The-Tibetan-Book-of-Living-and-Dying

THE BARDO OF BECOMING 299This is the dividing line where buddhas and sentient beings areseparated..."In an instant they are separated, in an instant complete enlightenment."REBIRTHAs, in the bardo of becoming, the time for rebirth getscloser, you crave more and more the support of a materialbody, and you search for any one that might be available inwhich to be reborn. Different signs begin to appear, warningyou of the realm in which you are likely to take rebirth.Lights of various colors shine from the six realms of existence,and you will feel drawn toward one or another, depending onthe negative emotion that is predominant in your mind. Onceyou have been drawn into one of these lights, it is very difficultto turn back.Then images and visions will arise, linked to the differentrealms. As you become more familiar with the teachings, youwill become more alert to what they really mean. The signsvary slightly according to different teachings. Some say that ifyou are to be reborn as a god, you will have a vision of enteringa heavenly palace with many stories. If you are to bereborn as a demigod, you will feel you are amidst spinning circularweapons of fire, or going onto a battlefield. If you are tobe reborn as an animal, you find yourself in a cave, a hole inthe ground, or a nest made of straw. If you have a vision of atree stump, a deep forest, or a woven cloth, you are to bereborn as a hungry ghost. And if you are to be reborn in hell,you will feel you are being led, powerless, into a black pit,down a black road, into a somber land with black or redhouses, or toward a city of iron.There are many other signs, such as the way in which yourgaze or movement is aligned, which indicate the realm forwhich you are heading. If you are to be reborn in a god orhuman realm, your gaze will be directed upward; if in an animalrealm, you will look straight ahead, as do birds; and if ina hungry ghost or hell realm, you will be facing downward, asthough you were diving.If any of these signs appear, you should be on guard not tofall into any of these unfortunate rebirths.At the same time, you will have an intense desire and longingfor certain realms, and you are drawn toward them all too