Karma is
not fate; it is the natural consequence of one's own action. If one sows
goodness, he reaps goodness. If one sows evil, he reaps evil. Humans are
bestowed with free will and can make their own destiny. Karma is the sum total of the consequences of our action in the
present and previous births which gives rise to experiences pleasurable and
painful.
"My daughter is good looking,
well educated, well mannered, well employed; still she is not getting a
suitable groom".
"Doctors say all our test
results are normal, but I am not able to conceive."
"I have spent my whole life in
the interest of my children, giving them the best of everything and sacrificing
my personal comforts, now I have become a liability to them"
"I take healthy food, exercise
regularly, never touched alcohol in my life, never smoked and now I have got
cancer."
"I have been very good and kind
to her. Now, my daughter in law has filed a section 498A (harassment for dowry) complaint against me."
"See, he has not even finished
his 10th and today is roaming around in a Mercedes."
These experiences
are not in line with the expected results of the deeds of this lifetime. Where
do these experiences come from ? They can be traced back to deeds in the past
lives.
Karma is
categorized as follows
Sanchita
karma is the sum of one's past karmas – all actions (good and bad) until
now including those from past lives, the results of which are not yet
experienced and may be experienced in the present and future lives.
Prarabdha Karma is that part of sanchita
karma which is ready to be experienced in the present birth.
Agami karma
is that part of the sanchita karma to
be experienced in future lives.
Kriyamana
karma is the karma being created by the action at present the fruits of which
will be experienced now and in the future.
Human
experience is a continuous dynamic interplay of the results arising out of his
own prarabdha karma and results arising
out of the present kriyamana karma
created using his own free will.
There
is no strict one-to-one relation between the deed and the result, If Mr.X has
broken somebody's leg in the past life, which does not mean somebody will break
his leg in the present birth. Yes, he will have to suffer the agony and pain in
some form.
The
result goes into the pool of collective experience. It is like making a dish.
All the ingredients contribute to its taste and texture and any ingredient
added subsequently will modify its taste. That means the karma of the present can modify this collective karmic experience. If salt is more in
the dish, add some curd to it. This is
the role of remedies.
In terms of
intensity karma is classified into
1. Dridha karma - most intense in nature.
Their effect can not be modified or avoided. The dish has got ten times the
required amount of salt. No matter what you do it won't help.
2.Dridha - adridha karma - they are of
moderate nature in intensity. Their effects can be modified depending on the
quality and quantity of effort employed.
3.Adridha karma - they are of mild nature
and can be modified with effort.
The role of
astrology
Planets are
agencies who have been delegated the task of dispensing the results of past karma both good and bad. A man is born
into this world when the planets are placed in such a way that by their
influence and interaction they can make him to reap the results of his past
karma.
As an example,
take the case of person who has committed sin such as harassing a child or
making false allegation about a girl's chastity. He as a result of his karma ends up being impotent in the next
birth (partial or total depending on the intensity of the karma). This effect is given by planetary combination such as Saturn
in the fifth house or Saturn aspecting the fifth house. That means this person
will take birth at a time and place when a malefic Saturn occupies or aspects
the fifth house.
The intricacies of
karma are too complex to be
completely comprehended. Astrology gives us some useful insight. In the first
place, astrology helps to determine in cases such as mentioned above whether
there is any karmic influence from
the past lives. It may or may not exist. If it is there in the horoscope, it
exists. If it is not there, it could be due to the present karma -omissions and commissions.
If a boy has been
bunking classes and watching movies and later on fails in the exam, it is
present karma. If he puts in his best
efforts, still fails, it could be past karma.
If it is due to
present karma adopt corrective
measures. If it is due to karmic
influences from previous lives, try remedies.
The horoscope
shows these karmic influences and
tendencies. They may be strong or light. A very strong influence (Dridha karma)
will make one to wrongly assume that it is fate or predestined.
Predictive
astrology is based on these karmic influences
which come from past lives. Take the case of an aircraft just about to land.
There are calculations involved. The pilot decides based on the altitude, wind
etc., the angle of descend and speed so that the touch down is on the runway.
Now, given the above parameters, we can say where the aircraft is going to
touch down. This is destination not destiny. Astrology says in addition to the
present action and reaction there could also be karmic influences - strong or weak - from the past lives the
momentum of which could also influence one's present path of life.
Now, the pilot at
the last moment can decide to abort landing. This is free will. How much of free
will is available to one depends not only on individual factors but also on
social factors. Free will of an individual born in India and Saudi Arabia
differ. The pilot's decision to abort landing or not depends on the fear of
consequences. He won't decide to abort just for the sake of it. There should be
valid reason, else he will be sacked.
Horoscope reveals
in short, left to itself (with no effort to change or influence it) how the prarabdha karma will influence the
present birth. If karmic influences that
reflect in the horoscope even strong ones do not come into effect, it could be
that they have been modified by present karma
or they are part of agami karma and
will give result in future.
How does prasna marga help ?
In addition to
the prarabdha karma, there exist
eleven types of doshas associated
with the present birth such as devakopa,
pitrushapa etc. again arising out or omissions and commissions. These can
be ascertained only with prasna marga. It is also helpful in arriving at
suitable remedies. When specific issues are taken up, prasna marga can give better clarity and is very helpful in
decision making such as "Can I buy this particualar house ?", "
Can I take up this particular job ?".