Can someone clearify 3 types of Karma

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Theories Of Karma, Death And Atma

 

KARMA THEORY

 

What is Karma? Karma is an activity, which all the human beings

have to perform, until death releases them from this body prison.

Man cannot live for a moment without doing Karma. Even while he is

sleeping, the breathing process becomes his Karma. Karma is the

cause of man's bondage to the cycle of birth and death. The life has

been given to man to sort out the consequences of the previous Karma

deliberately done, in many past lives, as well as in present life.

Man cannot be liberated, until and unless he has sorted out and

neutralized all effects of past and present Karma, and bringing the

Karmic balance to nil.

 

Many times Kriya (natural activity), is being considered as Karma.

Kriya is a natural activity, which we perform in our day-to-day

life, without thinking, questioning or seeking anybody's advice. If

you get a nature's call, you would immediately run to the toilet,

without thinking or consulting anybody. Every morning we get up,

brush our teeth, take bath, wear clothes and go to work, or go to

the garden, take some exercises, and do many more such acts. Such

acts are known as Kriya. They do not bind us to the `Law of Karma'.

Karma is the action or activity, deliberately done, with full

knowledge and intention of the doer, and also in expectation of

certain results in consequences thereof. This kind of Karma binds

man to the causes and effects of the `Law of Karma'.

 

There are three types of Karmas. Instant Karma, which brings

instant result. (Such as when you slap someone in the face and he

slaps you back, or you offer a glass of water to someone and

somebody else offers you a glass of water. They are action and

reaction is instantly neutralized leaving no balance behind).

 

The Mass Karma (Natural calamities like a plane crash, train

accidents, earthquake, floods or cyclone, etc.) and the Delayed

Karma, which baffles the human beings most because its consequence

is not instant and immediate, but takes a much longer time to

appear. The seed needing to be planted, the soil to get fertilized,

and the tree to grow before its fruit can ripen. By the time this

whole process gets over, the past actions are totally erased from

the memory, and the person is confused when he gets the fruit of his

past actions. But be very sure that whatever you shall sow, so you

shall reap. The same theory applies to the `Law of Karma'.

 

When you sow a seed of Karma and whenever it yields the result and

become the fruit, whether it is sweet or bitter, rest assured that

you and you alone will have to eat it, whether you like it or not,

and no one else will be able to eat it on your behalf, even if

somebody volunteers to do so. Most of the people are under the

mistaken impression that after doing one bad Karma and at the same

time by doing another good Karma, they can mitigate the result of

the bad Karma. If one does something bad to someone, he is sure to

get it back, in the same manner, today or tomorrow, from that very

person himself or by any other person. By the same token, if one

does good to somebody, he is also going to benefit in a similar

manner. Karma is not a bank account. You deposit Rs.5000/- today,

withdraw Rs.3000/- and the balance is Rs.2000/-, so when you again

deposit Rs.1000/-, it becomes Rs.3000/-. Karma theory is not adding

and subtracting like a bank account. It is `tit for tat, blow

for blow, help for help'. It is same like Newton's 3rd law, `Action

and reaction are always equal and opposite'.

 

In Bhagawad Gita, Lord Krishna has clearly declared about the

Karma theory. He cautious, " Do the action but do not keep the desire

of any fruit " . He further asserts " Dedicate all the actions to Me " .

Bhagawan Sri Sathya Sai Baba also preaches the same, but with a

little difference. He says, " By doing any action, you may have a

desire, but that desire should be to find God and to realise and

know that you are God " . He further guides us by telling us that

whatever work we are doing and in whatever capacity we are doing it,

we should keep in mind, that it is an act of God, done for the sake

of God, and dedicated to God, and whatever the results, are gladly

acceptable to us. By feeling thus, we will not be bound by the cause

and effect of the Karmic Law. Baba will take everything on Himself

and set us free and help us to progress towards liberation.

