Jump to content

How Does Karma Effect Pain In Our Lifetimes?


Recommended Posts

  • 1 month later...

How does karma effect the pain we will go through in our lifetimes? If one experiences a lot of physical pain and emotional pain in their lives does that mean that they have a lot of bad karma?

KARAM - PART 1

Here's a few sakhis that may help explain Dukh

and sukh

Two shopkeepers had their shops next to one

another. The Gurmukh (follower of the Guru's

(Gur) words (mukh)) used to go to sadh sangat

every day and have darshan of Guru Nanak Dev ji

do seva and come home. The manmukh (follower

of his mind's (man) mukh (words) ) used to go

to meet a prostitute. One day the GurMukh said

come with me to the sadh sangat, after some

persuasion the manmukh agreed, on the way the

manmukh remembered his prostitute and backed

out of going to the sadh sangat. He said I'm

going to go to my normal activities but I'll meet

you at the tree across the road tonight. The

manmukh went to see the prostitute but she

wasn't there so he arrived at the tree much

earlier than expected. While waiting for the

Gurmukh he started poking a twig into the

ground. He found a gold coin, he quickly dug

more and more but he only found a pile of ashes.

When the Gurmukh returned he was limping along

he'd stepped on a thorn. The manmukh said I do

my dirty deeds and get good luck you do good

deeds but get bad luck. The Gurmukh said lets

ask Guru jee to explain. Guru ji told the

manmukh, in your previous life you donated one

gold piece to a Sant, for doing such a virtuous

deed you were to recieve the rewards in this life

of many gold coins. But because of your sinful

deeds you burned your reward away and were left

with your original gold coin. The Gurmukh was

told, in your previous life you killed someone with

a wooden spear, in this life you were to be killed

in the same way, but because of your seva to the

Guru you bad deed has been reduced to being

pricked with a thorn.

MORAL: The Pains and pleasures one gets in this

life are heavily influenced by past actions, not

just in this life but in countless previous lives.

When people suffer at the hands of others its

because they made that person suffer in a

previous life. Most people will take revenge and

so the cycle of making each other suffer

continues life after life. A mythical story to

explain this is of a goat and a butcher. The

butcher would kill the goat in one life ,the goat'

soul would be reborn as a butcher and the

butcher's soul would be reborn as a goat. In the

next life the butcher would kill the goat and so

the cycle continued. Then in one life the butcher

received a customer who only wanted a goat's

leg. The butcher thought if I kill the goat and sell

the leg the rest of the goat will rot away. So what

he thought was I'll just chop the goat' leg off

and bandage the wound, that way the goat will

stay alive until the next customer. Just as he was

about to cut the leg, the goat spoke 'O Butcher,

what's this new bad action you're starting? Life

after life we keep swapping roles to cancel our

actions, but if you chop my leg now and make me

suffer in the next life I'll do the same to you and

you'll suffer too!'

If this sounds too unrealistic then heres a true

incident that happened to a very holy Sikh in the

1920's. He was Bhai Randhir Singh and he had

reached the highest spiritual state - he was one

with Waheguru ji. He was a freedom fighter and

locked up in jail. The guards used to abuse the

prisoners. but they left Bhai Randhir Singh ji

alone because they feared his spiritual powers.

One night he had a vision of his past life. He saw

he was a prince in a hermits' cave. The hermit

was in a trance and as frozen as a rock. The

prince didn't understand the trance and thought

he should wake him up and feed him, so he

ordered his servant to wake him up. The servant

shook him and called out to him but with out

success. Bhai Randhir Singh ji then ordered the

servant to force open the hermits mouth so they

could pour the food in, perhaps that would revive

him. The servant couldn't open the locked teeth

so he got a rock and smashed some of the teeth

- this woke the hermit up - he was as mad as

hell, he picked up his spear like weapon and

threw it at the servant, the servant got hit in the

leg and later had it amputated. Bhai Randhir

Singh ji had the vision and realised Guru ji was

warning him that he had to suffer in the same

way as he had made the hermit suffer. Next

morning a new prison warden came to Bhai

Randhir Singh ji's cell with his guards. Guess

what? The warden had only 1 leg! Bhai Randhir

Singh ji immediately recognised that this warden

was the hermit in his last life and because he had

thrown his spear and caused the loss of the

princes's servant leg he too had reaped his

reward and lost his leg in this life. Now what

remained was that the warden had to somehow

cause Bhai Randhir Singh ji's teeth to be broken

like the prince had done to the hermit. The

warden wanted to humiliate Bhai Randhir Singh ji

and ordered his servants to feed him beef soup

(he was a strict vegetarian). Bhai Sahib refused

to eat it, the guards grabbed him, so Bhai Sahib

went into a trance and all his body was frozen as

hard as a rock and his jaws were locked. The

Warden then ordered the servants to smash his

teeth and to pour the soup in, so they did. The

Warden had no idea that he was just clearing a

bad action from a previous life. Bhai Randhir

Singh ji was warned so that he wouldn't attack

the servants or warden. If he had caused them

sufferening then he would have to be reborn so

they could cause him suffering.

