God does not test anyone. It is a belief that is deeply entrenched in Abrahamic faiths.
In Abrahamic religions such as Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, the idea of God testing individuals’ faith and actions is indeed a well-known and discussed concept. For example, the story of Abraham’s willingness to sacrifice his son (Isaac or Ishmael, depending on the tradition) is seen as a test of faith in these religions.
In spite of its genesis in the occidental religions, it has widely been believed, propagated and accepted as truism by a multitude of Hindus, devout spiritualists, sadhaks and spiritual people who attest to the existence of God. Of course, ironically, even renowned Gurus, mahatmas and enlightened masters have said that “God tests devotees” and “God is testing you through your pain” in their satsangs, discourses and books.
In light of what has been said in the first sentence, does it connote that the jivanmuktas, gurujis and sagacious saints and divine souls referred to in the foregoing paragraph are erroneous? A simple answer is, of course, “No”, but it requires some explanations to understand the deeper import of their esoteric pronouncement in regard to our pain and trouble.
The mere fact that they are spiritual masters and enlightened, their status makes them incapable of perpetrating any errors, however venial and nugatory they are. They are stellar, and their wisdom is sterling for mistakes of any types to exist at any level. No wonder that they are called the perfect ones: perfection leaves no room for imperfection.
God does not test anyone, let alone witness their suffering owing to any test, regardless of how noble the outcome might seem. When ordinary people say that “God tests us” or “God puts us through trials and adversities to test us”, they genuinely believe these statements because they cannot make sense of their tribulations compared to their so-called spiritual “attainment”, spiritual fervour, scriptural knowledge and “devotion”. Some of these people fervently trust that they are, may be not an apotheosis of piousness but, good enough to be termed “religious” and “spiritual” to be immune to and protected from all forms of harm and the known three miseries of life. They are in error, of course.
On the other hand, when mahatmas say that “God tests you”, it is more for our comfort than to discourage us in any way, and to motivate us to look at the problems with sanguine hopes. When one hears in a satsang that one suffers despite one’s devotion and piety chiefly because “God is testing us”, one derives immense comfort from the belief that one is worthy in the eyes of God to undergo such tests. There is the pride that is one is good enough to be put through the crucible of tests.
If one is actually told by the same mahatmas that one suffers heartaches, misery, pain, tortures, and agony mainly in consequence of one’s karma, which God has allowed to confront one, one who is given to misapprehension of one’s piety, is bound to feel disconcerted, confused and even depressed. One will, in such an instance, query, “how much more spiritual should I be or become before I am shielded from my karma. I thought my present level of spirituality is copacetic.”
From the repetitively mentioned question, “Why good people suffer?”, we can deduce that the questioner is not prepared to accept, much less “realise”, that he is not good enough to be called “a good person.”
If we seriously examine such a devotee’s or spiritual person’s position, we will discover that there are inherent verities in their experience: one, the person who is allowed to to confront his karma is good enough for cleansing, and perhaps for the cessations of his transmigrations that God wants to wash him off his karmic barnacles to prepare him for the next level of evolution.
Collaterally, it could simply be that it is not God who has released Sanchita karma bag slowly for the person to experience pain, rather it is the person himself who is facing his karmas that are ripe to visit him.
Whichever the situation is, God has no part in one’s experience of pain, misery and even happiness. God does not participate in the expiation of our sins, least of all test us to see how we fare in or respond to wretchedness, distress, desolation and trials.
God is but a witness (Sakshi) to the activities of the world; He is the Supreme Being or the Supersoul, who is a witness to all actions and events in the world. But He does not participate testing us. The following scriptural evidence prove this assertion:
Bhagavad Gita (Chapter 13, Verse 23):
“Yet in this body there is another, a transcendental enjoyer, who is the Lord, the supreme proprietor, who exists as the overseer and permitter, and who is known as the Supersoul.”
This verse speaks to the presence of the Supersoul (Paramatma) as a witness within every living being.
Bhagavad Gita (Chapter 7, Verse 21):
“I am in everyone’s heart as the Supersoul. As soon as one desires to worship some demigod, I make his faith steady so that he can devote himself to that particular deity.”
