Encyclopedia of India–China Cultural Contacts v2.c12.s3.t4.49

v2.c12.s3.t4.49

The Yoga School held that sorrow is an integral part of reincarnation, and therefore, to discuss the reason for reincarnation is to discuss the reason for the generation of sorrow, which concerns the basic philosophical theories held by the Yoga school. The school maintained that fruits of rejoicing or affliction are sprung from holy or unholy works done in the past during the process of human survival. Changes belong to affliction and reincarnation is a process of change with a lot of differential things, therefore, all differential things belong to affliction. In the opinion of Yoga school, the generation of reincarnation is related to the two entities. The *Yoga-sūtra* states that, “The cause of what is to be warded off, is the absorption of the Seer in the Seen.” And the “seer” and “the seen” here refer to the *prakriti* and *purusha* directly relating to reincarnation, respectively.