Dharma Kshetra

From time immemorial people have witnessed fruits falling off the trees. But only Isaac Newton could think of 'why?' and discovered the theory of gravity. Many people also wonder why huge trees such as banyan trees yield small fruits while creepers such as pumpkin plants yield huge fruits. But people who sit under them can imagine what would be the result if a huge fruit falls on their head and they wonder at the reasoning in God's creation.

It can be said that a person who has never seen and heard of fire is ignorant. One who has never seen fire, but studied its properties has knowledge. One who knows how to produce fire and make use of it, has wisdom.

The word 'education' is derived from Latin word 'educo' which means 'to develop within' or 'draw out'. The real purpose of education is to let a person know his shortcomings, ways to improvise and bring the best out of himself. The lack of this knowledge is the cause many students struggle in life even after acquiring degrees and ranks. Students who have won gold medal in electrical engineering fail to help others even in fixing problems such as fuse outage. It is unfortunate that a person who has invested lot of time and money to obtain a Ph.D. ends up competing for the jobs that don't require any skill.

Unfortunately we still follow the British education system developed by Macauly aimed at producing clerks who memorize rules and work routinely without applying heart and mind. It is also aimed at promoting the superiority of British way of living and making Indians feel ashamed of their own heritage and culture. Our education system only aims at memorizing lessons from the examination point of view and then immediately forgetting them. Creativity for new inventions or analytical thinking for solving problems is not being encouraged.

If we want to be a successful businessman, we should know how to solve other's problems or provide valuable services or goods. Through wisdom one can understand how to apply knowledge in practical situations.

Neither as a law student in London nor as a briefless barrister in Bombay had Gandhiji acquired much knowledge of the intricacies of legal practice. Moreover, he was completely innocent of the mysteries of book-keeping and business accounts which are involved in a complicated lawsuit. So he set himself to acquire both. In the process he made two discoveries. One was that facts are three-fourths of the law; the other, that litigation was ruinous to both parties in a suit and therefore the duty of a lawyer was to bring them together in a settlement.

He wrote - My joy was boundless. I had learnt the true practice of law. I had learnt to find out the better side of human nature and to enter men's hearts. I realized that the true function of a lawyer was to unite parties riven asunder. The lesson was so indelibly burnt into me that a large part of my time during the twenty years of my practice as a lawyer was occupied in bringing about private compromises of hundreds of cases. I lost nothing thereby - not even money, certainly not my soul.

In addition to law books Gandhiji studied several spiritual books that helped him in his thought process. Prior to Gandhiji's arrival into Indian independence struggle, many people were fighting the British. But it was Gandhiji's wisdom that made him stand apart from the crowd. He knew the strengths and weaknesses of the British Empire and that of his own people. Prior to his emergence on political field, politics was confined to elite classes. Middle classes and masses were largely unreached. Gandhiji knew that he had to touch the hearts of people by living a simple life and making himself available to the masses. He dressed like them and talked like them.

Gandhiji was also able to apply his knowledge of scriptures and spiritual wisdom to freedom struggle. He knew the source of problem which is a violation of dharma and its consequent karma collectively felt upon by the Indians. If we understand two words - dharma, karma and their relationship we might understand most of the essence of Sanathana Dharma (Eternal Truth) preached by the sages from time immemorial. The crown of all commandments is 'Satyam vadha' (be truthful) and 'dharmam chara' (practice dharma).

Dharma cannot be translated into a single English word because there is no equivalent concept. Generally people refer dharma to right way of living (moral duties, obligations and code of conduct) but it has broader meaning.

Sanskrit adage says 'Dharayete iti dharma'. The word dharma is derived from the Sanskrit root dh?, which means 'to hold, maintain, support'. Dharma holds, maintains and supports the entire universe. At gross level, the virtue by which a thing is a thing, and without which it cannot be what it is, is called its dharma.

For instance sweetness is the dharma of honey. Giving light and heat is the dharma of fire and the Sun. Similarly, the dharma of man is his untainted humanity. When this humanity - expressed in terms of truthfulness, love and kindness is absent and there is a preponderance of selfishness, falsehood, hatred and deceit, then that man is said to be violating his dharma. That is adharma, sin.

