|
Chapter
IV KARMA: THE LAW OF ACTION AND REACTION Q. Please explain why the
enactment of the dranma of life. A. It is all an expression of the inexorable
Law of Karma. Desire is the root-cause
of all bondage and rebirths. Unless one
becomes a conscious co-worker of the Divine Plan by complete self-surrender and
annihilation of ego, the goal of spiritual perfection cannot be attained. Please refer to the Wheel of Life for
exhaustive explanation. Q. How much are our live pre-ordained, and what
part does 'free will' play after we become initiates?
A. Six thing are pre-ordained or covered by
fate-karma; Viz. Heath and sickness, poverty and opulence, honour and
ignominy. Strenuous effort,
self-control and discipline do play an important role for our betterment with
the grace of the Master. Many dear ones
with unhappy and checkered careers claim to have become saintly persons after
holy Initiation and faithful meditations on holy Naam. For elaborate discussion, reference is
invited to Wheel of Life. Q. What happens after death; do
we enter another place to go through a period of birth growth and groping until
we find our Master again? A. It is supposed that the question relates to
the initiates of the Living Master only, and as such, it should be understood
in the light of what follows. The dear ones who have been blessed with the
sacred boon of holy Initiation into the mysteries of the Beyond, are all
granted full protection by the gracious Master-Power in the Beyond. Most of their karmic debts are paid off as
if they had lived their normal fate karma.
Smaller karmic debts are paid off even before leaving off the body and
as such they are not reincarnated. If,
however, there remain some overwhelming worldly desires, the initiated souls
are granted human birth, but are placed in such congenial environments where
they will have the chance of continuing their inner journey, by meeting the
Living Master working at the time.
Spiritual Growth and progress thus continues under His guidance. Q. Why must our past lives be concealed from
us?
A: It has a significance. The entire
human life is a drama based on the inexorable Law of Karma, which result in
union and separation of the souls for the liquidation of their mutual give and
take. If one is told about these karmic debts involved and the sons or
daughters born to us are only our past debtors, the reason and sense of their
breeding will be harmed. It conceal these truths from
the humans for keeping the earth life agoing. You will be perhaps astonished to
know that Kal has obtained three main boons from the Almighty, as contained in
Sar Bachan. These are:- 1. Nobody will know of his or her past life; 2. Nobody should know about his or her exact
time and date of death; and 3. The Living Master should not grant holy
Initiation to the humans by showing miracles but simply hold Satsangs and if
the dear ones come up of themselves and seek Initiation, only then should they
be initiated. Q. Is it less fortunate karma to be born a
woman, and is a woman's potential for spiritual development in this life less
than that of a man?
A. It is not less fortunate karma to be born as
a woman and there is not potential difference in regard to the spiritual
development in this life between man and woman. The Masters do not attach any
specific humans as equal and see them from the soul-level. Woman have rather
more chances of inner spiritual development being more devoted to their
spiritual growth, having an innate inclination to devotional dedication. Q. If a Satangi aids another
person in difficulty, as to money or saving another's life, does the Satsangi
take on karmic burden of the one he aids? A. The Satsangi's rendering monetary help or
physical assistance in saving life does not involve karmic burden. Such like noble actions should be undertaken
in a sense of selflessness, which rids the dear one of the subtle ego which
creep in surreptitiously, and sows the seeds of future reaction. Since it is an
embarrassing and baffling problem to find out whether such and such Satsangi is
in dire need of help, physical of financial, the initiates should ende-avour to
donate to the Master, who knows best about its eventual dispensation and
disposal. Saint Kabir cautions the
sincere devotee that donations must be made selflessly and only through the
Satguru who knows best as to how these are to be disposed of. Q. If Satsangis exchange gifts,
do one or both of them take on some karmic burden from each other? A. The Law of Karma is immutable and
inexorable. The exchange of gifts amongst
the Satsangis will result in mutual balancing and adjustment. It should be understood carefully that the
karmic binding lies in the fact that any gift is given or taken with the inner
intention of doing so, whereas if the giver gives in a spirit of selflessness
as a dedication to the Master-Power, and the other receiving the same receives
in a gratitude as a token of grace from the Master-Power, both are relieved of
the burden involved. Q. Do I have a log of bad karma to work off?