 

Baba has given us two paths by which we can cleanse our mind and

make it subtle and pure, so that we are able to understand, the

simple way to liberation. Baba tells us to do Namasmarana every day

(singing the glory of the Lord) with pure and dedicated mind and to

do Seva (service) to the poor and the needy, to the disabled and the

crippled, to the sick and suffering, to the healthy and humble and

to the good and the Godly people. This will illumine our mind, and

we will be able to understand ourselves more clearly.

 

Baba says that man has unlimited potentialities to realise and

know himself. In one of the recent discourses on Ugadi day, He

said, " Embodiment of love: You can not find in the entire Cosmos any

place or object in which God is not present. The divine is present

on the mountains. The divine dwells in villages and cities. The

Divine is Omnipresent.

 

Only those who recognise this truth can redeem their lives; they

alone can achieve the goal of human existence. The powers of the

Divine are limitless. Every living being in the world is governed by

some limitations. Birds, beasts and insects are all taken care of by

the Divine in respect of their essential needs like food and drink.

Among all living beings, however, the life of human being is supreme

as it is governed by morality and the good conduct. The Divine has

placed some limitations on the physical powers of man but has set no

limits to the mental powers. Man can achieve whatever he resolves to

achieve. He can even realise God. This Divine power is only given to

human beings.

 

Ignorant of his limitless divine potentialities, man suffers from

various disabilities by considering himself as human being.

 

Man today is soaring in the sky as a bird and moving in the ocean

like a fish. He has been able to land on the moon. But unfortunately

he is not able to live like a true human being on earth. This is

indeed a matter of shame.

 

Man can accomplish anything if he surrenders to God. When he

submits himself to the Will of the Divine, there is no task he

cannot accomplish.

 

Not realising the true nature of the Divine principle, man wastes

his time on rituals and religious practices of various kinds. God

cannot be realised through such practices. It is only by loving God

and getting close to Him that one can realise one's aspiration.

Swami does not disapprove of Sadhana practices. They are good

activities for using time sacredly. But without service to Godly

persons, they are of no use for realising freedom from the cycle of

mundane existence.

 

People aspire for liberation (Mukti). They have no idea what

constitutes liberation. Man seeks liberation from the ills of the

body, the senses, the mind, the intellect and the Anthakarana

(internal motivator). All these are no doubt necessary. But

liberation in the ultimate sense consists in liberation from the

cycle of birth and death. This means that one should redeem one's

present life so that one is free from rebirth.

 

Men should pray to God for freedom from rebirth so that they will

not have bodies which are bound to be afflicted with diseases.

People have no clear idea of what Dharma, Artha, Kama and Moksha

(the four goals) mean. They think that Moksha (liberation) is

something, which you attain after death. But, in fact, liberation

can be attained here and now. Moksha means " Moha-Kshayam " the

elimination of " Moha " (or attachment). People are not ready to give

up attachment to wife, children, property etc., you have a duty to

protect your family. But you must not be immersed in concerns about

them. Realise that love is the most important quality in human life.

It is not love for kith and kin that is precious. It is love for God

that is more valuable " .

 

(Extracts taken from Sanathana Sarathi, April 1998)

 

KARMA AND GRACE

 

There are three types of Karma : Past, Present and Future. Present

Karma must continue. It is like the carriage behind which is a trail

of dust. If the carriage stops, the dust will settle on it. A doubt

might be that the carriage cannot forever continue so as to be ahead

of its dust. But the carriage need not always travel on a dusty

road. It can get on the surface highway where there is no dust. The

highway is equivalent to the Grace of God. There is a difference

between the benefit of Grace and the benefit of the Bhakti, or

devotion. A patient with pain is given a sedative, which dulls the

pain. But Grace is an operation that does entirely away with pain.

Make no mistake; Grace does entirely away with Karma. It is like a

medicine which is labeled, `good until 1968'. If used in 1973, the

medicine is entirely ineffective. The body is the bottle, the karma

in the body is the medicine, God puts a date on the `medicine'; so

it is not effective.

