Reincarnation and Karma: How They Really Work

The Eastern Explanation of Our Past and Future Lives And the Causes for Good or Bad Experiences

Stephen Knapp

Dedicated to all who are searching for The real answers to Spiritual truth

Copyright © 2005, by Stephen Knapp

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form without written permission from the publisher, except for brief quotations.

Other books by the author: 1. The Secret Teachings of the Vedas: The Eastern Answers to the Mysteries of Life 2. The Universal Path to Enlightenment 3. The Vedic Prophecies: A New Look into the Future 4. How the Universe was Created and Our Purpose In It 5. Toward World Peace: Seeing the Unity Between Us All 6. Facing Death: Welcoming the Afterlife 7. The Key to Real Happiness 8. Proof of Vedic Culture’s Global Existence 9. The Heart of Hinduism: The Eastern Path to Freedom, Enlightenment and Illumination 10. The Power of the Dharma: An Introduction to Hinduism and Vedic Culture 11. Vedic Culture: The Difference it can Make in Your Life 12. Reincarnation & Karma: How They Really Affect Us 13. The Eleventh Commandment: The Next Step for Social Spiritual Development 14. Seeing Spiritual India: A Guide to Temples, Holy Sites, Festivals and Traditions 15. Crimes Against India: And the Need to Protect its Ancient Vedic Tradition 16. Destined for Infinity, a spiritual adventure in the Himalayas 17. Yoga and Meditation: Their Real Purpose and How to Get Started 18. Avatars, Gods and Goddesses of Vedic Culture: Understanding the Characteristics, Powers and Positions of the Hindu Divinities 19. The Soul: Understanding Our Real Identity 20. Prayers, Mantras and Gayatris: A Collection for Insights, Protection, Spiritual Growth, and Many Other Blessings 21. Krishna Deities and Their Miracles: How the Images of Lord Krishna Interact with Their Devotees 22. Defending Vedic Dharma: Tackling the Issues to Make a Difference

You can find out more about Stephen Knapp and his books, free ebooks, research, and numerous articles and photos, along with many other spiritual resources at: http://www.Stephen-Knapp.com

Contents

PREFACE: THE PURPOSE OF THIS BOOK

CHAPTER ONE: REINCARNATION RECOGNIZED THROUGHOUT THE WORLD

CHAPTER TWO: REINCARNATION IN CHRISTIANITY

CHAPTER THREE: THE FIRST THING YOU NEED TO KNOW IS YOU ARE NOT YOUR BODY The Vedic Description of the Soul

CHAPTER FOUR: WHAT IS REINCARNATION AND KARMA What is Karma * How We Reincarnate * Approaching Death * How the Soul Leaves the Body * Rebirth * The Reason for Reincarnation * Conclusion

CHAPTER FIVE: THE LAWS OF KARMA AND DESTINY

CHAPTER SIX: WHY IT MAY SEEM THAT BAD THINGS HAPPEN TO GOOD PEOPLE

CHAPTER SEVEN: FREE WILL AND CHOICE

CHAPTER EIGHT: THE MODES OF NATURE What the Modes of Nature Are * How the Modes of Nature Work * Where the Modes Take Us into Our Next Life

CHAPTER NINE: HOW KARMA AFFECTS US THROUGH LIFE, DEATH AND BEYOND Life in the Womb and Birth of the Living Entity * Old Age and Death * The Afterlife--If One Goes to Hell * Descriptions of Hell * When One Goes to Heaven

CHAPTER TEN: KARMA OF THE NATION

CHAPTER ELEVEN: AVOIDING BAD KARMA Truthfulness * Austerity * Inner and Outer Cleanliness * Showing Mercy

CHAPTER TWELVE: BECOMING FREE FROM KARMA AND REINCARNATION Becoming Free from the Modes of Nature * Getting Free of Karma * How Spiritual Activities Nullify Karma * Conclusion--Preparing for the Next Life

NOTES

REFERENCES

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

PREFACE

The Purpose of This Book

Everybody knows something about reincarnation and karma, but many people do not understand how it really works or the complexities that can be involved. Most of the information that is being accepted today is based on the teachings that we find in the ancient Vedic texts of India. These are the oldest spiritual writings on the planet and contain the original explanations on karma and the transmigration of the eternal soul. Therefore, after we look at some of the background of the worldview on reincarnation and the many other cultures and people who have accepted and know of it, we will explain what exactly is reincarnation and karma and how they mix together to determine one’s destiny as it is explained in the Vedic literature. We will use numerous references and quotes from these texts to supply the necessary insights into this deep subject so that it becomes easily comprehensible. After all these years, these references still supply the clearest understanding of the topic. Mix this with contemporary research on past life memories and experiences and you have a full explanation of how we are all affected by it.

CHAPTER ONE

Reincarnation Recognized Throughout the World

Most everyone knows something about the principle of reincarnation, yet how many people truly understand it? Or how many people believe it? Nonetheless, it is a concept that has been around for many thousands of years. However, these days there is more scholarly and professional information and research going on that confirms the existence in life after death than ever before. For example, Dr. Brian Weiss has studied the affects of reincarnation on people while they are under hypnosis. He published his famous book, Many Lives, Many Masters, about a woman who described numerous lives she had previously experienced. This came about practically by accident when he was treating her for phobias. Then under hypnosis, he took her back to the time when the symptoms appeared. While in her trance, she began to recall a scene from a previous existence, one while she was in Egypt in 1863 BC. During this lifetime she died in a flood. Upon remembering these things, her phobia of drowning was alleviated. After that there were more lifetimes she described. After some time, this resulted in his book that he reluctantly published a few years later. There are also such people as Dr. Ian Stevenson, the distinguished scholar who holds an endowed professorship at the University of Virginia. He has been traveling around the world for over 37 years investigating thousands of cases of children who have remembered past lives and details that could be verified. Carol Bowman is another who continues her investigation of children’s past life memories. It appears that in such cases a child remembers or begins talking about a past life between the ages of two and four. This begins with the child mentioning the names of people or places that he or she knew before, or by talking of previous activities, most of which make no sense to the present family. The child may also talk of how he or she died. It seems that when a child remembers his previous death, it was often one from an accident, a murder, or a disease at a young age. A young or premature death may be a reason why the child quickly takes birth again, which may be to continue with its karma or destined experience. And this experience often seems to continue in a family of similar social status or near the same area. Sometimes the child will also insist that he or she belongs to a different family, or has different parents, and needs to find his real home in some other town. All this may go on for years, much to the consternation of the present family who often will try to ignore or suppress the child’s memory of the past life. Occasionally, the child may be traveling with his family and simply recognize places where he had lived before. Or word will get out about the child’s past life recollections, or his family will allow the child to explore his past life memories and assist him to find the people and places he knew before. The child will recognize those he had previously known, or call them by familiar names, or even lead the way to the house and recognize items like toys that once belonged to him or her. The child may also speak of past events, or show surprise at any changes since when he was there, or even reveal issues that only the previous family would know. However, whatever he or she remembers is often only up to the point of death. Yet, there are those, although fewer in number, who remember the experience of what happened after death or before the new birth. So parents should be willing to listen to their children if they begin to show signs of remembering events and people from a previous existence. Mr. Frederick Lenz, Ph.D. is another who has done much research into the cases wherein adults have spontaneously and naturally remembered past lives. His book, Lifetimes: True Accounts of Reincarnation, gives the insights into his research. Such cases include people from all walks of life, various religions, ethnic backgrounds, and geographic locations. Many of them contain parallels and similarities to one another in the way that such memories and experiences occur. Mr. Lenz’s interest began in 1969. After he collected a sizable amount of information, he began to lecture at colleges and universities on reincarnation. This process exposed him to many more people who wanted to share their memories of a past life. Many of these cases seemed to follow the basic process of reincarnation that has been explained in such books as The Tibetan Book of the Dead and other Eastern texts. All of these cases and research show that reincarnation is not merely a theory, a hypothesis upon which to speculate, but a reality to understand. It is a natural event that has been discussed and taught and incorporated into people’s lives for hundreds of thousands of years. For this reason, this book uncovers the original understandings and teachings of reincarnation from the ancient texts of India and the East, and brings it out of the religious doctrines in which they are often buried. We find numerous references to the process of the transmigration of the soul in the ancient Vedic texts, including the Manu-samhita, the Upanishads, the Mahabharat, the Ramayana, the Puranas, and even the early Atharva-veda. The Vedic texts are the earliest and most complete source on the science of reincarnation, and are the roots from which come much of what we know of it today. Historians have pointed out that early Egyptian and Greek philosophers were most influenced by the spiritual knowledge that came from the East, India in particular. Any philosopher, whether from a few thousand years ago or even those of today, can hardly speak of reincarnation without having done at least a partial study of the Eastern explanations of it. Therefore, we will not hide the fact that if we want a thorough understanding of how it works, we must refer to these ancient texts. To make this book as complete as possible in its presentation, we will be referring often to the statements of India’s ancient Vedic scriptures in explaining this knowledge. The understanding of reincarnation is an age-old premise found throughout the world. In fact, all over the planet you can find it mentioned in many ancient customs and texts. Presently, nearly 80% of the world’s population still accepts the premise of reincarnation. Throughout the ages and even today nearly all Eastern countries acknowledge reincarnation. For example, the Buddhist and Taoist scriptures contain much information about rebirth. It was also found in the philosophy of the Gallic Druids, African Zulus, Eskimos of Greenland, North American Indians such as the Hopi tribe, Dayaks of Borneo, Karens of Burma, and even the natives of New Guinea. The Egyptians, of course, accepted reincarnation, but acknowledged that it was the East, mainly India, from which most of their information was derived. Ancient Egypt passed along this doctrine to the Greeks, such as Pythagoras, Plato, Virgil and Ovid. It then spread through Greece and Italy. Neo-Platonists like Plotinus and Proclas accepted it. The early Greeks were heavily influenced by the philosophy from India, which was the seed of religious mysticism that worked its way to the West. Plato explained in The Republic that God is blameless: it is man who has chosen his own fate as dictated by his actions. This is practically a quote from the ancient Vedic text known as the Bhagavad-gita, which we will explore more thoroughly as we proceed through this book. Elsewhere in The Republic is the story of Er, who returned to life while his body was burning on the funeral pyre. He then gives details about the soul’s journey between birth and death. Socrates also accepted reincarnation and used the more developed ideas of Plato in writing his Phaedrus and Timaeus. Of course, Hindus, Buddhists and Jains and numerous tribal societies had reincarnation as a basic part of their spiritual philosophy. So is it not surprising that it has been overlooked and even rejected by Christians and much of Western civilization? This deliberate manipulation and deletion of a basic spiritual understanding, all for developing and extending the power of the Church over its congregation, has certainly plunged much of the Western world into spiritual ignorance. Because of this lack of knowledge the world has the black record of inquisitions and persecutions of one faith over others, and those who believe that their religion is the only way and any other path merely takes one to eternal damnation. A partial list of those early thinkers who accepted the doctrine of reincarnation includes Italy’s philosopher and poet of the Renaissance Giordano Bruno (who was later burned at the stake by the Inquisition because of his beliefs), as well as the great philosopher Voltaire. Some of America’s founding fathers, including Benjamin Franklin, Tom Paine, as well as former Presidents John Adams and Thomas Jefferson also believed in reincarnation. Napoleon made mention of his accepting reincarnation as did the German poet Wolfgang von Goethe. In Russia, Count Leo Tolstoy believed in reincarnation, as well as such early American philosophers and poets as Ralph Waldo Emerson, Walt Whitman, Henry David Thoreau, and Charles Dickens, who mention their beliefs in many of their writings. We can also include U. S. Auto magnate Henry Ford, U. S. General George S. Patton, Nobel Laureates Herman Hesse and Isaac Bashevis Singer, Psychologist Carl Jung, British biologist Thomas Huxley, American Psychoanalyst Erik Erikson, and Mahatma Gandhi. All in all, it would take a large book to list all who have accepted the principle of reincarnation and explain their views on it. Even today more people are accepting the philosophy of the soul’s transmigration, especially those who have been investigating sources of Eastern wisdom, metaphysics, or alternative views of spiritual life. In fact, most religions throughout the world, even those who do not profess any connection with reincarnation, often contain references and links to this doctrine of rebirth. For example, the Torah (Jeremiah 1:4-5) relates how God told Jeremiah that, “Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee; and before thou camest out of the womb I sanctified thee, and I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations.” Therefore, before the conception of Jeremiah, he had a life wherein God knew him and arranged for his destiny. Another example is in Ecclesiasticus (41:9) wherein Solomon explains, “Woe be unto you, ungodly men, which have forsaken the law of the most high God! For when you are born [or reborn], you shall be born to a curse.” This certainly relates to the law of karma and rebirth. Although some of the Jewish philosophers did not recognize or elaborate on the principle of reincarnation, the concept of rebirth was accepted by some of the noted Jewish historians and writers. For without the understanding of reincarnation, some of the Jewish scripture is difficult to understand. In the case of Flavius Josephus, the Jewish historian of the first century, he accepted and wrote about the concept of reincarnation, explaining that the mortal bodies are created out of temporary matter, yet the soul within is eternal and a part of the Divine which inhabits our bodies. And that the souls go into other existences, both good or bad, according to their activities. The Cabala (or Kabbalah), which is a very important book amongst Hebraic scholars, also has information about past and future lives. Many early Kabbalists supported the idea that the Hebrew texts supported the concept of reincarnation. Anan ben David in the eighth century and Abraham bar Hiyya of Spain were a few of the important figures who taught that the soul would take birth over and over until it reached spiritual perfection. The idea was, as is still relevant today, that if one did not perfectly follow all 613 commandments of the Torah in regard to action, speech and thought, the person would need to reincarnate until he reached such a state. We also find that the Zohar or Book of Splendor gives most of the information regarding the Jewish doctrine of reincarnation and karma. This is a principal book of the Kabbalah which first appeared in Spain near the 13th century. The book expresses the cycle of transformation as gilul, which is an individual’s process of learning certain lessons in this life, or balancing particular wrongs from previous lives in the present existence. This is part of the ongoing process to become purified to earn the release from the cycle of birth and death in this earthly life. The book essentially relates how death is part of the process we undergo in our development of consciousness, another stage on our journey of self-discovery. It concurs with the basic aspects of Vedic knowledge that our activities and thoughts build a level of consciousness that is tested at the time of death. It mentions that the path taken by the departing soul at death is determined by the path one takes during this life. Our consciousness and focus at the moment of death is the biggest influence on determining the nature of our next life. It further relates that for the living beings to return to the Absolute, they must develop all the perfections, which if not done in one life must be accomplished in a second, third, or however many lifetimes is necessary to attain reunion with God. These teachings were once most prevalent in the Jewish philosophy, especially in the Middle Ages. They seem to be resurfacing amongst people again, especially with the renewed interest in the Kabbalah and other mystical traditions. It appears that they were forgotten or abandoned when the Roman Catholic Church tried to dominate all religious thought and bring the Jews to accept the Christian theology and give up their own. Again it was the Church’s attempt to maintain all authority and control over one’s connection with God and the afterlife. Anyone outside the Church was doomed to eternal hell, and also, in the meantime, deserved the Church’s persecution. So we can see that reincarnation is not something that is adverse to the Jews and their tradition. In Islam there is also mention of the principle of reincarnation, although the Koran does not offer a clear code on this doctrine. Therefore, later theologians and commentators developed this premise more deeply. Nonetheless, one example is found in the Koran (2.28), which states: “How can you deny Allah? Did he not give you life when you were dead, and will He not cause you to die and then restore you to life? Will you not return to Him at last?” Another such reference in the Koran that relates to resurrection, or another life after death, is found in Sura 20 (verses 50-55) that states: “My Lord alone has knowledge of that; it is recorded in His book. He does not err, nor does He forget. It is He who has made the earth your cradle and traced on it paths for you to walk on. It is He who sends down water from the sky with which He brings forth every kind of plant, saying: ‘Eat and feed your cattle. Surely in this there are signs for men of understanding. From the earth We have created you, and to the earth We will restore you; and from it We will bring you back to life.’” This certainly indicates the soul being born in another physical form. The offshoot of Islam from the eleventh century known as the Druze definitely accepts and practices the principle of reincarnation. They are also known as the Sufis of Syria, and are closely linked to the Vedic philosophy of India, which is why they seem well acquainted with concepts that have originated in the East. This is the same with Buddhism, being an outgrowth of the Vedic school of thought. Buddhism assuredly accepts the idea that reaching the state of enlightenment can hardly be achieved in one lifetime. Thus, many lifetimes may be required in which the living being takes birth to further its development. However, this premise of reincarnation is more pronounced in the Mahayana tradition than in the Theravada school of thought. The Theravada branch of Buddhism (found mostly in Burma, Sri Lanka, Cambodia and Thailand), originating from a South Indian school of philosophy, claimed that there is no soul, and, thus, no need for rebirth. While the Mahayana tradition (found in Tibet, China, Japan, and Korea) accepts reincarnation and that there is a soul-like being that is the cause of karma and rebirth. Some of the Buddhist scriptural references that relate to principles of reincarnation include the Jatakas, or the stories that were said to have been told by the Buddha himself. These are 547 stories of the Buddha’s past incarnations, and his sojourns throughout the various species of life to his gradual attainment of Buddhahood. These are some of the references that can be found throughout the world that directly relate to or show its connection with reincarnation.

CHAPTER TWO

Reincarnation in Christianity

As we have seen in the previous chapter, reincarnation is practically something that can be found in any part of the world. Only in contemporary Christianity is it taught that, in essence, the soul has a beginning with this present life and then lives eternally hereafter, either in heaven or hell, but never existed in a previous life. Then, after death, the body and soul live again with the resurrection of the dead. In this way, they teach that there is but one chance in one life, in this one and only universe. Nonetheless, more Christian writers today are accepting the idea that reincarnation at least does not conflict with the teachings of Jesus. Such writers include the Methodist Leslie Whitehead, Theology Professor John J. Hearney, Minister William L. de Arteaga, Geddes MacGregor, the noted Anglican priest and Emeritus Distinguished Professor of Philosophy at University of Southern California, and others, including the famous Edgar Cayce. Edgar Cayce was a devout Christian, yet gave many mystical readings in which reincarnation played a part and was often explained in regard to the person whose reading was being done. Cayce also explained that Jesus himself taught reincarnation. The philosophy of the early Gnostic Christians was similar to the Oriental teachings regarding rebirth and karma, and, thus, they accepted the transmigration of the soul. Some of the early Christian Fathers who accepted reincarnation included Justin Martyr (AD 100-165), Clement of Alexandria (AD 150-220), Origen (AD 185-254), St. Gregory of Nyssa (AD 257-332), and St. Jerome (AD 340-420). St. Augustine also contemplated the idea of having been born before. So reincarnation was very much a part of early Christianity. Unfortunately, Emperor Constantine (280s-337) used Christianity as a means to make people follow the rules of the faith to unite his kingdom. The early Christians were not exactly the most united group of people. In the early fourth century the Roman Empire was losing its influence and starting to crumble while certain strong Christian groups were competing for power. So Constantine brought together the leaders of the disputing Christian sects at the Council of Nicaea in 325 AD. In an attempt to influence them to work out their disagreements to develop a single doctrine, and for the strength of the empire, he promised to give them his allegiance. It was these decisions that formed the basis for the Roman Catholic Church. Therein, the doctrine was set, the books that would be included in the Bible were decided, and anything that did not fit with the new creed was thrown out, including the topic of reincarnation or any groups that accepted it. Henceforth, Constantine began working to remove all competing religions and make his control over the empire stronger, much to the approval of the Christian leaders. The autocratic nature of the Church was born and persisted for many centuries thereafter. Emperor Justinian (483-565) used the same tactic. He did this by propagating the idea that people had but one life to reach perfection, or be subjected to an eternal hell. This would make most everyone inclined to be “Good Christians” and loyal to the empire. However, there were a number of groups who accepted reincarnation, such as the Gnostics and Origenists, in which case they thought that they had more than one life to reach such a state of perfection, and, thus, might not need to so strongly adhere to the rules of the Church. This, of course, would make Justinian’s plan less affective. In this way, the doctrine of the soul’s transmigration was taken out of the Christian philosophy and denounced by Justinian, which later became a Papal Edict. Nonetheless, the belief in reincarnation continued in parts, and it was Pope Vigilius at the Second Council of Constantinople on May 5, 553 A.D. who decreed that, “Whosoever shall support the mythical doctrine of the pre-existence of the soul and the consequent wonderful opinion of its return, let him be anathema.” However, Pope Vigilius was said to have been in disagreement with the edict. But when he arrived at Constantinople he reversed himself and issued the document that supported the condemnation of the anathematized writings. It was heavily criticized by bishops in Gaul, North Africa, and elsewhere, and by 550 Vigilius even revoked it. Yet, Justinian had overseen the proceedings at the Council and made the arrangements to his liking to have 159 bishops voting against only about six who were from the Western contingent and adherents of the reincarnation doctrine of Origen. In this way, the opponents of the Origen teachings succeeded and Justinian got his way. From this time, Christianity has been forced to live and teach the non-truth that we have but one life to reach heaven, or be condemned to eternal hell. This, of course, was to increase the power of the church and promote the idea that no one had any ability to commune with God or be saved from hell except through the church. Reincarnation and karma allowed for the idea that everyone was responsible for their own lives and what happened in their next life. Excluding this from Christianity meant that it was up to the church and one’s connection with it that was all that could improve one’s life and guarantee protection from whatever was perceived as evil or bad, or falling into eternal damnation. Therefore, from that time all such teachings regarding reincarnation stopped and all inner, esoteric doctrines of the Bible were thrown out or lost. In spite of all these attempts by the Church, the concept of reincarnation continued among the lay people. But it took another thousand years of persecution and bloodshed in the fight to stamp it out. In Italy and southern France in the early thirteenth century there was the simple and devotional group called the Cathars, who kept to themselves in many ways and still accepted the philosophy of reincarnation. A massive crusade was launched by the pope who was determined to stop the heresy that persisted, and only after 500,000 people were killed, including whole villages, did the Cathars cease to exist. The Inquisition that followed some time later applied the same brutal reign of terror against all those who took the freedom to believe anything outside the dogma of the Church. Nonetheless, in spite of these changes and the censoring of any knowledge in the Bible relating to reincarnation, there are, however, still some powerful references that hold the idea of reincarnation intact. For example, in Matthew (16:13-14) it says: “When Jesus came into the coasts of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, saying, Who do men say that I am? And they replied, Some say that thou art John the Baptist; some, Elias; and others, Jeremias, or one of the other prophets.” This shows that the idea of reincarnation was certainly not a strange or foreign idea to Jesus or his disciples. On the contrary, they accepted it and actually expected the prophets to reincarnate again to continue teaching the people. This is exactly in line with the traditional Vedic and Buddhist teachings that propound the idea that the masters may decide to return in another incarnation to continue their teachings for the welfare of the masses. Further proof of this is found in Matthew (17:9-13): “And as they came down from the mountain, Jesus charged them saying, Tell the vision to no man, until the Son of Man be risen again from the dead. And his disciples asked him, saying, Why then say the scribes that Elias must first come? And Jesus answered them, Elias truly shall first come, and restore all things. But I say unto you, that Elias has come already, and they knew him not, but have done unto him whatsoever they listed. Likewise shall the Son of Man suffer from them. Then the disciples understood that he spake unto them of John the Baptist.” This means that the scribes predicted that the prophet Elias would return by taking another birth and that John the Baptist was Elias. However, he was never recognized as such, for Herod had already beheaded him. “Jesus began to say unto the multitudes concerning John. . . this is he, of whom it is written, Behold, I send my messenger before thy face, which shall prepare thy way before thee. . . and if ye will receive it: this is Elias, which was for to come. He that hath ears to hear, let him hear.” (Matthew 11:7,10-11,14-15) A similar reference is in Luke (4:7-9): “Now Herod the tetrarch heard of all that was done by Jesus, and he was perplexed, because that it was said of some, that John was risen from the dead; and of some, that Elias had appeared; and of others, that one of the old prophets was risen again. And Herod said, John have I beheaded; but who is this of whom I hear such things?” In Mark (6:14-16), the same incident is described. In the book of St. John (9:1-2) it states: “And Jesus passed by, he saw a man which was blind from birth. And his disciples asked him, saying, Master, who did sin, this man, or his parents, that he was born blind?” This especially signifies that Jesus and his disciples new of the law of karma and they questioned what prior activities may have caused the man’s present difficulties. This means that before the numerous changes in the Bible, there was once a much broader understanding of spiritual science than is supplied now in biblical tradition. Another reference to having lived before this life is found in Romans (9:9-13), “For this is the word of promise, At this time will I come, and Sarah shall have a son. And not only this; but when Rebecca also had conceived by one, even by our father Isaac; (For the children being not yet born, neither having done any good or evil, that the purpose of God according to election might stand, not of works, but of him that calleth;) It was said unto her, The elder shall serve the younger. As it is written, Jacob have I loved, but Esau have I hated.” This indicates a previous birth for both Jacob and Esau, wherein Jacob performed good works and accumulated good karma, while Esau engaged in evil ways, forcing him to a lower position in the service of Jacob and in the eyes of God. Finally, we can see in Paul’s letter to the Galatians (6:4-8) wherein he teaches the ways of reactions for one’s deeds. He says: “But let every man prove his own work, and then shall he have rejoicing in himself alone, and not in another. For every man shall bear his own burden. Let him that is taught in the word communicate unto him that teacheth in all good things. Be not deceived: God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap. For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting.” This certainly teaches the rewards of being detached to those things of the temporary body. For attachment to the body and the struggle to attain its pleasures leads one to the karmic reactions of continued toil in the material realm, while focusing on the spiritual path will lead one to freedom from the body and continued material existence. There are more references that we could point out in the Bible which relate to the idea of reincarnation. However, this should be enough to show that regardless of whatever changes were made in the Bible after the Second Council of Constantinople in 553 A.D., there are still enough references to show that reincarnation was not a foreign or unacceptable approach to increase one’s spiritual knowledge and understanding. By understanding this, it can be said that it is not wrong for a Christian to accept and believe in reincarnation, which had been taken out of the Christian theology due to politics more than anything else. After all, how could an all-loving and merciful God give His sons and daughters only one life to reach Him, or be condemned to an eternal hell? Especially when knowing full well how difficult life can be, and how the character of humans is full of weaknesses. The fact is that comprehending reincarnation is one of the basic principles of understanding spiritual knowledge. Without that, so many basic questions regarding life will go unanswered. Furthermore, once the censoring of essential knowledge for political purposes is begun, it could lead to more abbreviations to be made, up to and including the elimination of knowledge about the soul, thus bringing an end to religion as we presently know it. Some people may ask why believe in reincarnation when we can simply believe in Jesus and be saved from hell, as the faith suggests. But being saved from our sinful activities will not be enough to save us from our materialistic desires. Even if we believe in Jesus and reach heaven, if our desires are still directing our thoughts and attention toward earthly life in order to satisfy our materialistic desires, do you think Jesus would keep us from what we want? Do you think we would be held in heaven when our mentality craves a worldly existence? If we choose to live a life on earth to try and attain our desires for worldly pleasures, or for wife or husband and family and all the other forms of material happiness we want, why should we be deprived of a chance to acquire it? So, whether we are saved or not, our desires may drive us back to the complexities of material existence and reincarnation until we finally become free from such desires.

