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Sexual Desire, Masturbating and Asuba Bawana
I have been wanting to ask this question for some time.
So basically caught up in the social norms, i used to watch porn videos and masturbate and got a bit attached to it. Kept on doing it for a few years.
And 2 years back I met a girlfriend and we were so in love and also did different sexual activity (Apart from sex). But our relationship broke one year back when i got to know that she had cheated with another person as a tool to solve certain problems and not for love. When i got to know about it (She herself revealed it) i asked about her whole life story and i got upset by it and sympathized her. Knowing that my mother would not approve her since she also know what happened, I taught her the path of dhamma. Created a path for her to move on through dhamma.To be a better person. And she is still engaging in that path.
So after the break up I was mentally broken down and I somehow needed to satisfy my sexual desire. So i started watching more and more porn and satisfied myself. But it became very upsetting for me due to the breakup.
So one day i decided to start meditating every day and i have been continuing since then. After 2 weeks of meditation i realized that i should stop masturbating and watching porn and i just stopped it then and there. But the following few weeks were very hard. My body was rebelling to watch porn or to at least to satisfy myself. But i fought and fought. There was a time where my body was literally shaking.
And i continued that for six months. There were times where i saw some sexual dreams and i ejaculated. But i didn't do it intentionally.
I meditated different practices and I did a lot of Asuba bawana to control my sexual desire. And I was doing well.
But since recently I have been getting flashbacks of my sexual activities with my ex. And i get these strong urges to masturbate and get it over with. I spoke this with my ex (Since we actually understand each other a lot) and she told me to just do it and accept it.
I have no intention of being a monk at the moment or to live a celibacy life. Whereas i have expectations to find a girlfriend and marry and move on. But i don't feel like masturbating at the moment cause i feel it's just a waste of time and empty since it would make more meaning if i have a girlfriend. So i won't be continuing the anti-masturbating till i find a girlfriend (Why i mentioned this cause by choosing a normal life you will be engaging in these sort pf sexual activities.)
I know for a fact that I will not be watching porn again. Since Stopping it actually made my mind peaceful and to respect women more and to see the beauty in them than to see things perversely.
My question is this
Since I am doing Asuba Bawana if i get an urge to satisfy i would usually try to kill that thought. But there are times where it becomes a big problem in the mind and sometimes my head hurts trying to kill it. Literally.
What should i do at such times? Should i just satisfy myself mindfully or just keep killing the thoughts?

Hello and welcome to Buddhism SE. We also have a Help Center with useful resources that you might like. Enjoy your time here.

So basically caught up in the social norms, i used to watch porn videos and masturbate and got a bit attached to it. Kept on doing it
  for a few years.

Do not underestimate the harm & addictive character of pornography. Buddhism calls it a 'road to ruin' (DN 31). To ask your questions, you have been learning this via personal experience.

And 2 years back I met a girlfriend and we were so in love and also did different sexual activity (Apart from sex). But our relationship
  broke one year back when i got to know that she had cheated with
  another person as a tool to solve certain problems and not for love.

Buddhism explains a successful relationship will occur when two people are both moral (AN 4.55 & AN 4.53). Since both you & your girlfriend did not have strong foundations in morality, naturally problems were expected to occur. In other words, your girlfriend was probably not really "in love" but probably clinging to something.

When i got to know about it (She herself revealed it) i asked about her whole life story and i got upset by it and sympathized her.

Very good.

Knowing that my mother would not approve her since she also know what happened, I taught her the path of dhamma. Created a path for her
  to move on through dhamma.To be a better person. And she is still
  engaging in that path.

Very good. But also difficult.

So after the break up I was mentally broken down and I somehow needed to satisfy my sexual desire. So i started watching more and
  more porn and satisfied myself. But it became very upsetting for me
  due to the breakup.

Bad strategy. Instead, try to understand that women with a history often have emotional issues which are difficult to resolve. Such women can try very hard to "love" you & make you attached to them because they are often desperate. Their capacity to truly love & bond does not function well. They need lots of love, trust & counselling.

So one day i decided to start meditating every day and i have been continuing since then. After 2 weeks of meditation i realized that i
  should stop masturbating and watching porn and i just stopped it then
  and there.

Please stop the porn. It is poison that goes deep inside the neurology of the body & mind. This is why so many people have serious problems with it. Please look upon pornography as though it is heroin or cocaine because it is that dangerous.

But the following few weeks were very hard. My body was rebelling to watch porn or to at least to satisfy myself. But i fought and fought.
  There was a time where my body was literally shaking.

Your priority should be to avoid the pornography because the pornography is a very strong sense stimulus.
As for the masturbation, this is less serious. Just stop the porn. Put a internet blocker on your computer to stop the porn.

And i continued that for six months. There were times where i saw some sexual dreams and i ejaculated. But i didn't do it
  intentionally.

There is nothing wrong with sexual dreams & nocturnal emission. Just stop the porn.

I meditated different practices and I did a lot of Asuba bawana to control my sexual desire. And I was doing well.

Good.

But since recently I have been getting flashbacks of my sexual
  activities with my sex.

No problem. This is normal.

And i get these strong urges to masturbate and get it over with. I spoke this with my ex (Since we actually understand each other a lot)
  and she told me to just do it and accept it.

Masturbation is not a sin or grave danger in Buddhism because it is your own mind creating the sense stimuli.
But pornography is the explicit vision of other people engaging in sex and this is a very strong stimuli designed by experts to addict people. Just avoid the porn at all costs.

I have no intention of being a monk at the moment or to live a celibacy life.

No problem.

Whereas i have expectations to find a girlfriend and marry and move on.

No problem. But to be successfully married requires firm moral values and particularly clear insight into the advantages & necessity of sexual fidelity.

So i won't be continuing the anti-masturbating till i find a
  girlfriend (Why i mentioned this cause by choosing a normal life you
  will be engaging in these sort pf sexual activities.)

No problem.

I know for a fact that I will not be watching porn again.

Thank you. Please do not. Please have clear wisdom about this.

Since Stopping it actually made my mind peaceful and to respect women more and to see the beauty in them than to see things perversely.

Most excellent. Beautifully spoken. Pornography misrepresents women. Natural women want to love & be loved and want fidelity (AN 6.52). Pornography is a lie & deception. It does not represent reality.

My question is this Since I am doing Asuba Bawana if i get an urge to satisfy i would usually try to kill that thought. But there are
  times where it becomes a big problem in the mind and sometimes my head
  hurts trying to kill it. Literally. What should i do at such times? Should i just satisfy myself mindfully or just keep killing the thoughts?

'Mindfulness' means 'to remember' the Dhamma path (MN 117). It does not mean to 'observe'. Therefore, if the asuba path is your goal, it is not possible to masturbate mindfully.
If you are really dedicated to this asuba path, when the sexual urges arise & is difficult to control, possibly consider doing some exercise, such as jogging.
Otherwise, just scream out the urges into a pillow or, otherwise, let the thoughts run (but do not act upon them) until the thoughts lose their energy.
In summary, to have a successful relationship & marriage in Buddhism, what is required is a strong understanding of why sexual fidelity is important.
Generally, masturbation occurs with sexual fantasies. Try investigating & analysing those sexual fantasies, to discern how their content is not really moral (harmless) since such fantasies are based on self-indulgent erotic behaviour rather than long term commitment to a woman.
You already had a girlfriend with many problems. Try to discern with wisdom how sexual objectification of women results in women accumulating emotional problems. If you think more about what loving a woman truly means, your sexual energy may become more pure.
It sounds like you are doing very well, practising with courage & integrity. Best wishes. May you fulfil your aspirations for a truly happy, humane & purposeful life.

Comments are not for extended discussion; this conversation has been moved to chat.

What should i do at such times? Should i just satisfy myself mindfully or just keep killing the thoughts?

I would recommend watching the video; "Ask A Monk: Pornography and Masturbation (and Addiction in General)" by Ven. Yuttadhammo.
He gives an in-depth and detailed teaching on exactly this topic both from a theoretical perspective and a practical insight meditational perspective.
A step-by-step guide on how to deal with these defilements is provided in the video.

it would be nice to extract some of those key points and put them here in the answer...

I have extracted some of the key points from that video and put it in this answer.

Sometimes when you are doing Asubha meditation you might get averse to the thoughts about Suba. There was a situation when some monks committed suicide because they got averse to their bodies as dirty. Here the mind's tendency to be attached to one's body turned drastically and became averse.
The objective of Asuba is to develop a balance of the mind. When you encounter an object and get the sensation pleasantness and you perceive it as Suba your should contemplate it as Asuba. When you encounter and object and perceive it as Asuba you should contemplate it as Suba. This is like dampen the swinging pendulum, where you bring your mind to the neutral position quickly. [Indriya Bhāvanā Sutta]
Ultimately the objective of doing Asubha is not replacing one extremity with another but bring your mind to equanimity sooner.
Vitakka Saṇṭhāna Sutta also may be helpful in removing distracting thoughts.

there are hundreds of sutta about 5 sensual pleasures.  you will get many answers.  My recommendation is to have a literal understanding of sensual pleasures first.

causal of it
it's inability to remain or the uncertainty (impermanent)
deliciousness of it.
drawbacks
and the right way of walking away (8 fold path)

we stay in sensual pleasures because we only look at the deliciousness of them.  Focusing on drawbacks helps.