People ask why do religious people get suffering?

They haven't done anything wrong, they haven't

hurt an animal or even a fly so why do they get

dukh? They get dukh because they caused dukh in

previous lifes. All these bad actions have to be

cleared. When a holy persons actions and re-

actions are all cleared then and only then will

they not be reborn and find a place at SatGuru

ji's lotus feet in Sach Khand.

I was told that Baba Nand Singh ji, one of the

most spiritually high people other than the Guru's

died from a leg infection. He used to take pain of

other people on his own body so they would

survive and he would do simran and ardas to get

rid of the pain from his own body. He could have

easily cured himself of the infection , he could

even have taken medicine. But he recognised that

he was reaping the re-action of an action from a

previous life and it had to be cleared. When it

was cleared then he would not be reborn and find

his place at SatGuru ji's lotus feet in Sach

Khand.

Bhai Harbans Singh told this sakhi on one of his

kirtan tapes. A holy man was blind. When he got

to the spiritual state that he could see his

previous lives he tried to find out why he was

blind. He searched back through 50 lives and

there was no reason for his blindness. He went to

see a Sant. The sant told him to look back even

further, he looked back to 100 previous lives and

still no reason for his blindness. The sant told

him to look back one more life. He saw that 101

previous lives ago he was a child tormenting a

locust. He had a little twig with which he poked

out it's eyes. He was now blind because of that

action.

Guru ji's have told us clearly, time and time

again, that after death when we go infront of the

Diviine judge we will be judged by our actions.

Some people will be called close to God some will

be sent far away (Karmee apo apanee, Ke neray

ke door (Japji Sahib)). Every action has an equal

and opposite reaction. The reaction can only be

reduced and eventually erased by obeying Guru

ji's instructions like the shopkeeper. I.e do as

much Naam Jap (Waheguru repition) as possible,

its like an eraser grinding the spear into a tiny

thorn. Do it for yourself and do it for other

people.

All of the martyrs suffered terrible tortures -

chopped joint by joint, sawn in half, scalped alive,

boiled alive but they remained in chard-ee-a-kala

because they never lost their love for SatGuru ji's

lotus feet (i.e. carried on doing Waheguru

repition). When a Sikh gets Dukh it's acceptable

as good because it's wiping away bad actions. If

a Sikh loses love for Guru ji because of dukh then

the Sikh has lost every

thing.

KARAM - PART 2

Sant Ishar Singh ji said everyone plans for the

future. You study hard because you want a good

job when you get older. You put money away in a

pension scheme so you have a good retirement.

One step beyond that we need to plan for our

next life. What happens to us depends on our

actions now. Do good actions (karam) now and

reap the fruits in the next life. (apeh beej apeh

hee kao JapJi).

Their are many types of good deeds : give money

in charity, help people etc but Guru Nanak ji says

that these aren't even worth a sesame seed when

your accounts are read. (Tirath tap daya dat dan

je ko bhavai til ka man - JapJi).

The real karam is listening and obeying the

Gurus's teachings, loving SatGuru ji in your mind

and bathing in the temple of the heart (Sunnia

mannia man keeta bhao, antargat teerath mal

nao - Japji).

KARAM - PART 3

Baba Maan Singh ji said the steps to earning

good karam are :

SHARAM -> DHARAM -> KARAM.

First you need a sense of sharam (shame). If you

can't even tell what is wrong and what is right

then you have no chance. A sex/nude scene

comes on TV the youngsters sit and watch it,

they dont get embarrased even though their

parents are watching too. Worse still the parents

don't say anything either - no-one has a sense of

shame. If you have a sense of Sharam then you

need to follow Dharam (religion/righteous deeds)

by following the Guru's path you earn Karam

good actions like seva, simran, paat. These

karams wipe away your negative karams and will

cause you to go closer to God. Ultimately if you

do enough good karam your negative karam is

wiped out while you are alive and you merge with

God while still alive (Jeevan Mukat),

Our actions decide what happens to us (karmee

apo apanee ke neray ke door - JapJi) . Our

actions are our own - some will be called close to

God some will be pushed away.