CHAPTER THREE

The First Thing You Need to Know is You Are Not Your Body

The first thing you need to know if you want to understand how reincarnation works is that we are more than these temporary material bodies. Anyone can see that these bodies have a beginning and end. From that perception alone anyone can say that we are born and die. But then how does reincarnation work? How do we find ourselves in a particular body and feel that this is not the only time we have lived, or that we will exist again? The answer is that we need to know what we really are. In near-death-experiences we have descriptions of what happened to people when they were revived after being out of the body, but what if they had not re-entered their body? What if the patients could not be revived? If they had died, where would they have gone? Or is death simply the end of everything? When someone dies, the relatives may cry and exclaim, “Oh, he is gone, he has left us.” But what is gone? He is lying there, or at least the body is. So if he is gone, then it is that part you have not seen that is gone. So what is it? The Chandogya Upanishad (6.10.3) begins explaining that the subtle essence in all that exists is the Self. It is the true and thou art it. The Twelfth and Thirteenth Khandas of the Chandogya Upanishad gives further examples in which it states that a tall tree has its essence, the self, originally in the small seed from which it grew. Yet to break a seed open will reveal no such potency for it to grow into such a huge plant. But the power is there. Likewise, to take salt and mix it in a glass of water renders the salt invisible; yet, by tasting the water, we can know the salt is there. Similarly, the self exists in the material body though we do not directly perceive it. However, Bhagavad-gita (13.34) explains that as the sun alone illuminates the universe, so does the living entity within the body illuminate it by consciousness. Therefore, just as we cannot perceive the salt mixed in the water except by taste, we also cannot see the soul in the body except by recognizing the symptom, which is consciousness. The Mundaka Upanishad (3.1.9) says: “The soul is atomic in size and can be perceived by perfect intelligence. This atomic soul is floating in the five kinds of air (prana, apana, vyana, samana, and udana), is situated within the heart, and spreads its influence all over the body of the embodied living entities. When the soul is purified from the contamination of the five kinds of material air, its spiritual influence is exhibited.” The Chandogya Upanishad (6.11.3) also states that although the body withers and dies when the self leaves it, the living self does not die. The Bible also explains: “While we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen; for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal.” (II Corinthians 4:18) Further enlightenment is given in the Srimad-Bhagavatam (7.2.22) wherein it explains that the spirit soul has no death and is eternal and inexhaustible. He is completely different from the material body, but because of being misled by misuse of his slight independence, he is obliged to accept subtle and gross bodies created by the material energy and thus be subjected to so-called material happiness and distress. The eternal nature of the self is also explained in Bhagavad-gita by Sri Krishna where He specifically says that there was never a time when He did not exist, nor any of the living beings, including you. Nor shall any of us cease to be in the future. The embodied soul continually passes from boyhood to youth to old age in this body. Similarly the soul enters another body at the time of death. For one who is self-realized, there is no bewilderment through such a change.1 Furthermore, it is explained that we should know that which pervades the entire body is indestructible. No one is able to destroy the imperishable soul. Only the material body of the eternal living entity is subject to destruction.2. . . For the soul there is never birth nor death. Nor, having once been, does he ever cease to be. He is unborn, undying and eternal. He is not slain when the body dies or is killed.3. . . As a person puts on new garments, giving up old ones, similarly, the soul accepts new material bodies, giving up the old and useless ones.4 Certainly this knowledge can relieve anyone from the anxiety that comes from thinking our existence is finished at death. Spiritually, we do not die; yet, the body is used until it is no longer fit to continue. At that time, it may appear that we die, but that is not the case. The soul continues on its journey to another body according to its destiny. Further descriptions of the indestructibility of the soul is also explained, wherein it is stated that the individual soul is unbreakable and insoluble, and can be neither burned nor dried. The soul is everlasting, unchangeable, and eternally the same. Knowing this, we should not grieve for the body.5 As we have explained, the body dwindles and dies but the soul does not die: it simply changes bodies. Therefore, the body is like a shirt or coat that we wear for some time, and when it is worn out, we change it for a new one. Therefore, the Vedic literature, such as the Chandogya Upanishad (8.1.1), mentions that knowledge of the self within is what should be sought and understood by all. Realizing one’s spiritual identity solves the problems and mysteries of life, as we shall further clarify in this book. The more we realize our spiritual identity, the more we will see that we are beyond these temporary material bodies, and that our identity is not simply being a white body, or black, or yellow, or fat, skinny, intelligent, dumb, old, young, strong, weak, blind, etc. Real blindness means not being able to see through the temporary and superficial bodily conditions and into the person within. Seeing reality means to recognize the spiritual nature of everyone.

THE VEDIC DESCRIPTION OF THE SOUL

The Srimad-Bhagavatam (11.28.35) explains that the soul is self- luminous, beyond birth and death, and unlimited by time or space and, therefore, beyond all change. The Bhagavatam (11.22.50) also points out that as one witnesses the birth and death of a tree and is separate from it, similarly the witness of the birth, death, and various activities of the body is separate from it. Although the soul is situated in the body, it is very small and is seated in the heart, according to the Chandogya Upanishad (6.3.3). We can see this since all energy within the body is expanded from the heart. If the heart stops functioning, the whole body collapses. But the heart is simply a seat, which means the seat can be changed, as we can observe from heart transplant operations, or even from the use of a mechanical heart. But even with such scientific advancement, if the soul leaves the body, not even a mechanical heart will keep the body functioning for long. The size of the soul is also described in the Svetasvatara Upanishad (5.9): “When the upper point of a hair is divided into one hundred parts and again each of such parts is further divided into one hundred parts, each such part is the measurement of the dimension of the spirit soul.” So considering that the diameter of a typical hair is about three-thousandths of an inch wide, then to divide that into one hundreds parts, and then divide one of those parts again into one hundred parts means that it would be microscopic. And since it is spiritual and not made of material substance, to perceive the presence of the soul is not so easy. It is invisible to our material vision. The Katha Upanishad also explains that within the body, higher than the senses and the sense objects, exists the mind. More subtle than the mind is the intelligence, and higher and more subtle than the intellect is the self. That self is hidden in all beings and does not shine forth, but is seen by subtle seers through their sharp intellect. From this we can understand that within the gross physical body, composed of various material elements, such as earth, air, water, etc., there is also the subtle body composed of the finer subtle elements of mind, intelligence and false ego. The psychic activities take place within the subtle body. It is also within the subtle body wherein exist the memories of past lives, however deep they may be. To explain further about the subtle body, the Vedic texts describe that within the gross physical body there is the subtle body, composed of mind, intelligence and ego. After the gross body is finished, the subtle body still exists to enjoy or suffer in the consciousness that was developed.6 The mind of the living entity continues to exist through the process of accepting different gross bodies, and the mind records different thoughts and activities. In the mind these appear in different combinations, sometimes as memories or dreams, or as things that were not seemingly seen nor heard before.7 It is because of the process of the subtle body holding desires and memories that the living being is forced to accept and then give up gross material bodies. This is called the transmigration of the soul. Because of this, the soul appears to be subjected to various types of happiness and unhappiness, or enjoyment and misery.8 It is further explained that beyond the gross physical body is the subtle form [the subtle body which consists of mind, intelligence and false ego] that is without formal shape and is unseen. Yet, the living being has his spiritual form that is further beyond this subtlety, otherwise he could not have repeated births. A person actually sees his spiritual self as well as the presence of the Supreme Being when he perceives that both the gross and subtle bodies have nothing to do with the pure, spiritual self within.9 Therefore, it could be asked that since we are separate from the gross and subtle bodies, why do we so strongly identify with the material body? It is explained that though the material body is different from the soul, it is because of the ignorance from material association that one falsely identifies oneself with the high and low bodily conditions.10 It is further described that it is because of the false ego that one identifies with being a material body, and then experiences material happiness and distress. Yet, in actuality, the spirit soul is said to be above such material existence and can never really be affected by material happiness and distress in any circumstance. It is only because of the mind and ego which makes one identify with being the body. A person who understands this has nothing to fear from the material creation, or the appearance of births and deaths.11 In these verses it is clearly explained that only due to the false ego do we think we are the material body, and from such a conception we immediately experience various material desires that cause happiness or distress. There is, however, the sense of real ego, such as, “I am,” or, “I am existing,” or, “I am spirit.” But when one identifies with the body and then thinks, “I am this body,” “I am black,” “I am white,” or thinks they are fat, skinny, short, tall, American, European, Hindu, Muslim, Catholic, Protestant, etc., this is all false ego, or that which is associated with the temporary material body which is not our real identity. It is superficial to our real identity, but is maintained by our ignorance of spiritual reality which is the cause of the barriers, quarrels, and misunderstandings between people, communities, neighbors, or nations around the world. The Chandogya Upanishad (8.1.5-6) explains that the self is free from sin and old age, death and grief, hunger and thirst, lamentation and sadness, and desires only what it ought to desire, and imagines nothing but what it ought to imagine. Those who depart from this life without having discovered the self and those true desires have no freedom in all the worlds. But those who depart from here after discovering the self and those true desires have freedom in all the worlds. According to the Vedic literature, the body is compared to a chariot in which the self is riding. The example is given that those who are advanced in spiritual knowledge look on the body to be like a chariot, though it is made according to the direction of the Supreme Lord. The senses are like the horses; the mind, which is the master of the senses, is like the reins; the objects that the senses are drawn toward are the destinations; intelligence is the chariot driver or that which devises the plans to fulfill the desires; and the consciousness, which is developed in a particular way because of the total affects of these items, is the cause of bondage in this material world.12 In the Katha Upanishad (1.3.3-12), which gives the same example, there is further elaboration where it states that he who has no understanding and whose mind (the reins) is never firmly held, his senses (horses) are unmanageable, like vicious horses of a charioteer. But he who has understanding and whose mind is firmly held has senses that are under control like good horses of a charioteer. He who has no understanding enters into the rounds of rebirth; whereas, he who has understanding, who is mindful and pure, reaches that place from whence he is not born again. He reaches the end of his journey, which is the highest abode of the Supreme Being in the spiritual atmosphere. So to summarize, the soul is a particle of consciousness and bliss in its purified state of being. It is not material in any way. It is what departs from the body at the time of death and carries its mental impressions, desires and tendencies, along with the karmic results of its activities from one body to another. We are all souls that are merely wearing material bodies. The soul is more subtle than the mind, intelligence of even the subtle body. The consciousness that permeates the body is the symptom of the soul within it. The soul is indivisible, unbreakable, cannot be burned, withered, dried, or killed in any way. The soul comes under the bondage of a body when it is influenced by ignorance and bodily desires and impressions. This is illusory. When it becomes purified by absorption of spiritual knowledge, it is freed from the need for any future births in material bodies. It is the subtle body in which the soul goes to heaven or hell to work out the soul’s karma in such regions. The subtle body carries the desires and impressions with it to form the next body. One’s karma also will determine the situation one will find in the next birth. The Chandogya Upanishad (5.107) explains that when one’s conduct has been good in the previous life, the present life will also take place in a good situation. If the previous life has been predominately bad, one can be born in a lower status of life, and will be tested by difficulties. It is the subtle body and the consciousness that it carries that provides the seeds of the next body that it will enter. For those sages who have purified their consciousness, becoming absorbed in spiritual knowledge and absolving any impurities in the mind, they are liberated from karma that frees them from any future births. They are free from any more births in the material world and are delivered to the spiritual atmosphere.

CHAPTER FOUR

What is Reincarnation and Karma

To begin with, let’s explain reincarnation in a simplified way. Reincarnation is called samsara in the classic Vedic texts of India. The word samsara is Sanskrit and means being bound to the cycle of repeated birth and death through numerous lifetimes. How this works is that those who are materially conditioned transmigrate through different bodies according to one’s desires and past activities and familiarities. Their desires, if materially motivated, requires a physical body to enable them to continue to work out their material longings in various conditions of life. Generally, in the Eastern traditions, no matter whether it is Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, or others, it is considered that all forms of life or species have souls, the entity who reincarnates. When a being is ready to incarnate on Earth, previous to that the soul may go through a whole series of lives in order to experience various levels of existence and consciousness. The principle is that an entity may actually enter the mineral kingdom, and then progress through the different species of life, gradually working their way through the plant species, then through the insect species, the animal forms of life, and then into the human form. Of course, it is not the soul that is any of these species, but it is only the body or covering of the soul in which it appears. The living being will continually move upward in its cycles of reincarnation until it has experienced all the main varieties of existences that the material realm has to offer. This way the living being is fully experienced in working out material desires or longings in all kinds of forms by the time it reaches the human stage. Of course, not every being may have to go through all of this. However, only in the human species does the individual have a choice in what level of consciousness it wants to develop. This is determined by the types of activities and thought patterns to which it is most attracted. So he can move back down the ladder, so to speak, if he develops a consciousness or an attachment to activities that are too animalistic. Actions have reactions, in which activities in one life will determine how good or bad their next life will be. This is where karma enters the picture. Thus, karma keeps one bound in the cycles of repeated birth and death, or reincarnation, until one can become free from it. In this way, without understanding what karma is, you cannot fully comprehend how reincarnation works. Those who are new to life in the human species often do not have the most developed level of consciousness. They may have little awareness of their souls and do things that are mostly motivated by instinctual or sensual desires and bodily forms of happiness. Only after many lifetimes does the entity begin to ask what its purpose is in this world, and then will begin to develop a more philosophical consciousness. Then he may become more motivated for the mental and intellectual meaning in life. He may also arrive at the conclusion that mental pleasures are better than acting only for bodily desires. After what can be millions of births and deaths through many forms of life, the soul, depending on the level of consciousness that is acquired at the time of death, can gradually enter higher and higher levels of development. Finally, if it detects that he is actually not this body but a spiritual being within it, and reaches a spiritual level of consciousness, he can perfect his life so that he will enter the spiritual strata and no longer have to incarnate in the physical world. Thus, liberation is attained through Self-realization. Through human existence on Earth, the doorway to many other planes of existence is possible, including entrance into the spiritual world. It only depends on how we use this life.

WHAT IS KARMA

Karma is one of those topics that many people know a little about, but few understand the intricacies of it. The second law of thermodynamics is that for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction. On the universal scale, this is the law of karma. The law of karma basically states that every action has a reaction and whatever you do to others will later return to you, either in this life or a future life. Furthermore, ignorance of the law is no excuse. We are still accountable for everything we do, regardless of whether we understand it or not. We cannot escape it, even if we do not believe it. Therefore, the best thing is to learn how it works. If everyone understood the law of karma, we would all be living a happier life in a brighter world. Why? Because we could know how to adjust our lives so we would not be suffering the constant reactions of what we have done due to the false aim of life. According to Vedic literature, karma is the law of cause and effect. For every action there is a cause as well as a reaction. Karma is produced by performing fruitive activities for bodily or mental development. One may perform pious activities that will produce good reactions or good karma for future enjoyment. Or one may perform selfish or what some call sinful activities that produce bad karma and future suffering. This follows a person wherever he or she goes in this life or future lives. Such karma, as well as the type of consciousness a person develops, establishes reactions that one must experience. It is stated that as a man sows, so shall he reap. Similarly, as people live their present life, they cultivate a particular type of consciousness by their thoughts and activities, which may be good or bad. This brings about the kind of life after death in which they will enjoy or suffer. A person thinks of things according to their lifestyle and the habitual thought patterns he or she has developed. For example, the last thought of a licentious man will be of women. The last thought of a drunkard will be for another drink of an alcoholic beverage. For one who is greedy, it will be of gaining more money. The last thought of a soldier may be of shooting his enemy. Or the last thought of a mother will be of the love she has for her child. Or the last thought of a father will be of the love he has for his wife and children. It is these thoughts that will determine the direction of the person’s next life. In this way, our actions create reactions in both karma and consciousness, which is witnessed and tested by our last thoughts. This karma is created by our activities and our habitual thought patterns, which are based on our desires. This karma will direct us into a body that is most appropriate for the reactions that we need to endure. Thus, the cause of our existence comes from the activities of our previous life. Since everything is based on a cause, this determines if one is born blind, or in a rich or poor family, healthy or unhealthy, etc. So when the living beings take birth again, they get a certain kind of body that is most suitable for the type of consciousness they have developed. Therefore, according to the Padma Purana, there are 8,400,000 species of life, each offering a particular class of body for whatever kind of desires and consciousness the living being may have in this world. In this way, the living entity is the son of his past and the father of his future. Thus, he is presently affected by his previous life’s activities and creates his future existence by the actions he performs in this life. A person will reincarnate into various forms of bodies that are most suitable for the living entity’s consciousness, desires, and for what he deserves. So the living being inevitably continues in this cycle of birth and death and the consequences for his various good or bad activities as long as he is materially motivated. It is one’s karma that will determine the race, color, sex, or area of the world in which one will appear. The karma will designate the experience that one needs to go through in order to learn certain lessons to continue one’s development toward spiritual completion. One lifetime is often not enough to balance one’s karma for liberation from reincarnation. As one lives and performs actions, new karma is often created for which more lifetimes are necessary. All of one’s karmic reactions do not necessarily return to a person in the present or even next lifetime. They may also appear much later. In a single human existence, one can accumulate enough karma to cause the need for a series of lifetimes to take place. And that karma or destiny will be to the severity of good or bad depending on past deeds from previous lives. Dreams are also a way in which we sometimes work out karma. As we described in the last chapter, the subtle body contains all of our past memories and desires, so not only can these take shape in the form of dreams, but we may also experience some of our karma through good or bad dreams. Things that may not need to be experienced on the physical level may also be experienced in the dream state. Therein we may also feel that what is happening to us is real, and we may dream any number of things in which we may have pleasant or extremely difficult situations manifest. In either case, we may be experiencing that which has been caused by our karma, things that we either earned or deserve. What creates good or bad karma is also the nature of the intent behind the action. If one uses things selfishly or out of anger, greed, hate, revenge, etc., then the nature of the act is of darkness. One will incur bad karma from it that will later manifest as reversals in life, painful events, disease, or accidents. While things that are done for the benefit of others, out of kindness and love, with no thought of return, or for worshiping God, are all acts of goodness and piety, which will bring upliftment or good fortune to you. However, if you do something bad that happens because of an accident or a mistake, without the intent to do any harm to others, the karma is not so heavy. Maybe you were meant to be an instrument in someone else’s karma, which is also yours. It will take into consideration your motivation. Yet the greater the intent or awareness of doing something wrong, the greater the degree of negative reaction there will be. So it is all based on the intent behind the action. Extremely bad karma comes to us when we hurt someone who is already filled with fear, or someone who is sick, or someone who has put their trust in us, or a person who has fully dedicated himself to spiritual practice. Such intense karma can negate much of one’s good karma or pious acts. It may force us into a situation in which it will appear like we are starting from the beginning again. Similarly, helping a person who is in great need, or who is sick, hungry, destitute, etc., can also bring one extremely good karma for such small acts. In the Eastern tradition, however, if someone has done something wrong and is truly regretful of it, then the karma for that action can be minimized or burned up in the fire of remorse. For example, if someone is a murderer and is sentenced to die for it, and if he is truly sorry for what he did, then he may still have to undergo the death sentence, but his next life will be balanced without any need for further punishment. Yet, if someone does something drastic like killing someone in a crime and has little or no regret and is not properly punished for it, his next life will provide considerable suffering and dreadful lessons he will have to endure, especially if he is not punished for it in this life. Therefore, to be punished for one’s crimes in this life is a means by which one can avoid further retribution in the next. So we can begin to see how our thoughts and actions in this life create a reciprocal situation in the next. As it is explained, it is the mind that is the cause of the living being accepting certain types of bodies. According to one’s mental disposition it can be discerned what one was in the past life as well as what kind of body one will have in the future.1 However, we should understand that, essentially, karma is for correcting a person, not for mere retribution of past deeds. The universe is based on compassion. Everyone has certain lessons and ways in which he must develop, and the law of karma actually directs one in a manner to do that. Nonetheless, one is not condemned to stay in this cycle of repeated birth and death forever. There is a way out. In the human form one can acquire the knowledge of spiritual realization and attain release from samsara. This is considered to be the most important achievement one can accomplish in life. This is why every religious process in the world encourages people who want freedom from earthly existence not to hanker for material attachments or sensual enjoyments which bind them to this world, but to look towards what is spiritual and what gives eternal freedom from samsara. All karma can be negated when one truly aspires to understand or realize the higher purpose in life and spiritual truth. When one reaches that point, his life can truly change. By striving for the Absolute Truth, or for serving God, a person can be relieved of all karmic obstacles or responsibilities. One can become free from the weight of a karmic burden. This will be explained more thoroughly later in the book. Another way one can become free from karma is when a true spiritual master accepts the disciple’s karma. This is usually done through the process of initiation and for furthering the disciple’s progress on the road to spiritual advancement. Through the initiation, a self-realized master can transfer the student’s karma to himself. And he burns it up through his own spiritual potency. Then the student can move forward much more quickly toward spiritual enlightenment without the weight of his karma holding him back. All of the details of how reincarnation and karma work will be described as we proceed through the following chapters. Therefore, any reader of this book will be provided with a clear understanding of how a person is implicated by one’s actions, why particular situations in life happen, and how to make improvements for one’s future. Why it may appear that bad things happen to good people will be clearly understood. The point is that reincarnation and karma is a science just as much as the mathematical formula of two plus two equals four. You may believe it or not--it does not matter--but if you do not understand the simple formula of two plus two, there is no chance of understanding any higher mathematical principles. Similarly, if you cannot understand the science of reincarnation, fathoming anything higher in regard to spiritual science is unlikely.

How We Reincarnate

APPROACHING DEATH

To begin with, one thing is for certain, before you can be reborn you have to die. When we will die is not certain. It might be years from now or it may be at any moment. Yet, what our consciousness is like when we die will determine what our next life will be. This is explained in the Bhagavad-gita (8.6) that whatever state of consciousness one attains when he or she quits this body, a similar state will be attained in the next life. This means that after the person has lived his or her life, the numerous variegated activities of the individual forms an aggregated consciousness which determines the karma. All of our thoughts and actions throughout our life will collectively influence the state of being we are in at the time of death. This consciousness will determine what that person is thinking of at the end of one’s life. This last thought and consciousness will then direct where that person will most likely go in the next life because this state of being carries over from this life into the next. As it is further explained, the living entity in the material world carries the different levels of consciousness from one body to another in the same way the air carries aromas.2 In other words, we cannot see the aromas that the air carries, yet it can be perceived by the sense of smell. In a similar way, we cannot see the types of consciousness that the living being has developed, but it is carried from this body at the time of death and proceeds to another body in the next life to take up where it left off from the preceding existence. Of course, the next life may be in another physical body or in a subtle body in between births, or even in heavenly or hellish states of being. After death, one continues the consciousness that was cultivated during life. Death does not necessarily bring one into some new lofty level of consciousness. Insights and higher awareness will abound for most people no doubt. However, the aggregate ways of thinking that one has developed throughout life carries one into the next most appropriate level of existence in which one can continue the interests and desires that were previously acquired. Consciousness is developed by what you see, what you have done, your basic activities and thoughts, and what your goals and ideals have been. In this way, one’s every thought takes form, whether positive or negative. All of it is stored in the subconscious, which then becomes the consciousness once we are released from the body. Everything becomes clear at that time. It is our thought patterns that build the consciousness, which then directs us toward the required experience after death. One’s state of consciousness or conception of life exists in the subtle body, which consists of mind, intelligence and false ego. The soul is covered by this subtle body, which exists within the gross material form. When the physical vehicle can no longer function, the subtle body and soul are forced out of it. Then, when the time is right, they are placed in another physical frame which properly accommodates the state of mind of the living entity. This is how the mental state which attracts the dying man determines how he begins his next life. If the dying man is absorbed in thoughts of material gain or sensual pleasures of wife, family, relatives, home, etc., then he must, at some point, get another material body to continue pursuing his worldly interests. After all, how can one satisfy his material desires without a material body? The death of a person can not only show what type of life he may have lived, but also the future life he will have. For example, it is explained that when a person dies, the life airs will leave the body through one of the apertures, carrying the living being with them. If he is carried out of the body through the top of the head, as most yogis try to do, then his next birth will be quite high, auspicious and good. If the person leaves through other apertures, such as the eyes, ears, nose or mouth, there is still good merit there, but also karma that one needs to adjust, forcing one to enter into another womb in due course of time. In such a case, the person may have performed some good and noble deeds, but also some bad actions as well. Good karma cannot completely eradicate bad karma. They both must be worked out, although good and pious activities can reduce our bad karma. Thus, the person enters a life in which he or she can continue to work out whatever is necessary. Furthermore, if the person leaves the body at death through the lower orifices, then the next birth is considered to be quite low, forced downward by the abundance of bad activities and negative karma. For this reason, it is best that a person always cultivate pious activities and spiritual thoughts to help him or her enter a better life after death. If a person has tried to cut the knots of attachment to materialistic life, and engaged in spiritual activities, to the degree of advancement the person has made, he or she can go to a heavenly realm after death, or even reach God. Nonetheless, we need to remember that death is different for each person. Some leave the body and move on immediately. Others may wander the area where they lived, visiting old and familiar places before being pulled onward. Some also discover they can move through solid objects or to places many miles away at the speed of thought. Some also are greeted by relatives who have passed away, or by luminous beings who help assist the person through the labyrinth of the other realms, while others also pass through many different worlds of various kinds and purposes beyond Earth before taking another birth. However, at the time of death, for one who is too materially attached, the individual may want to hover around his or her dead body, or where the person died or used to live. In some cases, this may go on for weeks, months, or even years by human calculation. In such a situation, the attachment to everything that person was connected with continues until he or she may be lifted up, sometimes by proper prayers from those who care. Such prayers will reach the dead person to help enlighten him or her of the need to continue onward. Or sometimes such a person can be helped by the guidance of angelic beings who come to direct him. It is calculated that such complete departures from the physical body take place around eleven days after death. That is why, in some traditions, obsequies may be performed from the day of death for ten to twelve days to help assure the soul’s transition. This can also help relieve the soul of any wrong reasoning or impurities or bad karma. That is why the people of some countries, such as India, cremate the body shortly after death so the soul will quickly continue its journey forward, without lingering around the body and becoming confused about its new state of being. Another difficult situation at death is suicide. Suicide should be avoided at all costs. It sets up major penalties in one’s future that will have to be overcome. Often times after a suicide there is a long transition that takes place before one is allowed to take birth again. It is like falling down several flights of stairs after working hard to get up the ones you have climbed. It can be a major set back. The karma that one acquires from suicide is that the tests that must be endured in one’s development will have to again be repeated, but many times over. The person may have to face worlds of darkness, or be born in handicapped bodies and difficult situations. Many painful lifetimes may have to be experienced before one can live a more normal life again. However, if one is diseased and dying anyway of a slowly deteriorating condition, there is little karmic affect from a suicide in this situation. Or if one is a captured soldier who will soon painfully die at the hands of the enemy, a suicide to prevent such a death will also produce little negative affect. The reason is that one’s life is running out anyway. Nonetheless, it is always best to let nature take its course to allow the person to work out whatever life and karma has for him. There are no accidents in karma, and life gives you whatever you are meant to experience. There is always a cause for everything that happens. You cannot avoid that, and you cannot run away from it. It will come to you in either this life or another. So it is best to go through it rather than try to postpone it. In any case, we can begin to understand that dying in the right consciousness in order to become free from the cycle of birth and death is an art that takes practice. We have to prepare for the moment of death so that we are not caught off guard or in an unsuitable state of mind. This is one of the purposes of yoga. This is explained in the Katha Upanishad (1.3.6-8) that one who has understanding and whose mind is always firmly held, his senses are under control like good horses of a charioteer. But one who has no understanding, who is unmindful and always impure, enters the rounds of rebirth. One, however, who has understanding, who is mindful and pure, reaches that place from which he is not born again.