This verse highlights God’s presence as the Supersoul within every heart.
Svetasvatara Upanishad (Chapter 6, Verse 11):
“He is the one God, hidden in all beings, all-pervading, the Self within all beings, watching over all works, dwelling in all beings, the witness, the perceiver, the only one, free from qualities.”
This verse speaks to God as the hidden witness within all beings.
When one does a search on Google, the question in the title will receive almost 447,000 hits, and “Why bad things happen to good people” gets 109,000 hits. Google Books Ngram Viewer shows that since the 1940s, there has been an increase in the frequencies of the use of the string “Why good people suffer” in sources printed between late 1930s and 2020.
People who ask these questions have oftentimes been trying to make sense of the various wrong and unwanted occurrences that have happened or are happening in their lives. Many philosophers and even psychologists have endeavoured to answer them but a close study of their responses will tell that they are inadequate, incomplete and even unsatisfactory; hence there has been an increase in the number of people who are searching for the answer.
Of course, many mahatmas, enlightened masters, sages and rishies have given their views on the topic, too. One of such views comes from a direct disciple of Swami Sri Sivananda maharaj of Rishikesh, who has given the most exhaustive answer to the question in his book where he has given commentaries on Arunagirinathar’s Kandar Anubhuti (pgs126, 127, 128) :
“Every individual is an ego-center, as it were, that disturbs the cosmic balance by its actions and thoughts which are mostly desire-prompted and selfish actions, and even by our thoughts…. Good results follow good actions and bad from bad. This law of Karma is referred to as unrelenting; it has no friends or enemies, and it is very scientific in its working — not even a single Karma, however small it may be, can go unrewarded.
“There is no such thing as striking a balance. If one does, say, 10 good karmas and 8 bad, the latter 8 cannot be cancelled with 8 of the former and only the balance of 2 good enjoyed. No. All the 10 good and all the 8 bad have to be individually rewarded according to each one’s intensity. Hence, it is called inexorable. This is the reason why we come across good people suffering, though they might not have done any wrong in this life, which suffering is due to their past wrongs. It is also not uncommon to see evil-doers enjoying in this life, for similar reasons. Indeed, the law of Karma is terrible and mysterious. But it equally assures one’s future good for the good deeds done now, and vice-versa.”
Therefore, what should our attitude be towards our inexorable karmas?
The author continues to expound on the topic:
“This body has been given to us as a result of our past actions. Our (pleasant and painful) experiences in this span of life are already determined by the effects of our past actions that have caused this life. Hence, all our experiences will pass away and come to an end one day, when the force of the momentum that caused them ceases. Therefore, undue importance is not to be attached to this earthly life. Neither are we to be overjoyed when desirable experiences come, nor are we to be depressed and sunken when undesirable ones present themselves, as both will pass away.
“Life is transitory (verse-27). Such a life should not be taken as real, as the all. God is the great Reality, the all-perfect, “red” in His entire being. He is to be sought always, whatever be one’s condition. Otherwise, one is easily tossed about by every little happening in life, like a dry leaf that is thrown hither and thither by the wind. But he who has resorted to God remains unaffected like a mountain, which is not shaken a bit even by the strongest wind. One who holds fast to God, that is, whose mind is fixed on God, is not easily shaken by the passing events in life. He knows that these experiences come and go, but do not touch his inner, real personality. But the man of the world, for whom the things of world are the only reality, to whom nothing higher exists, is easily carried away by every little incident in life. If his bank balance fails, he collapses. If his dear ones depart, his life becomes sapless. These come as shocking incidents that break his weak heart. But he who is devoted to God knows that the things of the world are subject to change and that they will leave him any moment, and so he is not affected by them. Only he who takes them as permanent realities gets a rude shock when they are separated from him, which is bound to happen because of the working of the law. Persons and things are brought together and separated by their Karmas, as logs of wood in a river are joined or separated by wind. The law of Karma is no respecter of our joys and sorrows. It works relentlessly. Hence, knowing the transitory nature of things of this phenomenal life, one should take refuge in that which is ‘red’, i.e., perfect and permanent (God), so that one may not be tossed about by the passing events of this illusory life, says Arunagirinathar.”
