Alan Watts: Understanding Buddhism, Concepts Explained
(Equanimity) Alan Watts (alanwatts.org) explores and contemplates the difference between Hinduism, Buddhism, and beliefs in Western civilization. Listen in and contemplate these various perspectives on reality. From "Alan Watts: Metaphysics Philosophy vs. Psychologists."
ABOUT: AUSTRALIA. Equanimity promotes all aspects of positive mental health and perspectives that have inspired and motivated humans for thousands of years. We seek to create our own interpretations and new perspectives from ancient wisdom based on our 21st century outlook on life. These philosophical perspectives are covered under YouTube's creative commons license. Aug. 13, 2024. #philosophy #alanwatts #psychology
(Buddhist Audio books) May 17, 2025: Why have our lives always felt incomplete? This video reveals the shocking truth behind why 🌌 Samsara — the Endless Cycle of Birth, Death, and Rebirth — has no beginning.
[Samsara also has no foreseeable end, like a carousel. Like a whirlpool in the ocean, it will not stop, but it is possible to escape get off.]
Drawing from powerful Buddhist sutras like the Anamatagga Samyutta and deep insights from the Abhidhamma(the "Doctrine in Ultimate Terms" or "Higher Teaching"), let's reveal the hidden causes of our suffering and why we keep returning again and again.
🧘♂️ LEARN:
What is Samsara and why does it feel endless?
How our past lives shape our present life
How to escape the cycle according to the Buddha.
📜 Based on the Anamatagga Samyutta and other Theravada sutras (Pali canon) and Theravada Abhidhamma teachings and ancient Buddhist meditation teachings.
(Linked Discourses 15.1, Chapter One, "Grass and Sticks")
Thus have I heard. At one time the Buddha was staying near Sāvatthī within Jeta’s Grove, in millionaire’s monastery. There he addressed the meditators, “Meditators!”
“Venerable sir,” they replied.
Then the Buddha told them, “Meditators, this Samsara (Cycle of Rebirth) has no discernible beginning. No first point is to be found of sentient beings wandering and being reborn, clouded by [the smoke of] ignorance and fettered [and being burned] by craving.
“Suppose a person were to strip all the grass, sticks, branches, and leaves in the Black Plum Tree Land, gather them together into a single pile, chop them into pieces, and lay them down, saying:
“‘This is my mother, this is my grandmother...’ The grass, sticks, branches, and leaves of the Black Plum Tree Land would run out before that person’s mothers and grandmothers were all counted. Why? Samsara has no discernible beginning. No first point is to be found of sentient beings wandering and being reborn, clouded by ignorance and fettered by craving.
“For a long time have we all undergone disaster, disappointment, and agony, swelling the cemeteries. It has been more than long enough for one to become disillusioned, dispassionate, and freed from all conditions.”
🙏 The Buddha realized the endlessness of Samsara through his fully awakened wisdom on the night of his great enlightenment (maha bodhi). With the divine eye (dibba cakkhu) he developed, he gained the recollection of countless past lives, his own and others'.
He saw beings being born and dying over vast aeons (kalpas), across uncountable realms (on 31 Planes of Existence, which are divided into three spheres), with no discernible beginning point to the impersonal, impermanent, and impossible-to-satisfy cycle.
The Buddha taught in the Anamatagga Samyuththa, “The beginning of this continued wandering on is not to be discovered.”
This is stated not based on faith but direct knowledge. Samsara is endless because each life is caused by previous karma (deeds), which are willed and carried out due to ignorance and craving and aversion. These in turn arise from previous conditions, in a chain of 12 causal links beginning with ignorance.
Thus, the Buddha clearly saw that there was no ultimate creator, no first cause [or prime mover], only a wheel of conditional existence turning without beginning. More
ABOUT: 💡 From emotional stories and ancient wisdom to rare teachings of the Buddha, this is a journey through time, karma, and consciousness. Whether one is new to Buddhism or a deep practitioner, this video changes how we see our lives.
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Buddhist Audio books, May 17, 2025; Dhr. Seven (trans. based on Ven. Sujato, suttacentral.net), Wisdom Quarterly
Dhr. Seven, Ananda (Dharma Bu Meditation), Wisdom Quarterly; Danny Elfman (lyrics)
At the hub of the Wheel of Rebirth are greed, hatred, and delusion on which its turning hinges.
