|| Shri Hari ||

Duties in a Household Life

 continued

Question -  How are we indebted to creatures (Bhootarna) and how to rid ourselves of this debt ?  

Answer -  All creatures such as cows-buffaloes,  sheep-goats, camels-horses etc.,  nourish and sustain our life.  Trees, plants and creepers provide us fruits, flowers,  leaves and wood etc.,  So we are indebted to them.  We are free from this debt by feeding animals and birds and by providing water to them and by manuring and watering trees and creepers etc.   

Question -  How are we indebted to human beings and how to rid ourselves of this debt ?   

Answer -  We don’t sustain our life without the help of other human beings.  We walk along the paths (roads) made by others.  We use the water of the wells constructed by others.    We make use of the trees planted by others and we eat the food produced by others.  Therefore,  we can rid ourselves of this debt by providing wells, water-huts, trees,  roads, hospices and food.  

A householder has to pay all these five kinds of debts.  He who totally surrenders himself to God,  does not remain indebted to manes and gods etc.,  he rids himself of all debts.  

Question -  Should a couple who have no children, adopt a kith or kin or an orphan boy or girl ?  

Answer -  In the world of today,  it is advisable for a couple not to adopt any children.  The reason is that when even one’s own son does not serve and obey his parents, how will the adopted son serve and obey them ?   Though there is an ordinance of the scriptures for a couple to adopt a child so that he may offer water and oblation to them;  yet what is the use of adopting when he will not offer water and oblation to the manes ?  If we needed a son,  God would give us one.  We need no son, so God has not given us one.  Why should we get into trouble by adopting a child ?   Generally it is noticed that adopted sons trouble parents and don’t serve them.  Therefore,  such couples should educate and serve orphan boys and should make arrangement for their maintenance.   

  

(to be continued....... ) 

 ‒From the book ‘Jeevan ka Kartavya' by Swami Ramsukhdasji

|| Shri Hari ||

Duties in a Household Life

 continued

Question -  Can a person be free from the debt of manes without giving birth to offspring ?   

Answer -  Yes he can be free.  He who totally surrenders himself to God,  becomes free from all debts -   

Devarsibhootaaptanrnaam pitreenaam

Na kinkaro naayamrni cha raajan

Sarvaatmanaa yah saranam saranyam

Gato mukundam parihrtya kartam

(Srimad Bhagwat 11/5/41)  

‘O’ King,  he who surrenders himself to God,  does not remain indebted and a servant (slave) to anyone - gods, sages, creatures, family and manes.’   

Question - How are we indebted to gods and how to rid ourselves of this debts ?   

Answer -  We receive rain, air, sunshine, sunlight and moonlight by which we maintain our body, and the earth holds all of us - thus we are indebted to gods.   The offerings of oblation to the fire god and performance of religious sacrifice nourish gods and we become free from our debts.   

Question -  How are we indebted to sages and how to rid ourselves of this debt ?  

Answer -  We are indebted to sages and saints for the books and ‘Smritis’  (19 books of traditional Hindu law)  composed by them.  Those books impart teaching and preaching to us and make us realize what ought to be done and what ought not to be done.  We become free from this debt by studying and teaching these books,  by morning-evening prayers and by reciting Gayatri Mantra (a Vedic metre which is to be recited daily by the twice born).   

(to be continued....... ) 

 ‒From the book ‘Jeevan ka Kartavya' by Swami Ramsukhdasji

|| Shri Hari ||

Duties in a Household Life

 continued

Question -  Do manes receive the oblation offered to them ?  

Answer -  continued...

Today the necessities of life such as food and clothes etc.,   that we honorably receive may be either the fruit of our virtuous actions of the past or of the oblation offered by our sons and grand sons etc.,  of the previous life.  But it is certainly decided by the fate.  

As a person deposits an amount of a hundred thousand rupees in a bank in three accounts -  his own, his wife’s and his son’s,  he can withdraw the money only from his own account.  As far as the money deposited in the accounts of his wife and son is concerned, only they can withdraw it.  Similarly, the oblation offered to manes is received by them only.  But if we offer oblation in the form of cooked rice ball and water in our name,  we shall receive it after death.   In Gaya,  the cooked rice balls and water offered in the name of beasts, and birds is received by them.  A person loves his cow very much.  When the cow died,  he had a dream and he saw thtat the cow was in a very miserable and sad condition.  He went to Gaya and offered oblation of cooked rice ball and water for her.  She again appeared to him when he had a dream and she was very happy.  

We have not so much of claim to the money earned by our father,  grand-father and great-grand-father as we have on our own earned money.  According to the family tradition,  our sons and grand-sons have a claim to the money of our father and grand-father etc.  Similarly the manes receive the water and oblation offered to them by sons and grand-sons according to the family tradition.   So it is the responsibility of sons and grand-sons to offer oblation and water to father and grand-father etc.   

It is not a rule that after death, all people must go to the world of manes,  because they meet with destiny according to their actions.   

Question -  What happens to the water and oblation offered by the son whose parents have attained salvation and gone to the Abode of God ?   

Answer -  If the son’s parents have attained salvation and gone to the Abode of God,  but the son does not know it,  the oblation and water offered and the charity given in their name,  is deposited in the account of the son and he receive it after death, in the same way as the money sent by the sender,  comes back to him if the addressee is not available.   

(to be continued....... ) 

 ‒From the book ‘Jeevan ka Kartavya' by Swami Ramsukhdasji

|| Shri Hari ||

Duties in a Household Life

 continued

Question -  There are five debts which are to be paid to manes, gods, sages, creatures and human beings, in the scriptures.   Out of them what is the debt which is to be paid to manes and how to pay it ?  