A. Every initiate has a lot of good and bad
karma to be worked off during physical existence. The terminology of good or bad karma cannot be adequately
justified, as both entail some debts requiring fair liquidation. Suffice
it to note that the Decrees of Heaven are subject to no error and the Divine
Dispensation is invariably flavoured with mercy. The inner rare bliss from regular and devoted meditations changes
the entire outlook of the initiate when he or she finds the gracious hand of
the Master protecting him or her at every step. You should know it for certain that everything whatsoever that
comes to your counting is definitely for your spiritual progress, and you
should gladly withstand the trials and tribulations of this life, by reposing
your hopes and aspirations at the feet of the gracious Master-Power overhead. Q. When Metaphysicians heal, is this the power
of God or Kal
A. Healing done by Metaphysicians falls within
the scope of Negative Power when the Karmic debts involved are put off for the
time being, and have to be repaid sometime with compound interest. The gracious God-Power does not
actually punish the souls but deals out justice tempered with mercy in
accordance with out karma. The Decrees
of Heaven are in no way subject to error and the Divine Dispensation is
invariably flavoured with grace. Q. Can the Power of God work in our lives in
spite of bad karma?
A. The divine Power of God continues working
for our spiritual welfare irrespective of the response. It is rather the Enlivening Principle in
human body which sustains and maintains the life, and as such works ceaselessly
throughout the physical sojourn. What
we term as 'bad karma' means lesser good and if one is granted the boon of holy
Initiation, there are ample chances of improvement. Q. What are the Teachings of the Masters
regarding hell and purgatory?
A. The Masters do not contradict the scriptures
which describe these places meant for the reformation of human souls in
accordance with the Law of Karma. Q. Can karma apply to nations as well as
individuals?
A. Yes.
The cummulative reaction of karmic debt of nations results in wars,
epidemics, destruction by fire of floods etc.
For exhaustive explanation, a reference is invited to the book Wheel of
Life. Q. On page 319 in 'Spiritual
Gems' it is stated: "There is no racial karma" We have been taught
there is both racial and national karma.
Will you please explain this? A. Karma, besides being individual vis- a- vis
society of which he is a member, may as well be racial or national and in this
sense may be called collective karma.
Rases, like individuals, have their won prides and prejudices; pride of
colour as the whites generally have against what they call coloured people, and
this prejudice of theirs they manifest in diverse ways: by rasing all kinds of
colour bars for denial of civic and social rights, political privileges and
legal remedies, all of which in course of time redounded upon the perpetrators
of social indignities and inequalities causeingunrest leading, at times, to
bloody racial wars. Again, some races
boast of superiority of blood in their veins and on that score think that they
form a privileged class by themselves favoured by God to rule over and exploit
other; but, as is usual in such cases, they are sooner or later overtaken by
Nemesis-for they that rule by the sword, very often perish by the sword. In like manner, some nations when swayed by national interests, get
embroiled in unfair trade competitions, build high tariff walls against other
nations and at times even try to boost the sale of their unwanted products at gunpoint
with the natural result of reprisals, embargoes and other retaliatory measures
from those who suffer from their discriminatory acts and deeds. Next come what are generally termed and commonly believed to be natural
calamities, like floods, famines, earthquakes and epidemics etc. These too, like all other ills, are the
result, more or less, or man's ignorance of the laws of nature, his incapacity
to foresee things and implement measures necessary to eliminate the threatened
disasters. With the progressive
advancement in scientific knowledge and technological skill, Man is gradually
coming to his won, pressing the forces of nature more and more to the service
of his kind, and making the most of the potential energy lying hidden and
untapped. This
is how the Law of Karma works silently and unnoticed but inexorably to the good
or ill as the case may be. In this
connection please refer to the book Wheel of Life. Q. Is it necessary to pray that
we can have a husband (Spiritual) in this life or is this determined by karma
or one's fate? A. Unions and separations are governed by the
Law or Karma. Prayer is the last weapon
with the spiritual aspirant and must not be over-used or overlooked. Please
refer to the book Prayer-Its Nature and Technique. Q. How does karma work on lower animals?
