When God is the actual Doer, why are the souls subjected to the results of their karmas?

Question: When God is the actual Doer, why are the souls subjected to the results of their karmas?  

Answer:  Many people diminish the need for self-effort in their minds by saying, "Nothing is in our hands.  God is seated within us.  He is the doer of all our actions, and we act as He inspires us."  However, this philosophy is not really true, as the following points will illustrate:

1. If God were the doer of all our actions, we would never have committed any mistakes.  All of our works would have been perfect, since God can never make a blunder.  The fact that we make innumerable mistakes implies that we are performing actions with our own free will.  
2. If God were the doer of our actions, we would not have to bear the karmic reactions.  Why would we suffer for works that God did through us?  He would either bear the karmic reactions on His own, or forgive Himself.  But there is the Law of Karma, "As you do, so you shall reap."  This implies that we ourselves are responsible for what we do. 
3. God is impartial towards all souls and perfectly just.  If He was the doer of our actions, He would either have made everyone do good works and become Saints; or He would have made everyone do bad works and become demons.  But there is so much of variety in the world.  One is a Saint, like Prahlad, while the other is a demon, like Hiranyakashipu.  This variety implies that we have the freedom to choose our own actions, and we are responsible for them, not God.   
4. If God were the inspirer of our actions, there would have be no need for Him to reveal the Vedas or any other scriptures.  There would be no need for Him to explain to us the path to perfection.  He would simply have to say two sentences: "O souls, I am the doer of everything.  So you do not have to understand what proper and improper action is." 

It is true that God is seated within us, and He gives us the power to act.  However, what we do with that power is decided by our own free will.  This is just as the powerhouse supplies electricity to your house.  If it did not give the power, you would not have been able to use any electric appliances in your home.  However, once you do have that power, what you do with it, is your own choice.  You could operate the fan, light the lamp, or heat/cool the house, as you wish.  

Similarly, God gives our eyes the power to see.  If He did not give us this power, we would not have been able to see anything.  But once we do have this power, what we see is in our own hands.  You could go to the temple and see the Deities, or you could see dirty pictures on theinternet.  God is merely giving you the power to see.  What you decide to see is your own choice decided by your free will.   

Hence, we must not blame God for our mistakes.If we do something wrong, we should take responsibility for the error and strive to correct it.

Swami advocates easing stress through spirituality

By William Loeffler, PITTSBURGH TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Thursday, June 16, 2011

Photos

Swami Mukundananda
Submitted

'Devotion & Grace'

'The Science of Devotion & Grace'
What: A spiritual program of yoga and meditation by Swami Mukundananda
When: 11:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m. Saturday and Sunday and 6-9 p.m. Monday-Thursday
Cost: Free, but registration is required
Where: Sri Venkateswara Temple, 1230 McCully Drive, Penn Hills
Details: 412-373-3380, www.svtemple.org

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The quest for spiritual health is a practical necessity, not a lofty ideal, says a Hindu yogi who begins a six-day residence Saturday at the Sri Venkateswara Temple in Penn Hills.
Swami Mukundananda is a spiritual leader whose lectures apply the ancient Vedas, or Hindu scriptures, to the challenges of 21st-century existence. He teaches audiences how to manage stress through yoga and meditation.
"Spirituality is not removed from our mundane practical life," he says. "If practiced for some time on a daily basis, it helps us in doing all the other activities throughout the day as well. "
His program "The Science of Devotion & Grace" runs from 11:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Saturday and Sunday and 6 to 9 p.m. June 20 through 23. The series is free and open to the public, but registration is required.
Dr. Nagu B. Krishnappa, chairman of the board of trustees for the Sri Venkateswara Temple, says he met the swami last year during a Pittsburgh appearance.
"I was so impressed with this person, the way he communicated, the way he taught Vedic knowledge in practical life," Krishnappa says.
Krishnappa, a pediatrician with a practice in Greensburg, says the swami's program is about wellness, not proselytizing.
"It is not a speech about the Hindu gods, that's not the issue at all," he says. "They'll talk about your own body, how you control your own body, how you control your own mind and how you control your own soul, and how you balance them."
Mukundananda looks as one might expect a holy man to look -- serene countenance, flowing saffron garments, a high forehead marked with a line and a dot that resembles a red exclamation point. The marks symbolize his devotion to the Hindu deities Radha and Krishna, he says.
But he also has an MBA from the Indian Institute of Management, India's preeminent business school. He was a mechanical engineer before he renounced his position, at age 23, to pursue a life of spiritual devotion. In addition to lecturing at Hindu temples around the country, he's spoken to staff at Google headquarters in California and the Kellogg School of Management in Illinois.
"A lot of Indians who have come to the U.S.A. from India share the same education as I do," says Mukundananda, 50. "They are engineers and MBAs. They do have this desire for spiritual knowledge. They would like to hear it in terms that make sense to them. When they come across a swamiji who has the same educational background, that gives them confidence that they can relate to the message and the manner in which it is presented."
The ancient Hindu gods might not have foreseen that their wisdom could be applied to such matters as corporate management, but Mukundananda says the teachings transcend millennia.
"When you do realize that your effectiveness in management depends on your state of mind, it makes sense to cultivate our own mind," he says. "In other words, 'Manager, manage thyself.'"
Non-Hindus are welcome, Mukundananda says.
He will discuss breathing techniques, body relaxation and proper diet. His particular form of yoga will include spiritual exercises, a component he says is neglected by most yoga studios in the United States.
He drew laughs during one appearance when he explained why we couldn't remember our past lives: If we did, he said, we'd be arguing with those who had bought or inherited land and other possessions we left behind when we died. There would be chaos.

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