What are the drawbacks?

https://suttacentral.net/en/mn13  go to material form section.  Please notice the style of this sutta.  Buddha in a way, mention few sentences of the benefit or deliciousness of form but went of paragraph after paragraph of its drawbacks.  this shows me his wisdom and cleverness trying to convey the proportion of benefit to drawbacks.  Buddha is truly a great teacher.  Only Buddha could be mindful of every word spoken.

Should i just satisfy myself mindfully or just keep killing the thoughts?
These are not the only two options.
You can "satisfy" yourself (feed the desire),  repel from the desire (kill the thought), or just let it be (practice vipassana/simple accepting awareness).
I suggest the latter.
I also suggest some education material from meditationexpert.com to understand the nature of semen and your life force and in connection with higher transformations.

The Tao is One with virtue! Misfortune comes when one has a body. The path is wherever you are. Still that doesn't mean you're on it! Have "legitimate" sexual union with bliss if you are able, if not remember you are a cauldron of boiling, seething thoughts--most of these create excitement and direct your steps. Study yourself and assert nothing! That is my take. Porn is an addiction for anyone who "seeks" it out.

It always makes me cringe a bit when any religion preaches about sex and or masturbation. Firstly there is absolutely nothing wrong with either.  Second , the religions that preach against it have all sorts of problems with sexual abuse among the clergy, priests etc. so there is a lot of blatant hypocrisy.
You're human and you have an inbuilt biological urge to procreate. Along with that urge comes a lot of pleasant sensations.  However like any pleasant sensation we can begin to crave for more and use it to distract ourselves from painful feelings. This can become habitual and for some an addiction. Once this happens it can be difficult to break the habit and  external help may be needed.
I have mixed feelings about porn. As a teen nobody explained anything to me or my friends about sex. The only information we received about procreation was from school and it was a very sterile and scientific version. Then came the 80s and AIDS and a whole lot of hysterical fear and hatred came along with it.
Porn showed me that the feelings I was having were perfectly normal and that people are actually very animalistic and take pleasure from sexual activities etc. Without porn I would not have had a clue. I guess I would have figured it out like people have for Millenia but it was definitely a very useful tool that made me feel ok about certain thoughts and feelings that I may otherwise have been been made to feel guilty and dirty about by uptight conservative sections of the community. It also gave me confidence. I didn't feel like such a clueless virgin.
These days with the onslaught of the Internet, porn has become so prolific and way too easy for children to access. A lot of it has also become very degrading and more of a shocking spectacle than about people pleasuring each other. Young boys now grow up expecting that girls want to do the degrading acts that are shown in porn. In this sense porn has kind of crossed the line into a very unhealthy place.
End of the day if I'm horny and no one is around I will masturbate and I feel no sense of guilt or remorse about it. Im a human, I have human needs and I like to watch other humans pleasuring themselves.  It has zero effect on enlightenment or nirvana and anyone who tries to make you believe it does is full of shit.

How can you now that it has no effect on enlightenment? Are you enlightened? If the mind has lust and it distracts you from meditation, it has clearly an effect. Now, I'm not moralizing and indeed sex is "natural" (something nature gave us), but just because nature gave us doesn't make it good. I'm not implying on sex here but in general. What is the natural way of living? Living in tribes like ~60.000 years ago? Society is always changing and so does morality. 50 years ago women had less rights than nowadays. While lust and craving seem to be inborn, mindfulness (sati) and concentration isn't

If we dig deeper: Many preferences, dislikes and behaviours are geneticall predisposed and shaped environmentally. Porn and modern advertisements are over-stimulating your senses and they are a deception as well. It's not about being satisfied, but about longer, harder, bigger, better, sexier etc (refered to advertisement, sex and modern materialistic culture). It might be natural to give into craving, but are they ever satisfied? Don't believe me, look for yourself. Pleasure activities are almost always positive reinforcers (operant conditioning)

Increased cravings have usually larger implications than just in a single domain. One might think watching porn and giving in has no implications, how wrong. Buddha said: "Whatever a monk keeps pursuing with his thinking & pondering, that becomes the inclination of his awareness." So if one is always desirious, chances are high that one will be too in a relarionship & always crave the opposite sex, which could lead to problems. If the partner doesn't care then that is probably a sign of promiscuity. Lust is just short term (couple of seconds to a couple min.) Morality is long term happiness.

Avoidance of physical pleasure builds spiritual strength. However, which of these creates the greater harm - a mind preoccupied with desire, or a mind free from desire? As a physical being, natural urges will arise automatically. Do not immediately submit to such urges. First make an effort to deny that which is pleasurable to the body as this will build self-discipline and self-control and ultimately strengthen the spirit. If you deny the urge and it subsides to the point where you are able to function without distraction, then you will have successfully conquered your desire - this is a good thing. However, if your urges begin to interfere with your ability to exist in a peaceful state of mind and you are driven to release these urges in a manner that firstly does no harm to others, then you will because you are at a point of required balance - much like the bucket which can not resist spilling over when filled beyond capacity. An important point to remember is that the mind must always remain in control and not give way to overzealous thoughts while releasing the urge. Temper your pleasure with mental discipline realizing it is merely a natural physical release.


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Is realizing anatta, will it help meditation?
If i realise anatta will it help me calm and focus my mind in meditation? If so how?

If u do have realised Anatta u will not be feeling calm or uncalm, in fact u will not "feel" either.

Eliminating self-view (first realisation of Anatta) is the pre-requisite becoming a Sotapanna.
There is two type of meditation. (Samatha and Vipassana)
Realisation of Anatta is not required for Samatha meditation.
However, in Vipassana we contemplate on the Anatta.
My personal opinion is that realisation of Anatta will help both meditations.

Having some insight into anatta, even if it is intellectual, can help calm the mind because the anatta realisation subdues 'self-thinking', which is the cause of suffering & coarse discursive thoughts & emotions.
As a practise preliminary to formal meditation, it was taught:

Develop the meditation that is the perception of impermanence. For from developing the meditation that is the perception of impermanence,
  whatever 'I am’ conceit there is will be given up.
MN 62; MN 118

MN 62 is an example of where anatta was taught prior to formal (anapanasati) meditation. Here, the Buddha's son, Rahula, was instructed to reflect & discern how the physical body is composed of many natural elements (dhatu) rather than is a 'self'.
Later, in MN 147, Rahula was taught the same teaching on anatta as given in the 2nd sermon (correct translation here), from which Rahula reached full-enlightenment.
Therefore, developing a penetrative initial understanding of anatta, such as taught in MN 62, is a common Buddhist practise. However, it requires dedicated mental application & reflection.

"However, it requires dedicated mental application & reflection." Does this mean that thinking about it can bring one quite far? Experience is still far more important or how is this sentence to be understood?

Tanhā Jālinī Sutta, (Vicarita) Tanha Sutta shows most speculation about self and other lead to craving. The objective of meditation is to reduce craving, hence lack of craving helps you. Craving is linked to Sensual Pleasures which is also a Hindrance. Reducing hindrances also help calm your mind and meditate.

Not only anatta, all three characteristics: anicca , dukkha and anatta if one realize will definitely help. Depend on the personality and past deeds, one will come to know through insight meditation, the true nature of these three characteristics and get enlightened. If one have much more dukkha, he/she will suffer great difficulty to get through the severe  pain during meditation. Enlightenment through truly realizing Anicca is smooth and just to know what is what. In case of anatta, it is more and more subtle.

“Anatta” can be interpreted in a different way, that is different to the long-held meaning of ‘No-self’.  Here I will give my take on it. Many will not agree with it, but what matters is that this view will greatly help you calm and focus your mind in meditation. Is it not what you want here? Or do you want to get hooked up in the ‘Anatta’ that almost every book refers to? Let me give you some food for thought. If what you realize is “no-self”, then tell me, who attains Nibbana?, if you are “no-self”, then who does moral or immoral acts?
So instead take this to mean ‘Anatta’, and if you do, it will make an immediate transformation in the way you see things. Take “Anatta” to mean “one is really helpless in this rebirth process” or “one is not in control over the long run”. What got translated to Sanskrit as “anathma” is the Pali word “Anatta”.  For the Sanskrit word “anathma” the English gave the meaning “no-self”. Another question for you – what did the Buddha say about the two words “aathma” and “anaathma” in the Brahmajala sutta?
Whatever you say and do, unless you are an Arahant, you will always have the inner perception (sanna) of a “me”. There is no way that you can force yourself to believe in a no ‘me’.
So, when meditating, try contemplating that “there is nothing fruitful to be had in this world in the long run”, or “one is really helpless in this rebirth process”. In our native language, we say “anaatha” to mean that one is “utterly helpless”. When meditating, take real examples from your life. If you do this for some time, in time your cravings for things in this world will gradually wane.

what exactly are you referring to from the Brahmajala sutta? as for the rest of the post, it also has no foundation in the suttas but  just seems to be your own ideas......

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Permanent brain damage can cause someone to loose their Arihathness?
Brain is directory connected to mind. Examining the differences of wave patterns that emit from brain when someone is mad or meditating explains there is a direct connection. What if someone achieved nirvana or a lower state of the path to nirvana, and met in an accident and lost all his memories or had permanent brain damage due to a disease .  As an example in alzheimer’s disease brain shrinks and it losses its memories and abilities to think . So in a situation like this , can someone loose his state in the path to nirvana ?

