Question asked by Nitya
Hello pastor
Is it possible that one can meet there biological father or mother or any Other in this life time if they died many years ago or even in this life time? What I mean to say is .. I feel strongly that my father who died in 1973 has come back and he is living now in The USA . I feel he has reincarnated twice since I've known him. I feel his last life was short lived and in this life time he is almost thirty years old.
I guess what I'm getting at is that I wish to say I am a believer in reincarnation but I need to know from a buddhist point of view is what i am experiencing is something real or has happened to another being and is there someone in the celestial realm I can pray to to get some
Clarity and peace of mind.
Thank you
Dear Nitya,
There are many independently verified stories about people, Buddhists and non-Buddhists, who remember their past lives and who have met their biological father or mother from their previous lives. These stories are real and reincarnation or rebirth is a fact. From your description, it is only a feeling that you have, and you have not provided proof that your father has been reborn in the USA. From the Buddhist point of view, every living being has taken rebirth countless times in samsara. Buddhists believe that all sentient beings have been our mothers, fathers, siblings, relatives, friends, enemies, etc. for many, many lifetimes. What you are experiencing may or may not be real and even if you find your biological father from a previous life, he is a completely different person now. People die and they never come back as we know them. Due to karma, your best friend in a past life may be reborn as your enemy in this life and vice versa. To have clarity and peace of mind, we must develop a balanced attitude referred to as “equanimity”. Equanimity is an unbiased attitude, free of feelings of hatred towards our enemies, attachment towards our friends and indifference towards total strangers. In Buddhism, all sentient beings have been our mothers before and they have been kind to us. Because of this, we must repay their kindness. These realisations enable us to develop great compassion towards all beings. Clarity and peace of mind come from the realisation that all beings are equal and deserving of love and kindness. To know more about the Buddhist view of equanimity and how Buddhists generate affectionate love for all living beings, please read the “Lamrim Chenmo”(The Great Treatise on the Stages of the Path to Enlightenment) by Lama Tsongkhapa or Pabongka Rinpoche’s “Liberation in the Palm of Your Hand”.