On Theft

Suppose that after a person dies, he is reborn as a human again, and by chance he digs open the tomb of his own previous life. Due to the mystery of the intervening womb (隔阴之谜), he does not know that this tomb is that of his own previous life. If he takes away the burial objects at this point, does it count as having the owner's permission? If not, does this constitute theft?

Although what this person steals are the objects of his own previous life, this act still constitutes theft, because there is a thieving mind. All karmic acts of sin and merit are governed primarily by the mind; without the mind, there is neither sin nor merit. However, since this person steals his own property, he does not harm others, the objects are not transferred from another person to himself, and there is no change of ownership. The karma of theft is not fully satisfied, so the offense is slight.

This is the same as the case of someone who clearly goes to another person's home to steal a certain thing, but after rummaging back and forth, cannot find that thing. It is also the same as the case of someone who is just about to carry the object away, but the owner returns, so he has to abandon the object and flee by himself. These real examples show that although the thieving mind exists, the karma of theft is not fully established, the object has not been transferred, and a conviction cannot be determined; the handling will be light, and the retribution will be light.