KARMA AND DESTINY - Sri Ramana Maharishi - Preamble

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The Teachings of Sri Ramana Maharshi

 

Karma and Destiny

 

Sri Ramana Maharshi

Edited by David Godman

Preamble

By David Godman

 

The theory of Karma is common to many oriental religions. In its most

popular form it states that there is a universal accounting system in

which each individual must experience the consequences of all his

actions (Karmas); good actions bring good results and bad actions

inevitably result in suffering to the one who does them. The theory

also states that the consequences of actions (also known as Karmas)

need not necessarily be experienced in the present life, they can be

carried over into future lives. Because of this, several sub-

divisions of Karma have been postulated. The following

classification, which was used by Sri Ramana Maharshi, is common to

many Hindu schools of thought.

 

1. Sanchita Karma. The store of Karmic debts accumulated from

previous births.

2. Prarabdha Karma. That part of one's Sanchita Karma which must be

worked out in the present life. Because the law of Karma implies

determinism in human activities, Prarabdha is often translated as

destiny.

3. Agami Karma. New Karma accumulated in the present lifetime which

is carried forward into future lives.

 

Sri Ramana Maharshi accepted the validity of the laws of Karma but

said that they were only applicable as long as a person imagined that

he was separate from the Self. At this level (the level of the ajnani

or the ignorant), he said that individuals would pass through a

series of pre-ordained activities and experiences, all of which are

the consequences of previous acts and thoughts. He occasionally even

said that every act and experience in a person's life is determined

at birth and that the only freedom one has is to realise that there

is no one acting and no one experiencing. However, once one realises

the Self there is no one left to experience the consequences of

actions and so the whole structure of Karmic laws then becomes

redundant.

 

Sri Ramana regarded the law of Karma as a manifestation of God's

will. He said that prior to Self-realisation there is a personal God,

Iswara, who controls each person's destiny. It is Iswara who has

ordained that everyone must suffer the consequences of his actions

and it is Iswara who selects the sequences of activities that each

person must undergo in each lifetime. One cannot escape from Iswara's

jurisdiction while one still identifies with the activities of the

body. The only way to become free of his authority is to transcend

Karma completely by realising the Self.