There are some things in life which are unpleasant and we avoid
thinking of them. For example death is unpleasant so we never think of
it, till the time someone close to us dies. For a while we are under a
state of shock, but then time heals this wound also.
First of all, is Reincarnation true?
I can say, "Yes!" with absolute certainty.
This is because my Father, HH Shri Bhola Nathji ( 1902-1992) who was a
Great Spiritual Luminary of his time, had said "Yes! It is a fact!".
And this was enough for me. I dont need another proof. If you get the
advice of a top medical expert in medicine for any ailment, his advice
is enough for you. So here I had Someone, who was the highest authority
on spiritual truths for me, saying that reincarnation
was a reality. And that was enough to convince me.
He had said this in answer to a question that a young man in his 20's
had put to him. I listened to the sermon and it was enough proof for me.
I myself had never seriously thought about the subject.
So
starting with the proposition that reincarnation -- meaning repeated
births and repeated deaths, - is true, I wish to highlight the following
points:
1. It is said in the Hindu Scriptures as well as the
Sikh Scriptures that a soul must journey through 84,00,000 or 8,400,000
different bodies before it can attain Enlightenment. This would mean 8
million and 4 hundred thousand births and deaths, each birth and death
being associated with a body.
2. Imagine the simple fatigue of
one birth. You grow up as a child, become a young man, and then an old
man, fall ill and die, unless you die earlier in an accident or from an
illness.
3. You can count the number of times you have been
happy and the many times you have had to face sorrow in the world. And
this is all in one birth. Imagine then having to be born again and again
in different bodies, having different parents, different life partners,
different children, different friends, different countries, the list is
endless.
4. You might even be born on different planets where life exists.
5. Reincarnation tells you that "what you sow you must reap", it is a
law of Cause and Effect also known as the Law of Karma. And when you die
you carry with you the fruits of all the Karmas, actions, good or bad,
that you did in your body.
6. God is like the King of the
Universe. Does a King have time to follow the karmas, the actions, of
each and every person, out of the billions of inhabitants in the
Universe? He is running the Universe, the planets, stars, galaxies and
all the scientific laws associated with them. So He created the Law of
Karma which marks every person from the day he is born, and the Law
takes its own course.
7. He wrote down on the slate of human
conscience, His Laws, which everyone in the world knows from time
immemorial-- which are simply that you must treat others like you would
want them to treat you. That you must help and love others. That you
must make this world a better place to live in. That hatred, wars,
jealousies, greed etc., are evil and must be avoided.
8.In an
unconscious way every person in the world knows that if he performs an
evil act, the result is bound to be bad, either in this world or the
next. He calls it the Law of "Nemesis".
9. Those who live in
wealth and luxury must thank God for giving them this prosperity. But at
the same time they must remember that they have been given so much so
that they can help others, be of use to humanity, give greater love to
those in misery.
10. If they forget this kindness of God, and use
their wealth simply to enjoy themselves, then the Law of Karma begins
to act. When these people are born again, they find themselves as poor
persons starving for basic amenities.
11. Those who commit evil
actions and hurt and torment others, find that they are born in their
next birth as animals, insects, snakes or spiders or lizards, etc . etc.
12. For a soul to be born as a creature, who is either an
animal or an insect etc, is like going to jail. Here the soul cannot
consciously do evil. The body has no brain to think of good or evil and
acts on instinct only. After it has served its sentence or time in jail
as a creature, it may be given a human body again and have to start
again from scratch.
13. Those who do good all their lives,
whether they are rich or poor, are given better and better lives and
better and better bodies, until they finally get rid of their desires
for material possessions and turn towards God. This is where
Enlightenment begins. But the path is full of pitfalls. A person may
become enlightened and then fall backwards in some temptation or due to
pride : "I am better than everyone else. I must be worshiped!"
14. Those who receive enlightenment and remain steadfast and humble,
with faith in God, ultimately are accepted by God and merge into Him,
they attain Everlasting Peace and Happiness and live in God's Heaven
forever and are never born again in any body anywhere in the Universe.
This is known as salvation in reincarnation.
15. So the Law of
Karma is always there within man, warning him about the truth. And the
law of reincarnation also spells out the drastic consequences of doing
wrong.
16. Sadly, despite this knowledge, conscious or sub-conscious, people continue to do whatever they wish to do.
17. People would not have the courage to violate a red light on the
cross-roads for fear of police action, but they openly and brazenly
disregard the laws laid down in their own conscience by God, and go on
suffering the consequences of reincarnation for thousands of births.
This is the hard truth of reincarnation.
