View Poll Results: Can a Life be Interrupted?

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  • Yes (how?)

    3 60.00%
  • No (why not?)

    2 40.00%
  • Sometimes (please explain?)

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Thread: Can a life be interrupted?

  1. #1
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    Can a life be interrupted?

    Namaste ji,

    I am aware that this is another of those questions that is probably going to garner many differing views. I am not looking for an absolute here, but wish to sample the general span of ideas. If you would like to answer the sub-questions after, that would be appreciated. =)

    The question is:
    Can the span of a Life be interrupted?
    A) Yes (how?)
    B) No (why not?)
    C) Sometimes (please explain?)

    Can a life be cut short, or will one only die around the time it is their 'destined' time to? If a life can be cut short, or only sometimes, in what ways can that happen?
    Also, what might be the result of such a circumstance to the jiva whose life was interrupted?
    The question implies a certain amount of "pre-destiny" in a sense that I am not sure is the same as Dharma - I am unclear on the distinction at times.

    I hope this is not a silly, alarming or offensive question. There are many lines of thought recently, and a friendly debate, that lead to my pondering this more actively, and I realize that much of my own opinion may be too informed by western thought, so I am curious as to others' philosophies/beliefs and where they draw them from.

    One may ask my own belief. Currently I'm stuck at a firm "Huh. Not sure...".

    ~Pranam-s
    ~~~~~
    What has Learning profited a man, if it has not led him to worship the good feet of Him who is pure knowledge itself?
    They alone dispel the mind's distress, who take refuge at the feet of the incomparable one.
    ~~Tirukural 2, 7

    Anbe Sivamayam, Satyame Parasivam

  2. #2
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    Re: Can a life be interrupted?

    hari o
    ~~~~~~
    namasté


    who can speak here with any level of authority ? ( I claim absolutely none).

    Yet I know this: The cause of death in every case is birth. But what dies ? That which comes and goes anyway.

    iti śiva

    यतस्त्वं शिवसमोऽसि
    yatastvaṁ śivasamo'si
    because you are identical with śiva

    _

  3. #3
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    Re: Can a life be interrupted?

    Namaste,

    Quote Originally Posted by yajvan View Post
    The cause of death in every case is birth.
    Not to cause any mischief, but to this simple mind, it sounds like a claim is being made that when a new baby is going to be born/conceived, the divine randomly picks someone to die, so that a soul is available for the new life to be created. I hope I am totally off base, but how would I know without being explained why.

    Pranam.

    PS, On the second read, the comment could also be interpreted as death occurs because 'jiva' was born in the first place. That seems to make more sense and is perhaps what was presented.
    Last edited by Believer; 11 May 2014 at 04:54 PM.

  4. #4
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    Re: Can a life be interrupted?

    Quote Originally Posted by yajvan View Post
    who can speak here with any level of authority ? ( I claim absolutely none).

    Yet I know this: The cause of death in every case is birth. But what dies ? That which comes and goes anyway.
    Namaskar Yajvan ji,

    Thank you for responding, I had hoped you might. Certainly you speak truth in the most practical sense. But is there no reflection on this at all in scripture?

    For instance I have heard it said that a suicide cuts life short, and either because of the unfulfilled lessons of that life or because of the act of trying to dodge them, the jiva's next life has much more difficult karmas - I have heard stronger messages than that as well.
    However, I have also seen how much a Human body can survive as well as how little it can take to kill, it's almost contradictory. Consider the man who recently survived a wood chipper versus someone who dies from a simple blow to a particular part of the head. There are those who have said that they have come close to death and should by all rights have died, and since they didn't have begun to think it is because it wasn't their time. I count myself in with those, though I am not certain why I survived nor do I think it really matters too much.

    This brings one to think of other cases. What of murder, or a non-combatant killed in a war, taken by surprise? Was it their "time" to go, or did their life get cut short? If the person who killed them has garnered seeds of Karma from the action, doesn't this imply the lives were cut short? And what of those jivas, will they also have a tougher karmic time of things once they take a new birth?

    ~Pranam
    ~~~~~
    What has Learning profited a man, if it has not led him to worship the good feet of Him who is pure knowledge itself?
    They alone dispel the mind's distress, who take refuge at the feet of the incomparable one.
    ~~Tirukural 2, 7

    Anbe Sivamayam, Satyame Parasivam

  5. #5
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    Re: Can a life be interrupted?

    hariḥ oṁ
    ~~~~~~

    namasté

    Quote Originally Posted by Aanandinii View Post
    Namaskar Yajvan ji,
    But is there no reflection on this at all in scripture?
    This is perhaps why kṛṣṇa said¹ 'unfathomable is the course of action'. We at times are bewildered at the events of life; What was the audit trail back to this action? We hear often 'Why did it happen to me or to us?' Why did this person die so early in life ?

    praṇām

    words
    • bhāgavad gītā - Chapter 4, 17th śloka - gahanā karmaṇaḥ gathiḥ -
      • gahana - inexplicable , hard to be understood ~ unfathomable
      • karmaṇaḥ - act , action , performance
      • gati - path , way , course , method
    यतस्त्वं शिवसमोऽसि
    yatastvaṁ śivasamo'si
    because you are identical with śiva

    _

  6. #6
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    Re: Can a life be interrupted?