According to the Buddha, there are Three Poisons, mental defilements that degrade the mind/heart, and serve as the root-motivations for all unskillful karma (unwholesome actions).
What are they? Roughly speaking -- because these are ancient Pali/Sanskrit terms only approximately translatable into English -- they are:
Greed (attraction, passion, craving, desire, liking, or lobha)
Hatred (aversion, fear, revulsion, disliking, or dosa), and
Delusion (wrong view, distortion, perversion, ignorance, or moha).
The common English translation of "greed, hatred, and delusion" of technical Buddhist terms is misleading because it makes it seem as if only the extremes of these motives are unskillful karma.
In fact, at any intensity they lead to disappointment (dukkha, a term that extends from agitation to agony) as soon as they arise. For each term, the meaning spans the entire range of the word
from liking, bias, preference, and passion to greed,
from disliking, annoyance, fearing, and revulsion to hatred,
from not knowing, wrong view, misunderstanding, and distortion to delusion.
The motives (causes and conditions) for all skillful deeds, wholesome or meritorious karma, are the opposites:
Nongreed (letting go, sharing, giving, generosity, detaching, non-clinging, or alobha).
Nonhatred (friendliness, loving-kindness, compassion, joy in others' joy, or adosa).
Nondelusion (wisdom, knowing-and-seeing, right view, undistorted understanding, or amoha).
They make more sense in positive terms, but each word is a category encompassing the entire range of degrees.
Reflect and examine it. When we do something unskillful, unwholesome, or wrong, what is at the root of it? We are making demeritorious karma (that will bear fruit and ripen in unpleasant, unwelcome, unwished for, disappointing, and painful results).
Entering one of the subterranean hells below Los Angeles: 6th Dimension*
They are called "bad" not because a God doesn't like them but because we will not like their karmic results (vipaka and phala) when they finally ripen, which might not be for a long time. (Some deeds are avyākata, indeterminate or neutral).
Is fear hate? Both are manifestations of aversion (dosa), so fear may be distinguished from hate, but it's only a matter of our reaction to stimuli. In fear, we want to run away, whereas in hate we want to send the repulsive object away).
Ven. Nyanatiloka (L) and Ven. Nyanaponika
What motivates an action and produces karma? One or a combination of these seven motivating our action. The kind of karma produced is based on the motive or intention (cetana) behind the deed.
Karma is like a seed that comes to fruition later. The famous Judeo-Christian expression of this karmic principle is that "We shall reap what we sow." In other words, we will later harvest what we previously planted.
The Three Poisons of the mind/heart are easy to recognize in ourselves if we reflect, except for hate. Of course we like things. This is a carnal world within the Sensual Sphere (Kama-Loka). Pleasure-seeking is the main defilement that got us here and that gets us into trouble while we're here by motivating more greedy, selfish, lustful acts. However, all craving is rooted in ignorance.
Ignorance is the fundamental root of all problems and all suffering. Ignorance gives rise to desire, to craving and clinging to things we imagine are persisting, pleasurable, and real.
The Buddha's teaching on the Three Marks of Existence tells us that they are not any of these three things. All conditioned phenomena (all "things" composed of other things that depend for their existence on constituent elements or factors) are:
hurtling toward destruction,
disappointing and incapable of fulfilling us,
impersonal/empty/without essence.
They are not compacts but compounds, not unconditioned (like nirvana, the sole "unconditioned element"*) but conditioned (like everything else, every element, every fabrication, every formation).
*Asankhata: the "unformed, unoriginated, unconditioned" is a name for nirvana, the "further shore," that is beyond the beyond of all becoming (rebirth) and all conditions. See Bhikkhu Bodhi's As It Is for a textual definition of nirvana (called nibbana in Pali), which too often gets confused with "nothingness" or "annihilation" or "eternal life," when it is none of these things.
In the West we are not raised to recognize or admit our hatred. We are reluctant to show anger, instead suppressing and repressing it. This root (dosa) more often finds expression in the socially acceptable form of FEAR. It's still aversion. It's still unskillful karma that leads to unwise actions that yield painful results.