Answer -   The obsequies performed at the death of parents, grand-parents,  great grand-parents,  maternal grand-parents and maternal-great-grand parents are known as ‘Pretakaarya’  and offerings of oblation of cooked rice ball and water to manes are known as ‘Pitrakaarya.’ After death a being may go to any species - of gods, human beings, birds,  beasts, ghosts,  evil spirits,  trees and creepers etc.,  he is called a ‘Pitara’ (manes).  

The body is constituted of the ovum and sperm of parents.  It is nourished by the mother’s milk and the food-stuff earned by the father.  The son receives education and talent from parents.   The parents get him married.  Thus a son is indebted to his parents,  the parents are indebted to the grand-parents,  and the grand-parents are indebted to the great grand-parents.    

Thus in order to be free from this ancestral debt and to lead the manes to salvation,  a son should offer oblation of cooked rice balls and water etc., to them.  

If a son offers oblation of cooked rice balls and water to his manes,  but he does not produce any offspring for offering cooked rice balls and water to the manes,  he is not freed from debt which he owes to them  i.e. he remains indebted to them.  When an offspring is born,  he does not remain indebted to them any more,  the debt is transferred to the offspring.  Manes want the offerings of cooked rice ball and water.  Therefore they are happy if they receive them,  but sad without them.  ‘They are also sad if no offspring is born to the son because they think that no one will offer the oblation of cooked rice balls and water to them.  

Question -  Do manes receive the oblation offered to them ?  

Answer -  Yes,  manes receive the oblation offered to them in the form of food and drink in whatsoever life (species) they are.  If they are in animal species,  the oblation offered to them is received by them in the form of grass.  But if they are in divine form of life,  they receive it in the form of nectar.  It means that they receive it as sustenance.  As money sent by us in rupees to America by money-order is received in the form of dollars over there,  so is the oblation offered to manes in the form of cooked rice ball and water,  and charity given,  is received by them in the form of food and drink according to their species.   

(to be continued....... ) 

 ‒From the book ‘Jeevan ka Kartavya' by Swami Ramsukhdasji

|| Shri Hari ||

Duties in a Household Life

 continued

Question ‒ What is the main duty of a householder ?  

Answer -  The main duty of a householder is to serve the persons of the four social orders -  celibates, householders, retirees,  and renunciates.   The householder is their mother-father, sustainer,  preserver etc.   All the people in the four social orders are born of householders and are sustained and preserved by them.  It is therefore the main and special duty of householders to sustain and support the persons of the four social orders.  

Hospitality, providing facilities to cattle such as cows, buffaloes, sheep and goats etc.,   regarding rats-mice etc.,  which live in the house as members of the family and to sustain and support them all -  these are the special duties of a householder.  Similarly rendering service to gods and sages,  offering oblation of cooked rice balls and water to manes and rendering special service to God (chanting His name and His remembrance) are also special duties of householders.  

Question:   How to lead a household life ?   

Answer:   A householder life is a school to attain salvation.   The main duty of the householder is to serve all the four household orders.  ‘This human body does not aim at enjoying pleasures’  (Manasa,  Uttara.  44/1)  Even the attainment of the world of Brahma by performing religious sacrifices etc.,  is not at all praiseworthy,  because he has to return from there as well.   Lord Krishna declares,  ‘A’;; worlds including that of Brahma are subject to return.’  (Gita 8/16).   Therefore,  a householder should renounce his own comforts in order to provide comforts to others according to his own power (resources) with his body, mind, intellect and rights etc. 

(to be continued....... ) 

 ‒From the book ‘Jeevan ka Kartavya' by Swami Ramsukhdasji

|| Shri Hari ||

Duties in a Household Life

Question ‒ Why should one get married  ?  Is it a necessity ?  

Answer ‒  There are two types of celibates over here -  ‘Naishthika’ (life long celibates)   and ‘Upakurvaana’ (celibates after leading a household life).   ‘Naishthika’  celibates are those who lead a pure unmarried life throughout their life;  while ‘Upakurvaana’ celibates are those who after reflection are unable to renounce the desire for pleasure so they lead a married life in order to root out this desire.  It means that those who can’t renounce the desire for pleasure, get married, in order to experience that the desire for pleasure can’t be rooted out through enjoyment.  After the householder social order, the other two social orders namely the retired and the renunciate have been ordained in our society.  It is not human to continue to enjoy pleasures by continuing to lead a household life.  

He who has a desire to enjoy mundane pleasures or he who wants the family succession to continue and has no brother,  should get married in order to wipe out the desire for pleasure or to continue the family succession.   If he has none of the above mentioned two desires,  he need not get married.  In the scriptures,  the path of renunciation has been declared to be the supreme.  

Question -  How to follow the path of renunciation when it is forbidden in the Kali age. (Kaliyug) ?  

Answer -  It is forbidden in the Kali age because in this age it is very difficult to follow this renunciate path properly.  Therefore just like retired government servants, he should retire from the domestic duties and having handed over the family duties and responsibilities to his sons and grand sons,  should devote himself to devotion to God.  If his sons want,  he should have affinity for his family in order to receive food and clothes for the mere maintenance.  If the sons don’t want it, he should renounce the affinity even for the mere maintenance.  He should not worry for the maintenance of his body because Saint Tulasidasa declares -  Fate is decided first and then the body is bestowed.  So why should a person worry ?   He should recite Lord Rama’s name with devotion.  

(to be continued....... ) 

 ‒From the book ‘Jeevan ka Kartavya' by Swami Ramsukhdasji