reincarnated

Reincarnated is the term used to describe the belief that a being's consciousness or essence returns in a new body after death. It is a common element in several religious and philosophical traditions and is often linked to a moral framework in which actions in one life influence future lives. The concept appears in myth, theology, and cultural narratives around the world.

In Hinduism, the atman is thought to transmigrate through a succession of bodies in a cycle called samsara. Karma—the law of moral cause and effect—determines the form and timing of rebirth, and liberation, or moksha, ends the cycle. Jainism shares a similar mechanism, with the jiva undergoing rebirth influenced by karma and liberated through ethical conduct and spiritual discipline. Sikh teachings acknowledge rebirth and karma as well, but emphasize devotion to God and ethical living as the path to liberation.

Buddhism presents rebirth without asserting a permanent, unchanging self. Rather, it describes a continuity of conditioned phenomena driven by karma and dependent origination. The aim across Buddhist traditions is to achieve nirvana, a state beyond the cycle of birth and death, thereby ending suffering. Interpretations about the precise nature of rebirth vary among schools.

Outside traditional religion, reincarnation appears in literature, film, and popular culture, sometimes as metaphor or plot device. Some individuals claim memories of past lives; such reports are met with skepticism in the scientific community. The term itself derives from Latin and French roots meaning to become flesh again.