HOW THE SOUL LEAVES THE BODY

When dying from disease, the breath will become shallow, and the duration between inhalation and exhalation increases. As external awareness decreases, the functions of the brain, senses and nerves begin to slip, and one’s physical pains become more apparent as the body shuts down. As the subconscious becomes prominent, the impressions within it begin to be the person’s main focus. If confusion sets in, which it often does to one who is unprepared, the sense of who and what he really is can become blurred, and past familiarities and karmic impressions, held within the subconscious, begin to emerge. Any higher understanding that has not become a permanent part of one’s inner awareness will fade as the subconscious impressions gain strength. When the prana or life energy departs from the body, the soul is left with the impressions of the subconscious mind. It is this that determines how the soul leaves the body. Habitual thought patterns from our past, from this lifetime as well as previous lives, cloud the attention. These may be hellish or heavenly, peaceful or disturbing, or some of both. The strongest of those are what becomes the focus of the dying person. This train of thought carries a person toward one’s next birth. This is also what determines from which of the ten bodily openings the soul will leave the body, as it is being carried by the life breath or pranic force. Nature then leads us toward a body that will accommodate our familiarities and past karma. It brings us to a set of parents who have similar interests, or who will provide a certain circumstance that we need or deserve. If we have been able to maintain clarity and spiritual awareness while dying, confusion will not overtake our consciousness. Past familiarity and karmic impressions will not lead us away. It is also related in the Vedic texts that just before the moment we die is the time when the soldiers of Yamaraja, the Vedic name of the Lord of Death, arrive to carry us away if our activities balance more toward evil than good. This is why some of those who have near death experiences say they have seen horrible beings come to take them to hell. As we quit the body, we may try to use whatever force we can muster to go in some other direction, but we are forced by these soldiers to leave the body and go with them. Then the journey into the afterlife begins. We are then lead to the court of Yamaraja, and our life’s record is reviewed. According to the Vedic understanding, the lord of death is Yamaraja. His assistant is Chitragupta who is in charge of reviewing the activities of all souls who appear before them. Under the influence of Chitragupta, the soul reviews his life and all the good or bad that he or she has done in the earthly life. Scenes of our life sweep past our awareness like a movie, and we relive the emotions and reactions of those who were a part of our existence. We can see the good or bad that we did, and how our actions affected others. These are the lessons that we learn. We feel the distress, harm or pain that we caused for others, and see why we have a new existence to endure because of what we did. Our remorse also lightens our karmic debt to some extent but not completely. It follows us and directs us to our next existence, in which we must more thoroughly work out our karma. Then it is determined where we should go, such as heaven or hell or someplace else, what rewards or punishments we should experience, and for how long. This is the process of expiring our karma, after which we can become cleansed to start over again in the human form. On the other hand, those who have surrendered to God and have given all of their desires to Him are visited by the soldiers or guardians of the Supreme who protect him and lead him toward a higher birth. In the Vedic tradition these are called the Vishnudutas, the servants of Lord Vishnu. Not everyone is destined to meet the soldiers of Yamaraja or the Vishnudutas if they are neither too evil or too pious. In that case, we are simply taken to the next body according to our own motivations, familiarities and karmic consequences. Such a situation is described next. The moment of death is also related in the Brihadaranyaka Upanishad (4.4.1-4): As a person dies and slips, as it were, into unconsciousness, the life energy descends into the heart and the living being ceases to recognize those around him. The point where the veins and nadis (channels through which energy flows through the subtle body) go out of the heart becomes lit up within and by that light the Self departs. According to the qualifications of the living entity, the soul and subtle body may leave the material body through the eye, nose, mouth, or through the top of the skull. Or it may leave through other openings of the body such as the anus if he is to take a lower birth. When he departs, the chief prana (life force) departs after him and all the other pranas follow. Then both his consciousness and work (karma) take hold of him along with his familiarity with former things or past desires. Then he takes to his new form of existence. The above verses mention that certain energy channels become filled with light showing the path for the soul to take while departing from the body. This occurrence indicates that the soul, in leaving the body, is beginning to enter the subtle level of existence, or the astral plane as some people call it. The subtle level of being is that in which the unembodied living entities exist, such as ghosts and wandering spirits on the lower level of the subtle realm, and angels and guardian spirits on the higher level. Actually, there is such a wide variety of beings on the subtle platform of existence that they cannot all be named here. In many near death experiences there is often a description of the person leaving the body through a tunnel that has a light at the end of it, as mentioned above. The light is often described as very peaceful, kind, gentle, etc. Some feel that it is God or the entrance into heaven. The light consists of the higher frequencies of spiritual existence that cannot be discerned by us because our consciousness has not yet developed or adapted to that vibrational level of being. Thus, such portals into higher frequencies, or beings which exist on those higher levels, appear as white light. Sometimes people also describe meeting old loved ones who have passed away and are still existing in the subtle realm. However, let us remember that this is near death, when one still has a connection with his present body. In such a state, people may float above the body, as during a medical operation or after a serious accident, and view what is happening to their body or see astral beings. Yet, advanced yogis can also do that at will. It is nothing special, unless, of course, you have never experienced it before. If that is the case, then reaching a stage beyond the limits of your body may seem quite blissful. But that is like the weightlessness felt when you are between two planets. You are not completely on one or the other; you are in between. But once you are completely disconnected from your present body, as in the case of total death, then the effects of your consciousness and past activities, or karma, swiftly deliver you to your next form of existence. Some of this karma may be experienced on the subtle platform, such as when one takes the form of a ghost or a subtle being existing in the astral realm. But there are many different grades of this subtle existence. What one experiences may be quite different for someone else. In any case, various forms of life are expanded on many levels throughout the universe and beyond for accommodating those who are destined to exist on such levels. Another way of looking at what happens to us at death is described in the Saundaryalahari, a yogic text. Therein it explains that when the pranic forces and consciousness leave through the different chakras, or the energy centers in the body, different destinations are achieved. When the prana of a materialistic soul leaves through the lowest chakras, the muladhara and svadhishthana, the person attains the worlds of blind darkness and darkness respectively. If the prana leaves through the manipura chakra at the navel center, a person attains the realm of the devas in the celestial region. If any person’s prana leaves through any chakras above the manipura chakra, they are free from illusion and may not need to be reborn unless they choose to do so. Prana, or the life air and energies, carry the soul out of the body and designates the next destination. It is explained that as a caterpillar reaches the end of a blade of grass and then reaches for another, similarly the soul gives up one body and approaches another. Such a form of body may be like the Fathers, Gandharvas (angels), Devas (demigods), or other beings in various realms. But as a man acts or behaves, so will he be. A man of good acts will take a good birth. A man of bad deeds takes a bad birth. Therefore, as a person desires, so is his will; as his will, so is his deed; and as whatever is his deed, so he will reap. If people have not practiced yoga or a spiritual methodology in order to purify their consciousness so they can face death in the right frame of mind, then they will not be able to utilize death to their fullest advantage. Instead, they will simply stumble along through the experience and, influenced by past beliefs and familiarities, reach the point of entering another round of rebirth. This is described in Srimad-Bhagavatam in which Sri Krishna explains that the material mind of men is shaped by the reactions of fruitive work. It travels from one material body to another, along with the tendency for a particular set of senses. The spirit soul, although different from this mind, follows it. The mind, which is bound to the reactions of desires and activities, always meditates on the objects of the senses, such as in hearing, seeing, tasting, touching, and smelling. Consequently, the mind appears to come into being at birth and then to suffer death. Thus, when the living entity passes from the present body to the next body created by his own karma, he becomes absorbed in the pleasurable and painful sensations of the new body and completely forgets the experience of the previous existence. This total forgetfulness, for one reason or another, of one’s previous material identity is called death.3

REBIRTH

What happens during rebirth is explained in the Katha Upanishad (2.5.7,9,10). Some enter a womb in order to have a body as organic beings, and others go into inorganic matter according to their work and knowledge. Thus, the soul, although one with all beings in spiritual quality, appears differently according to whatever kind of body it enters. This is further elaborated in the Yajur-veda (12.36-39): “O learned and tolerant soul, after roaming in waters and plants, thou enterest the womb and art born again and again. O soul, thou art born in [the body of] plants, thou art born in trees, thou art born in all created animate objects, and thou art born in waters [as aquatics]. O soul, blazing like the sun, after cremation, having reached the fire and the earth for rebirth, and residing in the belly of thy mother, thou art born again. O soul, having reached the womb, again and again, thou auspiciously liest in thy mother, as a child sleeps in her mother’s lap.” Herein we can begin to understand that what is called birth is simply a person’s total identification with a new body or situation. One accepts the so-called reality of a new body in the same way that one completely accepts the experience of a dream or a fantasy. The point is that as a person experiencing a dream does not remember his previous dreams, a person situated in a new body, although having existed previously to it, thinks that he has only recently come into being.3 Thus, the living entity, placed into a new material body, immediately begins to identify with his pleasurable and painful sensations and also begins to think of the same kind of desires he had while in his previous body. This is when the living entity forgets his past life and feels that this present body is his first existence, although carrying the same kind of desires as before. This is the illusion. What all this means is that as we engage in different types of activities and thoughts, our mind is affected by the kind of desires we have. When we work, we are pursuing some goal. Such activities produce good or bad reactions that affect our consciousness. This consciousness, consisting of thinking, feeling and willing, is held within the subtle body, which is made up of the mind, intelligence and false ego. The shape of the subtle body is said to change according to the type of consciousness we develop. This subtle body travels with the soul from one material body to another, or even in between material bodies, as we go through the rounds of repeated birth and death. It is the mind that, being attached to achieving various goals and desires through worldly activities, always meditates on the pleasures of the senses, and this causes one to be born in another material body after death. The mind is not an object that we can perceive with our eyes, so it will seem as though the mind is created at birth and annihilated at death. But, actually, this is not the case. We may not remember our past lives. But if we consider how our likes and dislikes, our strengths and fears, the kind of body we have, our talents, our family, all relate to our past experiences, both in this life and previous lives, then we are seeing the mementoes of our past existences. Thus, each person is responsible for whatever situation and circumstances that occur in life. In this way, each person is meeting the results of his own consciousness and past actions. No one is an innocent victim of circumstance, for all that happens is created by an original cause, based on our thoughts, words and deeds. From this Vedic knowledge, written many hundreds of years ago, we can understand that after death the soul continues to exist, and then, when ready for rebirth, enters the womb of its new mother in whatever particular mode of life for which one is qualified. Thus, the soul enters the womb at the time of conception, and the embryo continues to grow as long as the soul remains within. Otherwise, there is no conception during sexual intercourse. If the soul leaves the fetus, the mother’s body will then miscarry the baby, or it will be stillborn. Another point in the Eastern tradition is that the soul can be born in other species of life. This is a controversial issue among some occultists or sentimental believers in reincarnation who think that the soul will always go upwards to a better or higher birth after this life. But there is no evidence in Vedic literature that this is always the case. If a person is absorbed in the mode of goodness, he or she will go upward. If they are in the mode of passion, they will usually come back as a human where the mode of passion is especially prevalent. This is the typical case. But if they are in the mode of ignorance or darkness, there is the possibility to go downward into a disadvantageous situation or even a lower species. The reason is that the type of consciousness you develop in this life determines what kind of body you will get in the next. The Bhagavad-gita explains that when the living being takes another physical body, he attains a particular set of senses, including a type of ear, nose, tongue, and means of touch. These are centered around the mind in order to give the living being the facility to enjoy the various objects of the senses in a certain way.5. . . Thus the living entity who is embodied within the material energy lives in a way to enjoy the three modes of nature. Because of this association with the material nature, he meets with positive or negative results amongst various species of life.6 From this, we can understand that according to one’s lifestyle and activities, a person’s consciousness becomes infected with high or low qualities. If we are simply interested in the pursuit of animalistic endeavors, then in our next life we will get a certain type of body to provide the kind of senses we need to enjoy such animalistic pleasures. But human life is one of particular responsibilities that should not be ignored. If we misuse this human life, then it means we may be more fit for one of the other species of life, and our consciousness at the time of death will determine what kind of body we will get in the future. The point is that a soul that enters within the body of a dog must act like a dog. He cannot act differently. An entity put into the body of a bird must act in that way. But as a human being, one has choice and can act in different ways, thus creating a type of consciousness that will begin taking the shape of the kind of body he will get after death. In some cases, you can almost see what people will be in their next life when they begin to look similar to dogs, cats, pigs or other beings. They are beginning to change into what they will become. As it is explained, a living being, upon taking another physical body, will obtain a certain set of senses, such as ear, tongue, nose, etc., all of which are arranged around the desires in the mind to enjoy in a certain way.7

THE REASON FOR REINCARNATION

The purpose of reincarnation is not merely a matter of reward and punishment. It is meant for the long-term betterment and perfection of the individual. It allows one to work out his desires while at the same time learning what works and what does not. Naturally, however, spiritual knowledge is presented for the good of everyone through the Vedic texts and the many spiritual teachers that try to spread this knowledge. But this is freely given with everyone’s right to accept it or reject it, or to adopt only those portions that are agreeable. Then over many lives, a person will come ever closer to the Truth. After many lifetimes of attempting to attain material happiness, a person will reach the stage of asking himself why and what for? What is the point of working in this way for so long and still suffering birth, old age, disease and death? This brings the means for asking himself what is his real identity and how to pursue the path of spiritual insight. After many lives on this path, all imperfections and impurities will be cleansed and the means for liberation from any further births in a material body will become revealed. Then he will reach moksha or liberation from any further reincarnation and enter into the spiritual atmosphere. The idea that a person has only one life to either become qualified to enter heaven, according to opinion, or enter eternal damnation offers the soul no means of rehabilitation and only endless misery. This is not reasonable. The doctrine of reincarnation gives any sinner ample scope to correct and re-educate himself in future births. An eternity in hell means that an infinite effect is produced by a finite cause, which is illogical. God has not created men to become nothing more than ever-lasting fuel to feed the fires of hell. Such a purpose in His creation would not come from an ever-loving God, but comes from the faulty ideas of man and his imperfect conceptions of God. After all, how many spotless men could there be in this world? Who has such a pure character to receive an immediate pass to heaven? The Bhagavad-gita explains that even the worst sinner can cross the ocean of birth and death by ascending the boat of transcendental knowledge. We simply have to be sincere in reaching that boat. A person reaps the results of his sinful deeds for a limited amount of time. After being purged of one’s sins, meaning suffering the painful reactions from one’s bad activities, a person can be born as a rational being, knowing right from wrong, for a fresh chance to freely work for his emancipation from further entanglement in material life. When he deserves and attains such freedom, the soul can enjoy perfect and eternal bliss in its devotional union with the Supreme Being. This is why it is always encouraged for one to strive for spiritual knowledge and the practice of enlightenment. By developing sincere and purified devotion for the Lord, one does not have to worry about one’s future birth. One can understand that once a person has started this path of devotion, each life will take one closer to spiritual perfection, in whatever situation one finds him or herself. So a person is encouraged to repent for one’s sins or ill choices that were made while under the influence of lust, anger or greed, and cultivate forgiveness, purity and generosity. A person should also engage in charity, penance, meditation, japa or chanting meditation, kirtan or congregational chanting of the Lord’s holy names, and other spiritual practices, which destroy all sins and removes all doubts about spiritual knowledge.

CONCLUSION

The Svetashvatara Upanishad (5.12) explains that the living being, the jiva, acquires many gross physical and subtle bodies due to the actions he performs, as is motivated by the material qualities to which he obtains. These bodies that are acquired continue to be a source of illusion as long as he is ignorant of his real identity. How the living entity attains various qualities is further explained in the Svetashvatara Upanishad (5.10-11) where it says that the living being’s sojourn in the physical body is a result of karma. The soul progresses from one material body to another, both subtle and physical, through countless species according to the karma. This is determined by the impetus of one’s desire for touching, seeing, eating, drinking, or attraction to the illusion and other activities based on these desires. The Brihadaranyaka Upanishad (4.45) further clarifies that as the atma or soul in the gross and subtle bodies acts, so thereby he obtains different conditions. By acting saintly he becomes a saint, and by acting immorally he becomes subject to the karmic consequences. In this way, he accrues piety or the burden of impiety accordingly. However, ultimately it is this influence that comes from identifying oneself as the body that keeps one bound to further accumulations of karma. The Vedanta Sutras also elaborate on this point. It explains that by remaining in this form of ignorance, based on the bodily identity, the jivas stay absorbed in maya, the illusory energy. Thus, they remain deluded about their spiritual identity and continue being bound by the snare of bodily desires and karmic activities. In this way, they continue with identifying themselves as gross or subtle bodies, which is the cause of their continuous distress in material existence. Without being trained in this spiritual science, it is very difficult to understand how the living being leaves his body or what kind of body he will get in the future, or why there are various species of life which accommodate all the living entities’ innumerable levels of consciousness. As related in the Bhagavad-gita, those who are spiritually ignorant cannot understand how a living entity can depart the body at the time of death, nor can they understand what kind of body he or she will enjoy while under the influence of the modes of nature. However, one who has been trained in knowledge can perceive this.8 Exactly how it is determined what our next life will be and what reactions we may be forced to experience because of our present activities can be understood by learning about this law of karma and destiny, which we will discuss next.

CHAPTER FIVE

The Law of Karma and Destiny

Now let’s begin looking more closely at the law of karma. To get a clearer understanding of how karma works, the Vishnu Purana explains that there are different stages of dormant results to bad karma, or sinful reactions. Such reactions may be waiting to take effect [phalonmukha], or they may be more deeply dormant [kuta], or they may be in a seed-like state [bija]. This description gives an indication that there are various kinds or levels of karma that affect us in specific ways. To further explain, the mass of karma that is accumulated from past actions that are stored to manifest later is called sanchita karma. The karma that is based on activities from past lives that is affecting the destiny of the present lifetime, sometimes called predestination, is called prarabdha karma. And the new karma that a person gathers due to the present activities is called kriyamana karma, which will affect one’s future lives. Agami karma is the immediate effects of the activities we are performing now, like the trouble a person may experience shortly after having become overly intoxicated. In this way, by understanding these different types of karmas and their cause, we can perceive that it is almost impossible for a person to become free from the cycle of old and new karma, which causes the repetition of birth and death in good or bad and high or low circumstances. Thus, everyone that is born has a destiny that is created by the living being itself, and that destiny is governed by an interaction with these various forms of karma along with their material desires. Therefore, you might say that a person writes his own script that he acts out in the movie of his life in the good or bad situations that happen. In this regard, the Srimad-Bhagavatam (7.7.47) explains that the living entity, who has received his present body because of his predestiny or past fruitive activity, may reach the end of the results of his previous actions for this life at the time of death, but this does not mean that he is free from future bondage to material bodies. The living being receives one kind of body, yet by performing actions with that vehicle he creates the karma that requires the creation of another body. In this way, he transmigrates from one body to another, through repeated birth and death, because of his ignorance of how he is implicated by his actions. The Chandogya Upanishad (5.10.7) also explains how this law of destiny works. It says that those whose conduct has been good will quickly attain some good birth, such as in the family of the spiritually enlightened, or a ruler or administrator, or a prosperous businessman, banker or farmer. But those whose conduct has been overly corrupt will quickly attain an evil birth, such as a sinful outcaste, or even a dog or hog. How this works is that due to the karma of one’s past life, one acquires a karmic indebtedness to others, which one needs to balance or work out. Thus, when that connection is ready to manifest, the person’s karma points toward the parents that a person is destined to have. Once one’s karma is ready to manifest, the soul of a person, along with his or her subtle body which holds the karma, enters through the seed of a man into the womb of the appropriate mother. Therein, the gross physical body is prepared according to its parabdha karma, or predestination. It is the karma which determines the formation of the body and whether one is blind, lame, or handsome and beautiful. However, not only are one’s parents determined by karma, but also the kind of household, neighborhood, country, as well as personal intelligence, beauty and circumstances. So, it is not only the individual’s karmic debt that forces one to take birth in a certain family, but it is also the karma of the parents, relatives, and even the friends and community of the person that all intermingle in the balance of karmic purpose. And even though one may be born with bad karma, it can be the good will of his friends or family that can help change or reduce one’s negative karmic reactions that a person would otherwise be forced to endure. In such a case, we may be destined to be born sickly or as an invalid, but with nice family members who are willing to help us and ease the suffering. In a way, it is the collective karma of the whole world that can affect the reasons for an individual’s birth and what influence he or she will have on this planet. Therefore, according to our past deeds which we may have forgotten, we are born in a particular type of body that may be rich, beautiful, intelligent, healthy, or a member of an aristocratic family if we have good karma. If we have bad karma, we may be born ugly, poor, sickly, with little facility for education, or in a low and degraded family. Furthermore, if a person is too sinful or uncivilized, he may even be forced to take birth in an animal species so that the affects of his evil nature are greatly restricted. In this way, by the reactions of our work, we are forced to wander up and down and appear in various types of bodies within different kinds of families, or even in different kinds of species. We are given a certain set of senses that best suites our consciousness and karma. But these situations are all temporary and we should not be unduly attached to them whether they are good or bad. In this regard, the Srimad-Bhagavatam explains that many travelers are brought together in a restaurant or place for drinking cold water. However, after they have been refreshed they continue to their respective destinations. Similarly, as a result of their actions and collective karma, the living beings may join together in a family, but later are led apart toward their specific destinations in future lives as dictated by their karma.1 Furthermore, the association of relatives, such as children, wife, husband, or friends is like the brief meeting of travelers at an inn. After having met and interacted with each other, they are separated from all such acquaintances with each change of body, just as one loses the possessions he may have had in a dream when he awakens.2 The above points are very interesting in light of the fact that these days there are many people who are preoccupied with the idea of finding their “soulmate”. We admit that the people with whom we may have strong relationships and close ties are a part of our destiny, and may have been a part of a past life. But anyone who begins to understand this principle of reincarnation knows that this is due to our karma and is temporary because with each change of body our situation is completely different. However, only if there is a very special reason, such as in the case of karmic paybacks or connections, or lessons to learn from one another, do we continue to meet people from previous lives. Nonetheless, sometimes we can remember the people, places or activities of our past lives because the memory still exists in our minds, which is part of our subtle body. Because the subtle body also travels with the soul to another material body, such memories may be awakened. This may happen in dreams or in other ways, as related in the Srimad- Bhagavatam, which explains that sometimes we may experience something in dreams that was never experienced in the present body by sight or hearing. Therefore, the living entity may develop all kinds of thoughts and images because of his previous experiences.3 Past memories stay with the subtle body, and these can be remembered, knowingly or unknowingly, in the next life. Such memories in the subconscious can appear in visions and dreams, or in our fears or longings for something that is not always understood. In this way, our past desires and familiarity with former things can also follow us. Therefore, as children we may experience a spontaneous interest in particular objects or activities that we unknowingly had done in former lives. A person may be a spiritual seeker that is now born in a family that is very religious. It is also past familiarities from previous lives that can make someone appear like a child prodigy, exceptionally talented at something that he had sought to perfect in a prior lifetime. For example, a young child may seem especially gifted in playing the piano or some instrument. He may be able to play quite well with almost no training. This may be due to the abilities that he had developed in a previous life rather than a random interest in something at which he seems to be good. This is verified in the Vedic literature in which it is related that the mind of the living entity continues to exist in various physical bodies, but according to one’s desires for sense pleasure, the mind records different thoughts. Therefore, the mind may keep the familiarity, knowledge, or even fears of things that may never have been experienced in the present life, but are carryovers from previous existences.4 A person may also be born with a similar type of consciousness, good or bad, that had been attained in a past life. From the above information, we learn that our birth is determined by our past activities. However, our death is also determined in the same way. As explained in Srimad-Bhagavatam (12.6.25-26), the life and death of a living being is determined by his or her own doing. When a living being, for example, meets death through the medium of a snake, thief, fire, lightning, or through starvation, thirst, disease, etc., it is only the fruit of one’s karma that is being experienced. As soon as the karma of a person is worked out for one lifetime, that is the time when he will die, no matter whether the person is a child, youth or old adult. If we can understand this, we will be able to see that universal justice will follow us wherever we go. We may break man’s laws and avoid punishment for our crime, but if we break the universal laws, there is no way we will be able to avoid the reaction. According to our specific karma accumulated by the particular activities of our past, we will have certain fortunes and misfortunes happen to us throughout life, up to and including the way we are meant to die. In this way, we can understand that nothing we do goes unaccounted for. All our acts and desires follow us and will affect our immediate future as well as our next life. However, by understanding this should not mean that it should be an excuse for us to become callous to the suffering of others. We may see that people may be suffering the results of past karma or something else. But it also means that if we are in the position to do something to help them and yet do nothing, then we are also accumulating karma for not assisting those who may need it. If someone is suffering and we can prevent it, or if a crime is being committed to someone and we do nothing to help stop it, then we are also guilty. It is like we are accomplices to the crime. It is not up to us to decide what is someone’s just karma or not, but it is up to us to do something to help others if we have the facility and reasoning to do so. That is a work of piety and helps relieve us of our own bad karma or gives us pious credit. By helping others we help ourselves. Another aspect of remembering attractions from our previous life is also explained. When we are newly born the Paramatma or Supersoul reminds us of our past desires and interests. We then begin to search out those interests. It is also due to the universal laws of God and His agents that we are placed into various kinds of families, or under particular astrological influences. An expert astrologer can ascertain the general fate of a person by drawing one’s horoscope. Such astrological influences are not absolute but tend to affect our life in subtle ways according to the position of the planets at the time of our birth. This also shows that the pattern of our life is not simply a creation of man’s will but is affected by superior arrangement of the Supreme. Therefore, we should understand that all the ups and downs, prosperity or loss, are arranged by God according to our karma and not simply by our own endeavor. This is again explained in the Vedic text known as the Srimad-Bhagavatam (1.14.9) in which it is related that from God only comes all our opulence, good wives, good children, or even future accommodations in heaven. This is essentially how karma works and how the living being is affected by his past activities and acquires his destiny according to the arrangement of the Supreme. It is therefore suggested that with this knowledge we should try to be satisfied with whatever happiness is given by destiny, knowing that it is only our own activities that have put us into our present situation, whether it be good or bad. Therefore, the Srimad- Bhagavatam says we should be satisfied with whatever we achieve by our previous destiny, for discontent can never bring happiness. A person who is not self-controlled will not be happy even with possessing the universe. Material existence causes discontent in regard to fulfilling one’s lusty desires and achieving more and more money. This is the cause for the continuation of material life, which is full of repeated birth and death. But one who is satisfied by that which is obtained by destiny is fit for liberation from this material existence.5 If we are too discontent with our present situation, ignoring any respect for the law of karma, we will be influenced by our unlawful desires to engage in any number of activities in the effort to satisfy our mind and senses. This will only implicate us further in transmigrating through lifetimes filled with various good and bad reactions. To act in such a way also may be due to the influence of our karma, but we do have free will to choose how we wish to live and carry on with our lives. This is our minute independence of which we can take advantage in order to progress upward, or to misuse and go downward. This is explained in the next chapter.