*Danny Elfman's best music was from his first movie, Forbidden Zone
Danny Elfman sings about fear
Elfman still makes music, performs
The genius ginger Danny Elfman, along with brother Dick and The Mystic Knight of the Oingo Boingo (Gong Show winners), recognized how out of control this unwholesome root could get -- odd neuroses, panic attacks, specific phobias, and general anxiety. Peace of mind will always be hard to find when it is defiled.
LYRICS: "I'm Afraid"
@volatilevulture8102 corrected by Wisdom Quarterly
Afraid of the dark/ Afraid of the light/ Don't walk in the park/ Afraid of the night/ Afraid to get stabbed/ Or hit by a car/ Afraid of the streets/ Afraid to go far/ Afraid of the sky/ Don't like to be high/ I don't want to fall/ Afraid I might die/ Afraid of my friends/ Don't like to be seen/ Afraid to be nice/ Afraid to be mean/ Afraid that the wind/ Will knock over trees/ Afraid of my dog, oh/ Afraid of his fleas!
CHORUS: Peace of mind/ Peace of mind/ Peace of mind/ Peace of mind/ Hard to keep/ Hard to keep/ Hard to find/ Hard to find/ Look ahead/ Look ahead/ Look behind/ Look behind/ Looking for/ Looking for/ Peace of mind/ Peace of mind/ Can't relax/ Can't relax/ Can't unwind/ Can't unwind/ Deep inside/ Deep inside/ Secret mind/ Secret mind/ Oh, no!
Afraid to be caught/ Afraid to be free/ Afraid to make love/ Afraid of VD/ Afraid that the rain/ Will make me get wet/ Afraid to take drugs/ That make me forget/ Afraid that the air/ Will make me get sick/ Afraid that the girls/ Will cut off my/ OH!
Someone tell me how it happened/ Why my head is so confused/ Can it be my circuits finally blew a fuse?/ Blew a fuse/ Can a human being really change into a humanoid?/ Or is it my imagination/ Paranoid!/ Paranoid/ All I need is peace and quiet/ Maybe just a little time/ Turn the channel, turn the channel!/ Peace of mind/
Peace of mind/ Peace of mind/ Peace of mind/ Peace of mind/ Hard to keep/ Hard to keep/ Hard to find/ Hard to find/ Look ahead/ Look ahead/ Look behind/ Look behind/ Looking for/ Looking for/ Peace of mind/ Peace of mind/ All creation/ All creation/ All mankind/ All mankind/ Looking for/ Looking for/ Peace of mind/ Peace of mind
Afraid of success/ Afraid to grow old/ Afraid that my brain/ Is covered with mold/ Afraid that I might/ Be put on a shelf/ But last but not least, oh!/ Afraid of myself!
ArtNetworkTV, May 27, 2018; Pat Macpherson, Dhr. Seven (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly
Cycling through Buddhism's 31 Planes of Existence, simplified to six more general realms
Reincarnation research movie: Survival After Death
(ArtNetworkTV) This is an excellent science film from 1980s, a 40-minute documentary about rebirth research. It features American Prof. Ian Stevenson of the University of Virigina the 14th Dalai Lama, a rinpoche (high lama) reborn, Native American reincarnation traditions, children born with past life recall.
Now I've already been reborn.
The late Dr. Ian Stevenson was a pioneer in scientific research on reincarnation (which should really be called rebirth as it is not an eternal soul again and again taking on flesh as it seems).
Ian Stevenson was a prominent and internationally known psychiatrist, researcher, prolific author, and well-regarded figure in the field of psychical research. Science, the Self, and Survival after Death: Selected Writings of Ian Stevenson is the first book devoted to surveying the entirety of his work and the extraordinary scope and variety of his research.
He studied universal questions that cut to the core of a person's identity: What is consciousness? How did we become the unique individuals that we are? Do we survive in some form after death? Stevenson's writings on the nature of science and the mind-body relationship, as well as his empirical research, demonstrate his strongly held belief that the methods of science can be applied successfully to such humanly vital questions.
Researcher Eben Alexander continues this work
Featuring a selection of his papers and excerpts from his books, this collection presents the larger context of Stevenson's work and illustrates the issues and questions that guided him throughout his career.
