Death of an Avatar

[absinthe_spoons]

That's not really an answer, though. That's just saying how we know he wasn't reincarnated, not why he wasn't.

[Aunt Woo's Assistant]

That's not really an answer, though. That's just saying how we know he wasn't reincarnated, not why he wasn't.

Let's do trail and error, assume Aang was reincarnated regardless of *coff* Obvious reasons that he was shot down in the Avatar State. Say he's dead 4 or 5 minutes, barely long enough to get reincarnated into random water tribe baby.

This would one, well, screw up the whole next series for considering that most likely the reincarnate would be Northern Water Tribe, just because nobody was pregnant in the Southern village.
Two create a complete imbalance, because as soon as "Katara and little Spirit Water action" brings him back, there is.. what two Avatars??? Not likely, and even less likely, a new born baby is temporarily an Avatar for a very short period before become a normal baby...?

Thus, reincarnation is both impossible and unlikely in this situation. However, great question Orwill.

[absinthe_spoons]

...

That's not really an answer, though. That's just saying how we know he wasn't reincarnated, not why he wasn't.

[Rawgii Elekt]

...

That's not really an answer, though. That's just saying how we know he wasn't reincarnated, not why he wasn't.

I do believe there is a scene in the episode The Avatar State which goes:
Roku-"In the Avatar State you are at your most powerful but you are also at your most vulnerable."
Aang-"Why"
Roku-"If you are killed in the Avatar State the reincarnation cycle will be broken and the Avatar will cease to exist"

Hence I believe that about anwsers that question.

[TEGtheAvatar]

...

That's not really an answer, though. That's just saying how we know he wasn't reincarnated, not why he wasn't.

I do believe there is a scene in the episode The Avatar State which goes:
Roku-"In the Avatar State you are at your most powerful but you are also at your most vulnerable."
Aang-"Why"
Roku-"If you are killed in the Avatar State the reincarnation cycle will be broken and the Avatar will cease to exist"

Hence I believe that about anwsers that question.

I agree. When an avatar is in the avatar state, they are acting not only as themself, but as every past avatar. So it's basically like every avatar is in one body (from what I perceive). When Azula shot Aang, she not only killed (for a few minutes) Aang, but it was as if she had killed off the spirit of every past avatar. Hence killing the avatar spirit itself and breaking the reincarnation cycle. But of course, as we all know well, Katara brought Aang (along with the Avatar spirit) back to life.

[Orwill Yatke]

Aang died in the Avatar state. The Avatar ceased to exist and so did Aang. The water from the spirit Oasis saved Aang and the Avatar State. Katara saved the world, again. LOL. I like how all the characters save the world.
Anyways....
Its like this..
The Avatar Spirit is infinetly linear and the individual avatars pop up along that line. The Avatar Spirit flows through all the Avatars and keeps their experience available to the successive Avatar. As long as the Avatar doesn't die in the Avatar State the Avatar Spirit will be reincarnated.
I think everyone pretty much has common consensus as to what happens when an Avatar dies.

[Glitch]

Aang was in the Avatar State.
Aang died.
The Avatar was never going to be reincarnated again.

BUT! Katara used spirit water to heal Aang, and through the spirit water the spirits gave him back his Avatar spirit as well as returning his life.

That's the only thing I can possibly think of. It's not very good, but if there's another explanation, it's certainly not ~obvious~.

[Orwill Yatke]

Katara saves Aang. He went down and she brought him back with the Spirit Water. Righteous.
Do you think Avatar Kyoshi died of old age? The volcanoe did all the work with Roku. Maybe Kureg got killed by Koh in the natural world. If Koh could steal someone from the natural world maybe Koh can manifest itself there. How do think Aang will die for the new series about Korra? Hurricane maybe...

[CancerianFireLordess]

Katara will definably bring back Angg .Its not end of the story.You think it is over...but the games have just begun.

What.

[Orwill Yatke]

How do you think Aang will die after the events in TLA? I bet he saves Katara or a group of people or something...