CHAPTER SIX

Why It May Seem that Bad Things Happen to Good People

One of the paradoxes of the law of karma is that often we see that bad things happen to good people, or that good things happen to bad people. For example, we may see a criminal of an organized crime network who may be living like a king, with a big house, fancy car, beautiful wife, lots of amenities, etc. Then we look at a good pious person who is quite religious, but is living poorly, not enough money to care for his family, has a small house, or no house, and so on. Does this make much sense? Of course not, until we take a closer look at how the law of karma works. One book has already been written about why bad things happen to good people. The author explained that, although God was all good and meant well, He was not all-powerful and could not fully protect innocent people from suffering from reversals or bad things that happened to them. In other words, God is not fully in control. Again, this may make sense only while we do not take a close look at how the law of karma works. Once we understand, then it becomes obvious that we are the ones who are the cause of our own karmic problems, and not God. God only arranges the universal laws through which karma can be fulfilled, but we are the ones who create what happens. First of all, what we need to understand is that many of the situations in our life, whether it is our birth, parents, community, country, etc., are presently the results of our own delayed karma from previous lives. We may be as good as we can be, but cannot explain why certain unpleasant things are presently happening to us, until we understand this. Delayed karma is stored karma. It is stored like in a grain elevator or silo. In such an elevator, grain is poured in from the top and then later taken out through a small door at the bottom. So you may be putting in wonderful rice at the top, but drawing sour, rough grains from the bottom. While your neighbor may be putting spoiled grains in at the top in the form of bad activities, yet drawing wonderful and perfect grains from the bottom in the shape of a pleasant life. Why is this? We have to understand that whatever is in your karmic account, just like whatever is in your grain silo, will flow through it until whatever you have put in at the top will be coming out at the bottom. This may take some time, one or more lifetimes. When it comes out, this is what takes shape as your manifest karma in this life. So, in course of time, the bad person who is experiencing good situations, or good karmic reactions, will use up his good credit as it runs through his account, until all that is left is whatever he has most recently put into it. Then he will experience his karmic reactions for his bad deeds. Similarly, a good person who is going through trouble or misfortune may only be experiencing whatever remnants he has from previous faulty activities that have created bad karmic reactions. Once this is worked through, then the good karma from his recent pious actions will begin to come through in due time. Then everything will be better. As it is said, the mills of God grind slowly, but they grind exceedingly fine. Thus, the evil person will not be able to enjoy for long because his wicked deeds will certainly catch up with him. That is why a great sage may tell such a person not to live, but do not die either. Why? Because the longer he lives, the more sinful activities he engages in, creating more future suffering for himself. But he should not die either because once he does, the bad karmic reactions that are hovering over him, or waiting to come through his karmic grain elevator, will begin to manifest, causing much suffering for him. That is why rascals may enjoy now, from past good activities, but will suffer in the future, either in this life or a future one. Delayed bad karma will drag one down from whatever enjoyment one may have. We can find examples of delayed karma in various stories in the ancient Vedic texts, which will clarify how it works. One story is that of Dasaratha, the father of Lord Ramachandra as described in the Ramayana. Dasaratha had accidentally killed Shravanakumara, the son of aged parents who were dependent on him. Thus, they suffered greatly due to the absence of their son. In turn, Dasaratha had to suffer in a similar manner later on. At the time, Dasaratha was a bachelor. So his karma “waited” until Dasaratha was married and had his own sons. Then, because of his evil wife’s desires, his sons were sent away and he had to suffer separation from them just as Shravanakumara’s parents did. This separation disturbed Dasaratha so much that he died of heartbreak. Thus, Dasaratha’s karma waited until he was in a position to repay his karmic debt by experiencing the suffering he had caused for someone else. Another example is Dhritarasthra, who in the Mahabharata asked Lord Krishna why he had been born blind, and why did his 100 sons die before him. So Krishna explained that 50 lifetimes ago he had been a hunter and threw a flaming net on a nest that contained 100 baby birds. He had killed them all, and although the parents escaped, they were blinded by the fire. Therefore, 50 lifetimes later he had 100 sons who were to die in his lifetime, and he was born blind. So Dhritarasthra then asked Krishna why he had to wait 50 lifetimes. Why didn’t he pay for it in the same lifetime he had committed the act, or in the next lifetime? Krishna explained that Dhritarasthra needed to understand that to even have one son implies that a person has accumulated a great deal of good karma. So to have 100 sons, you have to have a huge amount of good karma. So Dhritarasthra had to wait 50 lifetimes until he had enough good karma to have 100 sons. Only then could he be in a position to repay that past karma of having 100 sons dying before he did and being born blind. Therefore, his karma had to wait until the proper time when it could manifest in full. He could not repay his karma until he had the appropriate opulence and facilities. The point is that bad things happen to those who need to balance out their bad karma, whether known or unknown. Nothing happens without reason or cause. On the other hand, such reversals may also be tests of one’s faith, and how strong one is in one’s devotion to God. That is why it is always directed that in most situations, no matter what may happen, simply tolerate and endure whatever trials there may be while remaining steadfast in your devotion, because that is the way of putting on the robes of immortality. So herein we can also see that all pain is for educative purposes. All agonies are for lessons in wisdom and the attainment of spiritual perfection, or the need for it. Such suffering is not merely for balancing out our karma, but is meant to deliver us from the idea that we are merely these bodies, and lead us to the understanding that we are inside these bodies looking out at what is happening to us. It is an impetus to question our existence and suffering and then motivate us to get out of this world of duality by understanding our real identity as a spiritual being. So you could say that all karma is good karma in the sense that it is to provide the necessary lessons by which one continues to become more and more perfect and godly. Most reactions that one encounters are caused by prior decisions and actions of ours, even from several lifetimes ago. Therefore, all bad karma is, basically, reflections of problems within oneself that need to be sorted out through the lessons that life provides. It is all for self-development. This is, of course, as long as one sees that all circumstances are providing instructions from which to learn. Everything in life is a lesson, depending on how we apply it. In this way, each soul is progressing. If one does not see it that way, life’s reversals become a source of pain and suffering from which nothing is learned. Then it is only a source of anger and frustration because it is not what a person wants the universe to be, and we may carry that attitude with us for years, or even the rest of our life. Thus, until this view is corrected, more karma is created and the problems within oneself remains. In this way, our karma is the manifestations of our own thoughts and actions. Whatever we do, we do to ourselves. We grow in our awareness of who we are and our place in the universe when we recognize that we are responsible for our trials and tribulations. We are only meeting the result of our own thinking, desiring and actions. If we are happy with life, then that is good, but do not misuse it and waste the good fortune that has manifested. However, if our life seems to be filled with problems, we can blame no one but ourselves, since we are experiencing the products of our own making, which come from our own negative thoughts and behavior. In such a situation, the difference is made in the way we utilize our circumstances, whether they be easy or challenging. If we use it to learn, we progress. If we simply become bitter, we fail the test, and the universe will test us again and again until we pass it. We also need to understand that whether suffering from karma or not, all suffering exists within the illusion. The illusion is to think you are merely this material body, and forgetting your spiritual identity. Only while thinking you are the material body and all its relations does there exist the potential for suffering. Rising above this conception frees you from the illusion and all suffering that exists within. Such suffering also provides the impetus to question why you are here in this temporary material world. It is also to provide the means to find your way out of the continued cycle of birth and death. That is the ultimate purpose of suffering. In other words, a spiritual being in a material body is incompatible. It is the suffering in material existence that is meant to make you realize this and motivate you to regain your spiritual awareness. However, we need to understand that freedom from suffering comes by achieving spiritual perfection. Otherwise, the existence in this three- dimensional realm, or the bodily platform, is naturally full of problems and suffering. Suffering is for purification, like a mother making her child fast from food to cure it from disease. So the idea is not merely to try to cure the problems, which often involve activities that cause more karma, but to get out of the ocean of suffering altogether.

CHAPTER SEVEN

Free Will and Choice

If every move we made was completely controlled by fate, destiny, or astrological influences, how could there be such a thing as sinful acts? And why feel regret toward something we did? If we are controlled by something stronger than ourselves, call it what you will, then how can we be held responsible for what we do? If there is going to be right and wrong activities, morality, judgment, or punishment, there must be some free will and choice. What must be understood is the difference between the spiritual and material energies. The body is material and is therefore affected by material forces, such as karma or astrological influences. The living entity within the body is spiritual and is transcendental to all such material energies and influences. The more the living entity realizes his spiritual position and acts on the spiritual platform, the more he can become free from the material energies which are actually limitations to one’s spiritual freedom. The more a person identifies with the material body, the more he is influenced and controlled by the material forces, such as karma, destiny, the modes of nature, sensual desires, etc. The freedom we have is in the way we desire, or our intention. If we desire in a virtuous, pious, or spiritual way, we then act in a particular mode of nature, the mode of goodness. If we desire in a materialistic, passionate, lusty, or immoral way, we then act in a different mode of nature which produces completely different results. So how does all this fit together? In this life we are destined to experience certain circumstances from the results of our past karma. When these circumstances take place, we have a limited amount of freedom to decide how we are going to react. Once we decide what we wish to do, we come under the influence of a certain combination of energies which produce a series of events. These events, brought on by our decisions, thus lead to good or bad consequences. For example, we may be destined to have a member of our family die of cancer. When such a thing happens, we may feel sad and then simply lament with other family members over how cruel life can be and how bad is cancer. We then become locked into feeling melancholy about so many things around us. This melancholy mood may be a pattern in our lives due to our karma that affects us when the slightest thing goes wrong. But we could change our outlook and decide to do something productive like start a foundation for cancer research, or give a donation or something for helping other cancer patients. We turn it into something more positive. That’s a personal decision that can change our own mental disposition. Another example may be that we are destined to lose our job at a particular point in life. When it happens, we may feel that things are really tough, but we decide to make the best of it and go look for another job. This may actually be a karmic arrangement for us to find a new and better occupation. All reversals in life are a chance to grow and overcome the so- called obstacles by learning or experiencing things that we need to know or understand in order to progress in life. Nothing really happens without a reason, and often times it is seen that a person makes the most progress toward his goals right after he has overcome various challenging problems or adversities. We have to remember that life is not merely a matter of working to acquire whatever goals we set for ourselves, even though that is part of it. Life is a continual evolutionary process that molds us and causes us to learn as much about ourselves and life as we can. How much success or failure there is in this process is not always something that immediately can be determined. The universe has a plan behind it, and we are certainly a part of that plan, although there may be times when we cannot understand what or why things are happening the way they are. Nonetheless, things usually become clear sooner or later, depending on our level of understanding and perceptiveness. A person who has little maturity and understanding might also lose a job. Say, for example, that someone thought he was goofing off, so he gets fired. The person who got fired from his job then might get very angry and even seek revenge. When the anger takes control, he might lose all rationality and go home, get his guns, go back to his job, and start shooting. When it is over, he has to face the consequences of his original decision to get revenge. He might not even realize why he did it. But he let himself get angry and then lost all control to the temperamental mood that engulfed him. When we allow ourselves to become predictably angry in any adverse situation, this may be a tendency due to our karma, but it is also a matter of choice. Such being the case, we may feel regret over the foolish things we do when we are angry, or even face moral and legal judgments for any crimes we have committed due to our anger and foolish activities. This is the independence and freedom of choice we have in how we view things around us, or how we react to the experiences that take place in our life. How we accept things and what is our attitude is our responsibility. A positive attitude can help make even the worst situations better. But a negative outlook can cause a person who may have everything he or she needs to become sickly, unhappy, make poor decisions, and decrease his duration of life. This is why it is mentioned in Bhagavad-gita (2.15) that one must become undisturbed both in happiness or distress, and (Bg.3.43) one must know that he is above the material senses, mind and intelligence, and, by spiritual strength, control the lower self by the higher self and conquer the insatiable enemy of lust. And where there is lust, there is also anger, greed, envy, intolerance, etc. The key, therefore, is how to tolerate the karma we have coming to us from our previous life or lives, and how to get free from accumulating any more. This is discussed in a following chapter.

CHAPTER EIGHT

The Modes of Nature

Another thing that affects the karma and the state of consciousness of an individual is what is called the modes of material nature. These can greatly affect the kind of future we will have. They are like the pushings and pullings on us from the material energy. They have already been mentioned; so let’s clarify them. There are three modes, called gunas. One is the mode of goodness, sattva-guna; another is the mode of passion, raja- guna; and the last is the mode of ignorance or darkness, called tama-guna. By understanding the modes of nature, we can realize in which mode we are situated and, thus, determine what our next existence is likely to be. Most books on spiritual topics do not include anything about these modes. That is generally because the authors do not know about them. Only by studying the Vedic literature can one understand what are these modes of nature. Therefore, I am including a chapter on the subject because understanding the modes of material nature and how they work is an integral part of comprehending how the laws of karma and reincarnation affect us. Therefore, in this chapter, you will learn what the modes are, how they influence us, how to recognize them, and how to get free from these forces that compel us to act in particular ways.

WHAT ARE THE MODES OF NATURE

First of all, let us understand that no one in the material atmosphere is free from the modes of nature. The Bhagavad-gita confirms that no being is free from the influence of the three modes of material nature, regardless of whether they are here on earth, or among the demigods in the higher planetary systems.1 How this takes place is that the living being, although spiritual in nature, has minute independence to choose his own good or bad activities, and forget his true identity and connection with the Supreme Being. Thus, he is carried away by the modes of material nature. Being influenced by such material motivations, he becomes attached to various activities out of interest for the body and its enjoyment.2 These material modes manifest within one’s mind. They are basically unseen and can be discerned only by the qualities and characteristics of a person and his or her actions. According to a person’s activities, we can understand his state of mind as well as by which particular mode he is being influenced. How these modes act is explained in this way: The mode of goodness, being purer, is illuminating and can free one from all sinful reactions. Those in that mode develop knowledge, but they become conditioned by the concept of wanting to be happy. The mode of passion is born of unlimited desires and longings. Because of this, one is bound to material activities for personal results. The mode of ignorance causes delusion, and results in madness, indolence and sleep, which bind the conditioned soul. There is always competition among the modes, and, thus, a person may appear to be more influenced by one mode over the other at different times.3 So when the living entity comes in contact with the material energy, he becomes conditioned by these modes. From these descriptions, we can begin to recognize the fact that the mind, which is the center of our senses and an instrument that operates on the material platform, is what creates the illusion of our material happiness or distress due to the influence of the modes of nature. As stated in Srimad-Bhagavatam, it is the mind alone that creates the perception of happiness and distress and thus perpetuates the continuation of material existence. The mind is so powerful that it is the vehicle which triggers the affects of the material modes, from which manifests the different kinds of materially motivated activities in the modes of goodness, ignorance and passion. It is these activities in association with each of these modes that develop the resulting statuses [one’s position or species] of life.4 To elaborate further, it is explained that by embracing the mind and body as being our real identity, the five senses create the desire within the mind for material activities in pursuit of their pleasure and satisfaction. In this way, the living entity acts with the goal of satisfying the mind and senses, and then engages in bodily activities that cause one to undergo various reactions. This is the materialistic occupation of the living entity that keeps one bound to the cycle of birth and death. These activities may be pious or sinful, yet it is the modes of nature that propel the material senses into motion. Furthermore, whatever material activity we decide to engage in depends on our choice of mode or combination of them with which we will associate. It is this choice which determines our status in this life and the next. Thereafter, the living entity, being fully engaged by the material senses and modes of nature, experiences the various results of such work. As long as the living entity is acting on the motivation of the modes of material nature, he will be forced to take the resultant birth in many different forms and will experience varieties of material existence. Thus, he becomes ever more deeply engaged in fruitive activities.5 In this way, the living being experiences the good or bad results of his past activities, which were instigated by the influence of the material modes. In other words, as long as we are absorbed in materialistic actions, we are just like puppets being controlled and motivated by the strings of the modes of material nature that influence us to act in particular ways or to take birth in particular positions of life. Although one may think he is free to act in any way he chooses in order to accomplish various goals, in reality these activities are simply the maneuvering of the modes of nature in accordance with one’s past karma. Bhagavad-gita (3.27) confirms this and relates that the embodied spirit soul that is bewildered because of being under the influence of the three modes of material nature, thinks that he is the one who chooses to perform his bodily pursuits which are in actuality carried out by nature. So, once one is motivated by the senses to please them, it is the modes of nature that continue to carry him along under their influence to accomplish the desired task. It is like a boat being put into the current of a river. Once you make the endeavor to get the boat into the water of a flowing river, then the current takes over to move you, and you are hardly in control of it any longer. Or, in regard to the modes of nature, you are hardly aware of how the modes of passion motivate you to act to acquire your desires. Therefore, due to the mode of goodness, someone may become a clean and healthy person, searching for higher aspects of life. Due to the mode of passion, a person may become a workaholic, desiring to achieve fame, fortune and distinction. Due to the mode of ignorance, another person may become a lazy drunkard who simply feels sorry for himself for not attaining the success which he feels the world owes him. In this way, we create our destiny and are forced to face the consequences of the choices we make depending on the modes with which we decide to associate. Real free will means to be free from the binding forces of the modes of material nature that affect the way we see things and how we make our choices through life. We, therefore, must understand how the modes work, how to recognize their influence on us, and the process to get free from them.

HOW THE MODES OF NATURE WORK

Besides affecting the individual, the modes also have particular influences over the whole universe. The Vedic literature establishes that during the creation of the material world the time element agitates the modes, which thus produces past, present and future, or creation, maintenance and annihilation of the world.6 The effects of the modes can also be seen through the unfolding of history. This can be perceived as when there is a predominance of the mode of goodness, then the strength of the demigods or saintly persons increases. When the mode of passion increases, the demoniac become strong. And with the rise of ignorance or darkness, the strength of the most wicked increases.7 Therefore, just as a change of wind direction brings a change of weather, time brings changes in the influence of the modes of nature, causing various types of people, attitudes, civilizations, ideas, or styles of art and music, etc., to become at first dominant in society and to again recede, giving way to others. What was popular and acceptable at one time in society may be the reverse later on because of a change in the predominating modes of nature. Again, it is the competition of the modes of one having more influence than another at different times. This competition of the modes of nature can also be recognized on a mass scale when we view the actions of the stock market. The mode pf passion causes motivation for profits, gain and greed. Thus, people buy into the stock market hoping for big returns on investment. We can recognize this when the stock market goes up due to increased buying. The mode of goodness is known to influence the maintenance and continuance of something. We see this when the stock market or the economy remains stable and steady. There is not an imbalance of too much buying nor too much selling. It is the mode of ignorance that produces fear, anxiety or confusion. And we can recognize this effect on the general mass of people when the stock market begins to go down. It is often fear of losses or confusion about the direction of the economy that will force people to sell their positions or get out of the market. So, whatever we are inclined to do on a material or bodily basis can be recognized as the effects of interacting with the modes. It is explained that results of activity, knowledge, the type of work and the performer, one’s faith and state of consciousness, [or one’s profits or losses in the stock market] as well as one’s species of life and destination after death are all based on the three modes of material nature. All these are related to the interaction of the enjoying soul and material nature.8 To more distinctly recognize the modes and how they influence us, further elaboration is given in Srimad-Bhagavatam (11.25.2-18), in which it is partially explained as follows: “Mind and sense control, tolerance, discrimination, sticking to one’s prescribed duty, truthfulness, mercy, careful study of the past and future, satisfaction in any condition, generosity, renunciation of sense gratification, faith in the spiritual master, being embarrassed at improper action, charity, simplicity, humbleness and satisfaction within oneself are qualities of the mode of goodness. “Material desire, great endeavor, audacity, dissatisfaction even in gain, false pride, praying for material advancement, considering oneself different and better than others, sense gratification, rash eagerness to fight, a fondness for hearing oneself praised, the tendency to ridicule others, advertising one’s own prowess and justifying one’s actions by one’s strength are qualities of the mode of passion. “Intolerant anger, stinginess, speaking without scriptural authority, violent hatred, living as a parasite, hypocrisy, chronic fatigue, quarrel, lamentation, delusion, unhappiness, depression, sleeping too much, false expectations, fear and laziness constitute the major qualities of the mode of ignorance.” By studying these explanations, we can begin to distinguish by which mode we are being influenced. We can also understand that the individual spirit soul is above the modes, but as long as one identifies with the mind, which is where the modes manifest, and remains on the material platform, one continues being controlled by the various combinations of these modes. This, along with one’s past karma, is how one continues in the cycle of birth and death and remains attached to material objects and activities. So the living being looks at himself as a product of the material energy, or as merely a physical body, and thus undergoes the reactions of material miseries, although he is actually above the three modes of material nature. This is because of the influence of the external material energy.9 How the modes of nature and the law of karma work together can be explained through this example. Say that according to one’s karma, a person is meant to be very successful with a good career, nice beautiful wife, lovely children, a big house, fancy cars, etc. Then at one point in life his karma dictates that many reversals will take place in his career. When this happens, he may make some bad decisions. Somehow the owners of the business he works with, being dissatisfied with him, relieve him of his job. Thus, he also loses his money and his career is ruined. It affects his marriage, and the beautiful happy home he once had now becomes a depressing place of misery. In this situation, he may have little or no control over specific events in his life that are dictated by his karma or destiny. He is going to face some reversals in his career and that is all there is to it. When they happen, he will suffer due to being affected by the modes of passion and ignorance. But how much he is affected is up to him. He has free choice in how he handles the situation. He may become depressed for a little while and then decide to pull out of it and look for ways he can improve his life. Or he may go the other way and fall deep into the mode of ignorance and feel he should get revenge for being fired from his job, or just go out and get drunk or something because he feels his life is ruined, finished. In whatever way he handles the situation, it is up to his own free will. But once he makes his choice, the modes take over either to help him get past the hurdle and carry on, or to get revenge or something else. In this way, he is independent and decides for himself how to act or accept what is happening, and, thus, unknowingly he decides whether to associate with the mode of goodness, passion or ignorance. But by being enlightened with knowledge of how the modes affect us, and by controlling our mind by our intellect, we can have better command over our lives and remain on a progressive and upward path, no matter what may happen to us. No matter what our karma may be, we have to remember that it is not what happens to us but how we react to it that makes the difference.

WHERE THE MODES TAKE US INTO OUR NEXT LIFE

After reading the descriptions of how the modes of material nature work and affect us, and in which of the modes various activities are situated, it is now time to find out what our destination is by our association with these modes. By understanding how the modes of nature work, and which type of activities are situated in the particular modes, we can begin to determine what our next life will be. The point is that by performing various material activities that are closely linked to the modes of nature, our consciousness and existence will develop accordingly. For example, as the Bhagavad-gita (14.11-13) explains, it is the effects of the mode of goodness that can be perceived when all the aspects of the body are illuminated by knowledge. When the mode of passion increases, there are the symptoms of great fondness for material items, uncontrollable desires, and intense ambition. When there is an increase in the mode of ignorance, then one can see the manifestation of madness, illusion, inertia and darkness. Studying the previous descriptions of actions in the modes and then adjusting our lifestyle accordingly is how we can begin to increase or decrease the effects the modes of nature have on us. For instance, we may live in a hotel with a bar and topless nightclub, and eat food that has been cooked by low-class and unclean people, and drink liquor and spend our time gambling and going through the emotions of anger, attachment, lamentation, moroseness, etc., as we win or lose at the betting games and conceive ways to try and win our money back. This will submerge us deep into the dark mode of ignorance. Thus, we will be obliged to suffer the necessary consequences of anxiety, disease, and short duration of life that accompany the lifestyle in that mode. Or we may live in a big city. We may have to drive to and from work on the highway every morning and evening, tolerating the intense and bothersome traffic everyday. We may have a high stress job where there is competition for position and prestige while everyone tries to climb the ladder of corporate success. We may have a nice home and family, but also may feel trapped in that there is little else we can do but keep working because we are only two weeks of paychecks away from losing it all if anything ever happened to us and we couldn’t keep up with the bills. We can recognize this as living in the mode of passion. This often results with short-term spells of happiness, anticipation and hope for a better situation, yet also rapid aging, ill health, anxiety, discontent or even depression. On the other hand, if we live a peaceful life in the country, breathing the fresh air and eating ripe fruits and vegetables, working only as necessary to maintain ourselves while engaged with proper faith and understanding in spiritual pursuits, then we will certainly be in the mode of goodness and experience the uplifting results. So one becomes purified by directing our activities appropriately and acting in the mode of goodness. But by working in the mode of passion, various forms of distress are often the result. And actions performed in the mode of ignorance bring increasing levels of foolishness.10 As we continue through life, we develop habits that may last for many years. This certainly has a great bearing on our mind and consciousness at the time of death. This is very important to understand because when we die in a particular mode, as can be discerned by our thoughts and activities throughout our life, we are thus given the appropriate effect. For example, as it is explained in the Bhagavatam, due to activities in the modes of goodness, a person may attain the higher planetary systems. Activities in the mode of passion result in taking birth in the planets of human beings. Due to activities in the mode of darkness, a living entity may take birth in various states of lower birth, such as in the animal kingdom. Thus, covered by the modes of material nature, a person is sometimes a male, sometimes a female, sometimes a human, a demigod, or an animal. In this way, the living being wanders throughout the universe and is brought through various forms of life. Because of so many different desires, the living being wanders through different stages and species of life according to his destiny. Sometimes he is high, sometimes low. Sometimes he goes to heaven, or sometimes to hell.11 The Bhagavad-gita continues to elaborate on this issue where it says that when one dies in the mode of goodness, he is delivered to the higher planets. When one dies in the mode of passion, he can expect to take birth among those that are similarly engaged in passionate and fruitive activities. And when one dies with his consciousness primarily in the mode of ignorance, he takes birth in the animal kingdom.12 Furthermore, those who are situated in the mode of goodness in this life will gradually go upward to the higher planetary systems. Those who act and live in the mode of passion will likely continue to live on the earthly planets. Finally, those who exist in the mode of ignorance will go down to the hellish worlds.13 In this line of thought it is further explained in the Bhagavatam that because of one’s material activities and the reactions that they cause, the living being is forced to wander, meeting various experiences throughout the universe. Such a materially conditioned soul may take birth amongst the sages or demigods in the higher planets by his contact with activities in the mode of goodness. He will likely become a human being again, or even take birth amongst the demons, by association with the mode of passion. The living being may even become a ghost or descend into the animal kingdom by too much association with activities in the mode of ignorance or darkness.14 We should explain here that a demon does not mean merely someone with horns on his head or something, but someone who has been too attached to fulfilling his selfish activities, which can also be harmful and detrimental to others. Of course, this description is not complete in detailing all the various positions or species of life within the universe or the conditions one attains as a result of associating with particular material modes. However, one can definitely see that living entities will raise or lower themselves according to their involvement with the modes of nature. As long as we are engaged in activities or involved with ideas that are affected by any of the modes of nature, we will continually transmigrate from one situation to another within this cosmic creation. As long as we remain influenced by the modes of material nature, we will never experience the freedom outside the temporary, material energy. We will always be forced to accept the good or bad results given to us by our karma according to the modes with which we associate. Therefore, the next question is: How do we get free? We will discuss that later.