Our esteemed colleague, Emily Williams Kelly, is the editor of this collection of Dr. Stevenson's writing.
He founded The Division of Perceptual Studies (DOPS) at the Department of Psychiatry & Neurobehavioral Sciences at the University of Virginia, in Charlottesville, VA. (medicine.virginia.edu/clin...)
(1974). Twenty Cases Suggestive of Reincarnation (second revised and enlarged edition). University of Virginia Press.
(1974). Xenoglossy: A Review and Report of A Case. University of Virginia Press.
(1975). Cases of the Reincarnation Type, Vol. I: Ten Cases in India. University of Virginia Press.
(1978). Cases of the Reincarnation Type, Vol. II: Ten Cases in Sri Lanka. University of Virginia Press.
(1980). Cases of the Reincarnation Type, Vol. III: Twelve Cases in Lebanon and Turkey. University of Virginia Press.
(1983). Cases of the Reincarnation Type, Vol. IV: Twelve Cases in Thailand and Burma. University of Virginia Press.
(1984). Unlearned Language: New Studies in Xenoglossy. University of Virginia Press.
(1997). Reincarnation and Biology: A Contribution to the Etiology of Birthmarks and Birth Defects. Volume 1: Birthmarks. Volume 2: Birth Defects and Other Anomalies. Praeger Publishers.
(1997). Where Reincarnation and Biology Intersect. Praeger Publishers (a short, non-technical version of Reincarnation and Biology).
(2000). Children Who Remember Previous Lives: A Question of Reincarnation (revised edition).
(2003). European Cases of the Reincarnation Type. McFarland & Company.
Dr. Helen Wambach, psychologist, past life regressionist, researcher, author of Reliving Past Lives: The Evidence Under Hypnosis (4.4 out of 5 stars with 91 ratings); Eds., Wisdom Quarterly
Reliving Past Lives (scientific research)
In Reliving Past Lives, psychologist Dr. Helen Wambach, Ph.D., shares the fascinating results of her scientific research, a large-scale past life group hypnotherapy regression sessions.
Wheel: Bhavachakra thangka explained
In an effort to rule out wishful thinking, false reports, clouded memories, and self-aggrandizing fantasies often associated with past life hypnosis reports, Dr. Wambach devised a rigorous protocol.
She chose time-specific periods from 2000 BC to the 20th century and asked hypnotically regressed respondents where they were and what they were doing during that specific period.
Race, social class, occupation, types of money used, and gender were all explored. Mundane questions were asked such as:
"What types of utensils are being used?"
"Describe weaving techniques that are being used."
"What foodstuffs are commonly in use during this time?"
"What color is the brickwork of the houses?"
With meditation we can see karma and rebirth
When taken to a specific time period, some respondents reported experiences while others did not, prompting the question, Did they report nothing because they were between lives?
Dr. Wambach reasoned that if she asked a large number of subjects questions about a specific time and place and received a sizable percentage of similar answers from subjects who weren't consciously aware of the information they or others were reporting, that was objective scientific data worth investigating further.
Together with her book, Life before Life, the data is compelling reading for anyone contemplating the validity of rebirth, reincarnation, and life beyond physical death. More
CC Liu, Ashley Wells, Dhr. Seven, Pat Macpherson (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly Wikipedia edit
Diagram explanation
Tibetan Buddhism
The bhavacakra is painted on the outside walls of nearly every Tibetan Buddhist temple in Tibet and India.
It instructs non-monastic audiences about the Buddhist teachings (Dzongsar Khyentse, 2004, p. 3; Dalai Lama, 1992, p. 1). The bhavacakra consists of the following elements:
The pig, rooster, and snake in the hub of the wheel represent the Three Poisons of ignorance (delusion), attachment (passion), and aversion (hatred/fear).
The second layer represents karma. The third layer represents the Six Realms of Samsara [though the historical Buddha Gautama, Shakyamuni, the "Sage of the Scythians," categorized these six into 31 Planes of Existence].
Tibetan symbolism: The elements of the bhavacakra or Wheel of Rebirth (Mistvan)
The fierce figure holding the wheel represents impermanence (Dalai Lama, 1992, pp. 42-43).
The moon above the wheel represents liberation/nirvana from samsara or continued wandering through painful cyclic existence.
