Theism and Goodness

Quite possibly the biggest misunderstanding that exists in the world is that people who believe in God are necessarily good! This is just not true! Your being good or evil doesn't depend at all on whether you believe in God or not! I'll come to this aspect again later in the post.

First, think carefully:

Even Ravana was a devotee of Shiva. And open your eyes: Do you really believe that everyone going to temples, mosques and churches today is good? In my personal estimate, at least 80% of religious people today - in every religion - are immoral and corrupt. Many are also criminal. But such people still keep talking about God! It's amazing!

The history of religion is the worst history this world has seen. People have been burnt alive, rivers have turned red with blood, women have been raped, kept in sexual captivity, and killed, children have been killed, all in the name of some God or the other.

And such things still happen. People still talk about and do such things.

All this is nonsense! There is absolutely nothing Godly or religious about this.

And the first point to understand if we want to correct this is the following:

The law of Karma is infallible. I say this not just theoretically, but from direct perception and experience. I do not post anything just like that.

I repeat: The law of Karma is infallible. It cannot be argued with, it does not allow any negotiation. Every act you commit is recorded by the universal divine consciousness (can be perceived directly and is not a matter of belief/disbelief - see section in italics below) and as you reap, so shall you sow. This is the law - regardless of whether you are a theist or an atheist (you have all the right to be one - theism is not a prerequisite for spirituality - see section in italics below) or which religion you subscribe to. It is a law.

If you hurt, exploit, abuse - even in God's name - there is no paradise or heaven waiting for you and no one will come to bear the consequences of your Karma on your behalf. You will bear the consequence of each of your actions. Guaranteed.

Likewise, if you help, heal and serve, even though you may be an atheist, the universal divine consciousness will respond positively.

People ask: Well why isn't this immediately visible. The answer is: Simply because there is a balance sheet active. Your entire past Karma is continuously in action. Just keep doing good. The more your balance sheet becomes positive, the more good will flow towards you. Guaranteed. You have to clear your debts, and then save some, before you can plan a nice vacation!

Karma is actually even more subtle. Even your thoughts are actions at a subtle level and the universal divine consciousness responds to the nature of your thoughts. Most people have had this experience: sometimes they feel deeply peaceful without any apparent outward reason, sometimes restless and stressed.

Work on your actions first. Once you have a grip at the level of actions, start working at the level of thoughts. A lot of thoughts come to our mind. It's always our choice, which thoughts to entertain and which to not. And this choice matters.

The second thing to bear in mind is: Self effort is the way forward. You have to study for your exams, you have to prepare for your interviews, you have to practice your music, your art, you have to put in the hours for your research, you have to demonstrate excellence at work and earn respect, you have to keep your body and mind fit and respond to life's challenges.

The whole thing is your game. You need to play well.

Once these two aspects, Karma and Self Effort, are clearly in place, you can work on being closer to the universal divine consciousness through the paths of Selfless Action (Karma Yoga), Meditation and other Spiritual Practices (Raja Yoga), Knowledge and Reasoning (Gyana Yoga), Devotion (Bhakti Yoga), or combinations of these depending on your preferences and mindset.

All these paths are for purifying the mind and building its concentration. Once the mind is pure and concentrated, it perceives the universal divine consciousness directly.

With all this understanding, Bhakti Yoga or the Path of Devotion takes on a completely different meaning. The point is refine and purify your mind and build its concentration through devotion - if devotion comes naturally to you. And this has to be done with the understanding that whichever divine personality is dear to you, it is a manifestation of the same universal divine consciousness.

I repeat: the goal of devotion is to refine and purify your mind and build its concentration.

A meditator is pursuing the same goal but through a different path.

Different temperaments : different paths.

Some people approach the Universal Divine Consciousness through devotion, some through meditation, some through selfless action, some knowledge and reasoning, some through a combination of these paths. This choice is given to you completely. Choose as per your preferences and mindset. And move forward.

Some people ask: Well, what about prayers getting answered? Even this happens because there is significant positive Karma in your balance sheet. In times of extreme distress, you can pray for yourself or for someone else. You can direct your prayers to the universal divine consciousness directly or towards a divine personality or saint. If there is enough positive Karma in your balance sheet, prayers can get answered.

But in general: Self effort and Karma. Hold to these two principles as you move forward.

But without this detailed understanding, if you are just going God God God and living a questionable life otherwise, you are being a complete fool and will get into serious trouble. This is the plain truth.