CHAPTER NINE

How Karma Affects Us Through Life, Death and Beyond

As soon as the living beings find themselves in a particular body within this material creation, they immediately begin to identify with that kind of form. They may be male or female, black or white, human or animal, aquatic or whatever. It’s natural. It’s not like they are born and look at themselves and say, “Hey, this isn’t really who I am.” It’s a rare being who thinks like that. In any case, they begin to chase after those things that they think will give them pleasure. A male chases after a female, or a female looks for a male. A cat looks for a mouse to eat to satisfy its hunger, while a tiger looks for a deer or some other animal. In this way, all living entities search for different kinds of pleasure according to the kind of body and consciousness they possess. As they search and try to acquire that which they feel will satisfy their body and mind, they will go through a variety of material experiences and psychological changes which take them to various levels of consciousness and different conceptions of happiness. As these changes continue, the living entities evolve and incarnate through many types of bodies and regions of the universe that facilitate the consciousness and desires the living beings have. According to the Vedic descriptions, this is the process of evolution that we all undergo which involves the growth and development of one’s consciousness. Due to not knowing one’s real identity, the living entity does not know what real happiness is, nor how to avoid misery. He simply thinks he is the body and thus becomes absorbed in material activity and succumbs to the law of actions and reactions in his life. He does not know how he got into it nor how to get out. Thus, for lack of an alternative, the living being continues to evolve through the various high and low situations material nature gives him due to the results of his activities and karma. But if he is able to evolve to a stage of life in which he can understand spiritual knowledge, he can then find the passage that allows his escape from the material entrapment. That is real evolution.

LIFE IN THE WOMB AND BIRTH OF THE LIVING ENTITY

According to the results of activities performed in our past life, we are given a particular kind of body suitable for satisfying our materialistic desires as well as for enjoying or suffering our good or bad karma. It is described that for this, under the supervision of the Supreme Being and according to the result of the living being’s actions, the soul is made to enter the womb of an appropriate mother and soon thereafter is born to begin the life for which it is destined. It is explained in the Bhagavatam that the living entity gets a particular type of body, mind and senses according to his pursuits and actions in his previous life. When the reactions to those former activities come to an end, it is called death, and when a new type of reaction begins, that is called birth.1 The Garbha Upanishad states that while in the womb the living entity has knowledge of all his good and bad deeds from previous lives and knows he has lived in a mother’s abdomen thousands of times before. He knows that with each birth he has also lived and died, and whoever enjoyed the results of his hard work from his earlier life is also now gone and only he will suffer the consequences. While in the womb he prays that if he can escape the wretched situation, he will surely turn to the Lord and study yoga or spirituality to be delivered from this repeated cycle of birth and death once and for all. The above quotation explicitly points out that the embryo within the womb is alive and conscious of his situation. He can even remember past lives and is aware of the Supreme Lord and why he is in the womb. He is affected by the worms that bite him and the spicy foods that the mother eats. He can also experience the feelings and emotional changes of the mother. However, once the child has been placed in a womb according to his destiny, if the mother decides to abort the pregnancy, the soul will then be forced to take shelter of a different womb. This is a great hindrance to the evolutionary progress of the living being, which also becomes a great karmic impediment for the mother. Even though the child in the womb is aware of many things, he at last begins to experience the process of birth as he is pushed out of the womb, which is such an ordeal that, upon being released, he immediately forgets his previous life within his mother’s abdomen and anything before that. Pushed downward all of a sudden by the wind (that helps parturition), the child comes out with great trouble, head downward, breathless and deprived of memory due to severe agony. The child thus comes out of the mother, smeared with stool and blood. He loses his superior knowledge and cries under the spell of illusion, maya. In this way, one forgets his previous suffering in the womb and by chasing after lusty desires engages in the same activities that create the same useless karma to endure as he had before in previous lives. But this is the result if a person’s goal in life is simply to pamper and cater to the whims of the temporary body and sensual desires. The human form of life is a rare opportunity. To waste it by performing nothing but activities for temporary sense pleasure is considered not to be the way to solve the real problems of life. Devoting one’s life only to such materialistic concerns is like committing spiritual suicide, since the person hardly accomplishes anything that is relative to his real identity as a spiritual being. The reason for expressing it this way is that everything he accomplishes without a spiritual foundation is temporary, which he leaves behind at the time of death. Such things do nothing for his release from karma and the continued cycles of reincarnation. Being cheated in life means to be absorbed in so many illusory things that make one forget and take one’s time away from the real importance of spiritual progress. Though continually engaged in many mental and physical activities, the clock of life keeps ticking until finally there is no time left. Then one is forced to give up his life without having made any preparation for his next existence. Thus, he has lost the opportunity that was meant to be found in the human experience.

OLD AGE AND DEATH

As one is growing up, he may give himself so many activities to pursue in his search for various kinds of happiness. So many struggles for education, a good job and career, finding a nice mate or partner, raising children, planning for retirement, taking care of the family’s medical concerns. The list goes on and on. And life goes by very quickly. Then as people become old, they often begin to experience various diseases and a variety of physical difficulties increase. At the time of death the living being who has not prepared for it often does not want to leave his body. He wants to go on associating with friends and relatives in the hope of enjoying life and fulfilling his plans and desires. He thinks of his sons, daughters, grandchildren, servants, pets, wealth, and other accumulated possessions and does not want to leave them. The dying man remembers the past affectionate dealings he had with his wife and children and worries about how they will go on without him. In this way, many people are completely absorbed in thoughts of family life while passing from this world. A person may want the physician to extend his life in any way possible, but regardless of the expert treatment given by the doctor, the old person is forced to die, for his time has arrived. Death is the door to that journey from which no one returns, and for one who is unprepared, the thought of death can cause great fear regardless of how he tries to rationalize it in his mind. Then, finally, he is forced out of the body, passing through one of the bodily openings. After leaving the physical vehicle, the soul, along with the subtle body, is carried over to the next form of existence. If, however, a person is ready to leave the body, either by attaining spiritual enlightenment or through detachment from one’s situation (as in the case of someone who has a diseased body and has grown tired of the suffering), death is not necessarily a painful experience but a relief, a transition from one realm to the next. A spiritually enlightened person is not so disturbed at the end of life. He may even be looking forward to it. Understanding one’s spiritual identity, the self-realized soul is not agitated or confused at the time of death. For him it is simply a change of body, and if he is liberated from the material conception of life, his next body will be a spiritual body and he will be completely free from anymore birth and death. For those who are eager to reach this spiritual perfection, the Supreme guides them from within as the Supersoul. Thus, a person is able to attain a position, either in this life or the next, where he or she can continue to make positive spiritual advancement. However, those who are interested only in pursuing sensual desires are averse to spiritual progress. Thus, they continue in the cycle of repeated birth and death, impelled by all of the mental impressions for desires and money and social status, and so on. In this way, continuing in one’s cycles of reincarnation, those who are extremely attached to the materialistic path will again have a chance to come back and engage in the same worldly pursuits as they did before. Of course, how successful they will be in their endeavors depends on their karma. Still, they will have every opportunity to struggle in the attempt to experience the same joys, accomplishments, victories, etc., along with the same sorrows, disappointments and anxieties. Life in the material world is considered to be like a dream that is vanishing right in front of us with the passing of time. We may think we are a man or woman, a father or mother, a great politician, a president of a company, or a simple factory worker. But everything we become and all that we accumulate are impermanent, like in a dream we have at night. And we are forced to wake up to the reality of the good or bad consequences of our activities when we must face the afterlife. Thus, everything we have done is tested at the time of death.

THE AFTERLIFE--AND IF ONE GOES TO HELL

There is a common misconception amongst many people that as long as whatever we do does not harm anyone or is not seen by anyone, then we are free to do almost anything we want. But the Vedic texts point out that it is the sun, fire, sky, air, demigods, the moon, evening, day, night, directions, water, land and especially the Supersoul Himself who exists within each of us, all witness the activities of the living entity.2 Due to these witnesses, living beings are not able to go any place where there is no one to see what they do. Therefore, higher authorities witness and design the most suitable situation for the living being’s next existence, according to one’s thoughts and actions. The Manu-samhita (12.20-21) explains that in this life, if the soul chiefly practices virtue, and vice only to a small degree, it obtains bliss in heaven. But if it chiefly cleaves to vice and only to virtue in a small degree, once deserted by the elements [of the physical body], it suffers the torments inflicted by Yamaraja, the lord of death. This is also mentioned in Srimad-Bhagavatam (3.30.30-31), in which it is related that once the soul leaves the body, a person who maintained himself and his family members by sinful activities suffers a hellish life, and his relatives suffer also. He goes alone to the darkest regions of hell, and the money he acquired by wicked means is the passage money with which he leaves this world. Thus, by the arrangement of the Lord, the person is put into a hellish condition to suffer for his sinful activities, like a man who has lost his wealth. In this way, it is described that when one lives by unfair means, he only takes the sinful reactions with him. But how do the sinful reactions cling to the living entity? This question was asked and answered thousands of years ago by King Pracinabarhi. It was then explained to him that the expert knowers of the Vedic conclusions say that one enjoys or suffers the results of his past activities. Even though a person performs actions in one body and gives that body up at the time of death, he is forced to act through the subtle body, composed of mind, intelligence, and ego. After the gross body is lost, the subtle body is still there to enjoy or suffer.3 Herein, we can understand that sinful reactions affect the subtle body of the person immediately after death. For example, it is related in the Vedic literature that when a particular selfish king died who had killed numerous living entities in rituals and on hunting excursions, he was instantly attacked by those he had killed who took advantage of the opportunity of his death. All these animals began to pierce him with their horns. It was as though he were being cut to pieces by axes.4 This is how one may suffer after death at the hands of those he unjustly mistreated. The Vedic tradition relates that the lord of death, Yamaraja, is also the ruler of the afterlife and King of the hellish planets for those destined for the darker regions of the universe. The Bhagavatam describes that he resides in the Pitriloka planet with his personal assistants and, while abiding by the rules and regulations set down by the Supreme Lord, has his soldiers, the Yamadutas, bring to him immediately upon their death all the people who are overly sinful. After bringing them within his jurisdiction, he properly reviews their life and judges them according to their specific sinful activities and sends them to one of the many hellish planets for suitable punishments. The life review, as described according to the ancient Vedic texts, is very similar to that experienced by those who have had near-death- experiences in modern times. Sometimes a person has a review of his past even when he is approaching a life-threatening situation. Generally, however, it happens shortly after leaving the body in death or near-death experiences. A person then has a life review in which one will witness everything about their life; the good, the bad, and all that is in between like watching a movie. While this is going on, in the background is always the question of what was done with one’s life. How much love did you show? That is always more important than the material accomplishments. In this review a person will see how much he affected the lives of others, or where he misused his opportunities in this life, or even how much more he has to learn. It also may emphasize what areas of life need improvement, where changes need to be made. It is not only important regarding what a person did, but also what was the intention, what was meant by it. Even if one fails in his activities, if the intention was meant to benefit someone, then that is what is considered. The life review accentuates the type of consciousness that was developed. The more spiritual one was while in life, the easier the death process will be. Also, the more smooth will be the way a person realizes he has died and will be ready to go forward, rather than trying to finish any adjustments to the new situation, or wishing to complete his plans from his material life. This is because one’s spiritual knowledge goes with him, whereas the material assets are left behind. If someone was mostly absorbed in the pursuit of material development and sensual gratification, then the longer it will take to make the adjustments of being in a new situation after the loss of the body. The more difficult it will be for the person to let go of old habits, familiarities, and thought patterns. The fewer material attachments and sensual habits we cultivate in this life means the easier it is to flow through the dying experience and let go of the old situation after death. This is why it is emphasized in the Vedic texts that how we conduct ourselves in this life builds the situation where we find ourselves in the next. The essence of this life determines where we begin the next, or where we find ourselves after death. So we must not think that everything about us changes after death. We hold and carry much of our old selves, our consciousness, beliefs and values with us from one life to the next. There are many levels of reality in the subtle worlds. Where we go depends on our consciousness. Even if we have preconceived ideas about life after death that are too fixed and inaccurate, they will keep us from accepting the reality of death and what we may find after we die. Many people simply cannot accept the fact that they have died until much time has passed, which they may need in order for them to slowly wake up or make the adjustment and realize they have died. So it is up to us to progress and make our consciousness as spiritual as possible right now. Not later. For those who are ready for death, the experience will not be shocking, but will be the greatest day of their lives. It may be like coming home, a welcomed event, a relief from an uncomfortable physical body. Plus, there are those souls, guardian helpers, who may be there to guide a person through the experience. If we have been a pious person, spiritually oriented, practicing love, forgiveness and patience, that higher consciousness will easily bring us to a loftier level of peace, beauty and higher awareness after death. That is why it has been said that the afterlife can be an experience in which one is more alive and more aware than during physical existence. Our earthly life is merely a classroom in which we grow and are tested on the decisions we have made. It was never our real home. It never had any permanence to it, nor can it ever offer such unchangeable or timeless facilities. Change is a constant in material existence. Furthermore, if a person has been overly attached to a particular outlook that has taught him the ways of prejudice, hatred, and to see the world in the form of saints and sinners, or those who are going to heaven and everyone else as bound for hell, he will take that consciousness with him after death. That will also build the walls of separation between himself and all others, while he remains focused on waiting for the “promised land” that was guaranteed in his holy book. Only after much soul searching in the afterlife, and recognizing his own lack of mercy and forgiveness and work to acquire such qualities, will he be able to move forward in awareness and understanding. Otherwise, he may remain stuck for a long time, even years by earth-time standards, in an area where the obstacles are nothing but the limitations of his own understanding. As previously stated, the practice of evil will take one to the hellish planets. Descriptions of how this happens are also found in the Vedic texts. It is explained that after death, the evil person sees the messengers of the lord of death. They come before the dying person with eyes full of wrath. In great fear he passes stool and urine. Then the dying person is forced out of his body and is arrested like a criminal for punishment by the Yamadutas, who bind him by the neck with strong rope and cover his subtle body so that he may undergo severe punishment. While carried by the constables of Yamaraja, he is overwhelmed and trembles in their hands. While passing on the road he is bitten by dogs, and he can remember the sinful activities of his life, and is thus terribly distressed.5 So, as a dying person sees the horrible and fierce soldiers of Yamaraja, he is so affected by fear that he loses control over his bowels and bladder. This is not an uncommon incident when a person dies. Furthermore, just as it has been reported in near-death experiences that the person who temporarily leaves his body seems to enter a pleasant light, there have also been reports by others who have seen frightful looking creatures who were threatening to take them away or who abused them. Nurses in hospitals and hospices have told of experiences in which dying persons had been afraid of something he or she was seeing and would try to get away or shout in protest or fear just before dying. In fact, I have heard one report in which, as a family was at the bedside of their dying relative, the man who was quietly lying on the bed suddenly rose up, raised his hand as if to keep something away from him, fearfully yelled out, “No, no,” and then instantly collapsed dead. No one could understand what he had seen, but it could very likely have been those beings that are called the soldiers of Yamaraja coming to take him away. Where they take such a person is further described. “Under the scorching sun [on the subtle platform of existence], the criminal has to pass through roads of hot sand with forest fires on both sides. He is whipped on the back by the constables because of his inability to walk, and he is affected by hunger and thirst, but unfortunately there is no drinking water, no shelter and no place for rest on the road. While passing on that road to the abode of Yamaraja, he falls down in fatigue, and sometimes he becomes unconscious, but he is forced to rise again. In this way he is very quickly brought to the presence of Yamaraja. Thus he has to pass ninety-nine thousand yojanas [eight miles equal one yojana] within two or three moments, and then he is at once engaged in the torturous punishment which he is destined to suffer.”6 This is the summarized description of the descent into hell of the wicked and the horrible punishment awaiting them. If one has been too wicked and has greatly misused the human form of life by causing pain to others and chasing after immoral forms of enjoyment, he will not see the human form of life again for many years. In fact, his punishment may prepare him for a future existence in a lower species of life.

DESCRIPTION OF HELL

In most religious scripture, there is little description of what is actually heaven or hell. However, we find elaborate details of both in the Vedic texts, of which we will include a little. The hellish planets are described in Srimad-Bhagavatam (5.26.5) as being located in the intermediate space between the major planetary systems and the lower portion of the universe. How one is forced to enter into the hellish planets is described that higher authorities will judge a person according to what he or she has done and will then see to it that one enters the proper hellish planet. Or the person will be placed in other difficult or hellish conditions here on Earth suitable for that person to learn what he or she needs. It is further explained that there are hundreds of specific hellish planets within this material creation. Impious people must enter these various planets according to the degree of their impiety. Those who are pious, however, enter other planetary systems, namely the heavenly planets of the higher beings. Nevertheless, both the pious and impious are again brought to earth after the results of their pious or impious acts are exhausted.7 This means that from good karma one may go to heaven and from bad karma one may go to hell, but when such good or bad karma is used up, one again returns to this middle planetary system to start over again. So neither heaven nor hell in this cosmic creation is eternal, as some people may have proclaimed. We experience them only as long as our bad or good karma permits. The hellish planets are the destination of those doomed to suffer for all of their wicked and nefarious activities. Yet, it is like a correctional facility. After suffering there, even if one does not consciously remember it, the person will still take precautions regarding his choices of activities the next time around. Throughout Vedic literature, especially the Puranas, there are descriptions of the hellish planets. We will only include a small portion of these so as not to make this chapter unnecessarily long, but to see a little of what kind of place the hellish planets are and who are taken there. It is related that a person who appropriates another’s legitimate wife, children or money is arrested at the time of death by the fierce Yamadutas, who bind him with the rope of time and forcibly throw him into the hellish planets known as Tamisra. On this very dark planet, the sinful man is chastised by the Yamadutas, who beat and rebuke him. He is starved, and he is given no water to drink. Thus the wrathful assistants of Yamaraja cause him severe suffering, and sometimes he faints from their chastisements.8 Furthermore, when an envious person commits violent acts against other living beings in this life, he is taken to hell by Yamaraja after his death. Then, those living entities who were hurt by him appear as animals called rurus. The ruru is more envious than a snake and not often seen in this world. These creatures inflict severe pain upon the envious person in return for his vicious acts. Because of the rurus, this hell is known as Raurava.9 In regard to this, anyone can see that there are people who possess a demoniac mentality and take pleasure in destroying things or hurting others for no justifiable reason. Such people who commit violent acts toward other beings are taken to Raurava, where the living entities they harmed in the past, or the reactions of such harm, take the form of rurus and give them untold misery. In this way, we can begin to understand that we are accountable for whatever we do to others, and that we will have to endure various experiences in our future in order to balance our karma. Such punishments on the hellish planets that are described in the Vedic texts may sound extremely cruel, but a person becomes sorry and repentant by suffering while remembering one’s past sinful activities. Such people may also retain the memory of such suffering deep in their subconscious in their next life and, thus, will refrain from performing similar activities in future lives. As it is explained the Bhagavatam, in the region of the universe where Yamaraja reigns, there are hundreds and thousands of hellish planets. The impious and sinful people must enter into these various hellish planets according to the degree of their evil nature and activities. On the other hand, those who are pious and kindly enter a different region of the universe, namely the heavenly planets of the demigods. However, both the pious and the sinful will again return to the earth planet after the results of their good or bad karma is used up.10 From this verse, we can understand that hell is not a place where one resides in eternal damnation after death. It is simply the reaction for particular nefarious activities. But due to the intensity of the suffering, it may seem like an eternity. It is explained that after having gone through all the hellish conditions as dictated by one’s karma, or, in some cases, having gone through a progressive order of lower forms of animal life as a form of retribution prior to human birth, a person may again receive a birth as a human being on this Earth planet after having been purged of his sins.11 In this way, after the reactions to one’s impious acts are used up, the person generally enters back into the earthly atmosphere to begin again. This is also confirmed in the Manu-samhita (12.22) where it states: “The individual soul, having endured those torments of Yama, again enters, free from taint, those very five elements [earth, air, fire, water, and ether--the physical body], each in due proportion.” So herein it is explained that after experiencing hell or taking birth in the lower species of life and endured such reactions, we are again free to take a human form of birth to start again. Then we can continue evolving through the different levels of life until, gradually, we have experienced every aspect of material existence, from the lower to the upper heavenly planets. However, we should know that to evolve continually through the different planetary systems, or different species of life, is not the way to find real happiness. The happiness for which we are always hankering lies beyond our captivity within this realm of material ups and downs, or temporary heavens and hells in this universe.

WHEN ONE GOES TO HEAVEN

On the other hand, rather than entering hell, if we have performed pious or virtuous activities, we can ascend to the heavenly planets to take birth and live there for many thousands of years. As it is related that when the conditioned soul engages in pious activities, he may be elevated to higher planetary systems and thus gain freedom from hellish conditions. Unfortunately, a person cannot remain there. After reaping the results of his pious activities, he has to return to the lower or earthly planetary systems. In this way, he perpetually goes up and comes down.12 We all know that given a choice, everyone would like to go to heaven. And most people have some kind of conception of heaven that makes them convinced that heaven will be a wonderful place. Even if our life on earth is far from ideal, once we get to heaven, everything is going to be all right. But every time someone tells me what kind of place heaven is, I get a different opinion. In the Vedic writings, we get explicit information about what is heaven. For instance, we can see areas right here on Earth that are practically like heaven. If you visit a tropical island with long, sunny beaches of white sand, with cool breezes blowing through the trees carrying the aroma of exotic flowers, and the sound of the waves of crystal clear water reaching the shore, and, let us not forget, beautifully shaped young girls dressed in colorful garments tending to our every need, would you not feel like you were in heaven? No doubt a lot of people would like that kind of experience because everyone is interested in material sense enjoyment. The only problem is that such places seem to be either difficult to reach, or it costs too much money to live there for long, or we have to leave after a short visit. We can never get enough of it and always want to return or visit similar places again and again. Most of us have heard of heaven from the Bible, but there are other amazing accounts found in the Vedic literature. The Bhagavatam describes that such heavenly places are where the living entities use up the results of their past pious activities. These heavenly abodes are found in three places: here on Earth, the lower heavenly planets, and the upper, celestial, heavenly planets. Only the most elevated of pious people can enter into the celestial regions. It is further explained in Srimad-Bhagavatam (5.17.12) that in the upper heavenly regions, residents live ten thousand years, and all the inhabitants are almost like demigods. They have great bodily strength and their bodies are as sturdy as thunderbolts. The youthful duration of their lives is very pleasing, and both men and women enjoy the heavenly pleasure of sex for a long time. Even the Earth planet used to be a heavenly place during the distant ages of Satya-yuga and Treta-yuga. Everyone was very pious and practiced yoga. They cared little about material sense enjoyment, though it was available. Thus, the earth supplied the residents with all that they needed in a most pleasant atmosphere. Only later, with the advent of Dvapara-yuga and especially in the present age of Kali-yuga, did the Earth begin to withhold her resources. The atmosphere changed and was no longer so heavenly. Now, as Kali-yuga progresses, the atmosphere is becoming more and more polluted and hellish. Things in general are difficult and we are losing our resources in spite of our technological development. And it seems that, as time slips away, we are slowly losing the areas that are still considered nice or heavenly. Another wonderful description of heaven is as follows: “There are many gardens filled with flowers and fruits according to the season, and there are beautifully decorated hermitages as well. Between the great mountains demarcating the borders of those lands lay enormous lakes of clear water filled with newly grown lotus flowers. Aquatic birds such as swans, ducks, water chickens and cranes become greatly excited by the fragrance of lotus flowers, and the charming sound of bumblebees fills the air. The inhabitants of those lands are important leaders among the demigods. Always attended by their respective servants, they enjoy life in gardens alongside the lakes. In this pleasing situation, the wives of the demigods smile playfully at their husbands and look upon them with lusty desires. All the demigods and their wives are constantly supplied with sandalwood pulp and flower garlands by their servants. In this way, all the residents of the eight heavenly varshas enjoy, attracted by the activities of the opposite sex.”13 Another description of the heavenly regions on the higher planets is about the Trikuta mountain, which is 80,000 miles high and surrounded by an ocean of milk. Just as Earth is surrounded by an ocean of salt water, the higher planets also have oceans, but of more pleasing substances. “The three principal peaks of the Trikuta Mountain are made of iron, silver and gold, and beautify all directions and the sky. The mountain also has other peaks, which are full of jewels and minerals and are decorated with nice trees, creepers and shrubs. The sounds of the waterfalls on the mountain create a pleasing vibration. In this way the mountain stands, increasing the beauty in all directions. The ground at the foot of the mountain is always washed by waves of milk that produce emeralds all around in the eight directions. The inhabitants of the higher planets--the Siddhas (mystically perfected beings), Caranas, Gandharvas (angels), Vidyadharas, serpents, Kinnaras and Apsaras (heavenly dancing girls)--go to that mountain to sport. Thus all the caves of the mountain are full of these denizens of the heavenly planets.”14 “The valleys beneath Trikuta Mountain are beautifully decorated by many varieties of jungle animals, and in the trees, which are maintained in gardens by the demigods, varieties of birds chirp with sweet voices. Trikuta Mountain has many lakes and rivers, with beaches covered by small gems resembling grains of sand. The water is as clear as crystal, and when the demigod damsels bathe in it, their bodies lend fragrance to the water and the breeze, thus enriching the atmosphere.”15 By studying the Vedic literature, we can learn the nature of some of these heavenly places, such as the grand opulence of Lord Indra, called the King of heaven, described as follows: “Hiranyakasipu, who possessed all opulence, began residing in heaven, with its famous Nandana garden which is enjoyed by the demigods. In fact, he resided in the most opulent palace of Indra, the King of heaven. The palace had been directly constructed by the demigod architect Visvakarma and was as beautifully made as if the goddess of fortune of the entire universe resided there. The steps of King Indra’s residence were made of coral, the floor was bedecked with invaluable emeralds, the walls were of crystal, and the columns of vaidurya stone. The wonderful canopies were beautifully decorated, the seats were bedecked with rubies, and the silk bedding, as white as foam, was decorated with pearls. The ladies of the palace, who were blessed with beautiful teeth and the most wonderfully beautiful faces, walked here and there in the palace, their ankle bells tinkling melodiously, and saw their own beautiful reflections in the gems.”16 Most of us cannot even imagine a house with crystal walls, coral steps, floors bedecked with emeralds, chairs bedecked with rubies, and bedding decorated with pearls. But here is a description of a huge palace of this kind, where many people lived. This is the heavenly region where only those who are qualified can enter. We will not be able to go there by means of rockets or space capsules, or see it with telescopes. The only way we can actually enter into the celestial, heavenly atmosphere is by means of pious works and good karma. * * * This is how all living entities evolve within this material cosmic manifestation, through the higher and lower planetary systems, and high and low species of life so that one is fully experienced in all aspects of material existence. It is according to the consciousness and desires existing in the conditioned soul’s subtle body by which one acquires a particular type of gross, physical body in order that he may attempt to satisfy those desires. The mind is the cause of the living entity’s attaining a certain type of body in accordance with his association with material nature. According to one’s mental composition, one can understand what the living entity was in his past life as well as what kind of body he will have in the future. Thus the mind indicates the past and future bodies.17 In this way, by analyzing the mind and the living entity’s desires, we can understand where we have come from and where we are going. This is the real science of evolution as found in the Vedic literature. Here, then, in this chapter is the explanation of the process of one’s karmic development, according to the Eastern tradition. However, only in the human form can one understand this spiritual knowledge. This is the rare opportunity of the human stage of the living being’s existence. By realizing the Supreme Truth, one has reached the highest destination of evolutionary development and can enter into the spiritual dimension. Therefore, any activity, pious or impious, which causes the living entity further entanglement in heaven or hell does not solve the problem of continued birth and death. When one understands the living being’s never- ending evolution throughout the upper, middle and lower planetary systems, as well as through the 8,000,000 different species of life, the futility of continued material existence becomes obvious. Only by engaging in spiritual activities in connection with the Supreme are we really able to bring an end to our material existence and free ourselves of all karma. We talk about this later.