This question just set off a bunch of other questions in my mind but I just forgot them...darn body!

"Will permanent brain damage can cause someone to loose their Arihathness ?
So in a situation like this , can someone loose his state in the path to nirvana ?"

In Theravada Buddhism the attainment of Nibbana is enumerated into 4 stages, also known as the Four stages of Enlightenment.
There are a total of 10 fetters (roots) that has to be broken in order to attain Nibbana.
The destruction of those roots comes in stages;

Stream-enterer

Once-returner

Non-returner

Arahant

As seen in the illustration below, the Arahant is free from the 5 lower fetters and the 5 higher fetters. When a fetter has been broken it does not come back. It is done away with for good. It is permanently destroyed.
So to answer your question: No, an arahant cannot loose his attainment.

Thank you for the detailed explanation. So this means the state of mind can't be changed due to a physical disability? Ps : I asked another question about the once-returner :-)

Welcome. I have made an answer to your other question.

Brain damage might reduce mental capacity.
An Arahat is free from the unwholesome roots, i.e., they have stopped reacting to sensual stimuli. Brain damage or not unwholesome roots do not arise again.
So they do not lose their attainment.

If he loose his memories , that means he can be an arahath without knowing he is an arahath , ?

I am not sure whether he will loose the perceptions he is one or not.

Arahathhood does not depend on the ability to remember. It depends on whether there are defilements in the mind or not. You can slice and dice and french fry the brain, but if there's something missing in the mind, it's never going to magically appear from nowhere.

At our place there was discourse by Geshela Navang Samatenji and he had told there are neurologists studying Buddhist monk's brain for understanding science behind tranquility.
They find changes in their brains.
Brain controls body by nervous system that neurons send signals from one cell to others, or from one part of the body to others. And that's why we get if mosquito bite us.
We get sense. We weren't get sense of it if there's problem in our nervous system. And that wouldn't affect mind.
Mind also handle body but we can see two different people minds i.e. Consider there are two people one who is criminal and another is monk whose brain damaged. What we could say both of their mind. That criminal's mind is already malicious and monk is Arahat so even if they'll be cure, criminal not going to be monk and monk to be criminal that brain can't change state of mind.
Mind can control body by desire.
Just take a look Brains of Buddhist monks scanned in meditation study.
They explained good, so you can see that mind (meditation) changed their brains and not brain did changed mind.
Research saying:

The scanner tracks blood flow within the monks' heads as they meditate inside its clunky walls, which echoes a musical rhythm when the machine is operating.
Dr Josipovic, who also moonlights as a Buddhist monk, says he is hoping to find how some meditators achieve a state of "nonduality" or "oneness" with the world, a unifying consciousness between a person and their environment.
When one relaxes into a state of oneness, the neural networks in experienced practitioners change as they lower the psychological wall between themselves and their environments, Dr Josipovic says.
And this reorganisation in the brain may lead to what some meditators claim to be a deep harmony between themselves and their surroundings.

Further they explained Shifting attention that brain appears to be organised into two networks: the extrinsic network and the intrinsic, or default, network.

So in short I'd say what Sankha answered. I'll provide good source.

Okay , means the nervous system doesn't have a relationship with the state of mind right?

@Iasan Yes, no relation within them.  And even I heard that Dr. advising meditation for patients who facing depression  and disorders regarding brain. Here is what you asked. Explained that Brain and Mind are two different entities.

Thanks to you too it could help all of us. Really nice question.

Brain is just matter(rupa) not nama. Brain is just like the something recording what is happening. Not to mention Arahantship, once Sotappana, this attainment of Noble truth never get destroyed not only in this life, it will be beyond life. So all Arya never lost their dhamma, even brain(mere rupa) is destroyed.

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Why Alaya Vinnana and Manas is not supported in Theravada?
Why Alaya Vinnana and Manas is not supported in Theravada?
The objective of this question is not to criticise Mahayana teaching, but to compare and contrast the idea so we will have a better understanding of Theravada.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eight_Consciousnesses

Would it be fair to say that Theravada is based on the Tipitaka, that Alaya Vinnana and Manas are not in the Tipitaka? Does that answer the question? I'm asking because I guess that could be a true answer but unsatisfying or trivial, so I'm wondering what more than that are you asking.

It is - https://www.budsas.org/ebud/ebdha195.htm
"Thus we can see that vijnana represents the simple reaction or response of the sense-organs when they come in contact with external objects. This is the uppermost or superficial aspect or layer of the vijnanaskandha. Manas represents the aspect of its mental functioning, thinking, reasoning, conceiving ideas, etc. Citta, which is here called alayavijnana, represents the deepest, finest and subtlest aspect or layer of the Aggregate of Consciousness. It contains all the traces or impressions of the past actions and all good and bad future potentialities. The Sandhinirmocana-sutra also says that alayavijnana is called citta (Tibetan sems)."

"It is" ... are you saying "It (Alaya Vinnana and Manas) is supported, in Theravada doctrine"?

In Theravada, there are five khandha (aggregates), namely, materiality, feeling, perception, mental formation (sankhara) & consciousness (vinnana).
Alaya Vinnana and Manas Vinnana is not supported in Theravada because alaya & manas are sankhara khandha rather than vinnana khandha.
Alaya is 'citta', which is 'sankhara khandha' & not vinnana khandha.
Manas is thinking & intellect, which is 'sankhara khandha' & not vinnana khandha.
Vinnana is the basic awareness that knows sights, sounds, smells, tastes, touches & mental objects, where these mental objects include citta & manas.
Since citta (alaya) and manas are objects of consciousness & are sankhara khandha, they are not a type of consciousness because they are objects (ayatana), similar to how a sound or smell is not consciousness but an object (ayatana).
The above should explain why these ideas of Alaya Vinnana and Manas Vinnana are not supported by Theravada.

An analogy is required here to prevent misunderstanding.
Imagine there is a bathroom with six mirrors, electric power points (wall sockets) & a bathroom cabinet to store soap, shampoo, razors, etc.

In this bathroom:

The six mirrors are the six consciousnesses, which have a purpose of merely reflecting;
The electric power points are 'manas', which have the purpose of thinking, decision making, intention, etc; and
The bathroom cabinet is 'alaya' or 'citta', which stores emotions, defilements, tendencies, wisdom, metta, etc.

Its like a computer, with six computer screens.

In this computer:

The six computer screens are like the six consciousness.
The CPU is like manas.
The hard drive is like alaya or citta.

Manas & alaya are not types of consciouness. These two ideas, namely, manas vinanna & alaya vinnana, arise from a miscomprehension of mental reality. Its like believing a dog is a planet.


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If someone was an Once-returner in last life how can he know that ?
There are 4 stages in the path to nirvana.  one of them is called "Once-returner" and they will be born only once as a human. So my question is , If Someone was an once-returner in last life , how can he know it in this life ? And if he does nothing in this life to attain nirvana, will he automatically be arahath and no rebirths?

Ps: image is based on an answer which @Lanka has provided to my last question.

From the table, once-returner reborn once in human world might not match well with a case of  Migasala's father, Purana, who was a once-returner reborn in Dusita Heaven.

If I have moved beyond 1-3, conquered 5 but still 70/30 on 4. Done with 6&7, problems with 8, no issue with 9 and working on 10 ... where would that put me? just curious thank you my friend!

I think after attainment of Stream-Entry stage, the "births" will be in the spiritual realms and not earth. Maybe only few ones will come back to this earth with their choices for different reasons. The Buddhist texts also say that the birth can be in heaven realms "or" earth.

"So my question is , If Someone was an once-returner in last life , how can he know it in this life ?"

When one has attained to stream entry and the higher stages such as Once-returner etc. both ones morality and spiritual faculties (indriyas) are well developed and firmly established.
When they are mature and well developed we call them the Five Powers. They work in unison each balancing and strengthening each other further.
This creates a powerful momentum and that momentum might mean that a Once-returner does not have the possible to "stop" on his/her path. That being would be so inclined towards Nibbana that anything else is not possible.
A Once-returner has done away with 3 of the lower 5 fetters and have weakened fetter no. 4 and 5. Especially the removal of fetter no. 2 (doubt in the Buddha) is important. A Once-returner will have full confidence in the Buddha and his teaching as he/she has already destroyed fetters and entered into the noble path.

"And if he does nothing in this life to attain nirvana, will he automatically be arahath and no rebirths?"

I'm not sure its possible to do nothing once one has entered into the stream.
Either way the Once-returner still needs to practice in order to remove the 5 higher fetters thereby attaining to Arahantship.
A Once-returner will be reborn one more time into the Sense-sphere Realm which contains; the Hell realm, Pretas, Animal Kingdom, Asuras, Human Realm and Deva Realm (heavenly realm).
As the 3 lower fetters has been destroyed a Once-returner can only be reborn in either the Human or Heavenly Realm.

In the Udakupama Sutta: The Water Simile is is said that there are seven types of individuals are to be found existing in the world. Of the seven, the once-returner:

is like the case where an individual comes to the surface, [seeing,] 'Conviction in skillful qualities is good, conscience is good, concern is good, persistence is good, discernment with regard to skillful qualities is good.' With the total ending of [the first] three fetters, and with the attenuation of passion, aversion, & delusion, he becomes a once-returner, who — on returning only one more time to this world — will make an ending to stress.