 

(Taken form Sanathana Sarathi, April 1998)

 

WHAT IS DEATH?

 

The word `death' creates a fear psychosis, in the mind of human

beings. You tell a person that such and such person has died; it

will produce a wave of shock, in the mind of the listener. When

death occurs in the family, it is announced in the papers `SAD

DEMISE'. According to Author's own understanding, he explains death

as follows:

 

Death is re-union with God.

Death is like changing clothes and wearing new clothes.

Death is getting merged in God.

Death is to achieve Eternity.

Death is a realisation, that one is not the body, but the Atma

(soul).

Death is attaining a Blissful state (Sat-Chit-Ananda).

Death is to break all the ties that bind, and be permanently

released.

Death is the only certainty.

Death is understanding and experiencing the difference between the

transient and the permanent.

 

Anybody and everybody, who is born in this world, in any form, has

to meet with death sooner or later. Hence, death should be accepted

as boldly and cheerfully as we accept life. That will help us in

eliminating the fear of death, which has held most of us so tightly

in its grip that we can hardly breathe. In fact, any human being who

has taken a birth in this world may not be re-born again, if he

attains Moksha (Liberation) in this present life. But on the other

hand, each and every human being, who is born in this world, is

bound to die. So death is the only certainty.

 

Bhagawan Sri Sathya Sai Baba, has taken this human form, to

explain to the people and make them understand the secret of life

and death, by proclaiming that each and every human being,

irrespective of any caste, creed or colour, is the Atma (the Eternal

soul) and not the body, He further explains that the Atma does not

die. It is the body, which decays, and is declared dead, when the

Atma leaves it. The Atma is neither born, nor does it die, it ever

remains. On the other hand, the body, which is changeable, perishes

and dies. Anything, which is changeable, is not real. Anything,

which is permanent, is the truth. The Atma is permanent and Eternal.

 

Baba further explains the reason, why a person is reborn and the

Atma in his present body takes a new body. He says that Karma and

desire are the cause of the rebirth of man. The Atma takes a new

body for the sake of unfulfilled desires and in order to sort out

the balance of one's Karmic effects or the deeds done in many

previous lives. Until and unless man has sorted out all his Karmic

effects, he cannot be liberated and be free from the cycle of birth

and death. Baba says, " Man - Desire = God " . Baba teaches us in many

ways, how to control our desires and be desireless. He says, " The

only desire one should have, is the desire to know himself - that

is who am I? Where have I come from? Where have I to go? This will

give one the self-realisation " .

 

Baba says that mind is the cause of all the desires, and the cause

of the downfall of man. If one can learn the art of controlling the

mind properly, rather than taming the mind, one has won half the

battle. Unfulfilled desires give rise to anger, and anger boosts the

ego in man, and then man loses himself. Many times, Baba calls the

mind as `monkey-mind'. Baba says, " If you can make your mind a die-

mind, you can also shine like a diamond. He even gives a therapy,

how to make your mind a die-mind. He says, " If a person is really

dead, does it bother him, if he is being garlanded, or is being

beaten by chappals (Foot wear). He is not affected either way.

Similarly, while you are alive, let your mind not get agitated or

disturbed under any circumstances. Be calm and serene. Act like

a `sooka Patta' (a dried leaf), which is being pushed this way or

that way with every movement of the wind. This will enable you to be

the master of your mind and the mind will stop dictating to

you, instead it will start obeying you " . Baba says, " Man's ego,

desires, attachments and sense perception to the worldly objects,

are the cause of man's bondage to the cycle of birth and death " .

 

A scientist created a scientific luxurious cage, with all the

modern amenities, and put a number of mice, male and female inside

the cage, but deliberately kept the door of the cage open. He also

installed, two electrical gadgets, one of red colour and the other

of green. The mice while playing, if they touched the green colour

gadget, they got a piece of cheese, and if they touched the red

gadget, they got a shock. The mice were very happy in the cage,

dancing and playing and making merry, sometimes getting the cheese

and other times getting the shock. Surprisingly in spite the door of

the cage being open, none of the mice would attempt to get out of

the cage, to freedom!

