A friend who is about 86 years old, sent me this message:
The confusion I have is:
Where are we are heading after this World?
Is it predetermined as per individual's Karma?
What is Karma ?
What do the Upanishads' say?
Is there a defined path to attain Salvation ?
What is Salvation?
Can one aim at that in the remaining time?
He says that as one’s time comes nearer, such questions arise in the mind.
I can only answer to the best of my ability and, as there is no scientific ‘proof’ of anything dealing with belief, all are free to disagree. However, my answers, given below in a brief note, may find resonance in some people on the Path.
Some questions on spiritual matters answered to the best of my ability…
The questions you have asked have no simple answers. No one can provide proof of where we go after we are no more in this world. However, the teaching of our seers and our Upanishads, my own experiences, and the stories of those who have recounted past birth memories, gives me the basis for my belief.
All are absolutely free to agree or disagree.
1.Where are we are heading after this World? what is Karma? What is Salvation?
The first thing is to understand the nature of the soul. The soul is a vast, multidimensional entity. A part of ‘our’ soul is energizing us. In a sense, the soul is not in us; we are in the soul.
On death, the soul withdraws from the body, leaving the gross elements here. It carries with it all the memories – good and bad – of this life. From these, it learns things that only human experiences can teach.
The accumulated karma over all previous lifetimes is called our Prarabdha. The soul also carries our Prarabdha with it – it is the bundle of our good and bad deeds over all our life-times. Prarabdha forms a barrier between the atma and the param-atma. Only when we can dissolve our Prarabdha, can the soul we are, merge with the Supreme. That dissolution is called Salvation. There is no need to take more births after this happens.
Before birth, we select items in our Prarabdha that we want to resolve during our next birth. For example, if find that we need to get rid of some evil thing we did to someone in our past birth, we plan our next life in a way that will help us atone for this. If we find that we made fun of someone who was poor, we plan a life of poverty to understand what the poor feel. And so on....
This is a complicated exercise and the above are just some simple examples.
At this stage the soul is non-judgmental. It just wants resolution.
Having decided what we need to do and undo in our next life, we then contact others with whom we have some past bonds. They are also planning their next lives. Together we decide on what we need to do. Thus, families are not random groupings. Each member has agreed to be a member of a family prior to his or her birth.
So, we are born with a plan. Certain things are predetermined in this – when we will marry, for instance, and who we will marry. However, these are not etched in stone. Human will is powerful and it can over-ride our predetermined plan. Swami Yogananda has also mentioned this in his Biography of a Yogi.
Coming to human will – it is what makes us often forget our plan, usually, and we merrily go our own way, accumulating more Prarabdha in the process. Wisdom sometimes strikes us, often as we grow older, and we get a glimmer of our birth plan and try to mend our ways. The lotus and the farsa (hatchet) in the hands of Shri Ganesh indicates this. When enlightenment (symbolized by the lotus) occurs, our karma get cut – or, perhaps it could be the other way around too.
We do not take re-birth immediately after our death. The exceptions are those who have a great sense of urgency, caused by something that they strongly feel that they still need to do here. Others take time off to review their experiences, to discuss these with others if needed, and to plan future lives.
Some texts indicate that there are various ascending levels of existence in the afterlife. Those who are more ‘advanced’ (having resolved more of their Prarabdha), have options of exploring other forms of existence unknown on this earth. These could also be in the disembodied form, depending on their learning requirements.
Some enlightened seers remain in disembodied form and help guide humanity through their wisdom. Mahavatara Babaji is said to be one such. There are others too.
What is the role of the Upanishads?
The role of the Upanishads is to guide us to the eternal truth. They try to lift the veil from reality and tell us who we really are and how we can help discover it for ourselves.
Why should we aim to achieve Salvation?
You have not asked this question but I will answer it anyway. We have all tasted various pleasures in our lives and have an idea of what joy feels like. When you touch the Divine, the feeling of bliss is many times more ‘luminous’ than all the joy that we have felt in our lives put together. It is something that cannot be described – only experienced. And when you have felt it even fleetingly, you will want it to become permanent.
Can one aim at achieving Salvation in the remaining time?
‘Salvation’ is not achieved in one birth alone. It is an accumulated result of multiple births. The seeds of Salvation are in all of us. In some people these lie dormant. In some, these have germinated but are still small shoots. In some others, these have grown and are saplings. In yet others, these have become mature trees. As Nisargadutta Maharaj told us, the fruit of these trees ripens slowly and, one day, just falls. This can then not be put back in the tree and no rebirth occurs.
The Mahamrityunjaya mantra hints at this when it says, Urvarukamiva Miyu Bandhanan Mrityur Mukshiye – Ma Amritaat (like a gourd that, once broken from the vine, does not get re-attached, save me from rebirths, for I am immortal).