CHAPTER TEN

Karma of the Nation

Another kind of karma is mass karma. This is seen in the example of when a plane crashes and all passengers are killed. Somehow nature arranged that everyone gathered together in which they all experience a similar reaction. However, mass karma can also be seen in terms of a community, country, race or culture, undergoing an invasion, war, famine, or other widespread difficulties, as well as good fortune such as nice weather, bountiful harvests, or improving economy. The Manu-samhita (8.304-309) describes how a king or ruler of a country receives one-sixth of the total karma of the subjects he rules. If the majority of people are pious and spiritually oriented, and the ruler protects those citizens to maintain a peaceful society in which such people can flourish, then the king will also share in the good activities and good karma of the citizens. Otherwise, if the ruler does not properly protect and maintain the citizens but allows criminals to run loose and create havoc while still collecting taxes from the people, the overall karma will be extremely dark. Such a ruler will take upon himself the foulness of his countrymen and sink into hell. From this description, we can see that if the ruler is so much affected by the total karma of the citizens of the country, then the nation itself fosters its future according to the aggregate good or bad activities of the citizens. So whatever reactions this country will endure in its future, whether it be harvests of plenty, good economy, or starvation from famine and drought, or victory over our enemies or destruction from war, depends on the way we live today. In fact, the whole planet has a destiny that is influenced by the great collective force of the mass of karma from the innumerable living beings residing on this world. History has noted many countries and civilizations in the past which, although seeming to be so powerful while living a frivolous, decadent and spoiled lifestyle, finally met their doom. Such a downfall was usually quite unexpected at the time. However, by understanding the law of karma, such a collapse can be fairly predictable. We can see this in the analysis of the Roman Empire. The last great civilization in the West was the Roman Empire, of which historians have noted five characteristics that helped cause that great society to fall apart. First, there was a love of show and luxury. Everyone was eager to acquire material things as a sign of affluence. This also helped cause the second factor, which was a widening gap between the very rich and the very poor. The third factor was a complete obsession with sex. In the latter days of the Roman Empire, sex became the sole interest, whether in ordinary conversations, or in art, culture--everything. Pompeii was a big resort for this kind of licentious living and sex. (And we all know of the earthquake in A.D. 69 that damaged Pompeii, and then the volcanic eruption in A.D. 79 that finally buried it.) A fourth factor in the downfall of the Roman Empire was a freakishness and abandonment in the arts which masqueraded and pretended to be originality. This can easily be found now in modern art, music, sculpture, etc. The fifth factor was the creation of the welfare state and the increasing desire amongst the people to live off the government. Even today, there are places where anyone can get welfare and not have to work very much. And with more sex, the more children that are born, which entitles the welfare recipient to more money. We should carefully regard these points and take note of where our modern American Empire stands because history repeats itself. We find an increase in these same things here in the United States. For example, almost all advertising nowadays evolves around the idea of having or getting sex appeal, no matter whether it is in buying a car, or buying anything that people are told they need, or attaining a successful career. And it does not take much to figure out why everyone wants sex appeal. So the present times merely reflect attitudes and changes that have taken place before, as in the Roman Empire. Another example is what we find in modern philosophy or attitudes. Whether in sociology, psychology, art, politics, the sciences, etc., it often presents the idea that there is no absolute law or standard. In other words, whatever turns you on, do it; whatever you believe in, it’s O.K. There is no absolute, and anyone who thinks there is becomes regarded as a fanatic. Similarly, in the Roman Empire, there was no emphasis on God or faith in moral standards. There were many denominations, but the attitude was anyone could believe anything he wanted. But those who were serious about their religion were severely persecuted. In the case of the Christians, they were thrown to the lions in the amphitheaters as a spectator sport. The people would watch in the stands and applaud the utter brutality of it all. One reason for this was that the Christians refused to accept the Roman gods. They believed in only one God as a pure, infinite being who set down the law, which if not followed would cause one to go to hell. Romans accepted gods who drank wine, ate meat, had sex, and so on. Therefore, Romans looked on Christians as if they were fanatics. This is the same way modern philosophers, politicians, or others today look at people who seem to be overly dedicated to a law of God, such as the law of karma. Rather than understanding the law of karma, such people would rather criticize it and simply carry on with their frivolous and whimsical habits, while remaining ignorant of the consequences. We should point out, however, that karma is not a belief system but a science. One may believe that he can do whatever he wants and that there is no jailhouse, but if he acts like a criminal and gets caught and thrown into confinement, then he will be forced to adjust his thinking and face the results of his activities. Similarly, people may think they can escape the universal laws and do whatever they like, but when they are forced by the law of karma to face their destined punishments after death, it will be too late. When we see, therefore, that people in certain areas of the country are suffering from drought, that farmers cannot grow their crops, that fires are consuming vast forests and destroying homes, that storms are causing destruction and devastation to cities and towns, or incurable diseases are affecting more and more people all the time, we should not miss the message. It is easy to ask ourselves, “Why has God done this to me?” and try to put the blame on someone else. But why should such reversals in life not happen to us? What have we done to avoid it? Usually nothing. Therefore, we must understand how the law of karma affects everyone. We need to stop and consider how divisive the mentality of many people are who inhabit this planet. There are so many wars going on, so many issues that can’t be resolved, or so many rulers in parts of the world that simply keep their subjects in miserable conditions. This type of thing goes on much more than we think, and has been going on for hundreds of years. And there are so many who care to do nothing about it. Therefore, when large parts of society has such a cruel and callous attitude towards other living entities, or are too wasteful in regards to the planet’s natural resources, or live an unnecessarily decadent or frivolous lifestyle, nature arranges reactions in various ways to humble us, or teach us a lesson. One of which is in the form of wars. From time to time we all have to watch as we ship our young men and women off to be killed or maimed in the slaughterhouse of war. But war also means war in the family, such as discontent, arguments, separation and divorce; war in the community, such as gang wars, crime, robberies, murders and rape; and industrial and economic wars as well as international war and terrorism. These reactions affect many millions of people every day around the world, and it is nothing more than the workings of nature as it reflects the consciousness of the people who inhabit this planet. When the majority of people in a country are influenced by commercialism and addicted to a variety of karmically implicating activities, there will definitely be reactions to endure in the future. This is the universal law. There is no amount of economic planning, defense buildup, agricultural arrangement, or even weather forecasting that will help us to avoid unexpected karmic reactions. If the ruler of a country receives one-sixth of the aggregate good or bad karma of the citizens, then we can get an idea of how the citizens themselves will also experience the reactions that the country is destined to receive, as arranged by nature. By understanding the law of karma and abiding by the principles of piety and spirituality which are especially recommended for this age, the people of this country will surely become strong, develop good moral character, be concerned for the welfare of all others, acquire a sound state of mind, and will attain a great destiny like no other country in the world. We all want to make this country and this world a better place, and there is a method that will enable us to do that, which we are revealing in this book. But we must understand that there is more to it than the obvious plan-making that goes on amongst our politicians, economic advisors, judiciaries, etc. There is the subtle aspect that goes on and is determined by the decisions and activities of each and every individual. Therefore, those who take the time to understand the law of karma and try to abide by it can certainly be understood to be people who are working for a better future, not only for themselves, but for a better America and, indeed, for a better world.

CHAPTER ELEVEN

Avoiding Bad Karma

Activities that create good karma are fairly obvious. These include feeding the poor, giving charity, arranging for the needs and medicine for the needy, building schools, or even planting fruit and shade trees or digging wells for public use (especially in third world countries). Other kinds of pious or religious service are all activities that create good karma. However, good and bad karma are separate accounts. In other words, good karma does not completely nullify bad karma. Bad karma creates separate reactions that must be dealt with, just as good karma will manifest in distinct ways. Therefore, bad karma must be avoided separately. The activities that may cause bad karma should be made clear since the complexities may surprise some. To start making the most of our spiritual progress, we must learn which activities do the most harm to our karma and create the heaviest reactions. We have already mentioned that pious or religious activities, as well as actions performed to help others, confer good future results to the performer. These results may be experienced as birth in a rich, aristocratic family, or being beautiful, intelligent, talented, healthy, in a comfortable situation, and so on. From sinful activities one may suffer miserable reactions, such as being sickly, ugly, uneducated, born in a poor family or in a war-torn country, not having enough food to eat, etc. Even on this planet we can see that certain areas are like hell and other areas are like heaven. There is a big difference between Hawaii and Zimbabwe. People may suffer hellish miseries or enjoy heavenly pleasures depending on in which parts of the world they are born. Where we get placed depends on our karma. Throughout the various religions, including the Vedic literature, one can find prescriptions for virtuous deeds and warnings against sinful acts. Sinful activities are of different kinds, such as physical, mental and verbal. The Manu-samhita (12.5-9) explains: “Coveting the property of others, thinking in one’s heart of what is undesirable, and adherence to false (doctrines), are the three kinds of (sinful) mental action. Abusing (others, speaking) untruth, detracting from the merits of all men, and talking idly, shall be the four kinds of (evil) verbal action. Taking what has not been given, injuring (creatures) without the sanction of the law, and holding criminal intercourse with another man’s wife, are declared to be the three kinds of (wicked) bodily action. (A man) obtains (the result of) a good or evil mental (act) in his mind, (that of) a verbal (act) in his speech, and (that of) a bodily (act) in his body. In consequence of (many) sinful acts committed with his body, a man becomes (in the next birth) something inanimate, in consequence (of sins) committed by speech, a bird or a beast, and in consequence of mental (sins, he is re-born in) a low social status.” The above information is interesting to consider the results that can be expected from different impious activities. To the degree to which those activities are committed will determine the intensity of the reactions that are returned. Thus, if we see someone suffering due to deformity, blindness or any other bodily or mental disorder, it is not just a twist of fate, but there is a cause for it. For example, it is related that, “some wicked men suffer a change of their (natural) appearance in consequence of crimes committed in this life, and some in consequence of those committed in a former (existence). Thus in consequence of a remnant of (the guilt of former) crimes are born idiots, dumb, blind, deaf, and deformed men.”1 In this way, we can see that unwanted conditions in this life are the reactions from the degrading activities in our past lives. Thus, we are given situations not only to balance our karma, but to also learn particular lessons for our own development. For example, a thief who stole the money of others’ may be born poor in another life, or in a situation wherein others steal from him. One who plunders or wastes food in one life may be born hungry in another life. Or one who is rich but has no sympathy or makes no arrangement to help the poor, or who mocks those who are born blind or deformed, may be born in a similar situation in a future life. We must be aware that when we see the difficulties of others, we do not simply shrug it off and say that it is their karma, tough luck. But we must also be willing to help others in whatever way we have facility to do. The highest form of assistance is to provide them with knowledge by which they can understand the cause of their suffering and how to be free from it. Different parts of the Vedic literature further describe the results that are produced from particular activities. To know this is encouraged by the Vedas, because then one understands the seriousness of the law of karma. “In consequence of attachment to (the objects of) the senses, and in consequence of the non-performance of their duties, fools, the lowest of men, reach the vilest births. What wombs this individual soul enters in this world and in consequence of what actions, learn the particulars of that at large and in due order.”2 After this verse in the Manu-samhita, there is a long list of the different births one gets due to the performance of certain actions. We will include only the following samples. “Those who committed mortal sins, having passed during large numbers of years through dreadful hells, obtain, after the expiration of (that term of punishment), the following births. The slayer of an innocent religious person enters the womb of a dog, a pig, an ass, a camel, a cow, a goat, a sheep, a deer, a bird, before finally entering the womb of a low- caste person.”3 “Men who delight in doing hurt (become) carnivorous (animals); those who eat forbidden food, worms; and thieves, creatures consuming their own kind.”4 Whether it is as extreme as this in this age of Kali-yuga may be questioned, since few are those who may be completely free from any such acts in this age. However, we can see the seriousness with which the Manu-samhita deals with the karma for various actions. We should point out that when the living being goes through animal lives, they do not create more karma. Animals always work out karma without creating anything new. They are merely acting according to the dictates of the body and consciousness that they have. Thus, if a tiger kills a deer or something, it does not make karma for itself, but is merely acting as a forced servant of nature. It is forced by the instinct it has, or the pushings of nature, to do what it is supposed to do. Thus, an animal lives its life as a means to work out the various forms of karma that the soul has accumulated, and for furthering its evolutionary development and experience through various forms of life. However, it is interesting to see how implicating certain actions can be. What we do in this life can affect us for many lifetimes in the future, not just one or two. How this works is explained: “With whatever disposition of mind (a man) performs any act, he reaps its result in a (future) body endowed with the same quality.”5 So if we have a tendency to hurt others, or to cheat people for our own selfish reasons of material advancement, then in the future we will reach a similar position in which the same reaction happens to us. And, on the other hand, if we are putting forth efforts to help others due to our compassion or sympathy for those who are less fortunate, we will find that such an intention will be a spiritual asset for our future good fortune. And for that reason we may be born in a wealthy family, or attain a career that makes us rich with the facility to increase our ability to share our prosperity with those who are in need, or help take care of others or work to improve the world. To assure us that we will not be forced to enter a lower birth and to purify ourselves of whatever sinful acts we knowingly or unknowingly commit, it is advised that we engage in penances or spiritual acts for the sake of purification, because those whose sins have not been expiated are born (again) with the appropriate deserts.6 Such penance for purification is based on maintaining control over our senses, body and mind. This is encouraged in every age and in every religious philosophy and is a goal that everyone, sooner or later, must assert himself toward accomplishing. In this way, one can begin to reduce whatever negative karma a person may accumulate. So the point to understand is that good karma does not eliminate the bad, though it can reduce it to some degree. But spiritual activities and penance is what can free one from bad karma. Such penance or spiritual acts include the study of religious scripture, abstaining from letting the senses control one’s activities which may lead one downward, not doing injury to others, and serving religious authorities or spiritual teachers. However, striving to learn about the knowledge of the soul is topmost because it will lead one in the proper direction, and immortality is gained through that process.7 We will discuss more about freeing ourselves from all kinds of karma in the next chapter. The above directions will certainly help guide one to a life without too much worry about bad karma and attain increased happiness in one’s future. However, in this age there are four basic principles that are especially good for keeping us from acquiring negative karma. These are truthfulness, austerity, cleanliness and mercy. These may seem simple enough, but just to follow these four principles is considered quite an accomplishment for the average person in this age. The reason why is that these relate to the four kinds of activities to which people of this age are most addicted. Therefore, if one can follow these principles, he will make a great amount of spiritual progress, as well as avoid some of the heaviest karmic reactions that implicate one in many future rounds of birth and death.

TRUTHFULNESS

Truthfulness is an important principle to follow in this age, and one that is not so often found anymore. Following the tenet of truthfulness will naturally help free one from acquiring bad karma. Truthfulness means to be honest, open, and straightforward with no lying, unnecessary criticism, cheating or stealing. Furthermore, one of the most important rules to follow to maintain truthfulness is not to gamble. This means not engaging in unnecessary chances with hopes of gaining something cheaply. Gambling includes betting on games or races, being involved in illegal or immoral acts, or even engaging in questionable business ventures. If you win or make a profit, it can feel very nice. But when you start losing your money in any one of these ways, you begin to feel intense anxiety. Soon one’s mind is totally absorbed in nothing else but scheming to get money by whatever means necessary. In such a situation, you become mentally and emotionally unbalanced, unable to make good judgments, and when you are desperate for money no one can fully trust you. If you lose all your money or your business goes under, you may also lose your friends. Some people become so distraught when they lose their money or business that they feel suicidal. These situations should be avoided by not gambling or taking unnecessary risks. You may lose a few thrills, but things will be a lot smoother. It is better to live by a simple and honest means than by making lots of money by tricky or questionable ventures. By keeping the mind peaceful and being content with what you have earned by an honest method, truthfulness becomes easy to maintain. When you have nothing to hide, you can be truly honest and trustworthy, and then the mind is peaceful and ready for cultivating spiritual knowledge. Truthfulness also means to know and speak the truth and not engage in gossip, especially that which can hurt others. If the mind is too agitated with thoughts of one’s own questionable enterprises, or of the slander going around about other people, there is no chance that one can feel tranquil, content or happy, what to speak of developing spiritual consciousness. And engaging in such things as lying, perpetuating false rumors, stealing, cheating, or shady business practices produce detrimental karmic reactions that become definite obstacles in one’s material or spiritual development.

AUSTERITY

Austerity is another factor that can help us avoid bad karma. Austerity means several things. It means, of course, being austere and not always giving in to the dictation of the mind and senses. This is similar to being on a diet when one must not cater to the hankerings of the tongue, but must intelligently distinguish between what is good and what is not good to eat in order to reach the goal, whether it be losing weight or staying healthy. To do this, a person must have some realization that he or she is more than just the body, that he or she is the consciousness within and can control the senses and tolerate various bodily urges and difficulties without being disturbed. The austerity we speak of also means to be grave, sober, mentally equipoised, and determined to make progress, especially spiritual progress. Association with like-minded people can help one significantly in this regard and is quite important. The best rule to follow to remain austere is to stay focused and free from intoxicants and people who use them. Intoxicants mean anything that disturbs one’s normal physical condition and mental stability. These things include drugs, such as cocaine, heroin, L.S.D., marijuana, alcoholic beverages, etc. Even the caffeine in coffee stimulates the nervous system and can make one feel jittery and on edge or easily agitated at times. And we all know what damage tobacco does to the body. Intoxicants definitely cause people to lose their sense of austerity. When a person becomes intoxicated, even to a slight degree, he or she can begin to lose legitimate discrimination between proper and improper activities. They begin to think more in terms of bodily comforts and may adopt the attitude that if it feels good, do it. If a person gets too intoxicated, he may begin to do many reckless things that he normally would not do. Or he may see himself as being better at something than he really is. Then the next morning, after a night of getting wasted, he may not even remember what he did the night before. He may be more concerned about simply finding some aspirin to ease his headache. The use of intoxicants not only causes bad karma for deliberately misusing one’s body and mind, but also paves the way for one to do many more foolish acts that will create even worse karma. We could discuss many problems people have had due to drug abuse or alcoholism and drunk driving, but we have all heard it before. Generally, people resort to drugs and liquor as a crutch or escape because they cannot handle life as it is. In many cases it can also be a cry for help, or a call for love. They may have emotional needs that they feel are not being met and, thus, find it easier to simply try to numb the pain. They may want an alternative, but such cheap thrills and kicks that drugs may provide simply make things worse as they become more dependent on such a low means of attaining happiness, or attempting to avoid misery. Getting intoxicated causes many reactions that one has to endure, either in this life or in the next. Some people say that they need certain drugs to help their spiritual awareness, but such spiritual visions that people think they get while on L.S.D. or other psychedelics are not spiritual at all. These drugs may show that different levels of consciousness exist but they cannot actually take you there. It is like looking into the window of a house but not being able to enter. Psyche means mind, and using psychedelics is still a long way from entering directly into the spiritual strata. Such drug-related experiences take place within the mind or on the subtle level, but do not actually touch the spiritual platform of the soul. Therefore, a dependence on drugs, especially those like cocaine, heroin or alcohol, can be a great hindrance for one who wants to progress spiritually because they keep one attracted to remaining on the mental and physical level of consciousness. Anyone who is trying to progress in this life on a spiritual basis is recommended to undergo the penance and austerity of avoiding all kinds of intoxicants. Of course, if one is not very spiritually advanced, this may seem like a difficult task. But the more progressed people become in their spiritual awareness, the more all forms of intoxication become distasteful. Intoxication of any kind will pose no temptation whatsoever for one who advances in spiritual and inner strength. After all, the word intoxication literally means to poison the body or mind with toxins. What kind of person will remain attracted to that if offered a higher form of pleasure and happiness? The more austere one becomes, the more determined he will be, and the obstacles that once used to be major problems will cease to pose any threat. This is the beginning of qualifying oneself to perceive the natural happiness within. There may be those who take drugs, mushrooms, or peyote buttons in religious rituals, like Shamans. This is much different than ordinary drug abuse. But, nonetheless, it is often used to see what is actually nothing more than another level of material reality. These visions are not as spiritual as some people may think. At best, they are the result of a chemically induced way to make contact with the subtle platform of existence. Yoga is the natural way of spiritualizing oneself, and the more spiritual one becomes the more he will be able to perceive the higher realms of life. But through such Shamanic drug use, a person may come in contact with what is said to be healing spirits, plant spirits, guides, or helpful and harmful beings that one works with for different reasons. This is not a path for everyone and can be quite dangerous if one tries it and does not know what he is doing. Some of the visions can be sublime while others horrific. And some of the drugs can be so powerful that it may take days to pull out of its effects and get back one’s “normal” consciousness, what to speak of remembering what actually happened while you were under the drug’s influence. Therefore, such drug use cannot be a positive or sure way of understanding the higher aspects of things or spiritual life.

INNER AND OUTER CLEANLINESS

As the saying goes, cleanliness is next to godliness, and in this regard it does not simply mean keeping your home neat and clean and taking a daily bath. It also means keeping the mind clean and free from useless or negative thoughts. One cannot remain on a spiritual path, attempting to become free from karma, while the mind is always devising plans to gratify the senses. And the most intense kind of sense gratification is sex life. For many, the thought of sex is a big motivating factor. So many songs are written describing the pleasure and desire for sex. Many activities are based on the prospects of finding someone with whom to enjoy sex. In fact, modern society evolves around this longing. This is not meant to sound like some outdated moralistic code. But the problem with constantly thinking about it is that the more one thinks about it, the more they long for it. Thus, the more firmly one becomes distracted by the desire for sex and embraces the bodily concept of life and the pursuit for sensual pleasure. For those who are serious about a spiritual path, such sensual thoughts and desires must be brought to a minimum. Constant thinking of sex is not the way to maintain a clean mind or heart. Therefore, a person must control the mind by proper spiritual meditation and by avoiding illicit sex. Thus, he or she will also avoid so many unnecessary problems and activities that will make one acquire so much troublesome karma to work through. Illicit sex, which is outside of marriage, or with someone else’s spouse, or for useless purposes, carries extremely heavy karma, not to mention the many diseases one takes the risk of getting from such frivolous conduct with others. Such diseases are nature’s way of warning us to be careful, but many do not listen and various diseases spread throughout society because of this. Also, when there is illicit sex, there easily can be unwanted children. Unwanted and unloved children grow up in a harsh environment and often develop an equally harsh and cruel mentality. This is something that will affect all of society. It is far better to be simple and happy with one wife or husband, and have a deep and trustworthy relationship, and raise a loving family. Let us, however, point out that merely repressing sexual desires does not work very well. This is because people will always have such desires unless they experience a higher spiritual awakening, a loftier or more sophisticated taste of happiness. With inner awakening and spiritual progress, a higher degree of perceiving reality and who we really are, sensual desires gradually fall away like dead leaves from a tree. When we see that we are not this body but are really the spiritual being within the body, then one easily rises above such base distractions as sensual desires. Also, on this platform of spiritual experience, one can enter levels of realization that are beyond the reach of those who remain absorbed in sexuality. Thus, one can feel an inner bliss that far outweighs what a person may feel from temporary sensual pleasure. Therefore, in light of the above information, another principle to help us avoid bad karma is to abstain from illicit sex and maintain a higher level of mental and physical cleanliness.

THE PRINCIPLE OF BEING MERCIFUL

The fourth principle that one needs to follow in the endeavor to be free from acquiring bad karma and for spiritual advancement is being merciful. Mercy means more than just being nice. Mercy means being kind to all living entities, not just to humans. This is because the living entity, depending on its consciousness, can take a material body in any one of the 8,400,000 species of life. Consciousness is the symptom of the soul, and anything that is alive or has consciousness exhibits the existence of the soul within it. Therefore, to develop and maintain the quality of mercy, one must follow the principle of being kind and non-violent to all living beings, both mentally and physically. This way, those who are serious about a spiritual path remain free from so many unnecessary karmic reactions that come from harming other living beings in any way. This does not mean that you should not defend yourself from the harm that others may intend to do to you. Simply being pacifistic does not mean you will avoid bad karma. There may certainly be times when you will have to defend yourself, or your family, or even your community or country from those who would do you harm. Protecting others from the harm that would befall them, or helping stop a crime being committed upon another, is also a way of avoiding bad karma and accumulating good merits. To know that you can do something good and not do it is like being an accomplice to the crime. And you will receive bad reactions in the future because of it. The karma may be that you might be placed in a similar situation and not receive help when you need it. So we have to have some common sense in this regard. Furthermore, as previously explained, according to the law of karma, we will have to suffer in the future whatever pain we cause for others. Therefore, a wise man does not want to harm even an insect, what to speak of unnecessarily harming an animal or slaughtering one in order to taste its flesh or blood. As the Eastern text known as Manu-samhita relates in this way: “By subsisting on pure fruit and roots, and by eating food fit for ascetics in the forest, one does not gain so great a reward as by entirely avoiding the use of flesh. Me he [mam sah] will devour in the next world, whose flesh I eat in this life; the wise declare this to be the real meaning of the word ‘flesh’ [mam sah].8. . . He who injures harmless creatures from a wish to give himself pleasure, never finds happiness in this life or the next.”9 Taking an example from another Eastern text, the Mahabharata (Anu.115.33) explains: “The sins generated by violence curtail the life of the perpetrator. Therefore, even those who are anxious for their own welfare should abstain from meat-eating.” In fact, the Bible (Isaiah 66.3) also states: “He that killeth an ox is as if he slew a man.” So an intelligent person will be careful to avoid activities that would cause such a reaction. This is also the conclusion of the Manu-samhita, wherein it says: “Meat can never be obtained without injury to living creatures, and injury to sentient beings is detrimental to the attainment of heavenly bliss; let him therefore shun the use of meat. Having well considered the disgusting origin of flesh and the cruelty of fettering and slaying corporeal beings, let him entirely abstain from eating flesh.”10 We need to be more aware of our interconnectedness through genuine spiritual love and the recognition of the common spiritual essence within each of us. Such spiritual love is all around us but we need to tune into it on a deeper level and use it in our everyday life. This will be exhibited by our genuine concern for everyone and all beings. As we have said, the more we help others in this way the more we help ourselves. And the less we will waste our lives seeing and basing our actions on the superficial differences between us. These only magnify the apparent separateness between us that we perceive on the material level. A person who wants to make serious spiritual progress, or stay free from accumulating bad karma, will learn how to recognize the spiritual essence and the presence of God in all living beings. In this way, one develops the attitude of kindness and mercy toward all living creatures. All beings are precious. Thus, a person recognizes that even the bodies of ignorant animals have the presence of the spirit soul within them, and are beings who are going through various existences in which they are working out their karma. There is much more we could say about this, but the essence is that such a person thus becomes free from the expensive and detrimental karma that is acquired by mistreating or causing the suffering of other innocent living beings. * * * By following these points as best one can, a person will find his or her life will become quite simple and free of unnecessary complications and, of course, bad karma. Thus, one improves his immediate future as well as the circumstances that will be encountered in one’s future lives.

