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Now we come to the next question. We see a tremendous
variety among the living beings existing in the world. People and animals are of many
different sorts. So we ask what is it that causes rebirth in a particular form? Does it
happen through acccident, by chance, without any reason, or is there some principle behind
it? The answer the Buddha gives to this question is the Pali word 'Kamma'. Kamma is the
factor which determines the specific form of rebirth and it is Kamma again which
determines a good number of the experiences we undergo in the course of our life. The word
Kamma means literally action, deed or doing. But in Buddhism it means volitional action. [ see
Kamma ] |