Q. Why do devotees suffer?
The elementary answer is that God tests them to gauge the intensity of their belief and devotion. This answer is indeed given by many exponents of Hinduism and is also mentioned in some contexts in the Purana literature. But experts in the scriptures do not accept this answer. It was in one of Shri Krishna Premi's lectures that I gathered the right answer to this question. The elementary answer only underestimates the omniscience of God. He has no necessity to test us, ordinary mortals. He clearly knows that we will fail in such tests. But then this theory of God testing His devotees is certainly true in the case of confirmed intense devotees of the Lord. In such cases, He tests them just to show to the rest of us in the world how intense and effective is their devotion and how far a devotee's faith can carry him. He knows that they won't fail the test. In our ordinary cases the theory that God tests us is not acceptable. We suffer because of our karma. And we have to suffer it. Hinduism is very clear on this point. In fact Sanatujatiyam in the Mahabharata says that good acts and bad acts do not cancel or compensate each other. The results of good actions as well as the results of bad actions will have to be experienced as they occur, very often, in parallel.
In fact even in the case of leading devotees they could not avoid the suffering that they had to endure. But their lives show that when the Lord's Grace descends on them, the most intense suffering could be either transformed into intense delight or, more often than not, God's Grace, instead of wiping out their suffering, provided an insulation of faith which enabled them to be oblivious of that suffering of the BMI.
The elementary answer is that God tests them to gauge the intensity of their belief and devotion. This answer is indeed given by many exponents of Hinduism and is also mentioned in some contexts in the Purana literature. But experts in the scriptures do not accept this answer. It was in one of Shri Krishna Premi's lectures that I gathered the right answer to this question. The elementary answer only underestimates the omniscience of God. He has no necessity to test us, ordinary mortals. He clearly knows that we will fail in such tests. But then this theory of God testing His devotees is certainly true in the case of confirmed intense devotees of the Lord. In such cases, He tests them just to show to the rest of us in the world how intense and effective is their devotion and how far a devotee's faith can carry him. He knows that they won't fail the test. In our ordinary cases the theory that God tests us is not acceptable. We suffer because of our karma. And we have to suffer it. Hinduism is very clear on this point. In fact Sanatujatiyam in the Mahabharata says that good acts and bad acts do not cancel or compensate each other. The results of good actions as well as the results of bad actions will have to be experienced as they occur, very often, in parallel.
In fact even in the case of leading devotees they could not avoid the suffering that they had to endure. But their lives show that when the Lord's Grace descends on them, the most intense suffering could be either transformed into intense delight or, more often than not, God's Grace, instead of wiping out their suffering, provided an insulation of faith which enabled them to be oblivious of that suffering of the BMI.
No comments:
Post a Comment