In coming into the world, a once-returner knows who or what s/he is because of a special ability. The ability to figure this out is called the “namarupa paricceda nana“. This basically means “rupa” are according “nama” - one’s body is according to one’s thinking. It is because he/she is likely to display qualities or “gathi” of of the previous birth.

Please see https://what-buddha-said.net/Canon/Sutta/KN/Dhammapada.Verse_18.story.htm
Once returner, Sumanadevi, youngest daughter of Anathapindika, she knew what is what and even remind her father, a sottappti at her death-bed. Their Dhamma is never destroyed after-life and when it is time just by reviewing the nana already attained, they will get nibbana.

And if he does nothing in this life to attain nirvana, will he automatically be arahath and no rebirths?

He may becomes a non returner and be born in the pure abodes.

Once-returner, Sakadagami, has to remove first 3 fetters and reduce binding strength in 4 and 5 fetters.  It's up for debate which world they would reappear after death.  Buddha said Loka which could mean heaven or human realm.  However, a case example of a sakadagami death during Buddha's time, a sakadagami appeared in heaven Dusita.
IMO, sakadagami would reappear once in heaven. In contrast with Ekpechi Stream-enterer (stream enterer who would be reborn in human world one more time). For Ekpechi, Buddha used reborn into a clan , kula, which exclusively human.
non-returners only reappear in Pure Abodes (Suddhavasa) which divided into 5 catagories; Āviha, Ātappa, Sudassa, Sudassī, Akanittha
I am studying anagami according to Buddha's words and found something interesting that others may have noticed too.
It is traditionally known that anagami has to remove 5 lower fetters to be one but I found a few sutta that might not be the case.  Buddha only explicitly mentioned that those in Akanittha have eliminated lower 5 fetters but not for the other 4 categories; Āviha, Ātappa, Sudassa, Sudassī.
example is from Metta Sutta ii, where Buddha said noble disciples who practice Kindness medition and see 5 sense gates as impermanent etc., upon breaking up of body, he would reappear in Suddhavasa as non-returner.  There is no mentioning of 5 lower fetters here (but Noble disciples are automatically known that they have broken first 3 fetters).
Akanittha is reserved for those without 5 lower fetters, but I am not certain yet exclusively for the other 4;  Āviha, Ātappa, Sudassa, Sudassī.

please provide some links for what you post. thanks.

I have not read in the Pali suttas of any examples of when a non-arahant noble-one was reincarnated back to earth as a human being.
For example, the idea that a stream-enterer has seven more lives has no basis in the suttas because the sutta (SN 13.1) that has the phrase "seven more times at most" does not mention "lives" but refers to seven more fetters to breakthrough.
I have not read anywhere a logical explanation of what the term "once-returner" means, apart from the fetters broken through or reduced.
Since all arahants at one time were stream-enterers, these terms obviously do not refer to lifetimes.

Could you point to where exactly SN 13.1 mentions 7 fetters? My understanding is that sattakkhattuṃparamatta means seven lives at most .I don't see how phrase sattakkhattu can be translated to seven fetters. Thanks.

Paramatā means "at most" For stream enterer with broken 3 fetters and still 7 AT MOST fetters to go doesn't make much sense since it is exactly 7 more to go.  Unless ariyasāvakassa diṭṭhisampannassa also includes none-returner , then 7 at most fetters would make more sense in this context.

SN 13.1 does not mention "lives" therefore what exactly is your "understanding"? Since when was "understanding" in Buddhism some kind of blind faith? The sutta is about fetters therefore there are 7 fetters at most. It is not exactly 7 fetters because the stream-enterer may not break the remaining fetters. My logic makes perfect sense in the context of the sutta, which is about the BREAKTHROUGH. There are 7 more breakthroughs at most.


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What the Buddha saw
In a book I am reading it says "This is what the Buddha realized by examining himself. With his strongly concentrated mind, he penetrated deeply into his own nature and found that the entire material structure is composed of minute subatomic particles which are continuously arising and vanishing. In the snapping of a finger or the blinking of an eye, he said, each one of these particles arises and passes away many trillions of times."
I don't understand how he saw this? What exactly did he see? When I meditate I dont see this. I just see thoughts.

Good question and even better asked When I meditate I dont see this., You have the right attitude, may you reach fruition on The Path!

Superstition (unknowable unverified belief) takes many forms, including: "each one of these particles arises and passes away many trillions of times".
What the Buddha primarily saw in the enlightenment was how the mental generation of 'self-views' causes suffering.

"I don't understand how he saw this? What exactly did he see?"

The question might fall under the Four Imponderables, namely the first acinteyya, i.e. the range of powers a Buddha develops:

The four imponderables are identified in the Acintita Sutta, Anguttara Nikaya 4.77, as follows:
The Buddha-range of the Buddhas [i.e., the range of powers a Buddha develops as a result of becoming a Buddha];
The jhana-range of one absorbed in jhana [i.e., the range of powers that one may obtain while absorbed in jhana];
The [precise working out of the] results of kamma;
Speculation about [the origin, etc., of] the cosmos is an imponderable that is not to be speculated about.

These imponderables the Buddha advices not to contemplate since they will only serve to agitate and destabilize the mind making it less suitable for practice.

Is this the same as a "vexing question"?

@nocomprende I don't know what a quote-unquote-vexing question is. This translation says "would bring madness & vexation", so, maybe yes: that is the same. I classify it as a question which leads to a "thicket of wrong views" -- which IMO want Alexander's solution to the Gordian Knot e.g. the way to solve the question is not to ask it, or to avoid it on the grounds that it "doesn't lead to the cessation of stress" and is therefore off-topic or unhealthy.

@ChrisW Wow I thought that the phrase "vexing question" was unique to Buddhism and well-known within it. Not sure what text I first read it in long ago, apparently it is not so commonplace as I thought. But, there is no reason you-all can not start using it now, since it it so apt, poignant and self-explanatory! I don't have a trademark on it.

I think this ideas are initially coming from Visuddhimaga and then from Abhidhamma Sangahata. Some commentators do not attribute this to Buddha as these are late additions. My personal opinion is that it is not that hard for a advanced practitioner to experience these.

In the Dhanuggaha Sutta, in referring to an individual lifetime, the Buddha said “faster than the speed of the devas who rush ahead of the sun and moon, the force of one’s life span comes to an end”. In the Abidhamma, it is said that the most fundamental unit, the smallest ever that is found survives only 17 mind moments (citta kshana). One mind/thought-moment (cittakshana) is so short that it has been estimated that there are approximately 8,125 moments in a second. Distinguishing these cittakshana is harder than identifying cetasika.
In the Milindapañha it is said that, "If a man were to take a handful of water from the ocean and tasting it could say, ‘This water is from the Ganges, this from the Jumna, this from the Gandak, this from the Sarabhu, and this from the Mahi.’ More difficult than this is the distinguishing of those mental states that accompany any one of the senses."
As it is said in Abidhamma, the smallest particle lives only 17 mind moments, but it still consists of the 8 dhatu: Apo (Liquidity), Thejo (Heat), Wayo (Air), Patavi (Solidness), Warna (Color), Gandha (Smell), Rasa (Taste) and Ojasa (juice). Only a Buddha could see to such a level of detail, and see through the minute subatomic particles which are continuously arising and vanishing.

The buddha teachers what he has realised for himself. Regarding matter most information is found the Abhidhamma.

The Life-Time of Matter-Rūpa
The life-time of matter or Rūpa is 17 times longer than that of
citta. So, we can say that the life-time of rūpa is equal to 17
cittakkhaṇas, or 17 conscious moments, or 51 short instants (17X3 =
51); as there are 3 short instants in a moment of consciousness.
Thus, rūpa also arises and dissolves at a tremendous rate of more
than 58 billion times per second. The difference between citta and
rūpa is as follows: citta arise one after another, whereas rūpa arise by
manifesting as thousands of units in a small instant and it goes on
constantly arising at every small instant in time. Therefore, rūpa may
accumulate to become large masses that are visible to the naked eye,
whereas the fleeting stream of consciousnesses is invisible to the
naked eye.

Source: Process of Consiousness and Matter by Bhaddanta Dr. Rewata Dhamma
Through the Buddha did not preach everything he realised. What is important is found in the Teachings. Though you might not see them for your self out of faith perhaps you can accept. Through meditation parts of it may get revealed, but not to the extend the Buddha comprehended. If the parts you see is true perhaps you can assume the rest is true too.
Also any meditator who reaches the stage of Udayabbaya ñana and beyond can see the arising and passing of matter.

Tho 'm reserved to take 17/51 or whatever the defined, I do get inspired by the quoted last part abt The difference between citta and rupa... I suggest to give ur answer some tone of indetermination but just a reference point would help keeping it free from incorrect imposition of any unconfirmed ideas. Imo the Ultimate Truth couldn't be confined or tagged by any human numbering, numbering belongs to the intellect only.

Buddha sasana is Sila, Samadhi and panna. Depend on this one will see through the dhamma to certain extent accordingly. If to compare Buddha knowledge to the deep deep ocean, sotappana has one length of bamboo plant, sakadagami, twice, anagami, thrice, and arahant, four time of that bamboo length to measure the depth of deep deep ocean. So rupa and nama how come and go, you can see through depend on your level.