The Buddha pointing to the white circle indicates that liberation is possible.
Symbolically, the three inner circles, moving from the center outward, show that the Three Poisons of ignorance, attachment, and aversion give rise to positive and negative actions; these "actions and their results" are called karma [and vipaka].
Karma in turn gives rise to the Six Realms, which represent the different places of results within samsara.
The fourth and outer layer of the wheel symbolizes the 12 links of Dependent Origination; these links indicate how the sources of suffering—the Three Poisons and karma—produce more lives (rebirths) within the cycle of continued existence.
(Birmingham Museum of Art)
The fierce being holding the wheel represents impermanence (Mara or Yama or the ogre rakshasa/yaksha Mara or a dharmapala or wrathful deity); this symbolizes that the entire process of samsara or cyclical rebirth that is impermanent, transient, constantly changing; painful, disappointing, unfulfilling; impersonal, egoless, and not-self.
The moon above the wheel indicates final liberation or nirvana. The Buddha is pointing to the moon, indicating that liberation from samsara is possible.More
Samsāra is the "round of rebirth," literally "perpetual wandering," "cycling through the revolving wheel of life and death."
It is a name that designate the sea of life or ocean of suffering, ever restlessly heaving up and down. It is the symbol of this continuous process of ever again and again being reborn, growing old and decrepit, suffering then dying only to be reborn.
Samsara is not suffering in the sense of unending agony but rather of constant nausea with bouts of agony, bouts of bliss, and long stretches of carrying on as karmas (past actions) come to fruition and play themselves out with imponderable ramifications.
Results (vipaka, phala, mental resultants and fruits) ripen as the outcomes of ill-done and well-done deeds alike and interact with one another, constantly affected by our present choices and responses.
More precisely put, samsāra is the unbroken chain of the fivefold aggregate-combinations that -- constantly changing from moment to moment -- continuously follow one upon the other through inconceivable periods of time. We call this ultimately impersonal process "renewed existence," "again becoming," or simply "rebirth."
"Reincarnation" should be avoided because it is a word for "a spirit again entering flesh" (re - again, incarnation = into flesh), which is ultimately inaccurate. Conventionally, this may be what seems to be happening. "Transmigration," foolishly used by Ven. Thanissaro, is completely misleading. For it suggests an unchanging actor or doer migrating through many births, which is utterly at odds with the Buddhist "Doctrine in Ultimate Terms" (Abhidharma), which states there is no soul, no self, no ego actually going through this impersonal process.
But that is very tricky to understand, because it is the basis by which we are trapped in ignorance, clinging, and being averse to experience taken as personal. Being rid of this wrong view of "self" is the entrance to the first stage of enlightenment (bodhi), awakening (nirodha or the "attainment of the extinction of ignorance"), and complete freedom (NIRVANA).
Nirvana is NOT Samsara, as is popularly stated by the Hinduistic Mahayana Buddhism, that clings to a doctrine of self that states that living beings are consciousness itself, or a conscious soul, or a "Higher Self," all of which the historical Buddha went to great pains to reject and dispel. The meaning of the 1960s slogan "Nirvana is Samsara" seems to be that, "Everyone is already enlightened, so there is nothing to do but behave in our conventional lives as if we were ultimately free" like the Buddha and the arhats, the "Noble Ones." Nirvana is not samsara because nirvana is free of suffering, and samsara is steeped in it. Nirvana is free of greed, hatred, and delusion, whereas samsara is nourished by these underlying motivations.
A single lifetime, like this one, constitutes only a miniscule and fleeting fraction of this samsara. To be able to comprehend the First Noble (= leading to enlightenment) Truth of the disappointing/unsatisfactory nature of all things because of their utter inability to fulfill us.
One must allow one's gaze to rest upon the samsāra, upon this frightful chain of rebirths (now here in a good place, soon in a terrible place of suffering, and so on according to our just desserts), rather than merely on one single lifetime, which may of course be more or less painful than the entire process taken as a whole.
See also the Three Universal Characteristics of All Existence (ti-lakkhana), "not-self" (anatta), "ultimate truth" (paramattha), and "rebirth" (patisandhi).
Chilling children's stories: Kids who remember their past lives
Not again! Help!
