Reincarnation verses Rebirth

The concept of reincarnation is sometimes confused with the notion of rebirth even thought the two are different. In fact if you search the web you will usually find that the two are considered to be the same thing.
But there is a difference.

Reincarnation is the transmigration of the soul, or self, from one body to another.
Rebirth is the forming of a new self that has been influenced by a different self in the past.
So to able to reincarnate in a new body there must be a continuation of the self, or essential nature, of the individual.
In popular Hinduism this essential nature or self is called the Atman. The Atman does not change from one incarnation to the next.

Now this can get complicated but I’ll try to keep it simple.
The Atman in some schools of Hinduism is separate from the ultimate reality, which is Brahmin.
In some schools the Atman is part of Brahmin, but not identical.
And some schools claim that the Atman and Brahmin are identical once the veil of ignorance, sometimes called samsara, is lifted.

However Hinduism derived from the Vedas and the oldest school or thought that derived from the Vedas is Vedanta. The oldest extant form of Vedanta is Advaita or nondual Vedanta.
In non dual Vedanta there is only one reality and as such there can be no individual Atman and Brahmin, and thus no true self. As there is no self, there is nothing to reincarnate.
So in some forms of Hinduism there is no reincarnation.
Buddhism agrees with the Advaita School on this point.

In Buddhism the self is not real, it has no distinct existence but instead is formed from the interaction of matter, sensations experienced by the body, the interpretation of sensory input, the mental actions triggered by the sensory input, and the consciousness of the previous occurrences. These are called the Five Aggregates, and they are all interdependent, they rely on each other.
The self is an illusion or construct of the Five Aggregates.
Now as there is no self, there is nothing to reincarnate.
The self is merely an interaction of energy.

But as everything, including matter, is energy, and as various forms of energy interact with one another, and as energy can neither be created nor destroyed, it will always persist.
As the self is itself an interaction of energy, at the time of death the part of the energy field that consisted of matter is transformed by bodily decay thus breaking the chain of the Five Aggregates and the self is destroyed.

But the energy field persists in an altered form as energy cannot be destroyed.
It must be remembered that everything is energy and the self, consisting of the Five Aggregates is only one part of the total energy field of the universe.
It exists within or as part of all the energy in existence.
And as all forms of energy interact with each other, each “individual” energy field, known as an individual being or self, always interacts with the total field.
Upon death this interaction does not end, but continues in an altered form, without the individual self.
As it continues it interacts with the greater field and when the first of the Five Aggregates in the form of a body, or matter, again arises, a new self also arises as the Five Aggregates are again interacting.
As the new self has been influenced by the total energy field, and in particular the altered energy field of a previous conglomerate of the five Aggregates, it is imprinted with that energy pattern.
There is no continuous self that has reincarnated, but a new self is reborn influenced by a previous energy pattern.

An analogy might be that of a pool of water, which represents all of reality or the total energy field.
As the energy within that pool interacts, individual whirlpools, or selves, come into existence. Each whirlpool seems to be independent, but they all influence each other as they twirl and spin, as they are all disturbing the entire pool of water.

Eventually one may stop whirling. It ceases to exist and a new whirlpool may form. But the energy from the deceased whirlpool will affect the formation of the new, or reborn whirlpool. The former whirlpool had a certain direction of rotation, speed, depth, diameter and so on. All of which is present in the large pool of water and will have an affect on any new, or reborn whirlpool’s development.

Even thought the two whirlpools are in fact different and seemingly independent, the new reborn whirlpool has been affected by the previous dying whirlpool.

In contrast to reincarnation, the same whirlpool, or self, has not continued in a new form, or body.
A new whirlpool, or self, has been reborn in a new form, or body, but it is not the same whirlpool, it is a new one that has been influenced by the previous one.

 

The question was asked,"How did I reach this understanding of Reincarnation v Rebirth, and what books I had read to help me".
I have provided a bibliography, as asked, of most of the books that led me to this conclusion.
I can't really point to one book or books..
Hope this helps.