Buddha isn't a regular human being, that's why you are unable to see something like that.


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What is the concept of "Ego" or "self "?
What is the concept of "Ego" or "self "?
In buddhism there's concept called no self.Does is mean there's no "me" at all or does it mean that "me" cannot understood with out " you ".

Look at topics tagged [tag:anatman], see also topics like What are examples of identity-view? and How are 'conceit' and 'identity-view' not the same?

The Buddhist concept is not no self but non self or not self. What this means is there nothing that can be taken as self. There is no permanent unchanging core or soul, there is nothing which you command and control absolutely, there is nothing that an external agency (e.g. God) commands and controls.
Identity view is considering your 5 Aggregates as self, i.e., you consider your body and / or mind as self. In which case if you consider after cutting your hair that this hair is me or a part of me on the floor. The toilet pit is full of me because it was in me at some point. Likewise you should not consider past memories, experiences, thoughts or even your own body as me or mine, because there is no me or mine in the constituting parts, there is no control in any of the parts, each constituent is governed by its own universal law and process which you cannot control.

The hair cut and toilet similes are funny :)

It means that there are various things you might view as yourself (e.g. "I am my body" or "I am my thoughts" or "I am my feelings" etc.), however any and all these views lead to suffering; and that the way to end suffering includes abandoning these views of self (all views of self).
The most famous sutta on the subject is the Anatta-lakkhana Sutta, which says that the body leads to disease, and we can't say "Let my body be this was or not be that way". It says that if the body were self then we'd be able to control it, and that it's because it's not-self that we cannot (and so on for the other aggregates). It's therefore not proper (Pali kalla, also translated skillful, healthy, sound) to consider it self.
My favourite (because I think it's the clearest) sutta on the subject is paragraph 23 of the The Discourse on the Snake Simile -- Alagaddupama Sutta (MN 22) (read the paragraphs before and after this one to get the context):

"You may well accept, monks, the assumption of a self-theory[27] from the acceptance of which there would not arise sorrow and lamentation, pain, grief, and despair. (But) do you see, monks, any such assumption of a self-theory?" — "No, Lord." — "Well, monks, I, too, do not see any such assumption of a self-theory from the acceptance of which there would not arise sorrow and lamentation, pain, grief and despair."

There's more for example in MN 2, where it talks about "a thicket of wrong views".

The human being is nothing but a collection of five aggregates, a process of complex and rapidly changing (impermanent) psycho-physical organism (nama-rupa), sustained by nutriments, driven by craving in the background of ignorance. But there is a connotation of a “self” in perceiving, feeling, thinking and cognizing that there is a real person, permanent soul or a being in control of it. This false sense of "I" is the Ego.
Ego, in the sense of egotism or selfishness, is a dreadful thing. But the ego in the sense of learning how to function in a way that figures out what is really in your true best interest, and used in a way you’re going to be able to stay on the path, then it is a good thing.  In reading The Problem of Egolessness by Thanissaro Bhikkhu you will see the error in our thinking about the ego and understand its harmful effects.

"Me" is a survival instinct, say like the emotion of lust, anger or fear are a survival instinct. Just as anger is a fleeting & passing mood, so is the instinct of 'self'.
For example, the 'self' or 'me' the mind may sense & believe it is today is probably different to the sense & idea of 'self' or 'me' the mind had when it was 3 years old.
Enlightened Buddhists have experienced the dissolution of the 'self' instinct, similar to you may have often experienced the dissolution of an angry mood.
Therefore, to enlightened Buddhists, the 'self' is not a real or permanent 'self'. It is just a mood that arises when the mind is suffering from possessiveness due to lust, anger or fear.
You can read more here: Anatta & Rebirth: Buddhadasa Bhikkhu

Agree. Buddhist writing does not seem to contain an exact match for the modern meaning of 'ego', which basically comes from Freud. Present day people keep looking in vain for this precise idea in Buddhism. Not Self is simpler and more direct, and this answer explains why self arises to begin with. Good.

Self is a "mental fabrication" or "construction"; just as the idea of "god", "santa claus" or the 'tooth fairy" is a mental construction. See link: http://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/sn/sn22/sn22.081.than.html "assumes form to be a self. That assumption is a fabrication. Now what is the cause, what is the origination, what is the birth, what is the coming-into-existence of that fabrication? To an uninstructed, run-of-the-mill person, touched by that which is felt born of contact with ignorance, craving arises. That fabrication is born of that. "


text:
Pali question: "seven more life times at most"
Here is the Pali from the Nakhasikhā Sutta, which is about the "breakthrough" of three fetters, for a disciple of the noble ones who is consummate in view, an individual who has broken through [to stream-entry]:

Evaṃ me sutaṃ—   ekaṃ samayaṃ bhagavā sāvatthiyaṃ viharati jetavane
  anāthapiṇḍikassa ārāme. Atha kho bhagavā parittaṃ nakhasikhāyaṃ
  paṃsuṃ āropetvā bhikkhū āmantesi: “taṃ kiṃ maññatha, bhikkhave,
  katamaṃ nu kho bahutaraṃ, yo vāyaṃ mayā paritto nakhasikhāyaṃ paṃsu
  āropito, ayaṃ vā mahāpathavī”ti?
“Etadeva, bhante, bahutaraṃ, yadidaṃ mahāpathavī. Appamattako
  bhagavatā paritto nakhasikhāyaṃ paṃsu āropito. Neva satimaṃ kalaṃ
  upeti na sahassimaṃ kalaṃ upeti na satasahassimaṃ kalaṃ upeti
  mahāpathaviṃ upanidhāya bhagavatā paritto nakhasikhāyaṃ paṃsu
  āropito”ti. “Evameva kho, bhikkhave, ariyasāvakassa
  diṭṭhisampannassa puggalassa abhisametāvino etadeva bahutaraṃ
  dukkhaṃ yadidaṃ parikkhīṇaṃ pariyādiṇṇaṃ; appamattakaṃ avasiṭṭhaṃ.
  Neva satimaṃ kalaṃ upeti na sahassimaṃ kalaṃ upeti na satasahassimaṃ
  kalaṃ upeti purimaṃ dukkhakkhandhaṃ parikkhīṇaṃ pariyādiṇṇaṃ
  upanidhāya yadidaṃ sattakkhattuṃparamatā. Evaṃ mahatthiyomaha kho,
  bhikkhave, dhammābhisamayo; evaṃ mahatthiyo
  dhammacakkhupaṭilābho” ti.
sattakkhattuṃ: seven times. + paramatā: (in cpds.) the highest
  quality; at the most.

Where is the word "lives" or "lifetimes" found here?

This might be a rhetorical question and unanswerable in its current form. It might be better to ask "why is this understood to mean 'seven lifetimes'?" or to ask "Since when has it been understood this way?" or "Are there other ways to interpret this phrase?" or something like that.

@ChrisW Why might it be unanswerable?  Peoples comfort level and actual Dhamma truth are two different things.

I get the feeling that this community can just trump the Dhamma any time it wants to react with a "vote". Dhamma is not a democracy and it certainly has nothing to do with the idea of "political correctness".

Sattakkhattuṃparamatā  means - කෙත් වතු 7 ක් පමණයි පසු කර ගත යුත්තේ. This word has a rhetorical, metaphorical and symbolic meaning -  to mean… “One has to cross only seven more fields of (fenced or unfenced) cultivated land. This is what is meant by Sattakkhattuṃparamatā

@UUU I tried to answer your question, here.

There is not one account of any stream-enterer returning to earth after death in the Pali suttas. Instead, the stream-enterer always enter a heavenly realm at death. There is obviously no such thing as seven more reincarnations.

"What I tell you three times is true."

Focusing on pali might not clarify the meaning since it is semantics.  Perhaps other sutta to support and confirm the 7 rebirths (at most) might help you find the answer you are looking for.  From saupadisesa sutta, Buddha classified stream enterer into three categories ,their destinations ,and number of lifetimes;

Ekbiji .  single sprout.  Ekamyeva manusakam bhava nibbattetva (born into human one time and reach nirvana
kolankolo. Two or three times birth.  dve vā tīṇi vā kulāni sandhāvitvā.  Born in clans (human) and/or heaven 2 or 3 times.
sattakkhattuparamo. sattakkhattuparamaṃ deve ca manusse ca sandhāvitvā saṃsaritvā.  Born in heaven or human world 7 times at the most.

Did you notice Buddha used sattakkhattu in both sutta? Tho he didn't explicitly explain 7 lives in Nakhasikhā Sutta, he did so in saupadisesa sutta.  This leaves very little room about the answer to your question for interpretation.
Buddha had names for three types of stream enterer,  explained their destinations and number of times.
sattakkhattuṃ most likely means seven lifetimes not seven fetters.
I hope my answer helps.
Saupadisesa sutta

Thanks. Your answer obviously does not help because it is superstition & contrary to sanditthiko. If I told you Jesus will give you eternal life would that help? AN 9.12 is illogical plus the language is way too complex to have clear meaning. It is illogical because many stream-enterers in the suttas (such as Kondanna & Sariputtta) attained arahantship. It seems illogical stream-enters would wander around for 7 lifetimes when many stream-enterers attained arahantship in 7 weeks. I would suggest AN 9.12 is a form of corrupted dhamma since it does not even mention arahants with residue left.