The thought of rebirth or reincarnation terrifies some. It pleases others. Personally, many of us would hate the thought of having to relive an entire life in ignorance all over again. It not only scares some, but it is mentally exhausting just to think about.
So we avoid thinking about it. Judging by these stories, a person who dies and is reborn can end up in the same culture doing the same things. Then what became of our life lessons? We failed to learn them. If a life has to be repeated, it is often under worse circumstances than the first time. It gets harder. It is as if we are getting back on a treadmill without being able to stay off it. Here are six astonishing cases. Some give us hope, while others are fraught with very disturbing implications.
Punabbhava ("re-arising, again becoming, renewed existence") is a sutra term for "rebirth." In later literature it is called "relinking" or "reunion" (patisandhi).
Awakening or enlightenment (liberation), which means freedom from rebirths, is often expressed in the words: Natthi 'dāni punabbhavo or "This is the last birth. Now there is no more of this [arising and suffering] to come!" (MN 26; DN 15; Theragatha 87, 339; Sn. 502).
The term rebirth is often linked with "arising" (abhinibbatti). The Buddha explains why it happens: "How, O meditators, does one come to renewed existence and arising in the future? It is because beings -- clouded by ignorance and ensnared by craving -- find ever fresh delight now here, now there. For this reason there is renewed existence and arising in the future" (MN 43).
Yama is the name of the Buddhist Judge of the Dead, a wrathful deity, and dharmapala who presides over the Buddhist purgatories (narakas, nirayas, or impermanent hells).
Although based on the god Yama of the ancient Brahminical Vedas, the sacred books of modern Hinduism, the Buddhist Yama has developed different myths and functions.
And he has spread far more widely. He is known in every country where Buddhism is established, including Tibet, Nepal, China, Taiwan, Japan, Korea, Burma, Thailand, Cambodia, Sri Lanka, Vietnam, Laos, Malaysia, Singapore, and Alta California (the greatest republic ever known, although stolen by the U.S. and incorporated into its northern states system, but still said by many to be a shangri la).
Rrrr! So long as you cycle in samsara...
Yama, in the Vedas, was the son of the Sun godSurya. He presided over Naraka, the Vedic underworld. In Vedic tradition, Yama was considered to have been the first mortal who died and glimpsed the way to the celestial abodes, the deva lokas. So in virtue of precedence, he became the ruler of the departed.
In Tibetan Vajrayana Buddhism, Yama (Gshin.rje) is regarded with horror as the prime mover of Saṃsāra, the Wheel of Rebirth and Re-Death, something Mara might be blamed for more than Yama.
But he is also revered as a "guardian of spiritual practice." In the popular "Wheel of Life," or Bhavachakra, where six to 31 planes of rebirth are depicted between his monstrous jaws or in his arms.
Yama is sometimes shown with a consort, Yami, whose name is associated with "night" in Sanskrit.
Yama in Theravada Buddhism
Small part of Angkor Wat panel depicts a heaven and hell, Angkor, Cambodia (Sam)
Heaven and Hell: The upper part of this panel describes life in the heavens, the lower part life in the hells. It is 60 meters long and shows Yama, the "God of the Dead," sitting on a buffalo, assisted by his two assessors, Dharma and Sitragupta. There are 36 short inscriptions that describe 37 of the countless heavenly worlds and 32 of the hells, all contained within the general 31 Planes of Existence. Life in celestial worlds is depicted by the rich mansions and palaces, a flying apsara (celestial nymph), and the lavish draperies. Life in the lower hells is all about torture, which can be gruesome with the breaking of bones, use of hot irons, and the piercing of heads with nails. More
Yama is understood by Theravāda Buddhists as a God of the Dead,
supervising the various Buddhist "hells," which are worlds below the
human plane.
These worlds are generally referred to collectively as "the
downfall," distinct from the Christian conception in that they are not
literally permanent. They are figuratively permanent, lasting an "eternity" (kalpa) or more, but still technically impermanent and therefore closer to the popular Catholic conception of purgatories.
Yama's exact role is vague in canonical texts. It is made clearer through elaborate tales, extra-canonical texts, and popular myths which, inherited from other traditions, are sometimes inconsistent with Buddhist philosophy.