KARAM - PART4

karam dharam paakhand jo deesai,

tin jam jagaatee looteh||

nirbaaN keertan gavau karteh kaa,

nimukh simrat jit schooteh||

All the hypocritical 'karam' religion I see,

are robbed by Death while they are awake!

Sing the immaculate praises (keertan) of the

Creator,

you are saved by even a moment's

remembrance.

Does this mean that we shouldn't get into the

plus/minus of paap/pun? or, that even if you

have a big negative,

CONTINUING FROM LAST POST

simran will erase all of that?

Veer jee, I think you're right, I never worry about

all the insects I've probably stepped on in the

day........I dont want to end up like a Jain monk

sweeping the floor infront of me and a mouth

mask to stop me breathing them in. Guru jee is

saying don't get caught up in karam...better to

be as pure as practical and do kirtan and naam

and always ardas for forgiveness. Even if we lived

the perfect life of generating no negative actions…

never stepped on insects, never hurt anyone etc,

we still wouldn't reach the Supreme Waheguru

Jee until we sung his praises and repeated his

naam. Any religion that focuses on good and bad

karam to the extent they have forgotten about

praising Waheguru, is hypocrisy says Guru jee.

Here are some of the things Guru Granth Sahib

Jee says about actions:

· You shall reap what you sow. This body is the

result of your actions. (Guru V, Jaitsri Raag)

· I have been separated from You due to my own

actions, why should I blame others?(Guru V,

Majh Raag)

· Why blame other people? I have to blame my

own actions; As I have acted so are the fruits.

(Guru I, Asa Raag)

· On the soil of your mind sow the seed of good

actions; Water this field with His Nam. (Guru I,

Sri Raag)

· Ignoramus, why do you blaspheme God, when

you will receive according to your actions?

(Trilochanji, Dhanasri Raag)

· All people are under One Sovereign who holds

them responsible for their actions. (Guru I,

Basant Raag)

· Our acts, right and wrong, at Your Court shall

come to judgement. Some will be seated near

Your seat, Some will forever be kept away. The

toils have ended for those that have worshipped

You. Nanak says, their faces are lit with joyful

radiance and they will set free many others. (Guru

I, Japji)

· If you sing God's glory, all your undertakings

will bear fruit.(Guru V, Kalyan Raag)

http://www.akj.org/skins/one/articles.php?id=59

Link to comment
Share on other sites

How does karma effect the pain we will go through in our lifetimes?

The bad karma effect, is In the same way as when one is happy or going through good times, so to say with the good karmas.

Or is that, karma is only for bad or negative phases? No.

Everything is karma, TheLion Jee.

This mayavee creation, is nothing but a field where we ourselves plant the karmas we want, nobody forces us.

It is we who plant mangoes, or it is we who plant chillies.

If we plant chillies, we can not expect to reap strawberries, isn´t it?

Why blame God for our own misdeeds.

For example, in our countries we have the judiciary system, which works according to the laws. Right from the police, who catches the infractors, including the public prosecutors, and lastly the judges. Everyone one is playing their part. So here, what role does the king play here, to be blamed for?

It is we who have wronged, the police(yam doots) catches us, and the judge(Dharam Rai or Kal Purukh), gives the veredict of our imprisonment; and they are all working under the Laws, in order to keep running the country(Creation) within order and righteousness.

But let us see, the Grace of Wahiguru in the execution of established His laws.

Here, if one has wronged too much, one is sentenced to death, and one ceases to exist. But in the case of Wahiguru, His law administrators, such as devis, devtas, gods(Ram, Krishna, as avatars of Vishnu, Shiva, Brahma, or even Kal Purukh), can never ever condemn any soul for a lifetime.

Because the soul after all is of the same essence as Wahiguru, a drop of Satnam Samundar, which ultimately has to merge in Him; can become dirty with its association with mind, vikaars and maya, but can not remain separated for vere from Wahiguru, though for it, the soul, the jeeva needs a course of purification, which is purification through karma firstly, and secondly to a deeper lever of purity, one needs to get washed with the Amrit of His Naam, that also, with the jugtee of His Simran, not any otherwise.

That is why in the Bani, Simran as means of devotion, is considered as the highest.

Prabh ka Simran, sabh teh oochaa.

If one experiences a lot of physical pain and emotional pain in their lives does that mean that they have a lot of bad karma?

