Seeing in Eternal Return: Hermeneutical Perspectives on Karma and Rebirth
Journal Title: Religions - Year 2017, Vol 8, Issue 11
Abstract
This article is a reflection on a conception of death, that of karma and rebirth, and its value in interpreting one’s life. I have thought about this conception in two ways. The first is that I can see the circumstances of my life as the result of causes of which I was the agent, and the second is that I can see my life and the relationships in my life as part of a much larger narrative that began before this life. Through an examination of Vaishnava and Advaita theology, Nyaya philosophy, and some ¯ Puranic and Epic texts, I argue for an interpretation of karma and rebirth as a rational system that allows one to see relationships as involving many layers of complexity.
Authors and Affiliations
Jonathan Edelmann
Keywords
Related Articles
- EP ID EP25842
- DOI https://doi.org/10.3390/rel8110250
- Views 294
- Downloads 10
Religionization of Public Space: Symbolic Struggles and Beyond—The Case of Ex-Yugoslav Societies
The relationship between religious communities and states in the former Yugoslavia is burdened with socialist heritage, but also with conflicts that ensued after the downfall of the socialist regimes. Although the majo...
The Friends’ Ambulance Unit in the First World War
The Friends’ Ambulance Unit (FAU) was created shortly after the outbreak of the First World War. It was an attempt to provide young Friends (Quakers) with the opportunity to serve their country without sacrificing thei...
The Relationship between Daoist Rituals and Theatrical Performance: The Case of Xianggong Tapeng in Puxian Theater
Daoism is a traditional Chinese religion. Daoism has had a deep and pervasive impact on the lives of China’s peoples. Chinese theatrical performances were often integrated with religious activities, thereby gradually g...
Art, Trent, and Michelangelo’s “Last Judgment”
Michelangelo’s ―Last Judgment‖ in the Sistine Chapel is one of the world’s most famous paintings, completed in 1542. Greatly admired, it was also criticized for the frontal nudity of some of the figures. Twenty-two yea...
“Nothing Sacred”: Violence, Time and Meaning in the Cinema of Possibilities
Hemingway’s disenchantment with the idea of the sacred as expressed in A Farewell to Arms became a defining aspect of the modern experience including in some Hollywood films such as Nothing Sacred and Twentieth Century...