong idea about “no self” because Buddha did not teach that. Whatever this “self” or “no self” exists is not the problem, but ignorance. When ignorance is dispelled, the problem with “self” does not appear – it does not mean there is “no self”.
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“If after death, there is no “me” continuing into a next existence – but instead, a new stream of vinnana arises with different identity, conditions, and form (say, a “John or a dog) – then what connection do I have with that future being? Why should I care? Why should I be concerned about what happens in a future rebirth?”
Some years back I had the exact same question but never ended up asking anyone for an answer because before needing to a satisfactory answer came to mind, for myself anyways. Coming across the question again now, I would like to share what came across my mind for the very same question that I once had and hope it can be of use / assistance to others on their path.
My understanding is that initially one should put some care / concern in regards to what happens in a future rebirth because it helps one to gain a better understanding of the Buddha teachings such as the rebirth process or samsara that all living beings are trapped in. But later on when one gains a better / deeper understanding of sakkaya ditthi and the fundamental teachings of the Buddha / dhamma. Hopefully the wisdom gained / cultivated during the learning and practicing process of the teachings will help the learner / practitioner to have seen / understood some degree of the main message / teaching that the Buddha is trying to get across to us sattas. If the characteristics of our world or all conditioned phenomenon is anicca, dukkha, anatta. Through the eyes of wisdom regardless if there’s a me / self / I and so on or not, the practitioner would want to put an end to / cease the rebirth process / samsara because that’s the wise thing to do / carry out and that’s all it really matters in the end.
So for myself, it no longer really matters if there’s a self / I / me or not or be concerned what happens in a future rebirth, it’s beyond my control anyways. What I can do though is to continue to put forth the effort in learning and practicing the Buddha teachings. “To some degree”, understanding and seeing that this conditioned world or any conditioned phenomenon is meaningless, unfruitful, none beneficial, anicca, dukkha, anatta and if I have gained / cultivated any wisdom from all these years of learning and practicing the Buddha teachings. Regardless if there is a self / I / me or not, in the end the wise thing to do / carry out is to strive for the attainment of nibbana.
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1. Whether or not one believes in a “sense of me,” that “sense of me” is in everyone except for an Arahant.
- It is a “sansāric bond” (specifically “asmi māna” samyojana) that binds all except Arahants to the rebirth process.
- The easiest way to check this is to think about the following: Are you not afraid to die? If someone tries to kill you, would you not panic and try to avoid getting killed using all your resources?
2. In the same way, all ten samyojana (sakkāya diṭṭhi, vicikicchā, silabbata parāmāsa, kāma rāga, paṭigha, rupa rāga, arupa rāga, māna, uddaccha, avijjā) are in an average human (puthujjana).
- See #14 of “Etaṁ mama, esohamasmi, eso me attā’ti – Connection to Taṇhā, Māna, Diṭṭhi“ and my comments on May 25, 2025, above.
- They can be broken only by fully understanding the Buddha’s worldview, i.e., by cultivating paññā. That is a step-by-step process. Getting rid of asmi māna comes at the end. Even thinking about how to remove the “sense of me” is unfathomable even to a Sotapanna. It is like trying to learn calculus without knowing how to add and subtract.
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I found the following account from the Tipitaka of Ven. Adhimutta (an Arahant).
- He was captured by a band of bandits. In those days, some people believed in making sacrifices to the Gods.
- They were taking him to be sacrificed, but were astonished to see that the Thero was not afraid of being killed. Usually, their victims would be screaming and begging for their lives.
- The following account starts with the bandits asking him why he is not scared: “Adhimuttattheragāthā.”
- Thero‘s response is from marker 3.1 through 15.4. He explains to them why he is not afraid of dying (he had broken all ten samyojana, including asmi māna or the “sense of me”); in fact, he is looking forward to Parinibbāna to be free of even a trace of suffering.
- As stated there, in the end, some of the bandits become bhikkhus and attain Arahantship.
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