Arvind: Dear Swamiji, Wish you a very Happy New Year. Please clarify my doubt when it is said that “Everything is done by God nothing goes against his will” At the same time it is said whatever is destined will happen, just accept as god’s gift everything happening with you. Secondly it is said that ‘you have to control your senses’, ‘you have to practice righteousness truth etc’. My Question is what is the role of individual, can he change his destiny? With Regards, Arvind
Swami Ram Swarup: Same to you, please. No, please. Nothing is done by God as far as a person’s deeds are concerned. Human –beings actually are free to do pious deeds or sins but result is awarded by God. God has blessed us with human body along with knowledge of four Vedas advising to listen to Vedas and do pious deeds according to Vedas, failing which God gives punishment. As regards destiny and deeds, I paste my article:-
Destiny means the result of deeds- good or bad, of previous life, is to be faced in present life. But, Vedas state that if a person in present life does pious deeds and worships according to Vedas and does ashtang yoga practice under guidance of learned acharya of yoga and Vedas philosophy, then destiny can be changed. Hence, God has given luck in our own hands if we follow the above worship.
REDEFINE YOUR DESTINY
In Shantiparv of Mahabharat, Bheesham Pitamah states- The secret of deeds (karma’s theory) is really very deep and difficult to understand. I have also been mentioning the said matter in the website yet several questions still arise. I am happy that doubt must be put to be solved.
Please, recollect that after death sanchit karmas are to be faced at the time of taking next human body. Now, Prarabdh karmas are taken from sanchit karmas to be faced in entire present life and balance of sanchit karmas still remains to be faced in next lives. If a person doesnot worship God properly while doing present life’s deeds (Kriyamaan Karmas) then he faces the result of prarabdh karmas (Good or Bad both) exactly as destined and number of present deeds (Kriyamann Karma) are added in his sanchit karmas at the time of his death. Now, when the soul will take next birth, his prarabdh is made after taking karmas from sanchit karmas. Now question arises, what is the use of worship. Vedas state that the present lives’ deeds, if are pious, according to Vedas, Shastras, holy religious path then, the prarabdh deeds/karmas which have to be faced in present life by the soul and which may be full of sorrows etc., are burnt i.e., completely wiped away from the destiny. Therefore, the deeds which have been burnt by real worship do not have to be faced. If a person does number of bad deeds or good deeds in present life, the said total karmas will be added in sanchit karmas, as told above and thus will not be faced in present life. Good deeds, like chanting Gayatri Mantra, doing daily study of Vedic books etc., is a worship according to Vedas. So naturally, the bad deeds to be faced in present life will be burnt according to the level of worship (Minimum or Maximum). Views of swami Dayanand are always based on Vedas so are hundred percent correct. I have also clarified the same in number of preaches delivered by me over here. So the pious deeds of real worship gives result in the present life.
Three types of Deeds
There are three types of deeds (karmas) – sanchit, prarabhadh and kriyamann. Suppose one soul has to take birth (body). It means he has to face total number of deeds of his all previous lives and these deeds are called sanchit karmas but sanchit deeds are huge/unlimited and cannot be faced in one life. So the karmas which can be faced in one life are called prarabhadh (luck-destiny). So God has not made our luck at His own but Almighty God has taken the deeds which we have already done.
Yajurveda mantra 7/48 clarifies that human being is free to do any deed good or bad but God only awards the result. Now the balance deeds from sanchit deeds will be counted in the next life. Now the deeds which we do in our day today present life are called kriyamann.
If we do pious deeds according to Vedas, shastras and holy books and based on pious preaches of Rishi, Muni/learned saints then our all sanchit deeds are burnt and we can get salvation. Human beings are free in the matter of doing deeds good or bad. But result will be awarded by God. So we must worship and do pious deeds under guidance of a learned Guru. One should go always ahead for hard working, pious deeds, worship to make future bright himself. One should always work hard towards a right path.
Worship does not mean that we are free to discharge only our family duties, education, etc., but rather it is a sin. We have to get progress in both way at a time i.e., spiritualism and worldly progress i.e., science, education, duties towards family etc. God creates the universe according to His eternal law framed in Vedas which are always unchangeable and unchallengeable. So we have to follow the law of God always to get long happy life.
So, the control over senses, perceptions and mind is needed in our lives by doing worship as stated in Vedas like daily hawan, Yajyen, practice of Yoga Philosophy, name jaap of God under guidance of acharya. Then only will a person be able to do pious deeds. So, it is wrong to say that everything is predestined or is done by the order of God. I would advise you to read my book-Vedic Satsang Sangrah in Hindi and Vedas A Divine Light part I (in English) for further clearance.
Sunita: Pranam guruji.in havan I am doing basic. I like to know more mantra during havan.
Swami Ram Swarup: I congratulate you for doing hawan which is Vedic worship of God. Sure God blesses those who do daily hawan/Yajyen.
My blessings to you, my daughter. For more ved mantras, I would advise you to read my book Yajyen Karma Sarvashreshtha Ishwar Pooja (in Hindi) worth Rs. 65/- excluding postal charges. A CD chanting the Ved mantras mentioned in the book, is also available. So the book and CD can be sent to you if you desire.