CHAPTER TWELVE

Becoming Free From Karma and Reincarnation

BECOMING FREE FROM THE MODES OF NATURE

So now we will discuss the recommended means of becoming completely free from the repetitious cycle of reincarnation. If you now think that it is our karma that binds us to this material world and the cycle of continuous birth and death, and that it is something very difficult from which to be free, you are absolutely right. However, aside from adjusting our life according to the principles outlined in the previous chapter for reducing whatever karma we may accumulate, there is a process which allows us to get released and stay free from karma. However, if we expect to be cleared of all karma, we also have to become free from the modes of nature. The modes of nature will keep us in their grip in so many ways. As discussed in a previous chapter, knowledge of the modes of nature is supplied only in the Vedic literature. By recognizing which modes are affecting us by the qualities of our acts and thoughts, we can understand what kind of future life we are creating for ourselves. And by understanding the law of karma, we can know what sort of reactions we may expect to enjoy or suffer. Therefore, it becomes obvious how important it is to learn the process of becoming free from the modes of material nature. The advantage of becoming free from the modes is explained in Bhagavad-gita (14.20): wherein it relates that when the embodied being is able to rise above these three modes, he or she also becomes free from the results of material existence, namely birth, death, old age and their distresses, and then can enjoy spiritual happiness even in this life. Being born, working hard for so many things, only to grow old, diseased, and finally die is certainly not something to which we happily look forward. So, who would not be interested in learning a way to avoid these unwanted miseries? Therefore, we need to understand that there certainly is a way to be free from these distresses, and the process is to transcend the modes. So, how do we do this? This question was also asked by Arjuna five thousand years ago to Lord Krishna. Arjuna had asked how a person can be recognized as having risen above the influence of the modes and how can one do it. Krishna answered Arjuna that such a person who becomes free from the affects of the modes of nature does not hate illumination, attachment, nor delusion when they are present, nor does he long for them when they disappear. He is unconcerned, beyond the material reactions of the modes of nature, and remains firmly situated, knowing that only the modes are active. He regards pleasure and pain, a stone and a piece of gold, praise and blame, honor and dishonor, and friend and foe as alike. He has abandoned all fruitive (selfishly motivated) or karmic activities. Furthermore, one who engages in full devotional service to the Lord, who does not fall down in any circumstance, at once transcends the modes of material nature and thus comes to the level of spirit, or Brahman.1 Actually, as human beings it is our duty to become free of the material modes because only in this human form do we have the ability to do so. No other species of life provides the mental or intellectual facility. Therefore, it is recommended that after having achieved this human form of life, those who are intelligent should free themselves from all contamination of the modes of nature and engage in the loving service to the Lord.2 Acts of devotional service to the Lord, because of being completely spiritual, is the surest means of freeing oneself from the modes of nature, which we will explain as we continue through this chapter. Getting free from the modes is a scientific process that is meant for everyone. The system for arranging society, according to the Vedas, is to provide the facility for all people to elevate themselves from whatever their situation is to a higher level of existence. This means raising oneself from the mode of ignorance or passion to at least the mode of goodness. Then one must become detached from the mode of goodness by promoting oneself to the platform of suddha sattva, the transcendental platform of pure goodness. This is especially effective when one engages under the instruction of a genuine spiritual teacher. In this way, one can conquer the influence of the modes of nature.3 In the mode of goodness, one can begin to understand spiritual knowledge very easily. By the practice of religious principles, or yoga, and following the instruction of a genuine spiritual teacher, are the ways in which one may remain aloof from material activities by being fixed on the spiritual platform. Thus, one avoids acting within the modes. In this way, a person fixed in transcendental knowledge becomes freed from conditioned life and gives up his false identification with the material modes of nature.4 When one is thus fixed in spiritual consciousness, a person no longer transmigrates after death to the destinations acquired by those who are influenced by the modes. All phases of conditioned life arise from work born of the modes of material nature. The living entity who conquers these modes can be free and can then dedicate himself to the process of devotional service to the Lord.5 When such spiritual loving service is established in the heart, the effects of nature’s modes of passion and ignorance, such as lust, desire and hankering, disappear from the heart. Then he is established in goodness, and can become completely happy.6 Once we are free from the modes, we will be able to awaken our natural spiritual awareness. This is the kind of freedom for which we are always hankering. All of our desires for pleasure, happiness and freedom are merely a reflection of our natural hankering to be spiritually complete, to satisfy the genuine desires of the soul. We never like to be detained or limited in our pursuits for happiness, but in material life we experience all kinds of problems or responsibilities with which we do not necessarily want to deal or which limit our freedom. However, once the dualities in material vision are removed, which are caused by the modes of nature, then our real purpose of life can be perceived. Thus, one can understand what reality is and be completely satisfied within himself or herself. Then the living entity becomes completely satisfied by experiencing his or her real spiritual identity. This, therefore, is real freedom from the modes of material nature by which one is able to be released from further entrapment in karma and the cycle of repeated births and deaths.

GETTING FREE OF KARMA

Understanding exactly how to be free of karma is not so easy. Many times I have heard pseudo-spiritualists say that they are just working out some bad karma when they are going through some difficulty. Although they may understand the cause of some adverse condition in their life and peacefully accept it, they often do not know how to keep from developing more bad karma. As it is further related, the intricacies of action are not easy to understand. Therefore one should take it upon themselves to be aware of the differences between what is proper action, forbidden action, and inaction.7 Even trying to perform activities that give only good karma is difficult since all actions are mixed. We are simple human beings, and, thus, there can be a fault in even the most pious deeds. This is the nature of material endeavors or activities in the earthly realm. So we need to learn how to become completely free from our karma and from acquiring any more. So we have to understand that not only is there karma, but there is also akarma and vikarma. Karma pertains to those actions that are performed for one’s social, economic, or bodily development. Akarma are those actions which are performed for one’s spiritual growth and are absent of karma or reactions, which thereby free one from the cycle of birth and death. This is also the process of karma-yoga. Whimsical actions performed on the basis of selfish desires, which cause an accumulation of karmic reactions or direct one towards a lower birth, are called vikarma. When we know that both good and bad activities equally bind one to the material world and all its miseries, an intelligent man will naturally wish to learn how to perform those acts which free one from the bondage of all karma. To do this, we must learn how to regulate our activities in such a way that we can not only transcend the modes of material nature, as previously described, but also perform actions that can free us from further reactions and bondage to birth and death. First of all, we must understand that action cannot be avoided. No matter what our situation is, we are forced to work; so, we must know what actions to perform. Therefore, not merely by abstaining from work can one achieve freedom from reaction. No one can refrain from doing something, not even for a moment. A man cannot even maintain his physical body without work. Nor can one achieve freedom from karma by renunciation of his actions.8 So one should act in a way by which he may gradually be elevated through the prescribed regulated activities.9 Such regulated activities are outlined in the Vedic scripture.10 These prescribed duties are explained as being acts of sacrifice and penance for religious purposes and charity. This is because sacrifice, charity and penance purify even the great souls. However, such activities should be performed without any expectation of result, but out of duty. It is further explained in the Bhagavad-gita that such acts should never be given up by those who are on the spiritual path, or who want to be free of karma. If because of illusion one decides to give up these duties to humanity, such renunciation is said to be in the mode of ignorance. While if a person rejects these duties thinking they are troublesome or because of fear, it is said to be in the mode of passion. This never leads one to spiritual freedom from karma. Yet, if a person performs such duties because they ought to be done while being free from the attachment to the result, his renunciation is of the nature of goodness. This is what leads to spiritual awakening and freedom from accruing more karma.11 Those prescribed activities that are free from all karma include sacrifice, charity and penance, all of which refer to activities related to developing spiritual merit. Charity is a matter of giving your money, time, intelligence, or talents for such things as worship of the Supreme or for the benefit of others who are less fortunate, etc. Sacrifice and penance refer to spiritual activities such as fasting on holy days, spending time chanting God’s holy names, meditating, reading sacred texts for acquiring spiritual knowledge, abstaining from causing any injury to other living beings, or making the endeavor to go on pilgrimages to holy places, and so on. These may seem troublesome, but they are done for developing spiritual advancement, without expecting material rewards. Such activities ensure happiness in this life and the next. Such activities do not cause any more karma and also purify a person from whatever karma he or she has accumulated from not only this life but from many lives. The above-mentioned prescribed duties can be further divided into different kinds. There are those that are for realizing and acting on the level of our true spiritual identity, and those that are duties in regard to our status of life. For example, if we are married, it may be our duty to raise our family very carefully. Thus, we may have to work and make money to accomplish the many things necessary to do this. It may certainly seem like a burden, but we have to do it out of duty and love. If we consider that it would be better to leave our family and go off simply to work for ourselves, or be free of unwanted responsibilities, then such renunciation is said to be in the mode of darkness. This brings unwanted reactions both socially and individually. Therefore, once having accepted certain obligations in life, we must perform our duties in a dependable manner without personal attachment in order to continue our spiritual growth. These prescribed duties should also be performed without the desire for merely gratifying one’s senses, but for the higher cause. Such a person who acts in this way is said by sages to be a worker whose karmic actions are burned up by the fire of perfect knowledge. In this way, by giving up all attachment to the results of one’s activities, being satisfied with one’s life, acting only for the genuine necessities with a controlled mind, a person performs no karmic activities, although engaged in all kinds of actions. In this way, he is not affected by sinful reactions although working. A person who is free from duality and does not envy, who is steady in success or failure, is never entangled, although performing various actions.12 The best way to achieve this state is by acting in devotional service to God. This becomes easy when we can see God everywhere, and all beings as parts of God. Therefore, working for religious and spiritual purposes and for the benefit of all living beings rids one of both good and bad actions and the subsequent karma even in this one life. However, those who want to enjoy the fruits of their work, being attached to temporary material desires and the attempts to fulfill them, remain bound in the cycles of birth and death as dictated by their karma. Therefore, it is recommended that all of us who are on the spiritual path should strive for yoga, especially devotional yoga, the art of all work.13 This brings the question that if we cannot avoid performing activities but are not meant to selfishly enjoy the results ourselves, then for whom do we perform these acts of sacrifice and charity, and what is the necessity of such activities? In answer to this, it is further emphasized that work done as a sacrifice for God has to be performed, otherwise selfish work binds one to this material world. Therefore, we need to perform our prescribed duties for His satisfaction because this is what will keep us unattached from actions performed for our own purpose and temporary bodily pleasure, and free from material bondage.14 In this way, as it is said, one who performs his duty without attachment, surrendering the results unto the Supreme Lord, is not affected by sinful action, as the lotus leaf is untouched by water.15 So, whether it seems that all of these actions are perfect or not, by offering all our works to God, with mind intent on Him, and without egoism, a person becomes free from the bondage of karmic activities.16 Basically, freedom from karma is achieved by doing the will of the Supreme. That puts us on the spiritual platform, upon which there is no karma. It is also the means of erasing whatever karma we have accrued. Actually, only by this means does one find real happiness, beyond the quick thrill of stimulating the mind and senses. Thus, one’s real interest is to align one’s personal will with the will of God. Life is continuous in all of its manifestations, whether in the material plane or the subtle, in the physical form or beyond death. Freedom from karma thus comes by acting in the way that will reunite us with the Divine. Therefore, it is we who choose how long it takes for us to return to God, taking us beyond the subtle realm and all the way to the domain that is completely spiritual. So this is the essence of how to be engaged in activities that will free us from all adverse reactions and from the cycle of birth and death. Through this system, one can remain free from accumulating any more good or bad karma which negates the need for entering either heaven or hell, thereby allowing us to rise above the influence of the material energies. This is also the process known as bhakti-yoga, or devotional service to the Supreme, which automatically and easily incorporates the principles of karma-yoga. This is why bhakti-yoga is so easy. This development of devotional service and love for God is found in all genuine religions, however, not all of them explain it so thoroughly. The science of bhakti-yoga, which is especially useful in this age, does not necessitate one to give up all his present activities or change his occupation. Through bhakti-yoga, which is simply the devotion and worship of God on a personal level, a person can learn how to dovetail his or her present activities in a way that enables one to make spiritual advancement. By understanding bhakti-yoga, along with the law of karma, one can easily make rapid spiritual progress in his or her present situation and reach both material as well as spiritual success. Learning how to use what you presently know and have in spiritual activities is what devotional service is all about. This science of bhakti-yoga and the art of devotional service is explained more completely elsewhere, as found in another of my books, such as The Heart of Hinduism. Nonetheless, we are incorporating many of its principles in this book. The point we need to remember is that sinful activity, or those actions which produce karma, is centered around living to satisfy the mind and senses. When the living being is ignorant of his real identity as a spirit soul, he is under the impression that he is the temporary body and that satisfaction of the mind and senses is the goal of life. But this conception is the very cause of our repeated birth and death. Sensual desires keep us bound up in the bodily existence birth after birth. Thus, it is the purpose of the Vedic and religious literature to give the necessary instructions for those interested in attaining the best situation possible for their future, not only in this life, but in the next as well. Everyone is struggling to do this anyway by making plans to improve their financial income, career opportunities, living conditions, love life, or so many other areas of their existence. In fact, almost everyone lives in the hope that things are going to get better. But we see that they do not always know exactly how to make things better or what should be done, especially from the karmic point of view. Therefore, genuine spiritual instruction is there to provide this information. But as Bhagavad-gita (16.23) explains that a person who discards scriptural injunctions and instead acts in whatever way he wants due to his own whims attains neither happiness nor completion in one’s life, nor the supreme spiritual destination. Everything is going on as a result of our free will which creates karma that manifests in the form of our intentions, attitudes, feelings, expression, ability to choose good or bad, or how to handle situations. So to be free from this cycle, all that is possible to save oneself or others is to accept the life preserver of spiritual knowledge. This is what can free us from the ocean of karmic reactions and the cycles of repeated births and deaths, which is the result of this karma. This spiritual knowledge that reveals the spiritual nature of the living being is so powerful that it can deliver even the worst of us. If one performs activities that cater only to the whims of the senses and mind, he will certainly become more and more absorbed in irreligious and degrading behavior. The general pattern is that such people gradually get tired of simple pleasures and then want bigger thrills and deeper levels of mental gratification, which may give way to further degradations and perversions in one’s life. This secures more bad karma that one will be forced to endure in escalating numbers of births and deaths, which can take them further into the lower or more troubled forms of existence. This is what any intelligent person should try to avoid. This is why it is further explained that the material body is influenced by one’s karmic destiny, and therefore must live as long as one’s karma is in effect. A spiritually realized person, however, who is awakened to the absolute reality, will never again surrender to the selfish and sensual demands of the mind and senses, knowing them to be just like a temporary body visualized in a dream.17 From this we can understand that it is ultimately the mind which causes us to be bound by karma. The mind creates material desires that we feel we need to enjoy. The intention of these desires and the actions that follow in the pursuit of such desires cause karma. It is karma that binds the soul to material existence. When the mind is purified from material identification by the torchlight of knowledge, the misdirected desires of the mind can be squelched, and the soul can be released from the clutches of maya, illusion. Then liberation is attained. Having no material desires left, but making whatever desires there may be for the service of God, the soul will not take rebirth in the material worlds. That is real freedom for which we need to strive. It is further explained that one who is in knowledge of the Absolute Truth does not engage himself in acts for the gratification of the senses, knowing well the differences between work in devotion and work that produces karma.18 In this way, by refraining from materialistic activities, one becomes freed from such bondage. It is this method which is the basis of religious and auspicious life for human beings and drives away all suffering, illusion and fear.19 The sign of one who is free from karma and the influence of the various material modes is that all misgivings and misidentifications with the body cease to disturb him or her. In such a condition the living entity can see things as they are. This vision is explained that whenever a person experiences, by spiritual realization, that both the gross and subtle bodies have nothing to do with the pure soul, at that time he sees himself for what he really is as well as the Lord. When the illusory energy subsides, which takes place as one becomes free from karma, the living entity becomes fully enriched with spiritual knowledge by the grace of the Lord. Then he becomes enlightened with spiritual realization and becomes situated in his true spiritual identity.20

HOW SPIRITUAL ACTIVITIES NULLIFY KARMA

As one progresses in the practice of his spiritual path and increasingly feels less affected by the material influences, one’s fate and destiny also begin to change. Karmic reactions that are yet to happen actually become less severe as one engages in the prescribed activities. By seriously engaging in spiritual practices, our karma may become so reduced that we suffer only a fraction of what we had coming to us. For example, it may be our destiny that at some point in time we will suffer a serious leg injury. But because of our spiritual progress our karma is minimized so that we suffer only the stubbing of our toe on a chair rather than a broken leg in a car crash. This is confirmed in the Brahma-samhita (5.54) where it explains that the Lord burns up to their roots all fruitive activities of those who are imbued with devotion. He also impartially allows each person to enjoy the fruits of their activities in the path of work (karma), in accordance with the chain of their previously performed works. Therefore, for people who are engaged in karmic activities, the Lord sees to it that they achieve whatever they have coming to them, as arranged by the person’s own karma. It is not what the Supreme gives that person, but what the natural reactions are for that person’s previous activities and desires. However, for someone on the spiritual path, their devotion to the Supreme can itself burn away the karmic reactions that follow a person from one lifetime to another. This is further explained wherein Lord Krishna explains to Uddhava that just as a blazing fire turns firewood into ashes, similarly, devotion unto Him completely burns to ashes sins committed by His devotees.21 The importance of this point is further reiterated in the Bhagavad-gita (4.37) where Lord Krishna explains to Arjuna that spiritual knowledge, which naturally leads to devotion to God, also burns to ashes all karma, like blazing fire burns wood. The Vishnu Purana explains that there are different stages of dormant reactions to bad karma or sinful reactions. They may be reactions that are just waiting to take effect [phalonmukha], reactions more deeply dormant [kuta], and reactions in a seed-like state [bija]. So karmic reactions are like seeds waiting to germinate and grow. But you can keep the seeds of delayed karma from germinating by roasting them with devotional service to God. Thus, they dissolve completely. So even the karma that we are yet to experience becomes nullified by this process. In any case, all types of sinful reactions are vanquished one after another as a person engages in the devotional service to the Supreme, which is direct spiritual activity, beyond material or karmic undertakings. It is explained in the Bhagavatam: “The taste for loving service [to the Lord] is like the water of the River Ganges, which flows from the feet of Lord Krishna. Every day that taste diminishes the results of sinful activities [that manifest as bad karma] that have been acquired over a period of many births by those who perform austerities.”22 From this we can understand that we may have karmic reactions from past activities that are yet to be experienced, and we may still be working this out. But if we are patient and let such conditions that are caused by our previous fruitive work exhaust themselves while not engaging any further in karmic activities, we will become free from this material existence. Then we will be able to reestablish ourselves in our natural spiritual identity. This can be compared to the way an electric fan rotates while it is still plugged into the wall socket. As we disengage from karmic actions and engage in spiritual activities, we unplug the fan of our karma. The fan may still be rotating, but it gets slower and slower until it finally stops. Similarly, the karmic reactions that we may yet have to endure gradually become less and less, until we are finally free of them altogether. Of course, if we again engage in karmic activities, it is like plugging the fan back into the socket, if only for a short time, in which case the fan will speed up again and there will be more reactions to go through. Or at least it will take longer for us to be completely free from karmic consequences. This leads us to understand that there are three basic ways for karma to be exhausted or burned out. These include enjoying the fruits of one’s good karma and using it up, or suffering the negative results of one’s bad karma until it is all finished. In either of these two ways, karma is like a bank account or credit card. Good karma can be stored up like money in a bank, and then enjoyed, after which it is gone and must be accumulated again. Or, like a credit card, a person can do whatever he likes, drawing on his credit, but when the account is due for payment, he has to pay for whatever he has purchased. Then one has to suffer or work hard to acquire more good karma, which again binds a person to additional future reactions however pleasant they may be. Nonetheless, these two ways result in helplessly enjoying or suffering the good or bad karmic reactions, and acquiring more karma that one must experience in further cycles of birth and death. Not a good plan, actually. The third way karma is worked out is through the path of wisdom, such as the path of devotion and spiritual service to God, which include discussing, reading, or remembering the pastimes of God, along with the previously mentioned ways of charity and pious activities. The path of wisdom can nullify the results of karma, which can free one permanently from the cycle of birth and death. This is how one’s karma can change by the performance of devotional service. Therefore, a bhakti-yogi is under the special protection of the Supreme and is not limited by the material energies which influence and control the life of a karmi (one who, by performing selfish and fruitive activities, accumulates more karma). Thus, by practicing devotion to the Supreme, or bhakti-yoga, one has every chance of not only becoming free of past karmic reactions without accumulating more karma, but also to enter back into direct spiritual existence, which is the actual goal of becoming free from all karma. This is confirmed in such Eastern texts as the Bhagavatam and Bhagavad-gita as follows: “Just as gold, when smelted in fire, gives up its impurities and returns to its pure brilliant state, similarly, the spirit soul, absorbed in the fire of bhakti-yoga, is purified of all contamination caused by previous fruitive activities and returns to its original position of serving Me [the Supreme] in the spiritual world.”23 “That is the way of the spiritual and godly life, after attaining which a man is not bewildered. Being so situated, even at the hour of death, one can enter into the kingdom of God.”24 The Katha Upanishad (2.3.14-15) also concludes that “When one’s knots in the form of [material] desires in the heart are cut asunder, then he becomes immortal and he attains final beatitude in realizing the Supreme. When all the knots of [karmic] bondage that fetter the heart are cut apart, then a man becomes immortal [having no need to ever again reincarnate]-- this is the essential lesson of all the [Vedic] literature.”

CONCLUSION--PREPARING FOR THE NEXT LIFE

We have to understand that if we have spent our life in pursuing material desires, or harboring hatred and dislike of others, or the need to have our own way all the time, and so on, the collective nature of those thoughts will build a consciousness that becomes the basis of what we find in the next life. That is why the Bhagavad-gita explains very clearly that the subject which attracts the dying man at the time of death is that which begins his next life. The subject in this case is the collective consciousness that has been developed up to the time of death. Therefore it is necessary to practice a life of forgiveness, patience, peace, harmony, and unconditional love, or at least work toward that as much as possible. Practice prayer, meditation, yoga, service to God and all living beings, and develop the ways of kindness, generosity and concern for others. This has a most beneficial affect on the consciousness. And it is the collective consciousness that determines our karma and what our next life will be and whether we go upwards, downwards, or get stuck some where in between. It will also determine whether we can find the Light here in this life, rather than taking our chances on merely trying to find it at the time of death. Once free from karma and the effects of the material modes of nature, we can easily see our natural spiritual position and the relationship we have with the Supreme. But under the influence of karma, materialists always think of their plans and activities for attaining sensual pleasure, and furthering their economic or material comforts while in this life. Thus, when they die they are meditating on their bodily activities and desires which force them to take birth in another material body. So, an intelligent person engages in devotion and thoughts and meditations on the Supreme as much as possible up to the time of death, which is the means for returning back to the spiritual atmosphere. This, therefore, as described in the ancient Vedic and Eastern texts, is the science of karma and destiny, as referred to in the majority of religions, and the ultimate way to get free from all karma and stop the cycle of reincarnation.