When Shri Ramana Maharshi attained enlightenment at a young age, he did so because he had reached this stage through multiple births.
What are the indications by which we measure our progress on the spiritual path?
We can feel how developed this spiritual tree is in us by some indications:
The first is compassion. When this tree of spirituality approaches maturity, compassion becomes our predominant emotion. Compassion for everything – including for animals, birds, even for rocks is felt deep inside. This is a natural consequence of approaching a state where one sees oneself in everything.
The second is absence of negative reactions. As this tree matures, negative emotions start fading away. Of these, the prominent ones are called the Shadripu (six enemies of the mind). The Gita mentions these:
1.Krodha (क्रोध) — Anger / rage / wrath
2.Krodha (क्रोध) — Anger / rage / wrath
3.Lobha (लोभ) — Greed / avarice / miserliness
4.Moha (मोह) — Delusion / infatuation / attachment born of ignorance
5.Mada (मद) — Pride / arrogance / conceit / ego-inflation
6.Matsarya (मत्सर्य) — Jealousy / envy / malice (Irsha)
Introspect and see where your mind is in terms of each of the above emotions. How strongly do you feel these? This exercise needs to be done not when you are calmly sitting but when you are reacting to something that arouses one of these emotions. Observe your reaction carefully. If the concerned emotion is becoming less influential in your mindset and behaviour, your reaction will be muted or even absent. If the reaction is still strongly guided by any of these emotions – if you feel angry when insulted, for example, or greedy or envious when the provocation is there, you still need to evolve more.
The third is that one often starts having unusual experiences. These cannot be described theoretically but have to be experienced. These could include trances, stirring of the Kundalini, a feeling in the Chakras or something else. These are unique to every individual and someone’s experience should not form expectations in someone else. These are not essential, nor are they sufficient for enlightenment, and the wise person ignores them. However, they are milestones of sorts.
At a certain advanced stage one starts recognizing that theoretical knowledge is of no use and, too much of it can even give rise to pride and be counter-productive. Experience is everything for the seeker at this stage.
One side-effect is reflected in one’s behaviour. As you evolve on the spiritual path, you learn to live more and more in the NOW. You do not dwell in the past and the future is there only for planning. Your actions are almost automatically guided by the universe in the here and now. You appear to go with the flow. This, again, cannot be explained in words but can only be experienced.
Can we aim to achieve Salvation in the remaining time?
You must ALWAYS aim at achieving Salvation, but remember, it is a marathon, not a sprint. You may or may not achieve it in this life depending upon how mature the spiritual tree inside you has become over past births. If nothing else, your effort in this direction will bring you closer to Salvation, over the next life or the next few lives.
Is there a divine Path to Salvation?
There is no single path to Salvation. The Gita tells us that the main paths are:
1. Karma Yoga (Path of Selfless Action / Path of Work)
2.Bhakti Yoga (Path of Devotion / Loving Surrender)
3.Jnana Yoga (Path of Knowledge / Wisdom)
4.Raja Yoga / Dhyana Yoga (Path of Meditation / Royal Yoga)
I will not go into what each of these entails because I am sure you already know this. The essential thing is to understand that all of them lead to Salvation if carried on till the point of complete surrender to the Divine. People should see where their tendencies lie and follow the path where they feel most comfortable.
Shri Krishna says that the Bhakti path is the easiest. However, here too there is a condition that hardly anyone can fulfil. It is of complete identification with the Worshipped. Mirabai is an example. When this happens, the Worshipper and the Worshipped become one. Tatvam Asi (Thou art That), Brahmasmi or Shivoham become more than mere phrases. They become the reality.
(While on this, I would like to mention that mindlessly repeating Brahmasmi or Shivoham is as likely to make you achieve salvation as repeating “Viman-asmi will make you fly like a plane.)
Some may find short-cuts to Salvation through any one of the above four Paths but for most people, it may be a gradual progression from one Path to another. We may start out very active, in Karma Yoga in a few lives, then follow the path of devotion in Bhakti Yoga in a few others, then learn and acquire knowledge and wisdom through Jnana Yoga and then forget all this and experience one-ness with the Divine through Meditation. However, this is just a think-aloud on my part.
So, at this stage in your life, keep away from undesirable people, seek the company of good souls, look inwards and find out which path gives you the feeling of greatest satisfaction. Then follow it. Do not be concerned about Salvation. Go wherever the Path takes you. Each step is progress in the right direction. I say this because a sign that you are already on your journey can be seen in the questions that you have asked.
With best wishes,
Kishore Asthana
24.02.2026