On Rebirth... a quote from Brihadaaranyaka upanishad..

On Rebirth...
a quote from Brihadaaranyaka upanishad..
तदेष श्लोको भवति। तदेव सक्तः सहकर्मणैति लिङ्गं मनो यत्र निषक्तमस्य।
प्राप्यान्तं कर्मणस्तस्य यत्किञ्चेह करोत्ययं। तस्मात् लोकात् पुनरैत्यस्मै लोकाय कर्मण इति नु कामयमानोऽथाकामयमानो
योऽकामो निष्कामः आप्तकामो आत्मकामो न तस्य प्राणा उत्क्रामन्ति ब्रह्मैव सन् ब्रह्माप्येति
tadeṣa śloko bhavati| tadeva saktaḥ sahakarmaṇaiti liṅgaṁ mano yatra niṣaktamasya| prāpyāntaṁ karmaṇastasya
yatkiñceha karotyayaṁ| tasmāt lokāt punaraityasmai lokaya karmaṇa iti nu kāmayamāno'thākāmayamāno
yo'kāmo niṣkāmaḥ āptakāmo ātmakāmo na tasya prāṇā utkrāmanti brahmaiva san brahmāpyeti
बृहदारन्यकोपनिषत् ९ उप्।ई।३-४--३५
bṛhadāranyakopaniṣat 9 (up|ī|3-4)--35
On the question of rebirth there is a sloka
To whatever object a man's mind is attached, to that goes his inner self with the deed, being attached to it alone.
After exhausting the results of whatever works he had in this world, he comes back from that world to this world for work again.
So much for the man who desires.
But as to the man
who does not desire,
who is without desire,
who is freed from desire,
whose desire is satisfied,
whose desire is for Supreme Self only --
his vital spirit does not depart elsewhere.
Being Brahman he goes to Brahman.
This mantra comes by way of expostulation of the secret of the emancipation from the cycle of births, by Yaajnavalkya to Janaka.
When a man departs from this earth with unfulfilled desires for mundane pleasure, he is led to worlds which are designed to enable him to enjoy or expiate the earthly virtues and sins he has committed in the immediately past chapter of life.
Once the enjoyment or expiation is over, he is born in this earth again to be engaged in Karma (work) the results of which again draws him to the cycle of births and death without stop.
But for a person who has given up all his desires in this world even before death and has become absolutely detached, when he casts off his mortal coils, he is led to the Supreme Self, being part of the Supreme self Himself and he merges with the supreme self.
For him there are no comebacks.
The Supreme soul he is. he remains blissful for ever.
This upanishad vakya finds a shadow in Gita in many occasions..
Yam kim vapi smaran bhavam tyajatyanthe kalebharam....
gita 8-6
Karmanenaiva samsiddhim aasthithah janakaadayah...
कर्मणैव हि संसिद्धिमास्थिता जनकादयः ।
लोकसङ्ग्रहमेवापि सम्पश्यन्कुर्तुमर्हसि ॥ gita 3-20 ३.२० ॥
the idea is spun with a golden thread in gita.
That would require a lot of discussion.
Talking of desire one has to marvel at Yajnavalkya's razor sharp intellect which defines the abandonment of desire so tersely..
man who does not desire,
who is without desire,
who is freed from desire,
whose desire is satisfied, whose desire is for Sureme Self only
(of course by self it is meant here the aatma... jeevatama and paramaatma for those who see them as two or for the advaitin the absolute Supreme soul.
It should not be confused with this mundane body and mind conglomerate,
the gasbag filled with ego, arrogance and self pity)