Six Realms

          I have always been quite fascinated with what are called the 6 realms in Buddhism: the heavenly, asuras, human, animals, pretas (ghosts) and hell beings. Part of me resonates with the notion of a hierarchical structure, very much similar to the heavenly and hell realms in Christian philosophy. It makes me realize how much choice there is in terms of what kinds of states of mind people can cultivate.

                On the other hand, I often do wonder: what does it mean to look at life in this way? Some people might interpret the six realms of existence to mean that some realms are more favorable than others. Certainly, having a rebirth in heaven would seem more favorable than an animal or ghost realm. But, the problem is that this mentality in itself creates a certain kind of suffering. I am tempted to say that the suffering relates in some ways to the fear that people have of ‘falling down’ on a ladder, or being in a less favorable condition than they are in now. Somehow, contemplating the six realms reminds me of a game we used to play as children in Kindergarten called Snakes and Ladders. The idea behind this game was trying to traverse a board and land on special spaces where a person can advance up a ladder or conversely, slide down one. The sense of exhilaration hat this game elicits is quite fascinating. It makes me wonder, aren’t all hierarchical visions of the universe somehow fear-driven? For example, if I contemplate that the universe is based on inescapable laws of cause and effect, I might start to fear my death, and wonder which realm I am going to land in. It can be a healthy and motivating fear, yes, but if it is all-consuming, I think it might give rise to a very anxious thought indeed. Nobody really knows, in the end, where they are going after they die. And even given the right kinds of instructions, there may be no way to know if a person can really and truly influence their future existence or life.

                A different way to approach the six realms, I believe, would be to take it as an opportunity to practice compassion for all beings. Instead of fearing which realm I am going to be in, it might be helpful to consider, from a Buddhist perspective, how often sentient beings cycle through these realms, since beginningless time. It’s not that one being is more virtuous and therefore spends less time in suffering than another. For example, even those who are in a heavenly realm will eventually exhaust their karma over time. In this way, all beings go through the same struggles in wanting to gain protection from bad karma and wanting to avoid suffering. If a person realizes this, they will naturally feel compassion for all beings on the wheel, rather than struggle over whether or not they will have a more favorable rebirth. This is because even if someone happens to receive a favorable rebirth from past merits, they are still  on a wheel of suffering that never stops spinning. But if I truly realize this for myself, then the wheel can stop spinning for me, because I am no longer caught in the desire to be on the ‘favorable’ side of it. I have truly accepted the fact that the wheel of life is a suffering one, and I must transcend it through a compassionate understanding and embrace of the true meaning of suffering.