The Next Buddha

 Can a single act of love save the world from destruction? A peasant born in pre-war Vietnam has memories of a life he will live in the future. These memories offer clues as to why he must now face the horrors of slavery and war in his current life. Is karma a punishment, or is it simply a choice we make?

An Dong, a peasant in French Indochina, has dreams of a life he has lived before, but the dreams are of a place and a time that no one could possibly have seen--a place in the future history of a different country. In contrast to his current life of degradation and slavery, his future life is one of freedom and happiness, at least at first. He becomes convinced that his dreams are telling him that he must take action in his current life in order to keep safe that world of the future, but what it is he is supposed to do is not clear.

If such things as reincarnation and karma are real, what is their nature? What are the laws that govern them? Are they punishments for lives poorly lived, or are they choices we make?