In SN 15.10, it states: "That person for seven at times at most makes an end of suffering by destroying all other fettters"

AN 9.12 just states the stream-enterer wanders more in human & deva realms, which SN 56.47 and AN 4.123, for example, define 'human' as understanding the noble truths & 'deva' as the jhanas. I think the language of AN 9.12 is simply too complex to be taken materialistically.

SN 56.47, it's about the odds of  being to be a human is rare (blind turtle..etc) in respect to both time and window of opportunity  (yoke with hole).  at the end of sutta, Buddha reminds monks that they have gotten this rare opportunity, therefore, use it to learn 4 noble truths (because it isnt going to be easy and will be a long time to have this chance again).

AN 4.123 jahna sutta, message in this sutta, Buddha tells us that mental absorbtion is not exclusively for noble diciples.  He goes on to explain that 2 types in 4 groups of people (one for each level of form  Jhana), lay persons and noble diciples.  Upon breaking up of this human form, both will reappear in brahma world.  After that, lay persons will go to lower birth when noble diciples will reach nirvana.  And this is the difference  between lay persons and noble diciples with Jhana.

I don't see SN 56.47 or AN 4.123 are in conflict with AN 9.12.  If anything,  They support it. Steam enterer gurantees at least this rare human birth, and at most,  7 times.

From your comment "In SN 15.10, it states: "That person for seven at times at most makes an end of suffering by destroying all other fettters" ", I try to understand it from your point of view of seven at times as seven fetters and it doesn't make sense that the word "fetters" is used twice in the sentence like that. "That person for seven FETTERS at most makes an end of suffering by destroying all other fettters" .

Clear and short as needed Buddha said, not to take verbatim. Just to praise the benefit of sotapanna. Sometimes one universe metaphorically said like one palm tree, just like that, suffering in long samsara(long, long duration) just compared to seven lifetime(just  like a wink of eye) at the most of sotapanna.

The Nakhasikha Sutta in the Samyutta Nikaya, describes the unimaginably large amount of defilements (and thus future suffering and stress) a Sotapanna has removed compared to a normal human being. The Sutta has this to say:
Once the Buddha picked up a little bit of dust with the tip of his fingernail, and asked the bhikkhus, “What do you think, bhikkhus? Which is greater: the little bit of dust I have picked up with the tip of my fingernail, or the soil in this great Earth?”.
Then the Buddha told the bhikkhus that the amount of defilements that a Sotapanna has removed can be compared to the soil in the whole Earth, while the amount that he/she has left to remove can be compared to the bit of dust on his fingernail.
This tells that the amount of suffering a Sotapanna has left to be endured within seven future bhava is insignificantly small. This is to say that a Sotapanna will never get to the four lowest realms, and s/he will have only seven future bhava left, and those in the human realm or the realms above it. This is so, if we take Sattakkhattuṃparamatā  means - කෙත් වතු 7 ක් පමණයි පසු කර ගත යුත්තේ. This word has a rhetorical, metaphorical and symbolic meaning -  to mean… “One has to cross only seven more fields of (fenced or unfenced) cultivated land. This is what is meant by Sattakkhattuṃparamatā  means - කෙත් වතු 7 ක් පමණයි පසු කර ගත යුත්තේ. This word has a rhetorical, metaphorical and symbolic meaning -  to mean… “One has to cross only seven more fields of (fenced or unfenced) cultivated land. This is what is meant by Sattakkhattuṃparamatā to mean seven bhava the most.
What is the correct meaning of Sattakkhattuṃparamatā. Give me a couple of months the most, and I will give you the deeper meaning of this term. For now let us understand what Sotapanna means, and how could one come to this.
Out of dasa akusala, only micca ditthi is completely removed at the Sotapanna stage. A Sotapanna would have reduced the “apayagami strength” of most of the other dasa akusala. This is the key to understand this level of attainment. In particular, to get to know that  abhijja or lobha  is reduced to raga level and vyapada or dosa is reduced to patigha level at this stage.
A Sotapanna is said to have achieved “dassanena pahatabba” or removal of defilements via correct vision, with the removal of micca ditthi, or attaining the first stage of Samma Ditthi. Now what is micca ditthi?. My belief as of now is that, if one firmly believes that there is no rebirth or there are no other living beings other than humans and animals, that firm belief is Niyata Micca Ditthi . In finding out the correct meaning of Sattakkhattuṃparamatā, may help in getting to know whether not believing in future bhava is Niyata Micca Ditthi (established wrong views) or not.
If one has a vessel that is leaking water, there is no point in trying to plug the smaller holes first. One should plug the biggest hole first, which in this case is getting rid of micca ditthi or false views (about this world).
One cannot pretend to believe in things that one truly does not believe in. To just say that “I do believe in rebirth” is one such.  This is a sanna ( “perception”) that one has to be true to. Otherwise it will not work. We “acquire” most sanna through our families first, then through friends, schools, workplaces, etc.
Thus most of our “world views” or ditthis are acquired through our families. Those sannas are hard to change, depending on how forcefully and frequently they have been used. However, human mind is unique. When given enough solid evidence, one’s sanna about something or some concept can permanently change.
That kind of a “vision change” does not happen quickly, unless one has “sanna” about that from previous lives; that is why it is easier for some people to grasp these concepts.

Sotapanna is supramundane. Sotapanna does not even believe they have a present life let alone a past life.

Rightly or wrongly, I have my own take on this. The day that this question is raised as an OP, I look forward to answering it. Till then... with metta..

Sattakkhattuṃparamatā means - කෙත් වතු 7 ක් පමණයි පසු කර ගත යුත්තේ. This word has a rhetorical, metaphorical and symbolic meaning - to mean… “One has to cross only seven more fields of (fenced or unfenced) cultivated land. This is what is meant by Sattakkhattuṃparamatā


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How do you know if you have bad/good karma?
Is it possible to know if you have bad or good karma?
A lot of things have happened to me in life that is very negative. I believe partially it is my own fault because the way I am and how others perceive me, but a lot of it I don't think I deserve. I often contemplate what did I do to be on the receiving end of all my negative karma. As a result, I think negative and become very introverted and isolated.
Question: Are all the bad things that happen to me are negative karma or is it "just me"? How can I change my thoughts to be more positive despite a tremendous amount of negativity in my life?

I'm going to add a pragmatic answer, because while I think many of the other answers touched on this problem correctly, I don't find some of the explanations completely clear.
In the most basic terms 'karma' is the idea that every action you make has a reaction. If you do something, something else will happen in response. There is nothing supernatural about it, there is nothing about past lives involved, it's just a matter of what happens in response to your behaviour.
And so some of the fundamental tenets of buddhism are aimed at controlling your behaviour. This is important because it helps to control the responses to your behaviour. In other words, if you live a good life and do good things, take responsibility for yourself, treat people well, good things will tend to, but not always, happen to you. Conversely, if you do bad things and don't take responsibility for yourself, then bad things will happen to you.
So as far as karma is concerned this is pretty much all you need to know: that what I put out to the world, I get back in return.

Very good question.
Some of it is your parents' karma, some is tribal/group karma, some is previous lives karma and then from that, like a branch off of another branch off of trunk, grows your personal karma in this life. So old karma sets the overall direction for new karma, but you can still turn your "twig" in a different direction if you decide.
How do you know which karma is yours from this life and which you inherited from before? You can see in meditation, but more importantly it's all yours in some very important sense: the previous life karma expresses itself through your present karma. However it happened in the past, you are the heir, you are the owner of all that stuff now. Only you can fix it now. So if you get enough inspiration and will power, and enough guidance and insight, you can change your situation and your behavior completely, and start creating completely different karma. Through a combination of suffering (from the fruits of bad karma), luck (encountering true dharma), inspiration (faith), and will or intent (determination to change) - you can change your life completely.
Specifically, to change the thoughts from positive to negative: first you have to set the Right Goal. Then you need to start reviewing all your actions (physical, verbal, and mental - i.e. thoughts!) in light of the goal, and planning your actions -- at least one step in advance -- to make sure they get you closer to the goal, not away from it. And once you keep trying and get better at this, you should look at your actions and congratulate yourself: "look, I am getting better at this". The more you do this, the more it will turn your thoughts from negative to positive.
Hope this helps.

Thank you for taking the time to write this answer! What you mean by true dharma (luck)?

So I thought only Buddha's could see karma, or are you saying you can interpret your past karma based on your current karma?

not sure if this is true dhamma, but somewhere I read that to become a buddha, one must bring his parents to the dhamma — if that is the case, past kamma affecting present kamma could be improved, too? tell me if you think this is completely wrong.

I don't remember if the Buddha brought his father to Dharma.? I think they barely reconciled?

Is it possible to know if you have bad or good karma?

Yes.

A lot of things have happened to me in life that is very negative.

This is normal.

I believe partially it is my own fault because the way I am

It will be your fault when you perform certain actions rather than because of how you are. The phrase "the way I am" has no relevance in Buddhism. What is relevant is the manner & quality of your actions towards others.

and how others preserve of me

Most people are subject to greed, hatred & delusion therefore not all people will view you with friendliness & loving-kindness (metta).

but a lot of it I don't think I deserve.

Often the hatred of others has nothing to do with you therefore it is not related to anything you "deserve".

I often contemplate what did I do to be on the receiving end of all my negative karma.

