Is the concept of Karma true? (Karma Series - Part 3)

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In the previous post on the Karma Series (Part 1, Part 2)we set forth understanding if the concept of Karma was true. In the process, we stumbled upon a very pertinent question - "Do we have multiple births?".  

The starting point for our analysis was the Big Bang Theory. Though there are lot of contentions regarding the validity of the theory, we used it to explore a thread of thought based on parallel universes by neither affirming nor denying the Theory but using it to understand a powerful concept.

In this post, we shall try to answer the very same question (Do we have multiple births?) using an alternate path of a series of simple questions & answers between a seeker of truth and his Guru.

Seeker: What is Karma?
Guru: It can be defined as a cause and effect principle where the intent and actions of an individual influence the future of that individual. Good intent/action result in accumulation of good karma & bad intent/action results in accumulation of bad karma. An individual may have to undergo multiple births / lifetimes to exhaust his karma.

Seeker: What happens to an individual who exhausts his Karma?
Guru: On exhausting his Karma, an individual attains Liberation / Moksha.

Seeker: What is Moksha or Liberation?
Guru: It is defined as freedom from the cycle of birth & death. One who has attained Moksha can neither be born again or die. He is free from the clutches of Karma.

Seeker: What happens to the individual after he attains the state of Moksha? Will he continue living? Or will he die?
Guru: It is to be understood clearly that it is the Atman/Brahman which is residing in the gross body that has attained Moksha. So, the gross body will continue to grow, mature, decay & eventually die.

Seeker: Are the gross body and Brahman two different things?
Guru: Absolutely.

Seeker: What is Atman/Brahman?
Guru: That which is eternal is the Brahman. It is that which is neither born nor living nor dead. It is the eternal truth. Everything other than the Brahman is Maya (read illusion) because it keeps changing. An individual may be born today, live for 100 years and then die. Similarly, a tree may be there today, live for 1000 years and then finally die. The very Earth in which we live came into existence millions of years ago, is undergoing constant changes and will eventually be absorbed into a Blackhole and come to an end. Likewise, everything might be there today, might constantly undergo some changes and might finally come to an end. The only thing which is an exception to all this is defined as the Brahman. Brahman is the eternal Truth everything else is just not true.

Seeker: If this is the case, then how can a Brahman attain Moksha as stated earlier? Brahman is neither born nor dead. So, he would not have accumulated any Karma. If he has not accumulated any Karma, then the question of Moksha itself doesn’t arise? Also, it was said that everything apart from the Brahman is Maya (unreal or an illusion or not true) which means that even the concept of Moksha and thereby the concept of Karma is also not true.
Guru: Yes. It is indeed very true that everything apart from the Brahman is not true. The concept of Moksha, Karma is present only to enable an individual to focus all his efforts on discriminating the eternal truth from the Maya in which he is so haplessly stuck. One who experiences the Brahman, knows everything else to be just Maya. Such an individual understands that the concept of Karma is also not true. He understands the eternal truth that the Sakthi (the force beyond all action) is nothing but Maya. It is only when an individual understands all that is not true, that he comes to understand what is the truth. This is also the reason why it is famously said – “There is no Siva without Sakhti and there is no Sakthi without Siva”. One who understands the import behind this is a Self-Realised individual.

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