Kumar: Namaste guru ji can you please bless me with details of EGO that is being carried away be soul? Guru ji BRAHM or SOUL is beyond the cycle of birth and death.but now i am (body) alive and can feel ,think,see,experience ,might have chances to remember my past life (previous birth) also and even know i (body)have to die one day whereas soul itself is nothing except it is immortal as a energy that can cause us think,work,feel,move,smile,make relation,bear offspring.it will never remember the body now and after. Here onward, if we measure the moksha on this ground that it will remain energy without body then it means the essence is zero, like nothingness. Please get me out of this enigma? If moksha means staying back only as energy without body then it becomes difficult for me to grasp this fact but if that energy bless that mind,sense and ego with higher responsibilities of sacrifice for the welfare of the worlds then I can understand the sense of moksha? Please, I need your help here as always.
Swami Ram Swarup: My blessings to you. Here, the meaning of ego is ahankar which is carried by soul after leaving the body and meaning of ahankar (ego) is feeling of self/existence. For example –everybody feels that he is man, woman, businessman or serviceman etc., which is due to ahankar. Yes, Brahma and soul are immortal and know that Brahma and soul are two separate entities/matter. In this connection, I would advise you to please study my books:-
Vedanta and eternal Vedas’ philosophy part I and II which will clarify all your doubts regarding soul and Almighty God and even about Prakriti.
Body is non-alive matter made of Prakriti and soul resides within body. We are souls and not body. Soul gets body based on his previous lives’ deeds.
So, soul is alive matter and not body, please. When you say that, “I can see, feel etc.,” it means “soul sees with eyes, listens by ears, walks through legs etc.
Body would never die being non-alive matter and therefore is already dead. Due to presence of alive matter soul within body, body starts functioning and seems to be alive matter. When a person is declared dead, it means alive soul goes out of the body and body lies on the earth without any activity and even starts emitting smell. Soul need not to remember body etc., otherwise, you see soul will become mad by remembering his unlimited bodies which have been left in his previous countless births.
Moksha means free from every kind of sorrows, tensions, illness etc. You see, if a person falls sick, he does not feel good. Even headache becomes problem for a person and as soon as headache gets over by medical treatment, a person feels relieved and peaceful.
I mean to say, a short period of relief makes a man happy and gives him peace. So, long term of period of moksha when would give soul bundles of happiness, peace, divine pleasure etc. Then, why a person would not try to get moksha.
You see, body is a problem because body is only given by God to soul to experience pleasure and pain, based on karmas.
For example – a person lives in a hut where several problems arise like mosquitoes, flies, smoke of burning fire, problem of food, poverty etc. Suppose, one day the poor person who lived in the hut is provided with a palace with all comforts then why would he remember the hut to live again therein. Secondly, suppose poor person comes out of the hut and hut is burnt. Then the poor person will automatically thank God that hut has been burnt and not him.
So is the case of soul. When a person becomes Yogi and realises himself that he is soul and not body then when he would leave the body and the body thereafter is burnt then he would not repent because he was not body. Body is actually a binding. A person is sentenced to jail and if he is provided with all comforts there, yet he would feel sad in the jail because he is in binding. So, is the case of soul.
So, soul feels binding when he is awarded with body and all his sorrows, diseases, tensions etc., get over when the soul gets moksha (salvation) where he is liberated from all kinds of bindings.
Real welfare of society, human beings is done by those who have realized themselves i.e., who have attained moksha, say four Vedas.
Otherwise, a person may indulge in several sins while looking after human beings.
Sandeep: Swami ji I want to understand my religion than blindly following it. I don’t have Vedas. Where can i get it?.I also don’t know Hindi or Sanskrit. Should I learn Hindi or Sanskrit to understand it or is it available in English. Also what is upanishad? Sorry if I sound stupid. I have been taught to pray to God but i don’t possess any knowledge of the teachings.
Swami Ram Swarup: Your views are heart touching. I bless you for long, happy life, before entering knowledge of Vedas, I would advise you to read my following books in English.
1. VEDANTA & ETERNAL VEDAS’ PHILOSOPHY PT I 31.00 77
2. VEDANTA AND ETERNAL VEDAS’ PHILOSOPHY PT II 2O.00 92
3. YOGA A DIVINE VEDAS PHILOSOPHY 65.00 123
4. VEDAS A DIVINE LIGHT 80.00 190
5. PROTECT THE HOLY COW, SAY VEDAS 40.00 58
6. VEDAS A DIVINE LIGHT PT.II 121.00 279
7. VEDAS A DIVINE LIGHT PT.III 100.00 126
You will get immense knowledge of Vedas therein. After studying the books please send E-Mail, then I would arrange Vedas for you.
Naveen Arya: Swamiji, One of my friends goes to a religious place and there they do meditation. they say that while meditation some of them leave their body and their soles meets each other in light form and they can recognise each other. they also talk about devlok and other places. I know there is no devlok but I am not sure about leaving the body while meditation. Can you please guide me by giving the reference from our holy Vedas? Thank you swamiji.
Swami Ram Swarup: Only a Yogi is empowered to leave the body and again come back in the body. Before attaining the said divine power, he has studied vedas, done yajyen and hard practice of Ashtang Yoga Philosophy and has attained the stage of Samadhi. He has well controlled, his five senses, perceptions and mind, he never tells lies. He has controlled kaam (sensuality), Krodh(anger), madh (pride), lobh (greed),ahankar (ego).
If your friends are of such category then their statement is true otherwise not and you are correctly saying that there is no Devlok, swarg, narak in sky, etc.
Anonymous: Is there possibility of a person living now can be sent by god to complete a task?
Swami Ram Swarup: No, please. It is not possible that Almighty God would send a man to complete task etc., because God is Almighty and needs no assistance to do deeds or to control universe.
