Talk:Karma-Phala or Bhoga: The fruit of our Purushakāra:Mental Effects: Svabhāva

By Vishal Agarwal

“A closed book containing, say a thousand pages, appears at a first glance as a solid object, but when it is opened, two pages of printed matter become visible. Here the opening of the book is the specific external cause. Similarly innumerable Vāsanās lie stored up in our mind, as it were, in a lump, yet each remaining distinct and separate, any one of which may be revived by a suitable Karmāṣhaya.”

As explained above in sections 11.1.3 and 11.5, the Vāsanā Saṃskāra-s from past Karma-s influence our present nature, abilities, preferences, tendencies and choices etc. A modern writer notes the following, that can illustrate the power of Vāsanā-s very succinctly-

Sow a thought, and you reap an act; Sow an act; and you reap a habit; Sow a habit, and you reap a character; Sow a character, and you reap a destiny. Samuel Smiles (1812-1904 CE)

A Hindu way of stating the same is-

“Thought molds your character. If you entertain noble thoughts, you will develop a noble character; and if you entertain evil thoughts, you will develop a basecharacter…Thought materializes and becomes anaction. If you allow the mind to dwell on good, elevating thoughts, you will do naturally good and laudable actions…. Conduct or behavior reveals your character. Conduct also molds your character. Cultivation of good conduct needs rigorous discipline and constant vigilance. You will have to watch every thought, word and action….Good behavior indicates that you have a refined or polished, disciplined mind and real, good spiritual culture. The practice of Japa, Pranayama and Mauna (or vow of silence) will help you control the impulses.”

How our Karma-s create character, due to the agglutinative character of these Vāsanā Saṃskāra-s is further explained by Swami Vivekananda-

“Just as a large number of small waves create a big wave, the effects of Karma accumulate to form tendencies, an aggregation of which in a personality we call character. Man is like a center attracting all the powers of the universe towards himself, fusing them all together and sending out his inner reaction to them as a current – the manifestation of his will, which in common parlance we call his personality or character.”

Some citations in this regard from ancient Hindu scriptures are given below-

Indeed, one becomes good by good karma, and bad by bad karma. Yajurveda, Brihadāraṇyaka Upanishad 3.2.13

According as one acts, according as one behaves, so does he become. The doer of good becomes good, the doer of evil becomes evil. One becomes virtuous by virtuous action, bad by bad action. Yajurveda, Brihadāraṇyaka Upanishad 4.4.5

Bad Karmas are the cause of bondage. When the effects of these bad Karmas are experienced, and is exhausted as a result, and thereafter when the mind and body are purified with good Karmas, then that person becomes inclined towards practicing austerities and Yoga. Mahābhārata 3.209.39

Acts of Yajnas, Austerity and Charity must not be forsaken and they must be performed. Yajnas, Austerity and Charity are indeed the purifiers of the wise. Gita 18.5

A very special case of svabhāva coming into action in the next life is that of the ‘Yogabhrashta’ as described in the following verses of the Bhagavad Gita:

Arjuna said:

Krishna, he who cannot control himself even though he has faith, whose mind has wandered away from Yoga, failing to attain perfection in yoga, which way does he go? Gita 3.37

Might armed, is he not lost like a rent cloud, having fallen from both worlds, without any firm support, confused on the path that leads to Brahman? Gita 3.38

Krishna, you should quell this doubt of mine completely, because there is none other than you who can destroy this doubt. Gita 6.39

Krishna said:

Pārtha, my dear friend, neither in this life nor hereafter is there destruction for him. No one who does good beget misfortune. Gita 6.40

Attaining the worlds of the meritorious, having dwelt there for very many years, he who has fallen from yoga is then reborn in the house of such as are pure and prosperous. Gita 6.41

Or that person may be reborn in the family of wise yogis. Such a birth is indeed very difficult to attain in this world. Gita 6.42

Joy of the Kurus, there he regains the intellect that he had developed in his former body. And then with this as the starting point, he strives onward once again toward perfection. Gita 6.43

Due to his prior practice, he is carried on irresistibly. Indeed, he who wishes to know of yoga then transcends the sound-Brahman. Gita 6.44

Through persevering efforts and a controlled mind, the yogin, completely cleansed of all evil, and perfecting himself through many lives, then reaches the supreme goal. Gita 6.45

The Hindu tradition also offers beautiful narratives to explain the importance of prior Vāsanā-s. The two parables below were both narrated by Swami Ramakrishna Paramahaṃsa. Story: The Hindu who could not become a Muslim:

“Once there lived a very pious Hindu who always worshipped the Divine Mother and chanted Her name. When the Mussalmans conquered the country, the forced him to embrace Islam. They said to him: “You are now a Mussalman. Say ‘Allah’. From now on you must repeat only the name of ‘Allah.’” With great difficulty he repeated the word ‘Allah’, but every now and then blurted out ‘Jagadamba.’ At that the Mussalmans were about to beat him. Thereupon he said to them; ‘I beseech you! Please do not kill me. I have been trying my utmost to repeat the name of Allah, but our Jagadamba has filled me up to the throat. She pushes out your Allah”. It is not an easy thing to destroy old tendencies.”

Story: The Fisherwoman who couldn’t sleep without Fish

“Once, a fishwife was a guest in the house of a gardener who raised flowers. She came there with her empty basket, after selling fish in the market, and was asked to sleep in a room where flowers were kept. But, because of the fragrance of the flowers, she couldn’t get to sleep for a long time! She was restless and began to fidget about. Her hostess saw her condition and said, “Hello! Why are you tossing from side to side so restlessly?” The fishwife said: “I don’t know friend. Perhaps the smell of the flowers has been disturbing my sleep. Can you give me my basket? Perhaps, that will put me to sleep.” The basket was brought to her. She sprinkled water on it and set it near her nose. Then she fell sound asleep and snored all night.””