Talk:Karm Mīmāmsa or the Science of Karm:Inviolability of the Law of Karm
By Vishal Agarwal
Hindu Dharm is emphatic that except in a few cases (that will be discussed later), everyone must reap the fruit of their prior karm in entirety till Moksha is achieved. No one can cheat the Law of Karm for two reasons: First, the record of all that we do resides in our mind. And second, Bhagavān, who is fair and just, and who is all-knowing, is a witness to everything that we do.
Bhīshma said - Just as a calf can recognize its mother from a thousand cows, similarly an act that has been done in the past can reach its doer (from amongst millions of humans). Mahābhārata 12.322.16
A man can never forsake the action done by him far into the sky, or deep into the sea or high on the mountain; whether he is held by his mother on her head or kept in her lap. Garuda Purāņa 1.113.20
Bhagavān Shiva said to Parvati - There is not one person in the three worlds who does not experience the fruits of his actions. Mahābhārata 13 chapter 145 (Southern Recension)
Bheeshma said: Dharm has many gates. No action is without its fruit. Mahābhārata 12.174.2cd
Evil as well as virtuous deeds indeed all bear fruit. That fruit does not get destroyed away even in a hundred lives till it is experienced by the doer. Nārada Purāṇa 2.29.18
It is futile to hide one’s deeds thinking that ‘if no one watches me, there will be no consequences’ because the Divine powers surely witness what we do.
Only a fool tries to hide his evil karm intentionally from others. His evil karm might not be visible to others, but the Devas surely see it. Mahābhārata 12.193.27
The results of our Karm cannot leave us because they cling to us. The results do not get deposited somewhere else from where we retrieve them later, they are always close to us. Even death cannot rid us of our Karm. They travel with our ātmā into the next body and start acting soon after rebirth -
Whichever deed one has done, its respective fruit stalks the doer. If the doer runs fast, the fruit chases him with an equal speed. When the doer sleeps, the fruit also lays down with him. When he stands, the result stands next to him. When he walks, the result of his deed walks right behind him. Additionally, the fruit of past actions does not leave the doer even when he is performing newer deeds. They follow the doer everywhere like his shadow. Mahābhārata 12.181.8-9
The Jīvātmā or his deeds and that which has given in charity never perish. Upon death, only the physical body dies and the Jīvātmā abandons and moves into another body (along with its deeds etc.). Mahābhārata 12.187.1
One starts experiencing the fruit of deeds done in his prior body as soon as he is reborn as a fetus within his pregnant mother. Mahābhārata 12.181.14cd
Hindu scriptures declare that even at the destruction of the universe, it does not rid our ātmā of the non-ripened karm that it has performed in its various lives.
At the time of pralaya, the Devas who have not yet exhausted the fruit (= abode in heaven) of their good karms are then reborn in heaven during the next cycle of creation. Whereas those Devas who had exhausted the fruit of their karm before the pralaya are then reborn as humans when the next cycle of creation starts. Mahābhārata 12.272.52
In the next creation, Bhagavān connects each jīvātmā with the residual karm from the previous cycle of creation. The cycle of creation and destruction of the universe, and karm are both without a beginning. Brahmasūtra 2.1.35
A scholar explains the unfailing operation of the Law of Karm using the modern analogy of an ‘Investment Program’:[1]
“Another metaphor for this system of cause and effect and how it influences our every action is to see karm as a financial arrangement. From this perspective, the whole of nature is a great bank in which all wealth is deposited. Humans have free will, which is an endowment of capital they receive
by being eternal and conscious. Through the investing of their money (free will) in various actions and enterprises, they earn interest, receive payments, establish savings accounts, and open investments that eventually yield their R.O.I. (return on investment) at various future dates. This means, of course, that reincarnation is an ongoing process of paying debts and receiving the profits on our portfolios of investments. We wouldn’t want it to be any other way. If you work for two weeks, you expect to receive a paycheck. The problem is the same law that gives you your pay also holds you accountable for breaking any of the rules of the system. There is no way to have free will without having both positive and negative consequences from its use.”
Another modern example is that of the credit card:
“When we use a credit card to buy something, we’re essentially borrowing money from the company that issues the card. This is why the restaurant owner lets us leave his establishment after giving him only the promissory note of a credit card slip. This isn’t real money, just the promise of receiving payment. For the moment, we’ve enjoyed a pleasant meal at no expense. Wow! Credit cards are great! You can get something for nothing – at least until the statement arrives in the mail. “Gee,” you might think after scanning the lengthy list of charges. “I’d forgotten, but the credit card company makes it their business to remember, and they do a very good job at it. Just like the law of karm, which also never forgets a debit or credit to our karmic account. The consequences of each of our thoughts and actions are precisely recorded at the causal plane of reality. All the effects produced by the causes that leave our mental chute of intention are entered into our karmic ledger, and we are responsible for them…..”[2]