That is quite right and fine, we would say reading the above. But the obdurate and painful question comes up, “Does it, therefore, mean that we are some helpless puppets in the hands of Destiny, fated to (in the words of the author) ‘tossed about’ by Karmas?“
“No” says Swami Sivananda’s disciple: “Our life is governed by the relentless law of Karma which is merciless. BUT the law-giver (the Lord) is full of mercy. So long as one does not take refuge in the Lord, the law of Karma works inexorably. Once, we surrender ourselves to God, the law loses its hold on us. As long as we take this world as real and ourselves as the doers of deeds and act with the expectation of their fruits, we cannot escape the working of the law. The idea of agency or doership and enjoyership is what makes us subject to the working of the law and is the cause of our bondage. But those who take refuge in the Lord and act as His instruments, for His pleasure, in the participation of His will, without expectation of rewards, as worship of the Lord, as offerings unto Him go beyond the working of this hard law. Hence, resort to the merciful Lord is the only way to be freed from the merciless law of Karma. The law can be overcome only by surrender to the Law-Giver; the Lord’s Maya is transcended only by His grace, as Bhagavan Sri Krishna says: ‘Verily, this divine illusion of Mine (Maya), made up of the (three) qualities (of Nature), is difficult to cross over; those who take refuge in Me alone cross over this illusion.’ (Gita VII-14). The child gets rest in the play of ‘hide and seek’, only when it returns to the granny who initiated and keeps the play going. ‘O Lord, thou art the Perfect One. How long should I be mercilessly kicked about by this inexorable Karmas? How long will I rejoice in this world, taking it as real? Grant me proper understanding (Viveka). Grant me love for thy Feet. Save me, O Perfect One, O peacock-rider, O glorious One, O valorous One! How can thou be called Perfect, when I, thy slave, am tormented by this illusory life? Does my suffering befit Thine all-perfectness? No. Hence, save me,’ is the seeker’s appeal to the Lord.”
Everything that happens to us — including all happy moments and joyous events of jubilation — are primarily because of our own Karmas. Nothing extraneous to karmas could bring us happiness or sorrow. Hence, theories like we suffer owing to our parents’ or ancestors’ sins are not only inane but also thoroughly unacceptable: no one, according to the laws of karma, can suffer on or in behalf of other, and neither can anyone enjoy even a dollop of pleasure on account of another person’s omission or action. Everyone reaps what he sows.
If we suffer because of our own doing, either in the present life or the previous, then the logical question is, can we, therefore, say that the causer of harm to us is innocent as he is but an instrument in the hands of Fate that uses him to make us go through our Karma?
This is addressed in the satsang by Sri Velukkudi Krishnan swami:
There is generally a belief, quite an egregious one at that, that one cannot do anything about one’s “prarabdha karma” — that portion of the past Karma which is responsible for the present body that we have taken now on earth.
Let us see what prarabdha karma, first of all, is: Swami Sivananda of Rishikesh, in his celebrated work “All about Hinduism”, has explained what “Prarabdha karma” is:
“Karma is of three kinds, viz., Sanchita (accumulated works), Prarabdha (fructifying works) and Kriyamana or Agami (current works). Sanchita is all the accumulated Karmas of the past. Part of it is seen in the character of man, in his tendencies and aptitudes, capacities, inclinations and desires, etc. Tendencies come from this. Prarabdha is that portion of the past Karma which is responsible for the present body. That portion of the Sanchita Karma which influences human life in the present incarnation is called Prarabdha. It is ripe for reaping. It cannot be avoided or changed. It is only exhausted by being experienced. You pay your past debts. Prarabdha Karma is that which has begun and is actually bearing fruit. It is selected out of the mass of the Sanchita Karma. Kriyamana is that Karma which is now being made for the future. It is also called Agami or Vartamana.” (pg. 47).
