23 Jul 2012
[A devotee asked: “Can You please explain how the actions of a soul in the life are recorded and how their corresponding fruits are delivered here and hereafter?” Given below is Shri Swami’s reply.]
The system of recording the actions and corresponding fruits is very simple. The individual soul (jeeva) made of awareness is a bundle of thoughts or qualities. The awareness without any thought is inert energy (atman) only. A specific work form of atman in a specific system, called brain and nerves, is called as jeeva. In deep sleep, the awareness disappears and only its basic inert energy remains. Atman exists as jeeva in the states of awakening and dream. Atman remains as atman in the state of deep sleep. People think that in meditation, all the thoughts disappear and hence, only atman remains. This is not correct because there is slight difference between deep sleep and meditation. In meditation, jeeva remains, who is aware of himself. An impression of jeeva as pure thoughtless awareness is created as a pulse (sphota) or signal in the brain. This jeeva is aware of that signal only. The awareness of all other signals vanishes. Every thought is a pulse stored in the brain. In deep sleep, the awareness disappears. But, after waking up, all the thoughts are remembered again. This is because every thought is recorded as a signal in the particular part of faculty of the brain, called chittam. The connection of awareness to these recorded signals is called as smruti or memory. The record of all the signals in brain and nerves is physically available in the human body during the human life. Hence, during the life time, the jeeva is a bundle of several thoughts. But, during the time of death, all the effects of these pulses are simplified in to three groups, which are the principle qualities, called sattvam, represented by white color, rajas, represented by red color and tamas, represented by black color. When jeeva leaves the body, he is a simple bundle of these three main qualities represented by the three colors. Depending upon the strengthening of each quality by the corresponding actions, the intensities of these three colors vary.
Rewards in heaven or here are given by God based on the intensity of white color. Punishments in hell or here are given by God based on the intensities of red and black colors. The details of each action need not follow the jeeva after death. All the details are buried here only with the brain and nerves along with dead body. The essence of every action comes into one of these three colors helping the intensity of the corresponding color. This is the reason for the jeeva to forget all the details of the life after death in the next birth. Sattvam stands for good, rajas and tamas stand for bad. The rajas is provoked by krodha (anger), lobha (greed), mada (pride) and maatsarya (jealousy). Similarly, tamas is provoked by kama (lust) and moha (intensive attachment). The white color contains other colors in it. These six qualities in right modes become good and in wrong modes become bad. The lust is good existing on wife and the same lust becomes bad when it exists on other women, the anger is good diverted to evil people and is bad diverted to good people. The greed (not to be charitable) involved in not helping undeserving people is good and the same involved in not helping deserving people is bad. The intensive attachment to God and devotees is good and to ungrateful people is bad. The pride involved in God (that you are a devotee of God and need not fear at all) is good and the same involved in worldly matters is bad. The jealousy involved in the progress of high devotees with competitive spirit (so that you can intensify your spiritual effort more) is good and the same involved in harming others due to their progress is bad. Like this, the detection of good and bad of a soul and granting corresponding fruits is based on simple system of identification of the intensities of these three colors only.
In the upper worlds (heaven and hell), these intensities of colors get reduced due to the enjoyment of corresponding fruits. The jeeva comes down with least intensities of these colors and hence, is mild in the childhood. However, you can see these colors from the trends of their behavior. The jeeva coming down with these colors in least intensities is granted a particular birth with a specific corresponding atmosphere, which depends on the overall study of these least intensities of these three colors. Such fruit, which is the new birth attained by the jeeva in this world, is called as Prarabdham. These births due to Prarabdham vary because though the intensities of these colors are least, yet, there is variation even in the least intensities from one individual to the other. To be clearer, when the intensities of these colors are reduced to the least level, there is still difference in the intensities even in the least level. The higher intensities may be in the level of 90 to 100. The least intensities may be in the level of 1 to 10. Hence, the variation in the composition of these three colors is there and hence, according to this variation, the births related to Prarabdham also vary. The individual is born here in a specific birth along with a box of these three colors in the least intensities. This box is called as Sanchitam. This Sanchitam will influence the future actions of individuals in the life according to the variation in the intensities of these three colors. The future actions done by the influence of this Sanchitam are called as Aagami. Thus, the whole system of deeds is classified into three steps called as Sanchitam, Prarabdham and Aagami. The atmosphere of the future life supplies more strength to the intensities of these colors based on the merits and defects of the actions guided by the already existing box. Therefore, the actions in the present life are guided by the intensities of the three colors existing in the box and these actions in turn intensify those colors again in a circular fashion. This circular motion of the three colors is called as karma chakra consisting of the three principle qualities (trigunas) represented by the three colors. The concept of this karma chakra involves a complicated analysis as said in the Gita (Gahanaa karmano gatih…).
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