At a subtle level, dharma is a universal law, to maintain the essential order of things, balance and harmony in the universe so that the affairs of life cannot be disturbed without causing chaos. Underlying this idea is the oneness of life; the discovery by sages that all things are interconnected because at its deepest level universe is indivisible. For instance the oxygen that is essential for our survival is produced by trees. We also know that countless people are involved in bringing food from the fields into our plates. This oneness in the universe bestows a basic balance on the whole of nature such that any disturbance in one place sends ripples everywhere, as a bubble touched lightly in one place, trembles all over until balance is restored or it is burst.

Once a little boy was flying a kite along with his father and wondered as to what keeps the kite up. The father answered “the string, of course”. The boy said “but dad, if the string is not pulling it down, the kite might fly higher and higher”.

The father asked the boy to watch what happens as he snapped the string. Guess what happened. The kite fell to the ground. It is true in life too. Dharma is the string that is holding this universe together. Adhering to dharma may often seem an obstacle in achieving our goals or cause of failures. But it is dharma that helps our progress and indeed the very basis of our existence.

There can be different dharmas such as son's dharma to support old parents, varna dharma (king's dharma to rule justly), asrama dharma (grihasdha has to support the world), vritti dharma (providing best service in given profession or duty) and so on.

During the Second World War Nazi soldiers killed 60,00,000 unarmed and innocent Jews, just because they belonged to a different religion, under the orders of Adolf Hitler and generals. During Nuremberg trials of captured Nazi soldiers, they defended their actions saying that it was their duty to follow the orders of superiors and hence the murders were not crimes. However the court held that following an unlawful order is not a valid defence against charges of . Dharma of a soldier is to protect citizens and fight for those who cannot fight for themselves.

In or moral choices we need to follow the " ", or the ''. It states that one has a right to just treatment, and therefore has a reciprocal responsibility to ensure the same treatment for others. We should treat others the same way we ourselves want to be treated.

Nothing happens in the world by chance or without a cause. The universe is based on laws of order, not of chaos. Everything is arranged upon definite principles, and never at random. People, forgetting this, expect results to drop into their hands out of thin air. Rain and snow do drop from the sky, but not without clouds, precipitation etc. Rain and snow are the mature effects of former causes (such as clouds, precipitation). Equally so are results. They too must have a previous history.

If a mother wants to make a sweet for children, it is the result of a sound recipe, properly applied. She cannot expect a good sweet without mixing the right ingredients and cooking it at the right temperature. It is not she who has created the sweet; it is nature. She brings related things together; sets causes at work; these causes bring about the desired result, a delicious sweet.

So it is in the making of a meaningful life. Certain principles or causes are followed; certain effects are the results. But the effect can never take place without the cause. That is the law of cause and effect, =the law of karma'. To expect effects without causes is to expect good sweets without right ingredients.

If we put our hands in fire, our hands will get burnt. But it will not be because of 'fate' and nor will it be a vengeful 'God' that burnt our hands. The burning of the hand is simply the inevitable and natural effect of the cause that we have set in motion. Similarly, we cannot sow tamarind seeds and expect the trees to yield apples. We reap what we sow.

'Karma' in Sanskrit literally means 'action' or 'deed'. It is the Law of Cause and Effect, Action and Reaction, Sequence and Consequence. We can also call is as the 'law of responsibility'. We are always setting causes in motion, every moment, through our every act, our every word, and even our every thought. For every cause set in motion, there is a corresponding and correlative effect which comes back. This is the way the universe maintains its harmony, balance, and equilibrium.

The purpose of 'law of cause and effect' or karma is to make the individual to live in accordance with dharma - not to pursue selfish interests at the expense of others, but to contribute and consider the welfare of the whole universe.

Karma and reincarnation (rebirth) are linked with each other. We can't have one without the other. It is obvious that one single lifetime may not be long enough to reap the full effects of every cause we have set in motion during that lifetime. It is also apparent that some of the aspects and circumstances of our current lifetime do not have their origins in the current lifetime but in the seemingly distant past. Physical birth itself is a Karmic effect, since one of the main reasons we are born is in order to deal with our past Karma.

