10 Sep 2024
[There is a gap between the two wise men i.e., Shri Datta Swami and Shri Dalai Lama. If Gita is right that there is no chance to offset the past negative action with future positive action, it takes longer time to go to permanent heaven. What is Gita's definition of heaven? It may be different from Nirvana in Buddhism. - Thank you
[Hi Shri Datta Swami,
H.H. the 14th Dalai Lama said "In order to reduce or eliminate the impact of your previous negative karma, you have to accept the impact without creating new negative karma or create more forceful positive karma."
But, You mentioned that Gita said, "The good fruit of good deed can never cancel the bad fruit of bad deed. No good deed can cancel the bad deed."]]
There is no difference between the sense of the statement of Dalai Lama and Myself and the concept revealed in the Gita. The statement of Dalai Lama applies to the change of psychological attitude (samskara). The action generates the attitude. More action means the attitude becoming stronger whether it is good (positive) or bad (negative). Attitude is the source of action and the action is the source of attitude. Actually, the attitude starts the action. When the action succeeds, you are more attracted to its fruit and this strengthens your attitude. Action by itself is inert and cannot generate attitude. During the performance of action also, the attitude is associated with action in the form of attachment to the action in view of the fruit. At the end of the action, such attitude links to the fruit also in the form of attachment to the fruit. Therefore, both performance of action and attainment of fruit are inert and have no link with attitude. But, during the performance of action, your attachment to the action is non-inert, which is the extension of your starting non-inert will to do the action. Though attainment of fruit is also non-inert, the will extended as attachment to action is further extended as the attachment to fruit. Therefore, the starting will (Samkalpa) is extended through out as a parallel line and is becoming responsible for the growth of the strength of your attitude (will) that generates the series of corresponding actions. Therefore, the Gita says that if the starting will is destroyed, the action and fruit cannot bind you. In this total concept of the Gita, the statements of Dalai Lama mean that the attitude of a particular category (good or bad) is strengthened by the attachment to the work and fruit of that category. All this belongs to the subject of transmission of soul through the attitude linked to action and fruit.
When I said that good cannot cancel bad, it becomes the subject of the law of punishments to avoid the misinterpretations. In this subject if you say that good can cancel bad, the misinterpretation is that the good worship of God can cancel the punishment of your sin as you can see the case of Ravana, who was punished in spite of his deep worship. Such misinterpretation must be avoided, which is the scope and context of My statement. The statement of Dalai Lama cannot be taken in the context of My statement. In the context of Dalai Lama, good cancels bad means the good attitude strengthened by good actions will certainly reduce the bad attitude and bad actions. This is strictly the subject of theoretical transformation of soul and My statement pertains to mischievous adjustment of law even before the transformation of soul.
Nirvana in Buddhism denotes the permanent spiritual benefit, where as the heaven in Hinduism means the temporary gift given for a good work. In Buddhism, Nirvana and Heaven are one and the same. In Hinduism, Nirvana indicates devotion to God and Heaven indicates the good social work.