Karma
N. Visweswara Rao
We, as
ordinary mortals, are conscious of human endeavour and planning not only for a
rainy day but also for a better day. We plan all those things so meticulously
that we pat ourselves and fall back comfortably to see them become a reality.
In at least four cases out of ten things, do not turn out as expected or turn
out unexpectedly in another fashion. Our planning is perfect, timing is correct
and everything is worked out to the last detail. Yet, the undesirable and unpalatable
has happened. Karma operates here. And what is Karma? Let us see.
No action
whatever we do goes unnoticed, unrewarded or unretributed. Every action is
appraised and allotted a value. These values either jointly or severally bear
fruit in the same life or in succeeding lives. These are sublimated and acquire
the shape of ‘vasanas’ and kept sealed and concealed in astral body. The
accumulated ‘vasanas’ are called ‘Sanchita Karma’, the ‘vasanas’ giving result
at the moment are called ‘Prarabda Karma’, and the vasanas waiting to fructify
are called ‘Aagami Karma’.
The law of
Karma presupposes the following:
a) that death (Mruthi) is only for the physical body
b) that Smruthi (memory) has no Mruthi
c) that the jeevi moves about in
‘janmaparampara’
till cessation of Karma
d).and that he has a certain Freewill (RAM, if you like)
which allows him to navigate through vasanas and charter the course of life in
the present birth.
Jeevi has a
freewill. He is free to act according to his will. He acts according to his
will and accumulates Karma. This accumulation helps him continue the cycle of
births. This part of his freewill is really free except when Prarabda Karma is
about to yield some result, good, bad or indifferent. Otherwise it is totally
free.
If Karma and
it’s results are continued over innumberable births, when will the jeevi be
free of it and attain salvation? And what is salvation? Let us see.
We have in
the preceding paragraphs seen that all our actions generate some result or
other. The simple deduction is positive actions yield good results and negative
actions yield bad results.
Craving for
good and positive results and fearing bad and negative results is germane to
human nature. It causes passionate involvement of jeevi not only with actions
but with the results which implies that the vicious circle of life, karma
(action) and death goes on until stopped by Freewill. How can the Freewill
achieve this? It cannot just wish the results away. Once the action was over,
the results come way any which again become seed for further action. Now this
Freewill has a slot for discretion. It’s discerning power should be able to see
that the Kartha of all Karma is destiny (the Almighty). Then it follows that
when someone else is the author of action, one should not have any claim on the
results or cherish any hopes on them. This attitude shall induce NISHKAMA
KARMA, practicing of which makes one a stoic i.e the one who takes the results
as they come without any passionate involvement. As the results of Nishkama
Karma are consigned to the Almighty, the residual results are not carried over
to vasanas thus paving the way for cessation of Karma. Cessation leads to
salvation. We shall see how.
As there is
no Karma and consequently no vasanas to be worked out, the astral body has no
use for a new upadhi to take on. To that extent salvation is achieved. The
jeevi is spared of the agonies of residing in the womb, taking birth, growing
up, eking out a livelihood, raising a family and doing all sorts of things in
the process generating Karma and again being born to work out that Karma- all
this is avoided. It is like reclining in an armchair comfortably in an A.C.
room on a midsummer afternoon when the mercury is nearly 50 degrees C. while
the poor mortals are toiling outside on various errands. The analogy is drawn
from every day life just to emphasise the point that the jeevi who has attained
salvation feels more ANANDA than others. This is not the mundane Ananda one
feels on seeing the loved ones, on being blessed with a child, on getting a
promotion etc. It is a bliss undisturbed by desire, the root cause of all
creation. While it is ‘Samkalpa’ in the case of ‘Parabrahma’, it is desire in
the case of jeevi. The ‘jeevi’ who sets himself free from the vicious circle of
life and death using his discerning power is given salvation called Saalokya
mukthi.