Paul Haston's Blog - Posts Tagged "widow"
Karma or Fate?
Sveta's comments from yesterday raised an interesting conundrum - one which is explored in RISING OF A DEAD MOON.
Karma, as far as I understand it, is the concept of action or deed. According to the Vedas, if one sows goodness in life one reaps goodness. If one sows evil, one reaps evil. Our karma is passed down through the cycle of life, death and re-birth (Samsara). Karma would appear to be associated with, but subtly different from Fate, for humans act with free will creating their own destiny. We can influence our karma to make good or bad.
One could argue that Usha's karma is bad, a legacy of her former actions, not necessarily in this life. Her widow status and the tragedy that befalls her is 'an evil' that has been 'sown' before. It is, however, a hard message to swallow for the young woman and implies a certain inevitability to what will happen to her.
I remain perplexed by this intriguing question. We would all appear to be striving to attain a position of self-knowledge, nirvana...what the Indian culture would describe as Moksha - a liberation from the Samsara cycle. Usha attempts to find the 'light', but those who have read the book will know that she does not. Is this a condition of her bad karma or a consequence of Fate, the chance of her situation in a particular time and place?
Karma, as far as I understand it, is the concept of action or deed. According to the Vedas, if one sows goodness in life one reaps goodness. If one sows evil, one reaps evil. Our karma is passed down through the cycle of life, death and re-birth (Samsara). Karma would appear to be associated with, but subtly different from Fate, for humans act with free will creating their own destiny. We can influence our karma to make good or bad.
One could argue that Usha's karma is bad, a legacy of her former actions, not necessarily in this life. Her widow status and the tragedy that befalls her is 'an evil' that has been 'sown' before. It is, however, a hard message to swallow for the young woman and implies a certain inevitability to what will happen to her.
I remain perplexed by this intriguing question. We would all appear to be striving to attain a position of self-knowledge, nirvana...what the Indian culture would describe as Moksha - a liberation from the Samsara cycle. Usha attempts to find the 'light', but those who have read the book will know that she does not. Is this a condition of her bad karma or a consequence of Fate, the chance of her situation in a particular time and place?
Freya's review of RISING OF A DEAD MOON
Freya's review of RISING OF A DEAD MOON on her blog:
"The insight into India by someone who is non-Indian amazed me."
http://blog.fatema.in/2013/08/book-re...
"The insight into India by someone who is non-Indian amazed me."
http://blog.fatema.in/2013/08/book-re...
