Acharya Mahaprajna
Question:
Two individuals put in the same amount of effort; one gets a large amount of production, the other is hit by hail and frost. Is this not because of karmas of the previous birth?
Answer:
Why should this be attributed to the karmas of the previous birth? Let us regard it as the result of karmas of the present. It cannot be maintained that karmas have nothing to do; in certain cases, these may have a role. In this case, however, it is the honesty of feelings. One man did farming with good intention, did it with good sentiments. The other farmer did not do it with good sentiments and harboured bad ideas. The outcome was different due to this difference. There is a small story. Two farmers were proceeding towards their fields. On the way, they met a saint. His head was shaven. One farmer saw him. He thought that
Mastak mund pag sir nahin.
Kapad husi par sitta nahin
(His head was shaven and, therefore, there would be stalks but no sheafs of corn).
The other one saw and was pleased. Instead, he thought:
ek dekh nai huyo
khushi erare mathejisa sitta husi
(His forehead was big; the sheaves of millet will be equally big).
That is how the crop turned out. In the field of the first, there were big-size sheaves of millet. The owner of the other field had to remain satisfied with bare stalks. Scientists did a lot of research and experiments on the subject. One plant was irrigated with dedication and the other without the needed involvement. The first one bloomed in a few days and the second withered and dried up. Karmas can be one of the factors, but it is not a universal phenomenon. To think otherwise would not be in conformity with the principle of anekant.