    Namaste,

    I would like to go with Yajvan ji.

    a) No one can tell here with authority on what actually happens.

    b) By my knowledge of scriptures and teachings of the masters, pre-mature deaths do occur and that is mostly the cause of dis-embodied souls. However, it is not without some prevalent tendencies. Whatever happens to a person in this lifetime is decide by two things : His past Karma (impressions of actions and thoughts) and his present Karma. Now, the past Karma dominate and yet the present Karma can lessen the effects of Past Karma. Again, Karmas are just the seeds for future happenings and the type of growth which would be possible out of it varies depending on many things like one's present Karma, time and place and grace of God, saints etc.

    Therefore, even though a lifetime for a person is predetermined, it is subject to many forces which can cause this to change with person's own Karma, time/place and other related factors of the subject. This may lead to destruction of body before the initially determined time. However, that is not termination of life ... it continues without a body till the time comes to leave even this worldly body.

    OM
    "Om Namo Bhagvate Vaasudevaye"

  7. #7
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    Re: Can a life be interrupted?

    Namaste Yajvan ji and Devotee ji,

    I thank you both for your thoughts. Perhaps, then, the western influence in me is the desire to contemplate such things.
    I understand there is no real way to know anything, that's the nature of all of this. If we knew, we wouldn't likely be here. But still, there are assertions made by various people and writings, one wonders why and where they got such ideas. An example is Sati's suicide at Prajapati's great homa, and the consequences.

    But all this time I have been speaking around the topic closest in my mind, and Devotee ji, you touch on it.
    Quote Originally Posted by devotee View Post
    Whatever happens to a person in this lifetime is decide by two things : His past Karma (impressions of actions and thoughts) and his present Karma. Now, the past Karma dominate and yet the present Karma can lessen the effects of Past Karma. Again, Karmas are just the seeds for future happenings and the type of growth which would be possible out of it varies depending on many things like one's present Karma, time and place and grace of God, saints etc.
    This. I am aware of what you state here, and what I have been trying to figure out is the reason for certain memories I have and what any of it might mean for this life. I still carry some memories of my last birth. I didn't get them from regressions or visions, I have always had them, very clearly, for as long as I can remember. I have found them intruding in my thoughts recently, demanding attention. So I wonder why I have these and what that means, if they mean anything at all. I have been trying to figure that out without coming flat out and stating something that in all honesty seems a ridiculous claim to make, at best.

    This all is also a nice distraction of my mind from the actual goal, but sometimes - at least for me - when the mind refuses to let something go, the best thing is to analyze and reason it out and then I can't dwell on it anymore. =) But then that's the Buddhist in me coming through.

    Devotee ji, you said something else, which I don't think I understand:
    ...pre-mature deaths do occur and that is mostly the cause of dis-embodied souls.
    How do you mean?

    You also mentioned that life continues after the death of the physical body until the time comes to leave the worldly body... I am making an assumption that what you meant is that the "worldly body" is the body of light given to the Jiva, not the material form we take in each birth in order to interact here in the material world? The shedding of the soul body being final moksha, re-merging with Brahman? Or am I misinterpreting your intent?

    Thank you again.

    ~Pranam-s
    ~~~~~
    What has Learning profited a man, if it has not led him to worship the good feet of Him who is pure knowledge itself?
    They alone dispel the mind's distress, who take refuge at the feet of the incomparable one.
    ~~Tirukural 2, 7

    Anbe Sivamayam, Satyame Parasivam

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    Re: Can a life be interrupted?

    Dear friend ,
    I do agree that there is a thing known as free will which interferes with prarabda karma some very rare cases . But in 99. 9% of the cases , everything goes by prarabda only . In the .1% cases , utmost merit or utmost sin act and lead to the result . The 'x' factor can't be deciphered before hand .

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    Re: Can a life be interrupted?

    Namaste Aanandinii

    The length of a man's life has already been determined in advance, even before a person is born. This predetermined duration of a man's life can be reduced if a person commits some kind of offense, fault or a sin during the life.
    There are examples of this in the scriptures. For example it is said in the Manu-smriti 5.3-4 (http://www.sacred-texts.com/hin/manu.htm) :

    3. Righteous Bhrigu, the son of Manu, (thus) answered the great sages: 'Hear, (in punishment) of what faults Death seeks to shorten the lives of Brahmanas!'

    4. 'Through neglect of the Veda-study, through deviation from the rule of conduct, through remissness (in the fulfilment of duties), and through faults (committed by eating forbidden) food, Death becomes eager to shorten the lives of Brahmanas.'

    It is said in the Vishnu Purana Book III: Chapter XI,
    http://www.sacred-texts.com/hin/vp/vp085.htm

    "He who commits adultery is punished both here and hereafter; for his days in this world are cut short, and when dead he falls into hell."

    regards

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    Re: Can a life be interrupted?

    Dear friends ,
    when Pramadwara died , Ruru , the person who loved her too dearly , and who wanted her to get back , had to surrender half of his longivity to her Prarabda karma is like an arrow let out and can never be retrieved . but sometimes in very rare cases , unparalleled love and sacrifice or merit could reverse the verdict . Even in modern era also it could happen , if that strong love and sacrifice warrant that , which is a big if .So I don't think life can be interrupted as such . In suicides or murders or accidents also the deaths are predestined , though they look as man made. rgds ---- saswathy

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