What is of immense interest in the above description is the part where Swami Sivananda has said, “Prarabdha….cannot be avoided or changed. It is only exhausted by being experienced. You pay your past debts”, something which the great majority of fatalists have come to grossly misunderstand.
A mother approached a man, who is known for spouting on about spirituality. She asked for his views on how to beseech God to help her ailing son who had congenital medical problem. As the man seemed to always say God has the cure for everything and answers to all problems on earth, she thought he could help.
The fatalist in the guise and garb of a spiritual man, however, told the desperate mother, “Of course, God can help”. Relieved at the assurance, the mother eagerly awaited his answer. He said, “What you and your son have come with to this world are your truckloads of karma, which must be expiated”. “You have to go through it; experience it. There is no avoiding it. All you ought to do, instead of asking God to take away the karma of your son’s condition, is to ask Him to give you the strength to the bear the pain of seeing his suffering.”
In other words, people like the pseudo-spiritualists, satsanghists, scriptures-spouting hypocrites would want us to be timorous defeatists like themselves, who have lost faith in God, trust in the words of the scriptures, and the determination to alter their prarabdha karma.
Birth and Death Are Part of Prarabdha Karma
One’s birth and death are part of prarabdha karma. They are unalterable, generally. Therefore, can prarabdha karma, which has already begun and is actually bearing fruit, be ever stopped?
The author of “All about Hinduism”, Swami Sivananda, in his commentary on Bgahavad Gita 4:37, explains, “…even Prarabdha Karma is destroyed by the fire of knowledge. Sri Sankara states in His Aparokshanubhi, ‘In the line: “his actions are destroyed when the Supreme is realised”, the Vedas expressly speak of actions (Karmas) in the plural, signifying the destruction of the Prarabdha Karma as well.’ …If… only the Sanchita and Agami were destroyed and not Prarabdha, the dual number would have been used and not the plural. Sanskrit grammar has singular, dual and plural numbers.” In another commentary, at Bhagavad Gita 9:02, Swamiji says, “…Knowledge of the Self is the best purifier. It immediately reduces to ashes the roots of all Karmas and the Karmas themselves, which have been stored up in the course of many thousands of births…”
In another valuable treatise of His, He reminds us, “Prarabdha can be overcome by the Grace of the Lord. The Lord’s Grace descend when there is sincere devotion and when Man does Purushartha (effort). Purushsharta is possible when the mind is pure… the laws of nature do not operate when there is the Grace of the Lord. His Grace is all-powerful. We have the instance of Markandeya who conquered death by his Purushartha, by sincere devotion to the Lord. He was destined to die young, but when the Lord’s Grace descended, Lord Yama had no power to carry our his wish. So, it is possible to overcome Prarabdha by Teevra Purusharta (Intense Effort).” (pg. 38, May I Answer That?).
Therefore, He makes the pronouncement, “You can change your destiny by strong will-power, by leading a purely spiritual life.” (pg. 489, Sadhana by Swami Sivananda).
Paramahansa Yogananda, on the issue of prarabdha karma, says, “Even the fate of death can be changed. Jesus demonstrated in a most dramatic way that there is no such thing as an unalterable fate. According to Lazarus’ karma, he was destined to die on a certain day. The law was fulfilled, and Lazarus died. That was fated to be. But not even death is a fate irrevocable. Jesus satisfied the karmic law and brought Lazarus back to life again.” (pg. 50, The Divine Romance).
In his Autobiography of a Yogi, the Paramahansa has recounted several miraculous instances of His guru, Yukteswar, intercepting with Prarabdha karma to restore life back to many people who had already died.
He further assures us, “…we can change many things in our lives that appeared unchangeable, or that may have been predicted to be incontrovertible…” (pg. 304, The Divine Romance by Paramahansa Yogananda).