Ajaan Maha Boowa Nanasampanno, (2004) Venerable Ācariya Mun Bhuridatta Thera: A Spiritual Biography.
Arguelles, Jose and Miriam, (1972) Mandala. Shambhala Press, Berkeley and London

Burtt, E. A., (1955) The Teachings of the Compassionate Buddha, Early Discourses the Dhammapada and Later Basic Writings. New American Library, New York and Scarborough, Ontario

Chang, Garma C. C., (1959) The Practice of Zen. Harper& Row, New York
Chatterji, J.C., (1980) The Wisdom of the Vedas. Quest Books, Ill
Cleary, Thomas, (1989) Zen Lessons, The Art of Leadership. Barnes and Noble with Shambala Press.
Conze, Edward, (1951) Buddhism: It’s Essence and Development. Harper & Row, New York

Dalai Lama, H. H. the, (1975) The Buddhism of Tibet. Snow Lion Publications, New York
Dalai Lama, H. H. the, (1997) Sleeping, Dreaming, Dying, An Exploration of Consciousness with the Dalai Lama. Wisdom Publications, Boston, MA
Dalai Lama, H. H. the, (1999) Ethics for the New Millennium. Riverhead Books, NY
Dalai Lama, H. H. the, (2003) Destructive Emotions, A Scientific Dialogue with the Dalai Lama. Narrated by Daniel Goleman. Bantam Books.
Dalai Lama, H. H. the, (2004) The Wisdom of Forgiveness. Riverhead Books, NY
Das, Lama Surya, (1992) The Snow Lion’s Turquoise Mane. Harper, San Franciso Das, Lama Surya, (2001) Awakening the Buddhist Heart. Broadway Books, New York
Das, Ram, (1971) Remember, Be Here Now. Crown Publishing, NY
Das, Ram, (1976) Grist for the Mill. Unity Press, Santa Cruz
Das, Ram, (1978) Journey of Awakening. Bantam Books, NY
Dhiegh, Khigh Alx, (1973) The Eleventh Wing, an Exposition of the Dynamics of the I Ching for Now Dell, NY

Eisen, William, (1989) The Universal Language of Cabalah. DeVorss, Ca
Evans-Wentz, W.Y., (1960) The Tibetan Book of the Dead. Oxford University Press, London

Fields, Rick, (1975) Loka, A Journal from Naropa Institute. Anchor Books, Garden City, New York
Feng, Gia-Fu Feng and Kirk, Jerome, (1970) Tai Chi A Way of Centering & I Ching. Collier Books, NY
Feng, Gia-Fu Feng and English, Jane, (1972) Tao Te Ching. Vintage Books, NY

Feng, Gia-Fu Feng and English, Jane, (1974) Chuang Tsu, Inner chapters. Vintage Books, NY
Franck, Fredrick, (1973) The Zen of Seeing. Vintage Books, New York

Gard, Richard A., (1962) Buddhism. George Braziller, NY
Gehlek, Rimpoche Nawang, (2001) Good Life, Good Death, Tibetan Wisdom on Reincarnation. Penguin Publishing Inc., New York
Gimian, Carolyn Rose, (1999) The Essential Chogyam Trungpa. Shambhala Press, Boston and London
Goddard, Dwight, (1938) A Buddhist Bible. Beacon Press, Boston, MA
Goleman, Daniel, (2003) Destructive Emotions, A Scientific Dialogue with the Dalai Lama. Bantam Books, New York
Grigg, Roy, (1994) The Tao of Zen. Alva Press, Boston.

Hanh, Thich Nhat, (1974) Zen Keys. Garden City, Anchor Books, New York
Hanh, Thich Nhat, (1991) Old Path White Clouds, Walking in the Footsteps of the Buddha. Parallax Press, Berkeley, CA:
Hanh, Thich Nhat, (1998) The Heart of the Buddha’s Teaching. Broadway Books, New York
Hanh, Thich Nhat, (2002) No Death no Fear. Riverhead Books, NY
Hanh, Thich Nhat, (2006) Understanding Our Mind. Parallax Press, Berkeley, CA
Harrer, Heinrich, (1953) Seven Years in Tibet. Penguin Putnam Inc., New York
Herrigel, Eugen, (1953) Zen in the Art of Archery. Vintage Books, New York
Herrigel, Eugen, (1960) The Method of Zen. Vintage Books, New York
Hesse, Hermann, (1957) Siddhartha. Bantam Books, NY
Hoffmann, Yoel, (1975) The Sound of the One Hand, 281 Zen Koans with Answers. Basic Books, New York
Huxley, Aldous, (1944) The Perennial Philosophy, Harper and Row, NY
Huxley, Aldous, (1955) The Doors of Perception and Heaven and Hell, Harper Perennial, NY

Ikeda, Daisaku, (2001) For the Sake of Peace, Seven Paths to Global Harmony, A Buddhist Perspective. Midway Press, Santa Monica, CA

Jaxon-Bear, Eli, 2004) Sudden Awakening, New World Library, CA
Johari, Harish, (1975) Leela, The Game of Self Knowledge, Coward, McCann, and Geoghegan, Inc., NY

