Dr Harish Chandra's article in Vedoday2050 - March 2011
Vedoday2050
There is a Reward for Every Karma, But Don't Eye on It
Last month we discussed that human beings have three options of karma any moment:
1. To perform according to Dharma (Dhrama is not religion, rather it's the universally accepted norms of human behaviour) - karttum,
2. To do opposite of our Dharma - anyatha karttum, and
3. To do nothing by ignoring the circumstance - na karttum.
We argued that any of the above three choices is a conscious karma by an individual and it will bring its reward at the right time - the intervening time duration between the concluding step of a karma and when the corresponding reward ensues, is called gestation period when a sanchit karma becomes a prarabdha that it begins to bring its reward.
The final quarter part of YajurVeda 40.2 displays an anti-climax that we are suddenly asked not to expect any reward - na karma lipyate nare. Indeed, we are referred to as nara - na (don't) + ra (stick to the world and its corresponding karmic fruits) even though living in the world. Our name of Nara is quite interesting.
We need to discuss the virtues of living such a life style wherein we live in the world, earn all kinds of virtues, knowledge and wealth, then give it away to others without expecting anything in return. Indeed, there are life forces that teach us the same thing because the world and its instinctive forces and the Vedas are from the same origin of God, and therefore, why should we be surprised if the instinctive forces and the Vedic teachings are convergent totally. We know that we begin to enjoy in giving the day we become a father or a mother. We don't expect anything in return. We simply give to our children and simply forget. God teaches us through this verse that we should expand our orbit from our own family and treat the entire world as our family. And, learn to give and forget.
Now the question arises: why not to keep an eye on the Law of Karma which is the cornerstone of the Vedic philosophy? The answer is quite simple and practical: we do keep an eye on the fruits every time in the day to day life. Everybody works for the whole month in order to receive a pay cheque at the end of the month. If there was no pay cheque then why would anybody work. Yet, the truth is that the Law of Karma is not as trivial as 'work and pay'. There are enormous complexities of the Law of Karma that only God can know. So, if we began to perform karma eyeing on certain expected rewards and if the rewards didn't come at the time we had expected them to arrive then our belief in God's principle of justice will begin to shake. So, the wise advice for us is to do our karma and let Him do His karma and it's His karma to give us the right reward at the right time which we mortals can never quite understand what will accrue and when.
This being the case, a number of readers will feel as if the punch of the Law of Karma has been taken away once we are asked to forget about the corresponding rewards. Again, one example will prove that it makes greater sense to perform without eyeing on the rewards. Suppose one student studies with an eye on doing well in examinations. And, another student studies well simply to gain knowledge. We can see that the later one's approach is better because he will do well in examinations as well because he has a good understanding of the subject.
In brief, the Vedic teaching is sensible that we should perform loftier karma without an eye on its reward. Such functioning is also called as Nishkama karma and Yajna, too.
- Harish Chandra
B. Tech. (IIT Kanpur)
Ph. D. (Princeton, USA)