Your statement here is too general. For example, if your society has social pressures, this can make people, including your parents, inwardly angry.
You should examine or investigate:

Your personal actions.
The social, political & economic environment of others, which influences their actions.

As a result, I think negative and become very introverted and isolated.

You should learn about what 'skilful karma' is and then examine your own behaviour & the behaviour of others according to what is skilful.

Question: Are all the bad things that happen to me are negative karma or is it "just me"?

The word "karma" means "intentional action". There is no such thing as "past life kamma" affecting your present life. Such ideas are useless superstition & speculations because since you cannot know what you did a past life how can you change what you did in a past life?
The Buddha taught people act with:

greed, hatred, delusion & cruelty.
friendliness, compassion, equanimity & non-cruelty.

You should learn to examine your own actions and the actions of others based on these criteria to learn if the 'negativity' is caused by you provoking others or caused by the hatred & anger of others or a combination of both.
Today, our world has so many angry & selfish people who are unable to be truly friendly with others. This is related to social, political & economic factors rather than due to intangible speculative ideas about "past life kamma'.

How can I change my thoughts to be more positive despite a tremendous amount of negativity in my life?

As above. You need to start learning about the true Buddhist teachings and find some spiritual friends to help you learn.

Thank you for your answer. In the first paragraph below "Question: Are all the bad things that.."  you say that past life karma is irrelevant which as a human being in this world I can agree with but from what I was taught and my readings of the Buddhist texts; it is relevant in some form. I forget from what sutra but I recall reading a story of revenge/hatred spanning several life times.

Many Buddhist texts are obviously false. Buddhism disappeared from India due to the corruption of the teachings. Buddhism began as something very pure & focused on here-&-now phenomena. But as Buddhism sought to expand its influence & following, it taught about past lives because this is what many people want to believe. On this forum, most people believe in past & future lives because they want to be reborn again. In his original teachings, the Buddha said what he taught is "visible here & now". Regards

now you got me thinking.. how does one interpret the real from the exaggerated Buddhist text? So are you saying past lives are not real?

Also what is 'skillful karma'?

Skilful karma is not killing; not stealing; not having sex with persons attached to others so the sexual relationship causes others to be unhappy; honest speech; pleasant/gentle speech; cordial/undivisive speech; beneficial speech; non-greed; not-hatred; gratitude. See link: http://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/an/an10/an10.176.than.html

In Theravada Buddhist countries, every day, the monks chant the qualities of the teachings, which is: "visible here-&-now, timeless (immediate), inviting verification, pertinent, to be realized by the wise for themselves".  This is the true Dhamma. See Link: http://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/an/an06/an06.047.than.html

The intention (volition or "cetana" in Pali) becomes your kamma as Buddha said in the Nibbedhika Sutta: Penetrative

"Intention, I tell you, is kamma. Intending, one does kamma by way of body, speech, & intellect."

You can apply this to your own life – your past, present & future. For instance you will see inequality in comparing yourself with with your friends and loved ones. In seeing this through Dhamma, Cula-kammavibhanga Sutta: The Shorter Exposition of Kamma will come to mind. Buddha said in this sutta:

"Human beings are owners of kammas, heirs of kammas, they have kammas as their progenitor, kammas as their kin, kammas as their homing-place. It is kammas that differentiate beings according to inferiority and superiority."

This sutta suggest that habitual tendencies of the mind (gathi) play an important role in what you are in your past, present & future.  when one thinks, speaks, and bodily acts, a trace of those thoughts, speech, and actions are recorded (like a tape) in the mind plane. On the other hand, the kammic energies associated with a person’s activities are also recorded in the mind plane as kamma seeds having kammic energies associated with them. The real danger in building up bad habits (gathi) is that one could progressively get into worse habits. A teenager who starts drinking could then start using drugs; then it could lead to hanging out with even worse friends and get into drug dealing or even killings. To break away from bad gathi, one needs to make a determination not only to stop such bad activities but also to build up the opposite good gathi, and start heading in the right direction.
If ever you live long, it is due to wholesome kammas before his previous birth unlike that of a person who has engaged in a lot of killing in a past life. However it is important to note that these are guidelines (not rules) and no one can predict the exact destiny of birth of someone. Kamma Vipaka (results) therefore is a very complex subject with many mechanisms in action. Now we can see why Buddha categorized this as a one of the "Acinitita" subjects in Pali.
When you ask How do you know if you have bad/good karma, what you really want to know is, as to "why do bad things happen to good people?"  Being a part of this community, you are sure to do wholesome kamma, and rightfully you expect good results in return. If you are a "good person", then you should not get "bad results". However it will not be so. Bad things are sure to come your way. How could this be explained? Again in referring to the scriptures, you will find three types of kamma with regard to the time of their results:

kamma resulting in this life-time (ditthadhamma-vedaniya-kamma),
  kamma resulting in the next life (upapajja-vedaniya-kamma),
  kamma resulting in later lives (aparapariya-vedaniya-kamma).

The reason for bad things to happen to good people is not only due to Kamma. It is not the sole determining factor. Buddha's teachings explain that there are five orders or processes (Niyama Dhamma)  They are enumerated and defined in the Dhammasaṅgaṇī-aṭṭhakathā:

Utu Niyama(Physical-Seasonal changes and climate)
Bija Niyama(Biological/Genetic inheritance)
Kamma Niyama (Ethical /Consequences of one's actions)
Citta Niyama (Psychological/Will of mind)
Dhamma Niyama (Laws of nature).

What we can learn from this is that what we experience in life, day in and day out, is the result of a complex interactions of physical, biological, psychological, ethical, or laws of nature. Kamma may play a predominant role, but what  ripens is a result of the other four conditions coming together. Therefore kamma is only one of the five factors that come into play when something happens to us, either good or bad.

In the Acintita Sutta, the Buddha recommends not to conjecture about kamma due to its complexity.

"There are these four unconjecturables that are not to be conjectured about, that would bring madness & vexation to anyone who conjectured about them. Which four?
...
"The [precise working out of the] results of kamma...

For example, a tree might fall on your house. That could be a result of past kamma, but it might also have nothing to do with your kamma. The weather was bad and the winds were blowing strong, causing the tree to fall over.
Trying to determine if you have good or bad kamma will indeed lead to madness.

How can I change my thoughts to be more positive despite a tremendous amount of negativity in my life?

Know that the negativity is conditioned. Those negative states will cease, as do all conditioned states. Actively practice goodwill, generosity, meditation, and renunciation. It will not take long to see the benefit to your mind as you practice the Buddha's teachings.

It you experience something unpleasant this could partly be due to bad karma. If you experience something positive this can be good karma.
Deciding on your experiences you can see what type of Karma is effective.
Regardless of you being in a positive or negative situation, you have make sure your future is bright, i.e., moving from dark to bright or from bright to brights. You cannot do anything about your current situation but you can do something about the future.

(1) One in darkness faring into darkness, or, from darkness to darkness (karmic stagnation);
(2) One in darkness faring into light, or, from darkness to light (karmic progress);
(3) One in light faring into darkness, or, from light to darkness (karmic descent); and
(4) One in light faring into light, or, from light to light (karmic ascent).

(Tamo,joti) Puggala Sutta
To make your future bright you should stop creating the unwholesome roots, i.e., reacting pleasurable experience with craving or unpleasurable experience with aversion. You should stop this pattern and practice equanimity knowing impermanence.

(1) the latent tendency to lust reinforced by being attached to pleasant feelings;
(2) the latent tendency to aversion reinforced by rejecting painful feelings;
(3) the latent tendency to ignorance reinforced by ignoring neutral feelings.

Pahāna Sutta
That is, when you experience negativities do not react with negativities or aversion, but be equanimous knowing this experience is impermanent.

It is not only you. Everybody have to reap what they sow.
Beginningless long samsara that we passed through, all the deeds good or bad just follow you like your own shadow. Even Buddha had these consequences of the long passed samsara. As a Buddhist, true value of triple gem and effect and consequence of karmic result, should be accepted but not blindly. All karma result kaya, versi and manaw done in the past, present and future all have effects.
One thing is (huge)good things always have the upper hand over bad ones just like Buddha Dhamma enlighten the darkness of delusion. These present days, if you wish to do/have huge good things, mindfulness in present kaya,versi and manaw act, insight meditation under strong belief in triple gem and karmic effect will only help you. Even large stone that will sink under water can float with the help of large enough boat.
Every cloud has a silver lining. To make the most of your misfortune, this is the best time to get enlightened through more concentrated insight meditation reverting all misfortune as your own lesson. As Ledi sayadaw once remind us, just try to loose from the noose when it is time if not you will lost all.