Kalupahana, David J., (1992) A History of Buddhist Philosophy, Continuities and Discontinuities. University of Honolulu Press, Honolulu
Kapleau, Roshi Philip, (1979) Zen Dawn in the West. Anchor Press, Garden City, New York:
Kapleau, Roshi Philip, (1997) Awakening to Zen. Garden City, Scribner, New York, NY
Khan, Pir Vilayat Inayat, (1974) Toward the One, Harper, NY
Komito, David Ross, (1987) Nagarjuna’s “Seventy Stanzas”. Snow Lion Publications, New York, NY:

Lama Surya Das, (1992) The Snow Lion's Turquoise Mane, Wisdom Tales from Tibet. Harper Collins, New York, NY
Legge, James, (1962) The Texts of Taoism, The T’ai Shang Tractate, the Writings of Chuang Tzu, Dover, NY
Legge, James, (1964) I Ching, Book of Changes, Edited by Ch’u Chai, Bantam Books, NY
Levy, John, (2004) The Nature of Man According to the Vedanta. Sentient Publications,

Mair, Victor, (1990) Tao Te Ching. Bantam books, NY
Maitreya, Ananda, (1995) The Dhammapada. Parallax Press, Berkeley CA
Miller, Barbara Stoller, (1986) The Bagavad-Gita. Bantam Books, NY
Mitchell, Stephen, (1998) Tao Te Ching. Harper and Row, NY

Pirsig, Robert M. (1974) Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance, An inquiry into Values. William Morrow, NY
Pirsig, Robert M. (1991) Lila, An inquiry into Morals. Bantam books, NY
Powers, John, (1995) Introduction to Tibetan Buddhism. Snow Lion Publicans, Ithica, NY

Reps, Paul, (1930) Zen Flesh, Zen Bones; A Collection of Zen and Pre-Zen Writings. Anchor Books, Garden City, New York:
Reynolds, Brad, (2004) Embracing Reality. Penguin
Ricard, Matthieu and Trinh Xuan Thuan, (2001) The Quantum and the Lotus. Three Rivers Press, New York, NY:
Roshi, Philip Kapleau, (1997) Awakening to Zen, The Teachings of Roshi Philip Kapleau. Scribner, New York:

Smith, Huston, (1991) The World’s Religions, Harper Collins, NY
Sogyal Rinpoche, (1991) The Tibetan Book of Living and Dying, Harper, San Franciso
Spiegelman, J. Marvin, Ph.D. and Miyuki, Mokusen, Ph.D., (1985) Buddhism and Jungian Psychology. Falcon Press, Phoenix, AZ
Sùra, Arya, Once the Buddha Was a Monkey: Arya Sura's "Jatakamala". Translated by Peter Khoroche
Suzuki, D. T., (1956) Zen Buddhism, Selected Writings of D.T. Suzuki. Doubleday Anchor, Garden City, NY
Suzuki, D. T., (1960) Manual of Zen Buddhism. Random House, Inc., New York
Suzuki, D. T., (1964) An Introduction to Zen Buddhism. Grove Press, New York
Suzuki, D. T., (1969) The Field of Zen Buddhism, Selected Writings of D.T. Suzuki. Doubleday Anchor, Garden City, NY
Suzuki, D. T., (1971) What is Zen? Harper & Row, New York
Swami Prabhavananda and Isherwood, Christopher, (1944) The Song of God, Bhagavad-Gita, Mentor, NY

Tzu, Lao, Tao The Ching. (1990) Edited by John C.H. Wu, Shambala Press, Boston and London
Taitetsu Unno, (1998) River of Fire, River of Water.
Thurman, Robert, (1995) Essential Tibetan Buddhism. Harper Books, San Francisco.
Thurman, Robert, (1998) Inner Revolution. Riverhead Books, New York
Torwesten, Hans, (1985) Vedanta, the Heart of Hinduism. Grove Press, NY
Tsering, Diki, (2000) Dalai Lama, My Son. Penguin Publishing Inc., New York

