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RE: karma and transmigration

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Krishna Kalale • September 28, 1999 


-----Original Message-----
From:	vchandra [SMTP:vchandra@ambernetworks.com]
Sent:	Sunday, September 26, 1999 8:40 AM
To:	bhakti@lists.best.com
Subject:	karma and transmigration

Dear members,
     My namaskArams.
     There have been a lot of mails about karma, rebirth, life-cycle etc., 
in the past few days. In this regard I have a sincere doubt which I humbly 
request the members to clarify. Sri Krishna Kalale and Sri Chris Bauch have 
been exchanging ideas about why a jIvA has to take multiple births to 
become perfect and finally reach parama padham. Here I have a very basic 
doubt. Our Lord is the cause for birth (bhUtha bhAvanA) and he at the same 
time IS the only cause for birthlessness (mOksha pradha). And there is a 
transcendentally profound purpose that The Lord has, to do this. viz., 
giving birth and taking back and so on for infinite jIvAs. My question is 
what is this Supreme Purpose? Does the fountain of knowledge, the vEdAs 
describe it?
[Krishna Kalale]


The explanation I know is as follows:

The supreme purpose of creation cannot be easily answered.  There are some 
theories :  lila theory,  dristi sristi theory and svabhava vada.

lila theory is that it is God's divine play or lila.  He is independent but 
he plays according to some rules and he is not erratic and a tyrranical 
ruler.  Further,  the purpose of giving a jiva  body is clearly to give him 
an opportunity to get better.  God basicially thinks that if he is allowed 
to live longer in the same surroundings he may do the mistakes over and 
over again and God wants him transplanted to a different body so that he 
can correct himself.  Hence even offering a body is basically mercy of God. 
 As per this theory it is clear how it deals with the problem of life and 
death.  Life and death is an act of mercy of God as well as God's way of 
rewarding and punishing the right and wrong respectively.

dristi sristi is a universal theory proposed by Advaita.  It is same as 
vivarta vada.  It states that life or universe exists because we perceive 
it.  IT is an error in perception that makes this universe of God, beings 
and matter,  visible as is.  Otherwise universe does not exist and only 
atman exists.  there is no seer or seen but atman which is the basis. 
 However,  birth and death is still explained as in the lila theory 
because, Advaita accepts a God who is Iswara who is saguna (relatively 
real) even though ultimately false as saguna.  What is true is nirguna 
atman alone.

svabhava vada is roughly same as the scientific theory which states that 
birth and death and this universe is all natural.  One should not ask why 
because it is nature.  One may find evidence for how life lives or 
originates etc.  But one cannot find why things happen the way they happen.

Adiyen Krishna Kalale

     adiyEn,
     Chandrasekaran.