In the Pali language canon, the Buddha states that a person who has ill-treated his or her parents, recluses (shramanas, wandering ascetics, generally Buddhist monastics), noble (enlightened) persons (referred to as Brahmins but not caste Brahmins who are simply born into privileged status), and elders (theras and theris, good people in general, long time monastics in specific) is taken at death to Yama.
Yama then asks, "Did you never consider your conduct in light of birth, aging, sickness, worldly retribution, and death?"
In response to Yama's questions, ignoble people often answer that they failed to consider the karmic consequences (vipaka, phala) of their reprehensible actions. As a result they end up in brutal (infernal) worlds until that unwholesome action has sufficiently exhausted its result. The residual effects may not exhaust themselves and they find release only to suffer for that action again in the future.
Woe is samsara, plagued by dukkha!
[For reasons that are hard to accept, and only slightly less difficult to understand through the Abhidharma, the "Higher Teaching," actions/karma performed in the human world have disproportionate consequences when they mature in the future.
One act of generosity, if it matures at the right moment, which is very hard to depend on, can lead to another human life of great wealth. Simply abstaining from breaking the Five Precepts can lead to a lower heavenly rebirth. Conversely, a single reprehensible act can lead one to be reborn in a woeful destination with essentially no way to escape for what seems like mute eternities.
Performing one of the Ten Courses of Unwholesome Action, types of karma that lead like corridors to unfortunate rebirths, can dog one over many lives until it is finally exhausted. By itself one deed can take one to a painful rebirth. And if it becomes a habit or character trait, it can snowball until one is doomed the lowest hells. Chance of escape? A snowball's chance in hell. Who can believe? It makes no sense! But it does: One action is not one citta, which serves as the seed for the result (vipaka), the future fruit (phala). There are millions of cittas (individual "moments" within the process of consciousness) in an action, whether good or bad, each able to give rise to a result. Do lots of good, as it will help in all endeavors.]
In extra-canonical Pali texts, the great scholar, Ven. Buddhaghosa described Yama as a vimānapeta, "a being in a mixed state," sometimes enjoying celestial comforts [like vimanas,spacecraft, space platforms, heavenly mansions] and at other times receiving the more unpleasant results of karma.
However, as a king, Yama's rule is considered just. After all, it is not the judge who condemns one to the consequences of the actions one has willed and carried out.
It is a person's own doing by one's choice of actions. We are always free to choose, even when we insist we have no choice. Having no choice is tantamount to having no imagination, no ability to see things in another way, like realizing that we always have the alternative of simply stopping. (See the original "Bedazzled").
In fact, in popular belief in Theravāda Buddhist countries, Yama does living beings a great favor: Before they ever end up being judged at death, the King/God of the Dead sends them Four Messengers: sickness, old age, punishments, and other calamities among humans as warnings to behave well.
When we die we are summoned to appear before Yama, who is said to examine our character and to dispatch us to an appropriate rebirth Yama presides over -- be it on the human plane (of which there are many worlds), one of the many heavens, or one of the eight great purgatories ("hells" in that they last a long time and can be full of dreadful torments).
There are thought to be several Yamas, each presiding over a distinct hellish world. Theravāda sources sometimes speak of two Yamas or four Yamas.
*NOTE ON DEATH'S DEATH:
A Tibetan origin myth explains that once upon a time, a holy man was
told that if he meditated for the next 50 years, he would achieve
enlightenment. He meditated in a cave for 49 years, 11 months and 29
days, until he was interrupted by two thieves who broke in with a stolen
bull. After beheading the bull in front of him, they ignored his
requests to be spared for but a few minutes and beheaded him as well. In
his near-enlightened fury, he became Yama, the God of Death, took the
bull's head for his own, and killed the two thieves, drinking their
blood from cups made of their skulls. Still enraged, he decided to kill
everyone in Tibet. They prayed to the bodhisattva Mañjuśrī,
who took up their cause and transformed himself into Yamāntaka
("Death's death") similar to Yama but ten times more powerful and
horrific. In their battle, everywhere Yama turned, he found infinite
versions of himself. Mañjuśrī as Yamāntaka defeated Yama, and turned him
into a protector of Buddhism. He is generally considered a wrathful
deity.
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