 

The same is the fate of we human beings. We are so engrossed in

our day-to-day routine involvements, that we accept both happiness

and misery, but would not like to get out of this body prison to

free ourselves in spite of the fact that Baba is here and He has

kept the door open for us, to be liberated, yet we are clinging to

our bodies, love life immensely and are afraid of death. How foolish

of us!

 

Baba has given us two simple methods of getting Moksha

(Liberation) in this age of Kaliyuga. He says that Namasmarana

(reciting the name of the Lord) and doing Seva (service) to the

fellow beings (Manava Seva is Madhava Seva) will get us the required

liberation, in this present life itself. Let us take advantage of

Swami's assurance, and act as per His Will and Commandments and earn

His Grace, to win our coveted goal, Moksha (Liberation), which is

our sole purpose of being born as human beings.

 

WHAT IS SOUL (ATMA)?

 

Many people are perplexed when they try to fathom the meaning of

the word `Soul' or `Atma'. They assure and presume the meaning,

according to their own intellectual wavelength and remain contended

and satisfied.

 

The definition of the Soul or Atma is as follows:

 

Soul = Spiritually Oriented Universal Light.

Atma = Automatic Timely Moving Aspect.

 

In truth, the Atma is that supernatural power (The Inertia)

created by God with His Sankalpa (Will and Command), which always

was, still remains, and will always be present. The Atma never

perishes, nor it ever dies. It always remains because it is the

Truth. It is God.

 

Electricity is supplied from the power house to all the inanimate

objects, all over the world, known as various gadgets, such as

Ovens, Cookers, Refrigerators, Air-conditioners, Washing machines,

Televisions, Theaters, Automobiles, Computers and many more such

gadgets. Though the supply of the electricity is the same, yet the

functions of each and every individual gadget are entirely

different.

 

In a similar manner, the Atma is the supernatural power or the

energy created by God and supplied by God, not only to all the human

beings all over the world but even to the birds, bees, plants,

inanimate objects, planets and to the entire Universe. Without this

Atmic power or energy, the entire Cosmos will come to a standstill,

just as in the case of electricity, when the supply is cut off,

nothing functions and there is chaos and turmoil all over.

 

Now the difference between the electrical supply from the power

house and the Atmic energy from the source of God is that the

electricity is generated and produced through the human intellect

and resources, and can also be destroyed through the human

resources, like a sabotage operation or by waging a war. But the

Atmic energy cannot be destroyed, unless God Himself as per His Will

or Command withdraws it. Because Atma is God.

 

Many people always quote and it is also firmly believed that, " Not

even a leaf moves without the Will of God " . Bhagavan Sri Sathya Sai

Baba also confirms this statement, in His present human form. But

people try to mis-interrupt the above statement and put the blame on

God for everything they do whether good or the bad. God is only a

witness to the circumstances. He is not the doer of all the actions

committed by the human beings. The fact of the above statement is

that the Atmic power, which is God who resides in our hearts,

prompts us through His energy to act this way or that way. Without

that energy, we will not be able to perform any action but will be

like a dead log. So, Atmic energy is the Will of God, and not the

actions deliberately done by the human beings could be considered as

the Will of God. This illusion is the cause of the greatest error on

the part of the human beings. God is Love. God cannot hurt anybody

or harm anyone. God is Caring, Consoling and

Healer of the all the wounds. How can He ever be revengeful? It is

a bad and vicious judgment on the part of the human beings to hold

God responsible for all their deeds and actions.

 

The most oft-used question of all the human beings today is, " Why

God created this Universe, with all the misery, agony, hatred and

confusion? " The answer is, " God never Willed it this way. It is we

human beings, who are the cause of all this turmoil in this

beautiful creation of the Loving God, who is so Compassionate and

Perfect " .

