“Shatashloki” of Shri Shankaracharya – V (Shloka – 6)
We create our own destiny

Shloka – 6

Translation (Shloka – 6):

A silkworm, thinking that it is very wise, creates a cocoon around itself and lives in it until its death and tries to fulfill its desires. Similarly, each individual creates one’s physical body and mind based on the actions performed in his/her previous life and lives on earth to fulfill his/her desires.

(The silkworms and their cocoons. The image is from dreamtime.com)

Comments:

We are born and we spend our lives making plans for what we want to do and performing various activities. In the midst of all this planning and activity, a few people take a pause and ask questions like: (1) Who decided that I should be a man or a woman? (2) Who decided how my face and body should look like? (3) Who selected my parents? (4) Who selected my family environment?

What are the answers? We can think of the following four answers:

(1) These are silly or useless questions for we can never find their answers.

(2) It is all a result of probability and chances.  If the chromosomes X and Y combine, then a boy is born and if chromosomes X and X combine, then a girl is born.

(3) Parents’ genes decided.

(4) Nature decides everything.

(5) God is the creator and God decides everything that happens.

The answer #1 seems mostly agnostic, partly pessimistic, and shows a lack of enthusiasm to seek answers.

The answer #2 is a sophisticated way to get out from finding an answer. Since everything in nature is working precisely, how can we think that things happen randomly? We can admit that we do not understand many phenomenon of nature. But, in the past, we did not know many things like how rain comes, how lightening happens, how eclipses happen, etc.  Humans had assumed these to be an act of some mysterious power. But, now science has explained many such natural phenomena. With regards to answer #2, we can further inquire, ‘who makes the chromosomes?’ and ‘who combines them?’.

Answer #3 is partially true as long as our physical structure is concerned. Our nose, and eyes, and chin etc. may look like someone in our family. But, parents did not decide their children’s gender. A family can have all boys, or all girls, or boys and girls both. Further, if we go to the inner nature of mind, then we find that siblings have different personalities even among twins or triplets. Parents themselves are surprised when their children reveal various mental tendencies. Thus, parents do not decide things about their children’s mental make-up. They can provide some external environment for their children to help them grow in a certain way, but it is not in their hands to decide how the children will grow.

Answers #4 and #5 are almost the same, only the names are different. People who do not like to say the word ‘God’ may choose the word ‘Nature’. However, it seems that God has ears to hear, but the Nature does not have ears. Nature is like a big giant elephant walking on the road and the beings are like ants and insects who helplessly get crushed under its feet. Even if the smaller beings say something, it is of no avail. On the other hand, we feel that God is some Being who can listen to us. Let us then for the time being consider answer #5.

Most of us feel that God listens to our complaints more than our prayers. Therefore, people complain to God more often than they pray to God. People complain, ‘O God! Why did you make me a woman or a man?’, or ‘Why didn’t you created me as a handsome man or a beautiful woman?’,  or ‘Why did you give me a birth in a poor family?’ or ‘Why do I have to struggle so much for my achievements while some others get them easily?’ etc.

We can bring more pressure on God for His/Her favoritism when we find that (1) One child is born in an affluent and totally secure environment while another child is born in a poor family in a neighborhood where gun-shots often go on like fire-works and where one considers oneself lucky if one survives for one more day. (2) One child has a healthy body while another one has many physical problems from childhood. (3) One person has an abundance of wealth and can do whatever one wants while another has to worry everyday how to bring some food on the table. (4) One child is excellent in studies, art, music, sports etc. from the childhood while another one is struggling to learn basic things in the schools. (5) One child has many virtues and follows a disciplined life while another one has destructive tendencies and does not feel bad doing unethical things.

We ask, if God has created all, then why are there differences? Why is God partial to a few and cruel to others? Do we have answers of these questions? Because of these differences, many people do not like to think of God. They do not see any purpose in praying to God.

In the ancient time Rishis thought about this and they found a logical answer to these questions. They found that in this universe there is a chain of cause and effect. Every action has a result and the result becomes the cause of another action, which in turn call an effect. If I drop a glass-cup on a hard floor, it breaks. If I walk on these pieces of glass, then I will cut my feet and bleed. If I do not take care of the bleeding, I will suffer severe physical problems. Originally, I might have dropped the glass-cup for some reason. Similarly, there is a long chain of cause-effect for everything that happens in the universe. The problem is that most of the time we see the effects and not the causes. Thus, our current situations are the effects of our past actions. We do not have to blame God for our situations. This is the Theory of Karma.

