What is rebirth?
It is the anew arising of what has ceased before. The basis of rebirth is identity, i.e. that which arises is that which has ceased before.
How can rebirth be
validly known?
It can be validly known through having directly perceived a thing before its cessation and through directly perceiving its anew arising. Thus one can validly know 'This has existed before it ceased and now it has arisen again.' based on direct perception.
Can a living being be reborn?
A living being cannot be reborn. Why? Because although a living being can be directly perceived before it ceases to live a living being that is newly born cannot be traced back to a living being that has ceased to live before through direct perception. There is no directly perceptible sign of a living being that would
necessarily indicate that it had existed before it was born.
What can be inferred?
The word 'rebirth' that occurs in authentic buddhist texts in the context of the birth of living beings is a metaphor because there is no directly perceptible basis for its non-metaphorical use.
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