Passing Away for Rebirth
[The] returning of the body is called “passing away for rebirth” and is much like taking off our old clothes to put on new ones. The mind alone having been taught as ours, we borrow new bodies and return to this world.
The Doctrine of Tenrikyo, p. 55
- What does it mean to pass away for rebirth?
In Tenrikyo, a person’s death is referred to as passing away for rebirth. It is taught as involving the returning of our body, which is a thing borrowed from God the Parent. Also, it is considered a point of departure for rebirth, when we borrow a new body and come back to this world.
- What happens when we pass away for rebirth?
Tenrikyo does not teach that there is an afterlife such as living in the other world, heaven, hell, or paradise. God the Parent lends a body to each soul. It is taught that the soul is everliving and that the soul comes back to this world after borrowing a new body from God the Parent.
- Why are we reborn?
The way we use our mind is carried over by our soul as causalities into our next life. By pondering over our present-life experiences, we can realize the causalities that we developed through the use of our mind in our previous lives. This realization can help us in the present life to use our mind in a way conducive to the Joyous Life so that we can live a better life in our next life. In other words, as we go through births and rebirths, we can draw closer and closer to the Joyous Life, so desired by God the Parent, if we just work with our mind.