Samsara is translated as "cycle of rebirths." But in practice, you do not need to believe in reincarnation to understand samsara. Just look at your day.


The Daily Cycle
Desire -> Action -> Result -> Temporary satisfaction -> New desire -> New action...
This is samsara. Not between lives -- within this life. Every day you repeat the cycle: seek something that promises completeness, get it (or not), feel temporary relief, and soon the void returns.
The Cause
Vedanta identifies the root cause: avidya -- ignorance about yourself. You identify as an incomplete being and act to complete yourself. But since you are already complete (without knowing it), no action produces permanent completeness.


The Wheel
That is why it is called the "wheel" of samsara: it spins endlessly, arriving nowhere. More money, more relationships, more achievements -- the wheel keeps turning.
The Way Out
The way out is not to stop acting. It is to stop depending on action to be complete. This happens through knowledge: when you know you are already purna (complete), action continues, but dependence on results ends.
This is moksa -- liberation. Not from circumstances, but from the cycle of infinite seeking.
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