Posted on: 21 Nov 2021
Smt. Priyanka asked: Pādanamaskāram Swami, The concepts that are coming out in Thrylokya Gita with extended details/ explanations of certain topics are really fantabulous! Thank You so much for this blessing towards us all, Swami. I have some small doubts from chapter 12. Swami, please help me remove these confusions. At Your divine lotus feet, Priyanka
a) Can You explain regarding wrong intention itself leading to the fruit of sin instead of the mere act of sin?
[Can You further explain regarding wrong intention itself leading to the fruit of sin instead of the mere act of sin? In Thrylokya Gita 12 (point no. 19), You mentioned that the intention is totally responsible for enjoying the fruit of the deed and that the deed is inert and can’t be the cause of the fruit. The fruits are as per the intention and thinking of the mind and not as per their inert actions. Swami, I have a few doubts here.
Considering the above said, I want to take an example for further clarification. If a person gets very angry that he/she feels like killing the other person, but also knows that it will never really murder anyone, does that still account for sin because it is only a thought that generated out of anger and may be the person also yelled saying he will kill the other? There was the action of shouting as well as having the thought of killing. But does this count as real intention when sometimes things are said loosely out of anger? And if it does account for sin, is this sin equal to actually killing the person? Does the act of killing account for just an inert action?]
Swami Replied:- Intention resulting in action alone gives the practical punishment. Mere intention is a light sin, for which god Yamadharmaraaja in hell will give a strict oral warning. The point is that this mere intention gains more and more strength in course of time and results in action. Hence, mere intention shall not be neglected.
b) In Your earlier example, why was the devotee always thinking about the other person in Kaashi instead of traveling there again?
[Second doubt is regarding the example You gave about the devotee falling in love with a prostitute. You said that he was always thinking of the fortunate opportunity of his travel companion, who got to worship in Kaashi, while being in love with the prostitute. He benefited more than the person in Kaashi, who thought about the chance the other person had with the prostitute. Here, the thought is given more importance than the actual inert action itself for both these people. My doubt is- is it possible that the person who fell in love with the prostitute would have had lustful feelings towards her when he saw her in the first place? He probably got distracted by her beauty and stopped his journey towards Kaashi. Wouldn't that count as sinful intention because it led to illegitimate sex (one of the highest sins) and he gave more importance to that prostitute than his main goal to reach Kaashi and worship Lord Shiva? Also, even if he got momentarily distracted, did he choose to stay back with that prostitute all his life without making a second attempt to visit Kaashi? Why was he always thinking about the other person in Kaashi instead of traveling there again? Swami, I am a bit confused here. Can You please give further explanation of this example and the concept of intention itself leading to bearing consequences than the action itself.]
Swami Replied:- Mere intention will not give practical fruit unless its corresponding action follows it. The case of the person with the prostitute is action without its corresponding intention. When we walk on the road, the ant dies under our feet. There is no punishment for this action since there was no intention. Mere intention and action without intention can’t have their practical fruits. The person in Kaashi doing worship to God Shiva also is in the same line as the person with the prostitute. The person in Kaashi could not get the fruit of his good action because good intention is absent. Both these cases say that action with its corresponding intention alone gives the corresponding fruit. The person with prostitute died was taken to the abode of God and God gave him the true Spiritual knowledge so that he will do the good action also as per the good intention. The person died in Kaashi was taken to the hell and god Yamadharmaraaja gave him the oral warning that the bad intention on gaining strength will lead to bad action also resulting in suffering in hell.
c) Does having a mere good intention to serve God lead to any fruit in Nivrutti?
[When it comes to fruits related to Nivrutti, we learned about Nishkaama karma yoga (doing service and sacrifice to God with only love towards God, without any desire for fruits in return). But Swami, please forgive me for talking about the fruits of Nivrutti just for the sake of this question. The question is - we learned about karma yoga as the only way that gives fruits in Nivrutti. The first step is knowledge leading to devotion, which should automatically lead to karma yoga, which is service and sacrifice to God. Having mere emotions or thoughts in Nivrutti is not enough, even though it helps develop devotion and is a pre-requisite for any action. Ultimately, the action or karma yoga only provides proof of real towards God, and gives fruits in Nivrutti. Sometimes, devotees may have good intentions of service and sacrifice, but, it may or may not lead to proving their love towards God due to different reasons. In this case, does having a mere good intention to serve God lead to any fruit in Nivrutti? Is the concept of fruits for the intention and thinking related to Pravrutti only? And is this concept limited to wrong or bad intentions only and does not apply to good intentions at all? Can You please clarify this point as well, Swami?]
Swami Replied:- Good intentions without followed good actions in Pravrutti will take the soul to heaven where god Indra will advise the soul to do good actions also so that the soul can get practically good fruits in Pravrutti. The same person in Nivrutti will go to the abode of God where God will advise the soul to do good actions also so that the soul can get practically good fruits in Nivrutti. Similarly, a person having bad intentions and good actions in Pravrutti or Nivrutti will be taken to hell and will be advised to do good intentions in good actions. All these cases will not have fruits practically. Only theoretical advices will be given to them.