Loudly echoing this declaration, Ramana Maharishi put it even more succinctly, “If the agent, upon whom the Karma depends, namely the ego, which has come into existence between the body and the Self, merges in its source and loses its form, how can the Karma, which depends upon it, survive? When there is no ‘I’ there is no Karma.”, a point well reiterated by sage Vasistha in his classical work Yoga Vasistha, wherein, when Lord Rama asks sage Vasistha about the way to transcend the two binding effects of past karmas, namely Vasanas or the effect of impressions left on the mind by past actions and one’s fate created by Prarabdha Karma, to which he replies, through with Divine grace (Kripa), one can go beyond the influences of past actions. (The Teachings of Sri Ramana Maharshi Edited by David Godman)
We Are Not Bound by Karma
Yogananda Paramahansa, “Don’t allow yourself to think you are forever bound by karma. Deny it.. Give your karma to God. He will help you if you ask Him to… if we have faith in God, all things are possible… Never yield to pain and trouble…. It doesn’t matter what your troubles are… You will see in time that you are a master of yourself, and free from Karma, even as God is.” (pg. 204, The Divine Romance).
But Do Not Astrology and Horoscope Say that Karma Prarabdha Must be Experienced
Paramahansa Yogananda, “…our Indian astrologers say we are all puppets. I do not believe that. I believe you can destroy any karma you want to…. (pg. 232, Journey to Self-Realisation).
Paramahansa Yogananda, “To believe in karma is to give strength to it.” (pg. 232-233, Journey to Self-Realisation).
Paramahansa Yogananda, “Do not admit you are a helpless mortal governed by karma… it is an old superstition of the ignorant to believe you cannot change your destiny.” (pg. 238, Journey to Self-Realisation).
Swami Sivananda, “Do not believe in the evil influence of stars and planets. You are the Lord of the universe. Stars and planets take their power from your very self,” (pg. 188, Revelation).
Swami Sivananda, “Do not pin your faith in astrological predictions. They will SIMPLY make you restless. You will be ever worrying over a supposed future mishap. Divine GRACE will dispel all clouds of ignorance, worries and mishaps. Stick to the Divine Name BY ALL MEANS.” (pg. 247, Revelation).
Srila Prabhupada, a Vaishnavite, on the issue of Karma, categorically pronounces: “Prarabdha can be changed. Kṛṣṇa says. Prarabdha means you are enjoying the fruits of your past activities. That is said in the Brahma-saṁhitā. Karmāṇi nirdahati kintu ca bhakti-bhājām. Nirdahati. Karmāṇi, the resultant action of your past karma, can be vanquished by Kṛṣṇa. As Kṛṣṇa says in the Bhagavad-gītā, ahaṁ tvāṁ sarva-pāpebhyo mokṣayiṣyāmi: ‘ shall give you protection’.
“… As soon as you become Kṛṣṇa conscious, everything is finished. But don’t commit again. Stick to Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Then you are safe.”
Commenting on Bhagavad Gita 9:2, Prabhupada said, “For those who are engaged in the devotional service of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, all sinful reactions, whether fructified, in the stock, or in the form of a seed, gradually vanish….”
Someone who interviewed Srila Prabhupada pressed him further for an explanation. He asked, “Then what was the necessity for the Pandavas to suffer when they had themselves surrendered to the Lord Kṛṣṇa, and they have suffered?” To which, unflustered Prabhupada: said, “They have not suffered. They have served Kṛṣṇa’s purposes. Kṛṣṇa wanted to kill all the demons. They did it. That’s all.” (Lecture on BG 2.24 — Hyderabad, November 28, 1972.).
The Scriptures Have Declared Prarabdha Karma Can Be Destroyed
In Srimad Bhagavatam 6:2:17, Vishnudutas have said, “…one may neutralise the reactions of sinful life through austerity, charity, vows and other methods…” The word “reactions” here is referred to prarabdha karma that has already begun and is actually bearing fruit.
In Bhagavad Gita 18:66, Lord Krishna, who talks eloquently about the concept of Kripa and Liberation, finally makes statement to Arjuna, “Abandoning all duties, take refuge in Me alone: I will liberate thee from all sins; grieve not.” The Lord did not particularise which sin; rather, “all sins”, which, as we had seen Sri Sankara’s explanation above, unequivocally comprehend prarabdha karma.