A. Lower animals or forms of creation are bound
by their past karmic debt and they do not contract and more karma during their
life span. They simply are born to
undergo their karmic liquidation. Q. Does God move us around like a chessman on a
board or do we, with our free will, move ourselves?
A. It is our past karmic evolution which moves
us around under His Divine Will. We are
bound within certain limits on account of past karma and free within certain
limits. We can make the best use of
free karmas to change our course to proceed on our spiritual way. For
exhaustive explanation please refer to Wheel of Life. Q. I have an ant hill in my
garden which I wish to get rid of; is there any natural way, prayer or planting
some seeds of flowers which would disperse them? A. You should please not wish like that and let
them live there. How would you
appreciate the Divine Grace when you are blessed by Providence with a charming
house to live in which is adorned with a beautiful garden and your act of
removing them would be sheer cruelty to the dumb and mute. You will appreciate that here in India, the
Hindus feed the ants with wheat flour which shows their deep compassion for
their lower brethren. However for
sanitary purposes you may please take remedial measures as advised by the
health department of the government. Q. We have been taught in our
Satsang that all thoughts that enter the mind during meditation register on the
astral and take the form of karma for us.
Would you please comment on this? A. The thoughts continue feeding the mind and
register impressions in the Chita- the sub-conscious reservoir of the mind, and
serve as seed karma to fructify at a later stage. However the thoughts entering the mind during meditations become
more potent to bear fruit at the earliest opportunity, and as such are
considered more violently harmful than those entering the mind in the normal
waking hours. It should be attributed
to the inner concentration during meditations when the mind becomes
comparatively more sharp and one-pointed.
The
listening to the holy Sound Current as coming from the right side with
rapturous attention and absorption therein burns away these seeds of karmas and
render them infructuous to bear fruit. Q. What is the difference
between individuality and personality and which one is involved in our karma? A. There is no difference between individuality
and personality so far as karma is involved.
The Divine pen writes in accordance with our karma and does not make any
difference for one or the other. Q. If one practices the Sound Current, but does not go far or head the
higher Sound Current, but does not go far or hear the higher Sounds, does the
weight of karma become lighter. A. Yes the load of karmic debt gets lighter by
listening to the holy Sound Current even if it is in its lowest links for it
holds the keel of one's barque steady on the stormy sea of life and saves it from running aground
among shoals, sand-bank, and submerged rocks.
But one must strive to catch higher Sounds for it is the latter that
exert a powerful pull upon the soul by following which one is led to eventual
Liberation. These higher sounds can, by
loving devotion and practice, be easily differentiated and communed with by the
grace of the Master-Power which is ever ready to extend all feasible help to
the aspirants on the Path. Q. Please explain the Law of Sympathy and how
it affects our karma?
A. The Law of Sympathy denotes our innate
compassion for those who are suffering.
If affects our karma to some extent, when we feel obliged to learn the
good lesson of living a disciplined life.
The sympathy by the mortals for others may be helpful to the extent of their
own resources, but unless it is supported by genuine substantial help, it does
not bring about any tangible result.
The sympathy of the Living Master for the suffering humanity is of
supreme importance, as His benign Impulse will result in the Liberation of the
soul from the cycle of birth and death.
He expresses His sympathy by actually granting a conscious contact of
holy Naam within for inner spiritual progress. Q. Can a sinner like myself attain to God-hood
in this very lifetime?
A. Yes, you can attain God-hood during this
lifetime provided you work for it strictly according to the behests of the
Master, Let His words abide in you and you abide in Him. You have been granted
the sacred boon of the holy Initiation which is a valid visa on to the Sach
Khand and it is your earnest efforts and steadfastness which would bless you
with fruition of your wish in due course |