Some people are born with beauty, wealth, health, intelligence and so on or in rich countries while other people are born with ugliness, poverty, ill health, ignorance and so on or in countries ravaged with famines and civil wars. We cannot say that the God, who has so much inequality in His creation, is a just God. So, it would be logical to assume that people are born again and again in suitable conditions and surroundings to work out their good and bad karmas.

In this sense life is like a school; one can learn and graduate or one can ignore karmic lessons and stay behind. However, as long as a debt of karma remains, a person has to keep coming back to reap them.

For every effect, there must be a cause and for every cause, there will be an effect. For instance if a person commits crime, that is the effect of his ignorance and in turn becomes cause of his punishment.

There are below three divisions of Karma:

• Sanchita Karma - It is the Karmic account or accumulation of all our karma from past lives that has not yet been dealt with.
• Prarabdha Karma -it is the specific portion of that Sanchita Karma which has now become ripe and we are destined to experience the results in the present lifetime. If successfully dealt with, that portion of Karma will then be exhausted and wiped out.
• Agami (also known as Kriyamana and Vartamana) Karma - it is the fresh Karma we are creating for ourselves right now, as we live this present lifetime. It becomes added to our Sanchita Karma and will bear results as our Prarabdha Karma in future lifetimes.

Looking from another angle, there are three possible explanations as to why things happen, the way they do, or the way they are.

• Everything is due to chance or accident and has no actual reason, purpose, or cause behind it whatsoever…or
• everything is due to the will and whim of some old man up there in the sky; the God we created in our image and likeness…or
• the universe and everything in it is governed by immutable laws; unfailing, unerring, impartial and impersonal.

We can explain the answer, as to why things happen the way they are, through the help of below Indian national flag.

If we focus on the bottom green part alone, it gives impression that everything happens at random or everything happens as per our own freewill and God has nothing to do. It may also make us believe that everything is predetermined by God and we need not put our own efforts. Such state can be attributable only to creatures that live as per natural instincts. It cannot be attributed to human beings that are endowed with reasoning power.

If we focus on the wheel of dharma above, we can understand that life is a combination of past, present and future karmas. Factors such as the family we are born into, our living conditions depend upon Sanchita Karma which is a result of past good actions. However we have the freewill to choose between present good or bad actions which determine our future Agami Karma. We cannot change the past karmas but can choose present karmas and build good future. Thus freewill enables us to shun bad karmas and do good karmas to avoid rebirth and achieve liberation. The wheel is a symbol for constant practice of dharma, and resulting karmas that determine death and rebirth.

If we focus on the saffron colour above, we can understand that Truth, Consciousness is the Supreme. We can reach and be one with this Power, but cannot rise either above or beyond it. It was emphasized earlier that a desire should be righteous and not detrimental to the welfare of others. That is because evil may temporarily win but ultimately dharma prevails. Indian national anthem hails and salutes this Truth, 'Bharata Bhagya Vidhata', the Dispenser of India's destiny.

As well as individual Karma, there is also family Karma, national Karma, and so on. We can reason that India's Sanchita karma through caste discrimination played a part in Gandhiji getting thrown out of train and his freewill and Agami Karma played part in how he reacted to that incident.

Even though the theory of karma could logically explain the ups and down of human life, it also caused great misunderstanding. Few people may argue that the downtrodden people should suffer the consequences of their bad karma and we should not interfere with it. But thinking so means the suppression of our finer qualities such as love, compassion and kindness. Instead of being indifferent to others sufferings, if we venture out to help the people in need, that gesture helps us to do good karmas and thereby reduce our past bad karmas.

Mahabharata teaches “Ahimsa Paramo Dharma, dharma himsa thadivacha'. The highest dharma is ahimsa, non-violence, universal love for all living creatures. Violence can only be justified in the defense of righteousness (establishing dharma). Every kind of unjust violence, in thought or word or action, is a violation of dharma, because as sages discovered in meditation, there is Oneness in universe. Untouchability is also a form of violence towards fellow human beings.