Final Words on the Grace’s Interference with our Prarabdha Karma
Despite all the above evidence from the scriptures and from the words of the mahatamas, there would still be some misguided people who are too steeped in superstitions, misinformation, and in their own theories of karma. They would wonder whether it could actually be possible for God to interfere with one’s prarabdha karma that has already started fructifying in this birth of ours: birth, death, congenital conditions such as blindness, muteness and birth defects.
Hindu puranas are replete with many an account of how God destroyed prarabdha karma. Ajamila and Markendeya are but some known examples. In Bhagavatam 3:3:2, it has been said, Sri Krishna interfered with someone’s prarabdha karma by “bringing back his dead son from the region of Yamaloka”. That extraordinary is the kripa, i.e., God’s Grace.
In Kali Yuga, too, we have had great many incidents: a case in point of the life of Kumaraguruparar, who was congenitally mute. Born to Shanmukha Sikhamani Kavirayar and Sivakama-Sundari Ammaiyar in Srivaikuntam, the child could not speak until the age five, when his parents took him to Sri Tiruchendur temple, where they pleaded with the Lord to change his prarabdha karma.
Not only did Lord Muruga made the child speak, but the five-year-old was also blessed with the talent to compose Kandar Kalivenba in praise on Murugan.
Paramahansa Yogananda’s Autobiography of a Yogi contains more examples of how devotees and common people’s prarabdha was set right by the Grace of God.
Paramahansa Yogananda’s Step-by-Step Approach to Prarabdha Karma
Paramahansa Yogananda: “Fate means that a cause has operated to produce an effect. You can change it, if you know the way…:
1. You can minimize the effect of an action.
2. You can resist the effect.
3. You can completely stop it.
“…Why do people go to doctors? Because that is one way to MINIMIZE the effects of wrong actions. The physical way to lessen an illness or overcome it may be found in such remedies as proper diet, exercise, or medication….
“…To RESIST the effects of karma is to use commonsense remedies, but rely more on the power of the mind. Refuse to accept any limiting condition. affirm and believe in health, strength, success, even in the face of contradictory evidence…
“…The only way that you can permanently stop the undesirable effects of past wrong actions is by removing the cause of those effects. Harmful past-life seed-tendencies must be CAUTERIZED from the BRAIN; then there will be no recurrence of ANY type of illness or other troubles arising from them. Roast them in the fire of wisdom…seek the wisdom born of meditation, which removes forever from within you the darkness of ignorance. Krishna said: ‘As fire reduces to ashes all wood, even so, O Arjuna, does the flame of wisdom consume ALL karma.’ [Gita 4:37]” (pg. 49, The Divine Romance).
Question: The Gita touches on many subjects which are useful to an aspirant after God-Knowledge, but strangely enough, omits to mention anything about the purpose behind creation.Why did God embark on creation at all?
Swami Sivananda: “The Lord’s silence, in the Gita, about the purpose of creation, is truly a demonstration of His divine wisdom. This very same problem arises in various minds in various forms. How did Avidya arise in Brahman?When did Karma begin?Why did the Formless assume forms? How could darkness or Maya exist in the Supreme Absolute Light? And so on. There can be no answer to these questions. It involves the understanding of the Ultimate Principle, the Intelligence that is behind and beyond these questions, the Cause of all causes, the Subject of all objects. It cannot be known as an object. And, when the subject (Self or Atman) knows Itself, speech and thought cease. The questioner and question vanish in the quest. The doubt disappears in the doubter. In that Supreme Silence, the problem is inexpressibly solved! The riddle is solved; but speech is baffled and the question remains unanswerable.
“Therefore, the Lord is silent about the transcendental question in the Gita; but, such is the divine wisdom of the Almighty that He gives ways and means of solving the problem.
“Don’t bother about why creation came into being, but try to know the Creator! Take creation for what it is and try to transcend it. This is wisdom. Trying to probe intellectually into the mystery is only buying psychological distress.
“There is no ‘Why?’ in respect of transcendental matters. ‘Why?’ is only for worldly things. Reason is finite and frail. God only knows the ‘Why?’. Realize the Self. Then you will get the answer. Then you will know the origin and nature of Maya and everything.”
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