When one does or is still capable of depriving beings from existance, still takes on of what isn't given, still abuses for sense pleasures, still speaks of what isn't true, still takes intoxication and further still has thoughts incl. greed, aversion, confusion, in short who ever hasn't arrived a wrong view, bears still all kind of bad kamma along the way, and just "awaits" it to ripen for a new, without escape.
That's where you are, and it's reasonable to fear, yet possible to change.
[note that this isn't given exchange, trade, stacks, but for liberation from it]

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text:
How does human will fit with Pratītyasamutpāda?
On Tevijjavacchagotta Sutta the Buddha said that in the last ninety-one aeons, no fatalist who denies the power of volitional acts, has ever gone to heaven, except one, who happened to follow the doctrine of kamma and of morally effective deeds. How does this power of volitional act or volitional act happen with in the frame work of Pratītyasamutpāda?
My intension is not to discuss about non-self rather about the volitional act done by the self-doer as explained in Attakārī Sutta. Also not so much about the change or motion, the being stepping forward or backward, but the volition or intention that brought about the change.
Pratītyasamutpāda states that everything except Nirvana are conditioned, and from ignorance (Avijjā) comes mental formations (Saṅkhāra) which includes volition.
So if every mental formation is conditioned by ignorance including human volition (choice), how come a being by choice, which is volition, which has ignorance at its base root out ignorance?
On the other hand, if volition (choice) is not conditioned by ignorance, then the beings choice is out side Pratītyasamutpāda which has ignorance at its starting point?
Similarly, if the answer is yes and no, this still implies that volition (choice) can be out side Pratītyasamutpāda?
Many thanks.

User10552, the answer to your question is not found in the Sutta Pitaka – the first basket. You will have to look into the third basket - the Abhidhamma Pitaka – for the answer. To get a proper understanding of the different type of Saṅkhāras, and of other kinds of paticca samuppada (PS), you will have to study the third basket of the Tipitaka. In the Abhidhamma Pitaka, there is a special ‘vibhanga’ for PS, where it is explained in detail.
In reading the Attakārī Sutta, you are now aware of the fact that we all make choices all the time and act on intentions all the time. In this sense, the word ‘Sankhara’ would mean everything that we do to live in this world. That would include breathing, walking, eating, that even an Arahant has to engage in until Parinibbana. Some sankhara arise from alobha, adosa, or amoha as a root cause. The other set of sankhara arise from lobha, dosa, or moha as a root cause.  This is where it is important to know the difference between sankhara and abhisankhara.
In the Sutta Pitaka – the first basket – the PS that ordinary people are subjected to is explained, but not the PS that an enlightened being would experience. Akusala-mula PS describes the PS process for normal humans (Anariyas), who are trapped in the sansaric journey.  When one becomes an Arahant, since there is no more rebirth, all kamma seeds that do not get to come to fruition before the death of an Arahant become ineffective in producing a rebirth: Because an Arahant has removed avijja, the “akusala-mula paticca samuppada cycle” becomes ineffective and thus “bhava paccaya jati” does not get to initiate a new birth.
The Vibhanga describes the Kusala-mula version of PS for Ariyas. An Ariya would not commit the worst kinds of akusala. His avijja is less potent, because it is well below the moha stage for an Anariya (normal human). The sankhara done with this type of less potent avijja does not become a cause for extending sansara; it is just sankhara. In kusala-mula PS, tanha does not arise because of vedana. With kusala-mula as condition, one accumulates punnabhi sankhara. With punnabhi sankhara as condition, a punnabhi vinnana arises. This punnabhi vinnana is accumulated as kamma bhava and could lead to corresponding “good” namarupa.
At death, the kusala-mula vinnana prevents a birth in the lower four realms for a Sotapanna, and a birth in the kamaloka is avoided for an Anagami. The sansaric process or the rebirth process is fueled by abhisankhara for normal humans, as they are with lobha (greed), dosa (hate), moha (delusion). What they acquire is apunnabhi sankhara, as opposed to punnabhi sankhara. Thus Sankhara = san + kära = actions done while in existence, and they can be either good or immoral. Abhi sankhara = “Abhi” + sankära = strong/repeated actions for prolonging rebirth process, the kind that normal human beings do.

You have asked a very good question, I remembered if correctly it's in the Sutra of Perfect Enlightenment Maitreya Bodhisattva asked similar question: 以幻修幻 - how can if phenomenal world is illusory construct and the "I" is also illusory that a practitioner realize the Ultimate Truth? I remember the Buddha answered 以幻修真 - using the illusory to rid the illusion, as if using a wedge to get out another wedge stuck in the hole. Therefore, I think to give some help of your inquiry is to think of: your volition is to get over ignorance by choosing actions of not ignorant... You find that the action that is not ignorant is still an ignorant action... so on and so forth. Until you finally know the action that is not ignorant, that you are enlightened. It could be a long practice, or it could be a sudden realization. A bit like someone doing a difficult math equation, volition discerns the answers are not correct, over and over, that the working out incorrect answers are the footings to finally have the correct answer. Volition the ability to discern doesn't get hindered by ignorance, although ignorance prevented it from knowing the correct answer immediately. The Sutra has very good analogy full of wisdom far better than I presented here, I just recalled to make an answer in convenience. I hope I didn't misunderstand your question, and I'm not quite familiar with the terms and the Suttas mentioned in the OP.

At the link of sensation you react due to ignorance.
Sensations are 3 types which are pleasant, unpleasant, and neutral. Pleasant sensations lead to craving, unpleasant lead to aversive and neutral there is still ignorance. In craving and aversion also here is ignorance. When ignorance is absent you maintain equanimity towards the sensations seeing their impermanence.
The unwholesome / wholesome roots lead to volition followed by action. Removing the roots both wholesome and unwholesome removes condition for future existence and experience.
The choice you have is when there is sensation you can react with craving, aversion and ignorance or be equanimous knowing impermanence.
Volition always arise due to a stimuli. This is the contact - feeling part of Dependent Arising.

Thank you Suminda, but you are running pass my question. I will rephrase the question using words from your answer. The question is ---- Does the being have to choice to be Equanimeous? If true how come this choice which is a mental formation based on ignorance can maintain equanimity, which as you say can only happen in the absence of ignorance?

Is this topic a variant of the Brahmana Sutta?
The Brahamana sutta asks, "How can you desire to end desire?"
You seem to be asking, "How can you have the volition to end ignorance when you're ignorant?"
Presumably the "opposite" of ignorance (and of volition based on ignorance) are right view (and right intention etc. based on right view).

On Tevijjavacchagotta Sutta the Buddha said that in the last ninety-one aeons, no fatalist who denies the power of volitional acts,
  has ever gone to heaven, except one, who happened to follow the
  doctrine of kamma and of morally effective deeds.

OK, if that is the case. I have not read this sutta.

How does this power of volitional act or volitional act happen with in the frame work of Pratītyasamutpāda?

It happens at the 4th condition. It will also arise with craving. Why don't you read the Pali suttas?

Feeling, perception, volition, contact and attention — these are called mentality (nama).
SN 12.2; MN 9

When the nutriment of volition is comprehended, the three forms of craving [for sensuality, for becoming, and for
  non-becoming] are comprehended.
SN 12.63

My intention is not to discuss about non-self rather about the volitional act done by the self-doer as explained in Attakārī Sutta.

O.K.

Also not so much about the change or motion, the being stepping forward or backward, but the volition or intention that brought about
  the change.

Sure.

Pratītyasamutpāda states that everything except Nirvana are conditioned,

It does not. Paticcasamuppada described the 12 conditions for the arising of sorrow, lamentation, pain, grief & despair.

and from ignorance (Avijjā) comes mental formations (Saṅkhāra)
  which includes volition.

'Sankhara' does not include 'volition' because the 'sankhara' are non-volitional since they arise from ignorance. 'Sankhara' are defined as the 'body, verbal & mind conditioner', which are defined in MN 44 as the breathing in & out; initial & discursive thought; and perception & feeling. This does not include volition.
For example, when you try to meditate & all of those discursive thoughts are spinning out of control in your head (which also make your breathing agitated), this is 'sankhara' in Paticcasamuppada. This obviously is not 'volition' since you are not 'choosing' to have these out-of-control thoughts.
Volition occurs at the 4th condition, nama-rupa (and also at the 8th condition, craving).

So if every mental formation is conditioned by ignorance including human volition (choice)

This is not true. Paticcasamuppada only describes when volition is tainted by ignorance. It does not describe when volition is guided by wisdom.

how come a being by choice, which is
  volition, which has ignorance at its base root out ignorance?

???

On the other hand, if volition (choice) is not conditioned by ignorance, then the beings choice is out side Pratītyasamutpāda which
  has ignorance at its starting point?

Correct. Paticcasamuppada is called "the wrong path" (SN 12.3). Paticcasamuppada does not describe wise or right intention/volition, which is the right path.

Similarly, if the answer is yes and no, this still implies that volition (choice) can be out side Pratītyasamutpāda?

Yes. Correct. Very good.
There are two types of volition: ignorant volition & wise volition.

"... Paticcasamuppada only describes when volition is tainted by ignorance. It does not describe when volition is guided by wisdom ..." - Well said.

@ Dhammadhatu Thank you for your detailed response. If Saṅkhāra doesn’t include all mental formation as you say then I’m content. But I’ll wait for a while to hear others opinion because I have read on many commentaries and articles that states that Pratītyasamutpāda includes everything excluding Nirvana and Saṅkhāra included every mental formation. Even the Wikipedia article on these state that it does include.

Wikipedia is written by a Jewish man living in Las Vegas. Wikipedia is not the Buddha. As for the word "sankhara", it is the broadest term in Pali. It has so many meanings. Read my answer here: https://buddhism.stackexchange.com/questions/12691/can-anyone-explain-sanskara-sankara-indepth/12707#12707 As for most of the other scholars, they are wrong. My explanation is correct, which is verifiable in meditation, similar to Thanissaro Bhikkhu's correct explanation here: http://www.accesstoinsight.org/lib/authors/thanissaro/shapeofsuffering.pdf