 

As the story goes. God was all alone and He felt the urge of

loving Himself. He could not do it single-handed. If one wants to

express love or experience love, one needs at least two people. So

God said, " Let Me become many " . This He did in order to experience

to love Himself. As per His Will He became many. Then He thought of

the pleasure and comfort of so many people created by Him. So He

created the entire Universe, with the intention to provide all the

comforts and happiness to them, because everybody was Him and Love

was the Source. He then implanted the secret knowledge in the mind

of human beings, to enable them to come back to Him, as and when

they so desired. Along with this true knowledge He also gave them a

little of free will, to enable them to know and understand the

purpose of their creation and ultimately to go back to the final

source that is Him. The human beings used this little free will for

their own benefit and physical comforts and got themselves so

entangled in the graph, they themselves planted around them that

they forgot the way back to their true home land and are wandering

hither and thither aimlessly and are constantly blaming God for

taking their memory away as they are not able to find the way to

their true home land.

 

The Merciful God is now caught up, in His own plight of creating

this wonderful Universe, which has now become a vicious circle. He

even cannot undo now what He has already Willed to do. But still out

of His own Compassion, He has been kind and generous enough to take

this human body as Sri Sathya Sai Baba and is doing His utmost to

revive the memory of all the human beings after entire world and is

personally guiding them and showing them the way to reach their true

destinations, the aboard of Eternal Peace that is Bhagawan Baba

Himself.

 

He says, " As you eat nourishing food to sustain your body and keep

it healthy, so that you can enjoy life, you must also give proper

food to your Soul (Atma) to remain fit and trim and that food for

the Soul (Atma) is doing Namasmarana (Singing the glory of the Lord

through the Chanting of the Bhajans) every day. This will sustain

your Soul (Atma) and keep it healthy " . He further says that it is

only through the healthy body and the purified Soul (Atma) that you

can reach your destination - that is you can get Moksha

(Liberation).

 

Let us all resolve today and put an effort to lead our lives and

move to the path as shown by Bhagawan Baba, so that we all the

individual Atma can get merged with Parmatma (The Power House of all

the Atma).

 

I cannot refrain but to mention here a small story about the Love

and Compassion of the Lord, which I read somewhere, and cannot get,

it erased from my memory.

 

There was a man who always believed in God. Since the very young

age, he trusted God, and was sure that God was all the time moving

along with him walking, talking and guiding him all the time. When

he became old, he tried to recollect all his past thoughts. He saw a

vast forest and could always see the two pairs of footsteps

imprinted on the sand of the forest; only to find out that act the

fag end of his life, when he was passing through a desperate

situation of his life, he could notice only one pair of footsteps on

the sand. He then cried and prayed to God and said how can He the

all Merciful Lord leave him alone when he needed Him the most. There

came the reply from the God, " Oh, my dear precious child, when you

see the one pair of footsteps on the sand they are my footsteps

because during that period of time, you were so exhausted that I was

carrying you in my lap " . This consoled the man and tears came to his

eyes.

 

Let us also learn to cry for the mercy of the Lord. We cry for so

many things in life; whenever desires are not satisfied, or when

something we want, we do not receive. But have we ever cried for the

God Himself? Cry for the Love of Bhagawan Sri Sathya Sai Baba. Tell

Him that your eyes are yearning to see Him, and to have His Darshan.

Cry out to Him that you cannot live without Him. And see the Miracle

of all the Miracles to happen.

 

(Collectiontios from Sai literatures)

 

 

, Seema Karki <rudrasaikarki

wrote:

 

 

Can someone clearify 3types of Karma

 

Sairam,

 

I would like to know more about karma. Can someone cearify it, please?

 

I had heard there are 3 kinds, already on air, on the way and in the storage.

 

And also if one is still bound to karma after realization,

 

 

 

Sairam,

Seema