Date: 02-11-1996 :: Cl: Religion
The stability of the entire universe, in fact its very survival,
is dependent on the operation of the law of virtue. The Lord
Himself had declared in the Bhagavad Gita, ``With this (the
divine constitution), you nourish the shining ones and may the
latter illumine you. Thus nourishing one another, you shall reap
the supreme good''. ``God has prescribed this moral law for
humanity in the form of the Vedas which are His instructions for
a life of purity.
A question that often troubles many is whether God can appear
before us. If not, what is the meaning of divine grace. The
fallacious answer provided by some in modern times is that the
utterances of the ancient wisdom and of the divine mercy, appear
to be concocted by a few to deceive the common man. As against
this and to convince people of the merits of saints and of the
Vedas, an appropriate reply has also been rendered as to what
constitutes divine grace.
The beautiful verse in this respect says, ``God's blessings do
not mean that He will go about with a staff in His hand as a
shepherd does when he drives the animals to a meadow.'' This is
to be understood as that He will bestow on us the proper motive
for action. Every action we do is stimulated by an urge to
perform it. Without such a spur, one does not act at all. The
desire and the urge emanate from the Almighty's grace. If that be
so, the sceptics will ask, why should not His grace be only for
the performance of pious deeds and why should the urge to do evil
acts arise?
This apparent riddle has been answered by Sri Bharathi Theertha
Mahaswamigal of Sringeri Sarada Peetam. Urge for indulging in
wicked deeds also is from the Divinity, he says. Does that mean
that God's intention is that we can do such prohibited acts? If
so, what sort of God is He is the next query? Does He, who is the
object of our veneration and devotion, and whom we consider
worthy of worship, goad us to perpetrate them?
The scriptures explain that one has to reap the consequences for
the evil deeds done in one's previous birth. Because of this, God
does not become responsible and He cannot be blamed. The
succession of rebirths, wherein we ought to reap the consequences
of our past actions continues from time immemorial. This concept
of reaping the consequences of one's previous actions is neither
improper nor unscriptural. Hence, those eager to procure God's
grace and who want to please Him should abide by the law laid
down by Him. He has given us the power of discrimination and it
is for us to use it properly. A sword given by a father to his
son for use in case of war, should not be instead utilised to
chop off his own neck. If he does, is it the fault of the father
or the son?
Copyright: The Hindu, Chennai, INDIA