Trungpa — Every Moment You Die and You Are Born Again

Life continues, or the consciousness continues.

I’m not referring here to actual reincarnation,

physical birth and death.

That’s actually a very crude example of rebirth.

Rebirth occurs in every moment.

Every moment you die and you are born again.

This birth and death takes place all the time

on and on and on.

So as long as there’s consciousness,

which dies and gives birth to the next moment,

then that is continual reincarnation,

continual rebirth.

The next moment depends on one’s state of consciousness in this moment;

then you give birth to a similar next moment as well.

The next moment depends on whether this moment of consciousness

has a negative quality or a positive quality.

That quality continues as you give birth to the next moment.

The minutes and seconds of the hour continue

as minutes and seconds in the night as well as during the day.

You may not remember your past life.

There’s nothing to prove or disprove it, particularly.

However, you can’t stop your consciousness;

you can’t kill your consciousness

or stop the consciousness of this moment.

This exists continuously.

Chögyam Trungpa

Work, Sex, Money: Real Life on the Path of Mindfulness