… This is why the Buddha said that even though he couldn’t prove to
people that there were other levels of being, it would be for their
own benefit to take that on as a working hypothesis. He didn’t use the
word working hypothesis, but he said basically have conviction in
this principle. Give it a try, realizing that if you believe in …
… Although it’s possible to gain some benefit from the Buddha’s teachings without accepting what he said about rebirth, if we want to get the most out of his teachings, we owe it to ourselves to give his statements on rebirth a fair hearing. Because rebirth is such an important working hypothesis in following the path all the way to the end of …
… Because “contemplatives and brahmans”—in the context of this passage—are those who have successfully followed the path to awakening, and because anyone is potentially capable of doing the same, this statement of conviction functions as a working hypothesis. You take these matters on faith until you can confirm them for yourself.
One reason the Buddha recommended conviction in rebirth as a useful working …
… When the Buddha teaches right view, in the very beginning we have to
take it on trust, as a working hypothesis. Not only the teachings on
karma and rebirth, but also the teachings on the four noble truths. We
don’t know for sure that they’re going to take us to awakening or to a
safe place, but they make sense.
You have …
… Faith in the Buddha’s Awakening, in this view, means simply believing that he found what worked for himself, which carries no implications for what will work for you. If you find the teaching on karma and rebirth comforting, fine: Believe it. If not, don’t. What’s important is that you relate to your faith in a way that’s emotionally healing, nourishing …
… So even
though you don’t know that there’s rebirth and you don’t know that
karma’s going to affect rebirth, it’s wise to take that on as a
working hypothesis.
You can’t just say, “Well, I don’t know” and leave it at that, because
every time you act, you’re making a calculation: “Is the effort that
goes …
… As for the
factors of the path, they’re skillful karma. And skillful karma exists
on two levels: a skillful karma that keeps you going around in the
cycle of rebirth, but in a pleasant way; and then the very skillful
karma that takes you out of the cycle—the whole point being that the
really important thing in your life is what you …
… karma, present karma: In the beginning it all seems mixed up in a
big jumble. But as you stick with this thread of making up your mind
to stay with one thing and carry it through, then you can pull out
other threads as well, until the whole mass gets untangled.
So use the teaching for its proper purpose. It’s a working hypothesis …
… Obviously, these principles build on the working hypothesis of kamma and rebirth—a hypothesis that, we’re told, is no longer viable in our modern/postmodern times. But none of us have to be prisoners of our times. After all, what vision of life does the modern/postmodern view offer? Fish fighting one another for the last gulp of water in a shrinking pool …
… That, he says, is a good pragmatic reason for at least taking on
rebirth and the teachings on karma as working hypotheses. He’s not
asking you to swear up and down that Yes, you believe this 100%,
because he knows you can’t believe it 100% until you’ve had proof
inside. And the proof comes only with the first glimpse of awakening …
… It’s a way of
looking at things that you’re going to take on as a working
hypothesis. But you remind yourself, if you have that hypothesis and
follow through with it, you’re more likely to act skillfully—to act in
a way where you can’t really criticize yourself because you’re acting
not to harm anybody. That’s a good …
… Kamma works 24/7, so it’s good to take it as a working hypothesis 24/7.
33. But kamma and rebirth focus on past and future. Doesn’t the Dhamma teach us to focus totally on simply being mindful—i.e., fully present—in the present moment?
The Buddha talks about the importance of focusing on the present moment only in the context …
… working hypothesis that this is going to be a good path to follow. As
the Buddha said, it’s admirable in the beginning, admirable in the
middle, admirable in the end. But the best is saved for last.
In the beginning, you’re making a gamble. You don’t know if the
Buddha’s right or wrong about things like rebirth or karma. But …
… So the teachings on karma and rebirth help give you a long view. The
Buddha never tried to prove that these things were true, but he said
that they’re a really good working hypothesis. And they are
therapeutic. If you learn how to use his teachings well, they’re all
therapeutic. There are a lot of unskillful ways of using the teaching,
but …
… And he said that
the teaching on rebirth is a very skillful working hypothesis to help
you understand what you’re doing, why you’re doing it, and also help
with the narratives of your life.
He said he couldn’t prove rebirth, but it is true. He said that you’ll
find that as you progress in the practice, you will reach a …
… Still, you take it as a working hypothesis. Because you see that if
you do, you’re more likely to act in skillful ways. If you don’t,
you’re more likely to act in unskillful ways. If your actions don’t
matter, why bother being careful about them? So that’s the basic
premise—that your actions matter, that you’re making the …
… It gives you a working hypothesis for the practice.
Because instead of asking you to believe something irrational or
illogical, the Buddha is simply telling you there are these principles
that can’t be proven until you’ve actually applied them and put them
to the empirical test. If you follow these things, if you hold by them
as working hypotheses, you’ll find …
… The Buddha’s upfront about the fact this is going to require work on
your part. Some of his teachings he says he can’t prove to you, aside
from giving a pragmatic proof: that if you take his teachings, say, on
karma and rebirth as working hypotheses, you’re going to put better
things into the system, because you realize that your actions …
… But in the meantime, you’ve got to take them on as the
working hypotheses that the Buddha recommends.
But are they good hypotheses? You can test them by what’s called a
pragmatic proof: “If I were to assume rebirth, and assume the
importance of karma, and assume the importance of my mental actions in
particular, what kind of person would I become …
… And
you’ve got to take on all the working hypotheses that help to see if
they really do work.
We were talking today about rebirth. The Buddha didn’t say that he
could prove it to anybody. But he did say many, many times that if you
take the teaching on rebirth together with karma as a hypothesis,
you’re going to be …
1 : Questioning Assumptions | The Truth of Rebirth
… Although it’s possible to gain some benefit from the Buddha’s teachings without accepting what he said about rebirth, if we want to get the most out of his teachings, we owe it to ourselves to give his statements on rebirth a fair hearing. Because rebirth is such an important working hypothesis in following the path all the way to the end of …