Yes, naturally.

We can not see the karmas, but we can see its manifestations through its effects on the beings.

Without karmas, nobody can stay even for a second here. The creation is such a complicated web for us souls, thet we are are creatiing karmas, or going through them.

But Sangat jee, see the infinite Grace of Wahiguru also, that is why the Guru Sahiban told us : Saas saas simroh Gobind.

This jugtee if done conscioussly, is a two edge sword for our freedom from this creation.

Some may wonder how can that be possible?

Well, as said before, if Simran is done carefully, we get strength to cheerfully go through any karma; and at the same time, we avoid planting any seeds, which means, no seeds, no fruits.

This is the mahanta of Wahiguru and His Naam.

Sat Sree Akal.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Lets say for example some Kid picks on a kid, and mocks him. Well the same kid who bullied him, gets the same suffering, the kid punches the bully, and mocks him. Its how our suffering effects them, and they are giving the suffering back to you.

Firstly dear child why are you talking about bullying and fighting? No this is not a good example. If there is bullying and fighting in a school you should tell an adult or teacher. Is anybody being bullied at your school?
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Firstly dear child why are you talking about bullying and fighting? No this is not a good example. If there is bullying and fighting in a school you should tell an adult or teacher. Is anybody being bullied at your school?

Firstly dear child why are you talking about bullying and fighting? No this is not a good example. If there is bullying and fighting in a school you should tell an adult or teacher. Is anybody being bullied at your school?

I was making a example of Karma.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

Loading...
 Share

  • advertisement_alt
  • advertisement_alt
  • advertisement_alt


  • Topics

  • Posts

    • Instead of a 9 inch or larger kirpan, take a smaller kirpan and put it (without gatra) inside your smaller turban and tie the turban tightly. This keeps a kirpan on your person without interfering with the massage or alarming the masseuse. I'm not talking about a trinket but rather an actual small kirpan that fits in a sheath (you'll have to search to find one). As for ahem, "problems", you could get a male masseuse. I don't know where you are, but in most places there are professional masseuses who actually know what they are doing and can really relieve your muscle pains.
    • Good way of putting it, bro. One of the ongoing themes of Gurbani is the fake saint. Whether it's fake babas in Punjab or English-speaking personalities in the West, it's an continuing problem of religion through the centuries (and it's not exclusive to us by any means, this applies to all human societies).
    • First of all, while it's true that Gurbani says slandering a Saint has such-and-such effects, you can't do the reverse: You can't look and your situation and know for certain what caused it. We're not encouraged to mope over our situations but rather to accept the hukam (will). The last line of the very first pauri of Japji Sahib says to live in hukam: ਹੁਕਮਿ ਰਜਾਈ ਚਲਣਾ ਨਾਨਕ ਲਿਖਿਆ ਨਾਲਿ ॥੧॥ hukam rajāī chalanā nānak likhiā nāl .1. O Nanak! By obeying, the pre-ordained order of the Lord's will. Secondly, the astpadhi from which you quoted the Sant ka dokhi verses has this verse at the end: ਜਿਸ ਨੋ ਕ੍ਰਿਪਾ ਕਰੈ ਤਿਸੁ ਆਪਨ ਨਾਮੁ ਦੇਇ ॥ jis nō kripā karai tis āpan nām dēi . God gives His Name to those unto whom He shows His mercy. So ask for his mercy. Also check out the 7th Astpadi, which talks about the good effects of the sangat of a Sadhu: https://khojgurbani.com/shabad/271/709?highlighted_scripture_id=12007&highlighted_scripture_lang=gurmukhi&selected_content=gurbani I'm not getting into who is a "true" Sadhu in this post.
    • In langar it should be common sense for peopel to find a suitable space to sit. Normally in my local Singh Sabha gurdwara, there is enough space to sit, so I am able to find a space with enough space away from other people. There have been a few times, where there has been a lot of sangat and I have been forced onto a table.  In Slough and Southall Singh Sabha, Park Avenue, I will just sit near another group of men unless I am with family, but again there shouldn't be strict gender separation and instead common sense logic.
    • Yeh I could do to be honest. It's not really chardikala to be coming from the diwan hall and then sangat putting on shoes to go langar. I like sitting in the gurdwara with family, and there are spaces for this in bigger gurdwaras such as Slough, Southall, Coventry. In my current local area gurdwaras this is not really possible for weekly sangat, and also not for sangrand and gurpurb. Need to complain about these tendikalaUK practices  to be UK chardikala Singhs! 
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

Terms of Use