I have to make one point very clear here. If someone is suffering, we cannot come out and say that ‘you are suffering because of your past karmas’. That is very cruel. It is a sign of an ignorance and lack of sensitivity on our part. At that time, we have to try to help the person who is suffering. If we cannot help, then at least we wish and pray that the person’s sufferings be removed or the person gains strength to go through the sufferings. The Theory of Karma should be applied to ourselves. We have to take full responsibility of our current situation. If we want to change our current situation in the future, then we should properly start working on it now.

Based on the Rishis’ realization, Vedanta teaches the theory of rebirth based on the Theory of Karma. The Bhagavad Gita (8.6) tells that, “According to the person’s strongest desire at the time of death, the person is reborn to fulfill that desire.” Suppose a young man or woman believes that sleeping for most of the time (say 12 or more hours a day) is the best state to acquire happiness in life. These days, it is hard for a human being to sleep for 12 hours or more per day. One’s studies, job, daily choirs, and family and/or society will force the person to wake up. For the person desiring 12 hours of sleep, this causes unhappiness. To such a person, the compassionate Mother Nature gives him or her body of a crocodile in their next life. When this person’s sleeping desire is fulfilled and he or she thinks that ‘I had enough with sleep, now I want to run around like a rabbit,’ then the gracious Mother Nature will make the person a rabbit. Thus, it goes on. Thus, we are responsible for our current situations in our life. We are the result of our past desires. Mother Nature or God had given this life to fulfill a few of those desires.

On the other hand, if a person wants to attain the highest knowledge of the Ultimate Reality, and has engaged in lots of spiritual practices for this purpose, but dies without attaining it, then the Bhagavad Gita (6.40-6.43) says, “The life of such a person does not become ruined. No bad things happen to a person who has engaged in spiritual practice. After enjoying the results of his/her good actions (spiritual practices), the person takes birth in a pure and prosperous family. Or he/she will be born in a family of yogis rich in wisdom. Such a birth is difficult to gain in this world. There, he/she remembers all his/her past spiritual practices and continues to strive further to attain the highest knowledge.”

As a being goes in a cycle of birth and death, the whole universe moves in a cycle of creation-preservation-dissolution. In Bhagavad Gita (9.7-9.8), Shri Krishna says that He, as Brahman, the Ultimate Existence, by His Power creates the universe in the beginning of a cycle, (nourishes the universe), and at the end of the cycle dissolves it into Brahman. Thus, all the beings are born again and again.

The Theory of Karma, the Theory of Rebirth, and the Cyclical Theory of the Existence of the Universe seem logical and answer most of the questions we have raised earlier. They are also consistent with a principal central to Vedanta philosophy, that there is only one existence. Vedanta calls it ‘Brahman’. One can also call it ‘Pure Consciousness’. According to Vedanta, the Universe is nothing but only one existence Brahman (Pure Consciousness) appearing as various objects and beings of the universe. Brahman is eternal.

According to Vedanta philosophy, a human being is a part of the universe, and therefore he/she is nothing but the Pure Consciousness or Brahman. And like Brahman, he/she too is eternal. However, when he/she thinks that ‘I am an individual that has a separate existence from Brahman having a certain body and mind’, then he/she goes through the cycle of birth and death. Vedanta philosophy says that this thought leads to all the following problems:

(1) An individual thinks that he/she is not happy and will be happy only if his/her desires are fulfilled.

(2) A person creates a small world around him/her and thinks that he/she is responsible for that small little world. However, when some undesirable thing happens against all his/her efforts or a near and dear one dies, then the person feels helpless and becomes frustrated.

(3) An individual thinks that he/she is limited and the whole universe is against him/her.

(4) A person is constantly threatened by the fear of death, his/her non-existence.

Shri Shankaracharya says in Shaktashloki Shloka 6 that this thought (which he calls a basic ignorance) is like the cocoon of the silkworm that has been created around oneself. An individual can break this cocoon with the firm conviction that ‘I am nothing but Brahman, the Pure Consciousness. My body-mind existence has been created by me, separating myself from the eternal Brahman.’  But, it is sad that due to our ignorance we passionately love our body and mind and the world we have created around them. As a consequence, we suffer and go through the cycle of birth and death.

Vedanta emphasizes that the realization, ‘I am not different from Brahman’ removes all our sufferings, bondages, and fear. We feel connected with everything in the universe, especially with all beings. From this connectedness springs love for all in our heart. Such love gives us fulfillment. Vedanta describes various paths to break this cocoon and be free, in particular the Four Yogas described in the Bhagavad Gita.

Many other great teachers and saints have described various ways to break this cocoon and be free from our sufferings, bondages, and fear.

(Thanks to Nisha Parikh for editing this post.)