I see many people doing punya karma these days, like taking dip in Ganges or going to dhaams, doing go-daan or doing donations. dipping in kumbhmela rushing to the places where they can do punya karma. Is it because of mass awareness that doing charity and punya karma gives good birth.
Is intentional doing punya karma counted or unintentionally done punya karma counted?
AGTSP
Replies
Hare Krsna Mataji,
PAMHO.
Firstly, sorry for late reply.
What we have to understand is the difference between punya karma, pious activity and devotional activity. Giving charity, doign good to others, opening hospitals, taking care of sick or old or poor, annadaan - these are all pious activities. Devotional activities are all the activities done with the purpose of pleasing the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Like distributing prasadam, taking care of cows, cleaning and decorating the temple or deity, offering results of one's work to Krsna.
Doing pious activities gives one a good birth the next life. It could be in heavenly planets or on earth. Doing devotional activity purifies us and ensures that we get out of the cycle of birth and death altogether, once we have become pure devotees and burnt the results of our past deeds, whether good or bad. Until that happens, if one happens to change body (die), then one gets birth in an aristocratic family or a pious, religious family (sucinam srimatam gehe yoga bhrashto'bhi jayate). Pious activities need not be purifying, whereas devotional activities are necessarily purifying. Secondly, pious activities keeps us in the cycle of birth and death, whereas devotional activities liberates us from the cycle of birth and death.
Intentionally done pious activities give the same results, if not more, than unintentionally done pious activities. This is so because one is making a conscious attempt to do good, be good. If one does the same thing unintentionally, it is called agyaat sukriti (unknown good fortune). THat has to add up enough for the person to get tangible results. Like how we study hard to do well in exams, same way we do pious activities to get good birth next life.
Haribol,
Your servant,
Radha Rasamayi DD
Thank you for you reply. Hare Krsna Pamho. AGTSP.
Hare Krishna Mata ji,
Any Karma which is having selfish interest in it be it punya karma also can maximum elevate you to heaven. Karma done to please Lord is only liberating you from cycle of birth and deaths.
SB 4.25.4 — Nārada Muni asked King Prācīnabarhiṣat: My dear King, what do you desire to achieve by performing these fruitive activities? The chief aim of life is to get rid of all miseries and enjoy happiness, but these two things cannot be realized by fruitive activity.
Therefore Nārada Muni asked King Prācīnabarhiṣat what he desired to attain by performing so many costly sacrifices. Even if one attains a heavenly planet, he cannot avoid the distresses of birth, old age, disease and death.
https://www.vedabase.com/en/sb/4/25/4
pls. go thru this purport.
As long as a person is entangled in fruitive activities, he is bound to accept one body after another.
It does not matter whether one is engaged in pious or impious activities, for both are causes for further entanglement in material bodies. By pious activities one can take birth in a rich family and get a good education and a beautiful body, but this does not mean that the distresses of life are ultimately eliminated.
https://www.vedabase.com/en/sb/4/25/5 pls. go thu this purport also.
There is a story of King Nrga which is being told in Srimad Bhagwatam in Canto 10. King Nrga was known for this charity and good deeds but none of his deeds were for pleasing Krishna. Only he did for he came to know that doing good will result in stay in heaven. But one bad deed of donating the same cow to two brahmins led him to see Yamaraja. And he was awarded the result of bad karma first he was turned into a lizard in a well.
SB 10.64.27-28 — O Devadeva, Jagannātha, Govinda, Puruṣottama, Nārāyaṇa, Hṛṣīkeśa, Puṇyaśloka, Acyuta, Avyaya! O Kṛṣṇa, please permit me to depart for the world of the demigods. Wherever I live, O master, may my mind always take shelter of Your feet.
But he ( king Nrga) couldn't get the abode of Lord for his good deeds( punya karma) he could maximum get to heaven ( world of demigods).
Where as Ambarish Maharaj who was devoted to Lord he did many good deeds and did ekadashi vrats to please Supreme Personality of Godhead. He too did one mistake just like King Nrga.. He broke the fast before Durvasa muni came back from his bath to avoid the sin. He simply took charnamrita of Lord. But Druavasa muni got angered and he created a demon named Kritya and left it on to Ambarisha Maharaj. But Ambarisha Maharaj just completely depended on Sri Hari and said whatever be the punishment i accept is Lord has awarded. But Lord protected his devotee by sending Sudharshan chakra against the demon and Durvasa maharaj.
You can see in both cases.. One king ( Nrga) who was doing good activities only for his selfish interest he got to heaven only whereas Ambarisha maharaj was on the other hand was not only saved by the demon he also got liberated from birth and death cycles.
You can refer to this page it has lecture on the same topic by His Holiness Radhanath swami maharaj ji amazingly explained with more detail.
http://www.radhanathswami.net/yearwise/1996/radhanath-swami-on-the-...
Hare Krishna.
Hare krishna, pamho, Mataji thank you for the link. agtsp.