NOTES

Chapter Three: The First Thing You Need to Know is You Are Not Your Body 1. Bhagavad-gita As It Is, (Abbreviated as Bg.) Chapter 2, verses 12-13. 2. Bg.2.17-18 3. Bg.2.20 4. Bg.2.23 5. Bg.2.23-25 6. Srimad-Bhagavatam, (Abbreviated as Bhag.) Canto 4, Chapter 29, verse 60 7. Bhag.4.29.60 8. Bhag.4.29.75 9. Bhag.1.3.32-33 10. Bhag.11.22.48 11. Bhag.11.23.56 12. Bhag.7.15.41

Chapter Four: What Is Reincarnation and Karma 1. Bhag.4.29.66 2. Bg.15.8 3. Bhag.11.22.37-39 4. Bhag.11.22.40-41 5. Bg.15.9 6. Bg.13.22 7. Bg.15.9 8. Bg.15.10

Chapter Five: The Law of Karma and Destiny 1. Bhag.7.2.21 2. Bhag.11.17.53 3. Bhag.4.29.64-65, 67 4. Bhag.4.29.68 5. Bhag.8.19.24-25

Chapter Eight: The Modes of Nature 1. Bg.18.40 2. Bhag.4.29.26-27 3. Bg.14.5-8, 10 4. Bhag.11.23.42-43 5. Bhag.11.10.31-32 6. Bhag.11.22.12-13 7. Bhag.11.25.19 8. Bhag.11.25.30-31 9. Bhag.1.7.5 10. Bg.14.16 11. Bhag.4.29.29-31 12. Bg.14.14-15 13. Bg.14.18 14. Bhag.11.22.52

Chapter Nine: How Karma Affects Us Through Life, Death and Beyond 1. Bhag.3.31.44 2. Bhag.6.1.42 3. Bhag.4.29.59-60 4. Bhag.4.28.26 5. Bhag.3.30.19-20 6. Bhag.3.30.21-23 7. Bhag.5.26.37 8. Bhag.5.26.8 9. Bhag.5.26.11 10. Bhag.5.26.37 11. Bhag.3.30.34 12. Bhag.5.14.41 13. Bhag.5.17.13 14. Bhag.8.2.2-5 15. Bhag.8.2.7-8 16. Bhag.7.4.8-11 17. Bhag.4.29.66

Chapter Eleven: Avoiding Bad Karma 1. The Law of Manu, [Manu-samhita], (Abbreviated as Manu) Chapter 11, verses 48-53 2. Manu.12.52-53 3. Manu.12.54-55 4. Manu.12.59 5. Manu.12 81 6. Manu.11.54 7. Manu.12.83-86 8. Manu.5.54-55 9. Manu.5.45 10. Manu.5.48-49

Chapter Twelve: Becoming Free From Karma and Reincarnation 1. Bg.14.21-26 2. Bhag.11.25.33 3. Bhag.7.15.25 4. Bhag.11.26.2 5. Bhag.11.25.32 6. Bhag.1.2.19 7. Bg.4.17 8. Bg.3.4-5 9. Bg.16.24 10. Bg.3.15 11. Bg.18.5-9 12. Bg. 4.19-22 13. Bg.2.49-50 14. Bg.3.9 15. Bg.5.10 16. Bg.3.30-31 17. Bhag.11.13.37 18. Bg.3.28 19. Bhag.11.21.18 20. Bhag.1.3.33-34 21. Bhag.11.14.19 22. Bhag.4.21.31 23. Bhag.11.14.25 24. Bg.2.72

REFERENCES

Atharvaveda, translation by Devi Chand M.A., Munshiram Manoharlal Publishers, New Delhi, 1980 Bhagavad-gita As It Is, translated by A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami, Bhaktivedanta Book Trust, New York/Los Angeles, 1972 Bhagavad-gita, translated by Swami Chidbhavananda, Sri Ramakrishna tapovanam, Tirupparaitturai, Tamil Nadu, India, 1991 Bible, New York International Bible Society, 1981 Brahma-samhita, Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Goswami Thakur, Bhaktivedanta Book Trust, Los Angeles, CA, 1988 Buddhist and Christian Gospels, Albert J. Edmonds, Yukwan Publishing House, Tokyo, 1905 Children’s Past Lives, Carol Bowman, Bantam Books, New York, 1997 Children Who Remember Past Lives, Ian Stevenson, University Press of Virginia, Charlottesville, 1987 Dictionary of Philosophy and Religion, Reese, Humanities Press, Atlantic Highlands, New Jersey, 1980 Egyptian Civilization, L. A. Waddell, Christian Book Club, Hawthorne, CA Gitabhasya of Ramanuja, translated by M. R. Sampatkumaran, Ananthacharya Indological Research Institute, Mumbai, 1985 Hymns of the Rig-veda, tr. by Griffith, Motilal Banarsidass, Delhi, 1973 Lifetimes, True Accounts of Reincarnation, Frederick Lenz, PH.D., Fawcett Crest, New York, 1979 Mahabharata, Kamala Subramaniam, Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, Bombay, 1982 Many Lives, Many Masters,Brian Weiss, Simon and Schuster, New York, 1988 Old Souls, Tom Shroder, Simon & Schuster, New York, 1999 Readings From World Religions, Selwyn Champion, Dorothy Short, Fawcett World Library, New York, New York, 1951 Srimad-Bhagavatam, translated by A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami, Bhaktivedanta, Book Trust, New York/Los Angeles, 1972 Srimad-Bhagavatam, translated by C. L. Goswami, Gita Press, Gorakhpur, India, 1972 The Holy Quran, 'Abdullah Yusaf 'Ali, Amana Corporation, Brentwood, Maryland, 1989 The Law of Manu, [Manu-samhita], translated by Georg Buhlerg, Motilal Banarsidass, Delhi, 1970 Tibetan Buddhism, L. A. Waddell, Dover, New York, 1972 Twelve Essential Upanishads, Tridandi Sri Bhakti Prajnan Yati, Sree Gaudiya Math, Madras, 1982. Includes the Isha, Kena, Katha, Prashna, Mundaka, Mandukya, Taittiriya, Aitareya, Chandogya, Brihadaranyaka, Svetasvatara, and Gopalatapani Upanishad of the Pippalada section of the Atharva-veda. Twenty Cases Suggestive of Reincarnation, Ian Stevenson, University Press of Virginia, Charlottesville, 1974 Vedanta-Sutras of Badarayana with Commentary of Baladeva Vidyabhusana, translated by Rai Bahadur Srisa Chandra Vasu, Munshiram Manoharlal, New Delhi, 1979 Vishnu Purana, translated by H. H. Wilson, Nag Publishers, Delhi. 1980 What the Great Religions Teach, Health Research, Mokelumne Hill, California, 1958 World Religions, From Ancient History to the Present, Parrinder, Facts on File Publications, New York, 1971 Yajurveda, Devi Chand, Munshiram Manoharlal Publishers, Pvt. Ltd., New Delhi, 1980

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Stephen Knapp grew up in a Christian family, during which time he seriously studied the Bible to understand its teachings. In his late teenage years, however, he sought answers to questions not easily explained in Christian theology. So he began to search through other religions and philosophies from around the world and started to find the answers for which he was looking. He also studied a variety of occult sciences, ancient mythology, mysticism, yoga, and the spiritual teachings of the East. After his first reading of the Bhagavad-gita, he felt he had found the last piece of the puzzle he had been putting together through all of his research. Therefore, he continued to study all of the major Vedic texts of India to gain a better understanding of the Vedic science. It is known amongst all Eastern mystics that anyone, regardless of qualifications, academic or otherwise, who does not engage in the spiritual practices described in the Vedic texts, cannot actually enter into understanding the depths of the Vedic spiritual science, nor acquire the realizations that should accompany it. So, rather than pursuing his research in an academic atmosphere at a university, Stephen directly engaged in the spiritual disciplines that have been recommended for hundreds of years. He continued his study of Vedic knowledge and spiritual practice under the guidance of a spiritual master. Through this process, and with the sanction of His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, he became initiated into the genuine and authorized spiritual line of the Brahma-Madhava-Gaudiya sampradaya, which is a disciplic succession that descends back through Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu and Sri Vyasadeva, the compiler of Vedic literature, and further back to Sri Krishna. Besides being brahminically initiated, Stephen has also been to India several times and traveled extensively throughout the country, visiting most of the major holy places and gaining a wide variety of spiritual experiences that only such places can give. Stephen has been writing The Eastern Answers to the Mysteries of Life series, which so far includes The Secret Teachings of the Vedas, The Universal Path to Enlightenment, The Vedic Prophecies: A New Look into the Future, and How the Universe was Created and Our Purpose In It. Other books he has written include Toward World Peace: Seeing the Unity Between Us All, Facing Death: Welcoming the Afterlife, as well as Proof of Vedic Culture’s Global Existence, The Key to Real Happiness and The Heart of Hinduism. He has also written Destined for Infinity, for those who prefer lighter reading, or learning spiritual knowledge in the context of an exciting spiritual adventure. Naturally, more books are in the works. Stephen has put the culmination of over thirty years of continuous research and travel experience into his books in an effort to share it with those who are also looking for higher levels of spiritual understanding.

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If you have enjoyed this book, or if you are serious about finding higher levels of real spiritual Truth, you will also want to get:

The Secret Teachings of the Vedas

This book presents the essence of the ancient Eastern philosophy and summarizes some of the most elevated and important of all spiritual knowledge. This enlightening information is explained in a clear and concise way and is essential for all who want to increase their spiritual understanding, regardless of what their religious background may be. If you are looking for a book to give you an in-depth introduction to the Vedic spiritual knowledge, and to get you started in real spiritual understanding, this is the book! The topics include: What is your real spiritual identity; the Vedic explanation of the soul; scientific evidence that consciousness is separate from but interacts with the body; the real unity between us all; how to attain the highest happiness and freedom from the cause of suffering; the law of karma and reincarnation; the karma of a nation; where you are really going in life; the real process of progressive evolution; life after death--heaven, hell, or beyond; a description of the spiritual realm; the nature of the Absolute Truth--personal God or impersonal force; recognizing the existence of the Supreme; the reason why we exist at all; and much more. This book provides the answers to questions not found in other religions or philosophies, and condenses information from a wide variety of sources that would take a person years to assemble. It also contains many quotations from the Vedic texts to let the texts speak for themselves, and to show the knowledge the Vedas have held for thousands of years. It also explains the history and origins of the Vedic literature. This book has been called one of the best reviews of Eastern philosophy available.

The Vedic Prophecies: A New Look into the Future

The Vedic prophecies take you to the end of time! This is the first book ever to present the unique predictions found in the ancient Vedic texts of India. These prophecies are like no others and will provide you with a very different view of the future and how things fit together in the plan for the universe. Now you can discover the amazing secrets that are hidden in the oldest spiritual writings on the planet. Find out what they say about the distant future, and what the seers of long ago saw in their visions of the destiny of the world. This book will reveal predictions of deteriorating social changes and how to avoid them; future droughts and famines; low-class rulers and evil governments; whether there will be another appearance (second coming) of God; and predictions of a new spiritual awareness and how it will spread around the world. You will also learn the answers to such questions as: Does the future get worse or better? Will there be future world wars or global disasters? What lies beyond the predictions of Nostradamus, the Mayan prophecies, or the Biblical apocalypse? Are we in the end times? How to recognize them if we are. Does the world come to an end? If so, when and how? Now you can find out what the future holds. The Vedic Prophecies carry an important message and warning for all humanity, which needs to be understood now!

Toward World Peace: Seeing the Unity Between Us All

This book points out the essential reasons why peace in the world and cooperation amongst people, communities, and nations have been so difficult to establish. It also advises the only way real peace and harmony amongst humanity can be achieved. In order for peace and unity to exist we must first realize what barriers and divisions keep us apart. Only then can we break through those barriers to see the unity that naturally exists between us all. Then, rather than focus on our differences, it is easier to recognize our similarities and common goals. With a common goal established, all of humanity can work together to help each other reach that destiny. This book is short and to the point. It is a thought provoking book and will provide inspiration for anyone. It is especially useful for those working in politics, religion, interfaith, race relations, the media, the United Nations, teaching, or who have a position of leadership in any capacity. It is also for those of us who simply want to spread the insights needed for bringing greater levels of peace, acceptance, unity, and equality between friends, neighbours, and communities. Such insights include: The factors that keep us apart. Breaking down cultural distinctions. Breaking down the religious differences. Seeing through bodily distinctions. We are all working to attain the same things. Our real identity: The basis for common ground. Seeing the Divinity within each of us. What we can do now to bring unity between everyone we meet. This book carries an important message and plan of action that we must incorporate into our lives and plans for the future if we intend to ever bring peace and unity between us.

Facing Death Welcoming the Afterlife Many people are afraid of death, or do not know how to prepare for it nor what to expect. So this book is provided to relieve anyone of the fear that often accompanies the thought of death, and to supply a means to more clearly understand the purpose of it and how we can use it to our advantage. It will also help the survivors of the departed souls to better understand what has happened and how to cope with it. Furthermore, it shows that death is not a tragedy, but a natural course of events meant to help us reach our destiny. This book is easy to read, with soothing and comforting wisdom, along with stories of people who have been with departing souls and what they have experienced. It is written especially for those who have given death little thought beforehand, but now would like to have some preparedness for what may need to be done regarding the many levels of the experience and what might take place during this transition. To assist you in preparing for your own death, or that of a loved one, you will find guidelines for making one’s final days as peaceful and as smooth as possible, both physically and spiritually. Preparing for death, no matter what stage of life you are in, can transform your whole outlook in a positive way, if understood properly. This will make things clearer in regard to what matters most in this life, especially when you know the remainder of your life may be short. It is like looking into the Truth of yourself, and taking a pilgrimage to the edge of the spiritual dimension. Some of the topics in the book include: The fear of death and learning to let go. The opportunity of death: The portal into the next life. This earth and this body are no one’s real home, so death is natural. Being practical and dealing with the final responsibilities. Forgiving yourself and others before you go. Being the assistant of one leaving this life. Connecting with the person inside the disease. Surviving the death of a loved one. Stories of being with dying, and an amazing near-death-experience. Connecting to the spiritual side of death. What happens while leaving the body. What difference the consciousness makes during death, and how to attain the best level of awareness to carry you through it. So no matter whether you are afraid of death or concerned about surviving the death of a loved one, or are worried about those that you will leave behind if you depart, or what death will be like and how to prepare for it, this book will help you.

How the Universe was Created And Our Purpose In It

This book provides answers and details about the process of creation that are not available in any other traditions, religions, or areas of science. It offers the oldest rendition of the creation and presents insights into the spiritual purpose of it and what we are meant to do here. Every culture in the world and most religions have their own descriptions of the creation, and ideas about from where we came and what we should do. Unfortunately, these are often short and generalized versions that lack details. Thus, they are often given no better regard than myths. However, there are descriptions that give more elaborate explanations of how the cosmic creation fully manifested which are found in the ancient Vedic Puranas of India, some of the oldest spiritual writings on the planet. These descriptions provide details and answers that other versions leave out. Furthermore, these Vedic descriptions often agree, and sometimes disagree, with the modern scientific theories of creation, and offer some factors that science has yet to consider. Now with this book, we get a clearer understanding of how this universe appears, what is its real purpose, from where we really came, how we fit into the plan for the universe, and if there is a way out. Some of the many topics included are: Comparisons between other creation legends. Detailed descriptions of the dawn of creation and how the material energy developed and caused the formation of the cosmos. What is the primary source of the material and spiritual elements. Insights into the primal questions of, “Who am I? Why am I here? Where have I come from? What is the purpose of this universe and my life?” An alternative description of the evolutionary development of the various forms of life. Seeing beyond the temporary nature of the material worlds, and more. This book will provide some of the most profound insights into these questions and topics. It will also give any theist more information and understanding about how the universe is indeed a creation of God.

The Key to Real Happiness

This book is actually a guide to one of the prime purposes of life. Naturally everyone wants to be happy. Why else do we keep living and working? Now you can find greater levels of happiness and fulfillment. Using this knowledge from the East, you can get clear advice on the path for reaching an independent and uninterrupted feeling of well-being. This information is sure to open your eyes to higher possibilities. It can awaken you to the natural joy that always exists within your higher Self. Many people consider happiness as something found with the increase of sensual pleasure and comforts. Others look for position, or ease of living, thrills, or more money and what it can buy. However, by using knowledge from the East and taking an alternative look at what is advised herein, we get guidance on our true position and the means necessary for reaching the happiness for which we always hanker. Some of the topics include: What keeps us from being truly happy. Your spiritual Self is beyond all temporary material limitations. How to uplift your consciousness. How all suffering exists only within the illusion. How your thoughts and consciousness create your future and determine your state of happiness and outlook on life. Wrong ambitions and their hidden results. How to defend yourself from negativity. How real independent and self-sufficient happiness is already within you, and how to unveil it. How to enjoy that ever-existing pleasure within. This book is easy to understand and will show you how to experience real happiness and reach the spiritual level, the platform of the soul, beyond the temporary nature of the mind and body. The book is 95 pages, trim size 5 1/2" x 8 1/2".

Proof of Vedic Culture's Global Existence

This book provides evidence which makes it clear that the ancient Vedic culture was once a global society. Even today we can see its influence in any part of the world. Thus, it becomes obvious that before the world became full of distinct and separate cultures, religions and countries, it was once united in a common brotherhood of Vedic culture, with common standards, principles, and representations of God. No matter what we may consider our present religion, society or country, we are all descendants of this ancient global civilization. Thus, the Vedic culture is the parent of all humanity and the original ancestor of all religions. In this way, we all share a common heritage. This book is an attempt to allow humanity to see more clearly its universal roots. This book provides a look into: How Vedic knowledge was given to humanity by the Supreme. The history and traditional source of the Vedas and Vedic Aryan society. Who were the original Vedic Aryans. How Vedic society was a global influence and what shattered this world-wide society. How Sanskrit faded from being a global language. Many scientific discoveries over the past several centuries are only rediscoveries of what the Vedic literature already knew. How the origins of world literature are found in India and Sanskrit. The links between the Vedic and other ancient cultures, such as the Sumerians, Persians, Egyptians, Romans, Greeks, and others. Links between the Vedic tradition and Judaism, Christianity, Islam, and Buddhism. How many of the western holy sites, churches, and mosques were once the sites of Vedic holy places and sacred shrines. The Vedic influence presently found in such countries as Britain, France, Russia, Greece, Israel, Arabia, China, Japan, and in areas of Scandinavia, the Middle East, Africa, the South Pacific, and the Americas. Uncovering the truth of India's history: Powerful evidence that shows how many mosques and Muslim buildings were once opulent Vedic temples, including the Taj Mahal, Delhi's Jama Masjid, Kutab Minar, as well as buildings in many other cities, such as Agra, Ahmedabad, Bijapur, etc. How there is presently a need to plan for the survival of Vedic culture. This book is sure to provide some amazing facts and evidence about the truth of world history and the ancient, global Vedic Culture. This book has enough startling information and historical evidence to cause a major shift in the way we view religious history and the basis of world traditions. 280 pages, 6" x 9" size.

The Heart of Hinduism This is a definitive and easy to understand guide to the essential as well as devotional heart of the Vedic/Hindu philosophy. You will see the depths of wisdom and spiritual insights that are contained within it. This presentation contains numerous references from a variety of the ancient Vedic texts to provide a direct view of the spiritual knowledge that they hold. Thus, it is especially good for anyone who lacks the time to research the many topics that are contained within the numerous Vedic manuscripts and to see the advantages of knowing them. This also provides you with a complete process for progressing on the spiritual path, making way for individual empowerment, freedom, and spiritual illumination. All the information is now at your fingertips. Some of the topics you will find include: A complete review of all the Vedic texts and the wide range of topics they contain. This also presents the traditional origins of the Vedic philosophy and how it was developed, and their philosophical conclusion.

The uniqueness and freedom of the Vedic system. A description of the main yoga processes and their effectiveness.

A review of the Vedic Gods, such as Krishna, Shiva, Durga, Ganesh, and others. You will learn the identity and purpose of each. You will have the essential teachings of Lord Krishna who has given some of the most direct and insightful of all spiritual messages known to humanity, and the key to direct spiritual perception. The real purpose of yoga and the religious systems. What is the most effective spiritual path for this modern age and what it can do for you, with practical instructions for deep realizations.

The universal path of devotion, the one world religion. How Vedic culture is the last bastion of deep spiritual truth.

Plus many more topics and information for your enlightenment. So to dive deep into what is Hinduism and the Vedic path to freedom and spiritual perception, this book will give you a jumpstart. Knowledge is the process of personal empowerment, and no knowledge will give you more power than deep spiritual understanding. And those realizations described in the Vedic culture are the oldest and some of the most profound that humanity has ever known.

The Power of the Dharma An Introduction to Hinduism and Vedic Culture

The Power of the Dharma offers you a concise and easy-to- understand overview of the essential principles and customs of Hinduism and the reasons for them. It provides many insights into the depth and value of the timeless wisdom of Vedic spirituality and why the Dharmic path has survived for so many hundreds of years. It reveals why the Dharma is presently enjoying a renaissance of an increasing number of interested people who are exploring its teachings and seeing what its many techniques of Self-discovery have to offer. Herein you will find: Quotes by noteworthy people on the unique qualities of Hinduism Essential principles of the Vedic spiritual path Particular traits and customs of Hindu worship and explanations of them Descriptions of the main Yoga systems The significance and legends of the colorful Hindu festivals Benefits of Ayurveda, Vastu, Vedic astrology and gemology, Important insights of Dharmic life and how to begin.

The Dharmic path can provide you the means for attaining your own spiritual realizations and experiences. In this way it is as relevant today as it was thousands of years ago. This is the power of the Dharma since its universal teachings have something to offer anyone. Published by iUniverse.com, 170 pages, $16.95, ISBN: 0-595- 39352-7.

Seeing Spiritual India A Guide to Temples, Holy Sites, Festivals and Traditions

This book is for anyone who wants to know of the many holy sites that you can visit while traveling within India, how to reach them, and what is the history and significance of these most spiritual of sacred sites, temples, and festivals. It also provides a deeper understanding of the mysteries and spiritual traditions of India. This book includes:

Descriptions of the temples and their architecture, and what you will see at each place. Explanations of holy places of Hindus, Buddhists, Sikhs, Jains, Parsis, and Muslims. The spiritual benefits a person acquires by visiting them. Convenient itineraries to take to see the most of each area of India, which is divided into East, Central, South, North, West, the Far Northeast, and Nepal. Packing list suggestions and how to prepare for your trip, and problems to avoid. How to get the best experience you can from your visit to India. How the spiritual side of India can positively change you forever.

This book goes beyond the usual descriptions of the typical tourist attractions and opens up the spiritual venue waiting to be revealed for a far deeper experience on every level. Published by iUniverse.com, 592 pages, $33.95, ISBN: 978-0-595- 50291-2.

Crimes Against India: And the Need to Protect its Ancient Vedic Traditions

1000 Years of Attacks Against Hinduism and What to Do about It

India has one of the oldest and most dynamic cultures of the world. Yet, many people do not know of the many attacks, wars, atrocities and sacrifices that Indian people have had to undergo to protect and preserve their country and spiritual tradition over the centuries. Many people also do not know of the many ways in which this profound heritage is being attacked and threatened today, and what we can do about it. Therefore, some of the topics included are:

How there is a war against Hinduism and its yoga culture. The weaknesses of India that allowed invaders to conquer her. Lessons from India’s real history that should not be forgotten. The atrocities committed by the Muslim invaders, and how they tried to destroy Vedic culture and its many temples, and slaughtered thousands of Indian Hindus. How the British viciously exploited India and its people for its resources. How the cruelest of all Christian Inquisitions in Goa tortured and killed thousands of Hindus. Action plans for preserving and strengthening Vedic India. How all Hindus must stand up and be strong for Sanatana-dharma, and promote the cooperation and unity for a Global Vedic Community. Few people seem to understand the many trials and difficulties that India has faced, or the present problems India is still forced to deal with in preserving the culture of the majority Hindus who live in the country. This is described in the real history of the country, which a decreasing number of people seem to recall. Therefore, this book is to honor the efforts that have been shown by those in the past who fought and worked to protect India and its culture, and to help preserve India as the homeland of a living and dynamic Vedic tradition of Sanatana-dharma (the eternal path of duty and wisdom). Available from iUniverse.com. 370 pages, $24.95, ISBN: 978-1- 4401-1158-7.

Yoga and Meditation Their Real Purpose and How to Get Started

Yoga is a nonsectarian spiritual science that has been practiced and developed over thousands of years. The benefits of yoga are numerous. On the mental level it strengthens concentration, determination, and builds a stronger character that can more easily sustain various tensions in our lives for peace of mind. The assortment of asanas or postures also provide stronger health and keeps various diseases in check. They improve physical strength, endurance and flexibility. These are some of the goals of yoga. Its ultimate purpose is to raise our consciousness to directly perceive the spiritual dimension. Then we can have our own spiritual experiences. The point is that the more spiritual we become, the more we can perceive that which is spiritual. As we develop and grow in this way through yoga, the questions about spiritual life are no longer a mystery to solve, but become a reality to experience. It becomes a practical part of our lives. This book will show you how to do that. Some of the topics include:

Benefits of yoga

The real purpose of yoga he types of yoga, such as Hatha yoga, Karma yoga, Raja and Astanga yogas, Kundalini yoga, Bhakti yoga, Mudra yoga, Mantra yoga, and others. The Chakras and Koshas Asanas and postures, and the Surya Namaskar Pranayama and breathing techniques for inner changes Deep meditation and how to proceed The methods for using mantras Attaining spiritual enlightenment, and much more $17.95, 240 pages, 32 illustration, ISBN: 1451553269

Avatars, Gods and Goddesses of Vedic Culture The Characteristics, Powers and Positions of the Hindu Divinities

Understanding the assorted Divinities or gods and goddesses of the Vedic or Hindu pantheon is not so difficult as some people may think when it is presented simply and effectively. And that is what you will find in this book. This will open you to many of the possibilities and potentials of the Vedic tradition, and show how it has been able to cater to and fulfill the spiritual needs and development of so many people since time immemorial. Here you will find there is something for everyone. This takes you into the heart of the deep, Vedic spiritual knowledge of how to perceive the Absolute Truth, the Supreme and the various powers and agents of the universal creation. This explains the characteristics and nature of the Vedic Divinities and their purposes, powers, and the ways they influence and affect the natural energies of the universe. It also shows how they can assist us and that blessings from them can help our own spiritual and material development and potentialities, depending on what we need. Some of the Vedic Divinities that will be explained include Lord Krishna, Vishnu, Their main avatars and expansions, along with Brahma, Shiva, Ganesh, Murugan, Surya, Hanuman, as well as the goddesses of Sri Radha, Durga, Sarasvati, Lakshmi, and others. This also presents explanations of their names, attributes, dress, weapons, instruments, the meaning of the Shiva lingam, and some of the legends and stories that are connected with them. This will certainly give you a new insight into the expansive nature of the Vedic tradition. $17.95 retail, 230 pages, 11 black & white photos, ISBN: 1453613765, EAN: 9781453613764.

www.Stephen-Knapp.com

Be sure to visit Stephen’s web site. It provides lots of information on many spiritual aspects of Vedic and spiritual philosophy, and Indian culture for both beginners and the scholarly. You will find all the descriptions and contents of Stephen’s books, how to order them, and keep up with any new books or articles that he has written. There is also a page with reviews and unsolicited letters from readers who have expressed their appreciation for his books, as well as his website. Find out what they have said. Free online booklets are also available for your use or distribution on meditation, why be a Hindu, etc. There is also a free online book of helpful prayers, mantras, gayatris and devotional songs for your use. There are numerous enlightening articles and excerpts from his books that can help answer many questions about life, the process of spiritual development, the basics of the Vedic path, or how to broaden our spiritual awareness. Many of these are emailed among friends or posted on other web sites. Articles include: Spiritual Enlightenment: A Cure for Social Ills, The Purpose of Life, Seeing the Divinity Within Everyone, World Peace is a Possibility, Dispelling the Fear of Death, Your Thoughts Create Your Future, Seeing Beyond the Illusion, Similarities Between Christianity and Hinduism, When Religions Create Divisions and How to Avoid Them, and many more about the truth of spiritual reality and Vedic culture. There is also “Seeing Spiritual India,” an introduction to traveling to the holy places of India with over 100 color photos taken by Stephen. There are also descriptions and 40 photos of the huge and amazing Kumbha Mela festival. There are also directories of many Krishna and Hindu temples around the world to help you locate one near you, where you can continue your experience along the Eastern path. There are postings of the recent archeological discoveries that confirm the Vedic version of history. There is a photographic exhibit of the Vedic influence in the Taj Mahal, questioning whether it was built by Shah Jahan. There is also a large list of links to additional websites to help you continue your exploration of Eastern philosophy, or provide more information and news about India, Hinduism, ancient Vedic culture, Vaishnavism, Hare Krishna sites, travel, visas, catalogs for books and paraphernalia, holy places, etc. There is also a large resource for vegetarian recipes, information on its benefits, how to get started, ethnic stores, or non-meat ingredients and supplies. You will also find a large “Krishna Darshan Art Gallery” of photos and prints of Krishna and Vedic divinities. You can also find a large collection of previously unpublished photos of His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami. This site is made as a practical resource for your use and is continually being updated and expanded with more articles, resources, and information. Be sure to check it out.