Waite, Dennis, (2003) The Book of One, The Spiritual Path of Advaita. John Hunt, Winchester, UK
Waley, Arthur, Three Ways of Thought in Ancient China. (1939) Double Day, New York.
Watts, Alan W., (1957) The Way of Zen. Vintage Books, New York
Watts, Alan W., (1958) The Spirit of Zen; A Way of Life, Work, and Art in the Far East. Grove Press, New York:
Watts, Alan W., (1961) Psychotherapy East & West. Ballantine Books, New York
Watts, Alan W., (1966) The Book on the Taboo Against Knowing Who You Are. Collier Books, New York, New York
Watts, Alan W., (1974) Meditation, How to Do It. Pyramid Books, New York
Watts, Alan W., (1974) The Essence of Alan Watts. Celestial Arts, Mill Brae, CA
Watts, Alan W., (1978) Uncarved Block, Unbleached Silk. A & W Publishers, NY
Watts, Alan W., (1979) Zen and the Beat Way. Charles E. Tuttle, Boston.
Watts, Alan W., (1980) Om, Creative Meditations. Celestial Arts, Mill Brae, CA
Watts, Alan W., (1982) Play to Live. South Bend, Indiana
Watts, Alan W., (1994) Talking Zen. Weather Hill. New York, Tokyo
Walters, Derek, (1983) The Hsuan Ching, The Aquarian Press, Wellingbourgh, Northhamptonshire
White, John, (1974) What is Meditation? Vintage Books, Garden City, New York
Wilhelm, Hellmut, (1973) Eight Lectures on the I Ching. Harper, NY
Wilhelm, Richard (1931) The Secret of the Golden Flower. Harvest, NY
Wilber, Ken, (1979) No Boundry. Shambala Press, Boston, Massachusetts.
Wilber, Ken, (1980) The Atman Project. Quest Books, New York
Wilber, Ken, (1981) Up From Eden. Quest Books, New York
Wilber, Ken, (1996) A Brief History of Everything. Shambala Press, Boston, Massachusetts.
Wilber, Ken, (1997) The Eye of the Spirit. Shambala Press, Boston, Massachusetts.
Wilber, Ken, (2000) A Theory of Everything. Shambala Press, Boston, Massachusetts.
Wilber, Ken, (2002) Boomeritis. Shambala Press, Boston, Massachusetts.
Wilber, Ken, (2004) The Simple Feeling of Being: Embracing Your True Nature. Shambala Press, Boston, Massachusetts.
Wilber, Ken, (2006) Integral Spirituality. Integral Books, Boston, Massachusetts.

 

I included all of those books as an understanding of Buddhism, Taoism, Vedanta, etc. can't be accomplished unless you understand all of Buddhism, etc. Unless you want to get into sudden enlightenment, and even then you still need to understand the totality of what Buddhism, et al is saying and how it is expressed.
I agree that the Eastern philosophies are full of contradictions, until you understand the nature of the contradictions.

I really don't remember where I got specific aspects of my idea of samsara, that's why I included all those books, as I said.
If you search the internet you get different ideas and explanations, most of them quite basic. You have to look beyond the common.

Here's the into definition of Samara from Wikipedia:

Now I stated that samsara, or the world as we see it, is an illusion.
Let me explain.
In the Lankavatara Scripture "all the objects of the world, and the names and forms of experience, are manifestations of the mind ~ Nguyen Dac Sy"
Buddhism describes how we view the world and why what we think we see is an illusion, and it does this in many ways. One way is by describing how our sensory apparatus works. The most common example is the eye and I'll use a simple explanation.
When viewing an object we see the light that is reflected from that object. But we don't see the object as it is in reality due to several factors including our limited ability to only experience a small range of the radiation bouncing off the object.
But also as the light takes time to reach our eyes, register on our eye apparatus, and then be transmitted to the brain; the object has already changed. We never see any object in real time.
Further, as our brain translated the incoming data into a thought, the data is understood based on past experiences, present emotions, hormonal levels, etc. We never get a pure stream of unadulterated data.
The object we see, is a construct, or an imitation of the real object. We never experience it directly.
The object we see is an illusion, not the real thing. As a result we think what we experience is real and hasn't already changed and we become "ordinary beings' grasping and fixating on a self and experiences."

That is samsara.

Here's an explanation that's not bad: Samsara, Karma & How To Escape

 

What is reborn is the illusion of a self. Every creature that is born thinks of itself as a separate being. That is what is reborn, not a physical being (although a body is present), but a concept of a self.
Buddhism rejects the notion that we are separate beings as the self is an illusion, without the self there can't be separate beings.
We all share the illusion of being separate because we are all the same.

 

What he is saying is that space does not exist on its own and objects do not exist on their own. In philosophical absolutism, space is an independently existing thing.

This doesn't mean that objects and space don't exist, they do, but they are dependent on each other. You can't have an object without space around it, and you can't have space without an object within it.
When trapped in the veil of samsara we believe that objects exist by themselves, as independent things. Let me be clear, objects do exist, I can kick a rock, but the rock only exists in relation to everything else. The definiton of a rock depends on the definition of the rest of the world. A rock is only hard in relation to the structure of my foot when I kick it. To a diamond it is soft.

If you wonder what the Buddha thought, if he really existed, read translations of some of the Sutras such as the Diamond, and Lankavatara.

I don't think I'm reinterpreting anything, just trying to understand the basic concepts.

 

I'm a little confused as to which parts of your post are quotes and which are your thoughts. But anyway, Molecules. Molecules form by chemical bonds.
Bad karma. Yes how does it work?
Non A non B. Yes confusing.