From Darkness to Light - From Light to Light

And how, Great King, is a person one heading from darkness to light?

Here some person has been reborn in a low family - a family of candalas, bamboo workers, hunters, cartwrights, or waste-collectors - a poor family in which there is little food and drink and which subsists with difficulty, one where food and clothing are obtained with difficulty; and he is ugly, unsightly, deformed, chronically blind or cripple-handed or lame or paralyzed. He is not one who gains food, drink, clothing, and vehicles: garlands, scents, and ointments; bedding, housing and lighting. He engages in wholesome conduct of body, speech, and mind. Having done so, with the breakup of the body, after death, he is reborn in a good destination, in a heavenly world. Suppose, Great King, a man would climb from the ground on to a palanquin, or from a palanquin on to horseback, or from horseback to an elephant mount, or from an elephant mount to a mansion: this person, I say, is exactly similar.

It is in this way, Great King, that a person is one heading from darkness to light.

And how, Great King, is a person one heading from light to light?

Here some person has been reborn in a high family - an affluent Khattiya family, an affluent Brāhmin family, or an affluent householder family - one which is rich, with great wealth and property, with abundant gold and silver, abundant treasures and commodities, with abundant wealth and grain; and he is handsome, attractive, graceful, possessing supreme beauty of complexion. He is one who gains food, drink, clothing, and vehicles; garlands, scents, and ointments; bedding, housing and lighting. He engages in wholesome conduct of body, speech, and mind. Having done so, with the breakup of the body, after death, he is reborn in a good destination, in a heavenly world. Suppose, Great King, a man would cross over from palanquin to palanquin, or from horseback to horseback, or from elephant mount to elephant mount, or from mansion to mansion: this person, I say, is exactly similar.

It is in this way, Great King, that a person is one heading from light to light.

(Reference: SN 3.21)

In this Teaching from Gotama Buddha, he shares how a person who is reborn into a low family, which is based on one’s decisions in their past life, can then move from there towards a better life in the heavenly realm. In this way, one is moving “from darkness to light”.

Similarly, he explains how a person who is reborn into a high family, which is based on one’s decisions in their past life, can then move from there towards a similar life in the heavenly realm. In this way, one is moving “from light to light”.

It is through learning, reflecting, and practicing these Teachings that one moves to a better destination upon any potential future rebirths.

It is important to understand that the goal of these Teachings is for a being to attain Enlightenment so that there is no longer any rebirth into any realm of existence. But, should one need to be reborn, through the effort to attain a more developed mind in this life their next rebirth will be in an improved destination.

Gotama Buddha never used rebirth in an improved destination to motivate or encourage his Students to learn and practice these Teachings because the goal was for them to attain Enlightenment no longer experiencing rebirth in any realm of existence.

And, a Buddha does not need to guilt, shame, or fear anyone into learning and practicing their Teachings. The Teachings themselves are to eliminate discontent feelings such as guilt, shame, and fear so they would not use these feelings to motivate Students to eliminate guilt, shame, and fear - that does not work.

Instead, The Buddha is providing understanding in this Teaching of how one does not need to be hindered by a birth into a low family. During his lifetime, the caste system inhibited people from moving to an improved existence through lack of wealth or social status because of the lack of opportunities to improve one’s life.

Gotama Buddha is encouraging Students that no matter what is your birth, either in a low or high family, both individuals can experience the same destination upon their next rebirth. This Teaching shared by Gotama Buddha is not what was being shared among the population of people prior to his Teaching. Instead, people were taught that they were subjected to a life of misery now and in the future due to being reborn into a low family and through being reborn into a high family one is destined for a life of luxury. But, The Buddha makes clear to his Students that all beings can improve their life through training of the mind and wise decision making based on The Natural Laws of Existence.

A Practitioner can observe the results and improvements to the condition of the mind when learning and practicing these Teachings. A Buddha does not need to guilt, shame, or fear anyone into learning and practicing his Teachings because they can independently observe the truth for themselves that The Teachings are true and through the acquired wisdom, the condition of the mind gradually improves.

Instead, Gotama Buddha helps the Students in this Teaching to understand they are not destined to a life of misery now and in the future but instead, they can improve their life through learning, reflecting, and practicing these Teachings to train the mind and make wise decisions.