By middle ages of history, there was caste system based on birth and untouchability well established in India. Even though the Upanishads and other sacred texts teach that everyman is a personification of Brahman, in practicality there is a rigid social ladder of castes without any chance of upward growth. Acharyas, rulers, merchants and so on started occupying high positions just because of the caste they were born into, even though they lacked required merit. Slowly the country disintegrated spiritually, physically and economically. It could not fight the invaders and yielded to slavery and exploitation.

Gandhiji believed that there could be no meaning of independence without eradicating untouchability and accordingly he guided the people to live in accordance with dharma. He reasoned that we have no moral right to demand equal rights from the British when we ourselves are not extending the same to lesser fortunate people. He pleaded that people of oppressed communities should be allowed to enter into temples, schools, villages and be treated as equals. He pleaded that they should be given access to drinking water from village wells and also allowed to eat along with people of so called 'higher castes'. He declared that untouchability is a great sin that must be eradicated from the society. He worked hard to bring all people under one umbrella irrespective of caste, religion, language and so on.

Gandhiji also knew the causes behind the economic and political strengths of British Empire. He aimed his battles at weakening the empire through boycotting goods made in Britain, and through Indian's non-cooperation with British administration.

Knowledge will not be effective, unless it is organized and intelligently directed, through practical plans of action, to the definite end of a goal. Lack of this understanding has been the reason why millions of people earn degrees believing that "knowledge is power", but are clueless about how to succeed in life. The power is, not in mere 'accumulation' but in the

'application' of knowledge.

An educated man is not necessarily one who possesses vast knowledge. It is not essential that he has this knowledge in his own mind. An educated man is one who has the wisdom to know how to achieve his goals, if necessary with the cooperation of other people.

The previous paragraph should give hope and encouragement to the man with ambition to achieve something, who has not possessed himself of the necessary education to supply such knowledge as he may require. Men sometimes go through life suffering from inferiority complexes because they are not men of "education."

The man who can organize and direct a "Cosmic Mind" team of men who possess knowledge in achieving objectives, is just as much a man of education as any man in the group. Remember this, if you suffer from a feeling of inferiority, because your education has been limited.

First of all, decide the sort of knowledge you require, and the purpose for which it is needed. To a large extent your major purpose in life and the goal will determine what knowledge you need. With this question settled, your next move requires that you have accurate information concerning dependable sources of knowledge. The more important of these are:

• One's own experience and education
• Accumulated information (through books and internet, in which may be found the knowledge collected by the civilization through ages)
• Knowledge and experience available through cooperation of others (Cosmic Mind team). This topic will be explained in depth in a later chapter

As knowledge is acquired it must be organized and put into use, for a definite purpose, through practical plans. Knowledge has no value except that which can be gained from its application toward some worthy end. Knowledge does not apply itself. We as individuals must make the application, and the application consists in fertilizing the thought with a living purpose.

The time and thoughts which most people waste in aimless effort would accomplish wonders if properly directed with some special objective in view. In order to do this, it is necessary to focus your mind upon a specific thought and hold it there, to the exclusion of all other thoughts.

Successful men, in all callings, never stop acquiring knowledge related to their major purpose, business, or profession. Those who are not successful usually make the mistake of believing that the period of acquiring knowledge ends when one finishes school or education. The truth is that schooling can only put one in the way of learning how to acquire practical knowledge.

The person who stops studying merely because he has finished school is forever hopelessly doomed to mediocrity, no matter what may be his calling or field of action. The way of success is the way of continuous pursuit of knowledge and its proper application.

We shouldn't live in past, worrying about the things that happened already. We cannot undo them. We need to learn from past and be prepared to accept the consequences of our past actions.

We shouldn't live in future either worrying about what may happen in future. If good things are about to happen, they will come as pleasant surprises. If bad things should happen, we will suffer greatly in present, worrying about their future occurrence.

Our past karmas determine our present by way of Prarabdha. In the same way our present karmas determine our future. If we improve the present, we can have a better future. Thus we are makers of our own destiny.