ABSTRACT
Anthropologist Sienna Craig (2009) identifies a certain paradox in Tibetan culture. On the one hand, the birth of a child is notable for being “the gift of being reborn as a human being and the possibility for spiritual achievement this might engender.” In the Buddhist worldview, humans are the only sentient beings capable of attaining awakening. The birth of a child is therefore cause for celebration. On the other hand, births are viewed with apprehension by Tibetans because they represent “painful, embodied reminders of the Buddhist First Noble Truth, the truth of suffering.” Therein lies the paradox: birth creates the potential for awakening but also perpetuates an unrelenting cycle of suffering (Craig 2009).
