[Advaita-l] Interest Collection is Wrong according to Dharma?

[Vidyasankar Sundaresan]

> > > I can understand this also, but again it is not clear to me how mOksha
> > can be balanced here in the true balance of mind !!??
> >
> > There should be balanced views of Dharma, Artha, Kama and Moksha for
> > Pravrutti Margis.
> >
> > > would you blame me prabhuji, if I say 'balancing of mOksha' is still a
> > puzzle to me ??
> >
> Everyone knows Moksha is the final goal. If he does not know Moksha is
> final goal he will be blindly doing activities in Dharma, Artha and Kama
> like animals not knowing why he is doing it. But if he thinks he can give
> up all activities of a householder because Moksha is final goal and there
> is no Karma for winning Moksha he is wrong again. When he is a householder
> he has to do duties. He cannot escape saying I am trying to get Moksha and


Dear Venkatesh, 

 

I'm afraid this argument reveals a lack of true understanding of dharma-moksha
and pravRtti-nivRtti. Firstly, to say that one could blindly do activities in dharma,
artha and kAma without knowing why, reveals a basic lack of understanding of
what dharma is all about. Doing things blindly without knowing why is hardly an
indication of a commitment to a dhArmika orientation. Yes, people do so, just
because that is what their families and their communities expect out of them, but
I think you will find ample verses in the gItA that describes such behavior as that
of an adhama. One should base one's thinking of dharma and moksha on the
actions and thoughts of the uttama-s amongst us, not that of the adhama-s.


Secondly, it is an adherence to dharma that will allow balance in the pursuit of
artha and kAma. Knowing that moksha is the final goal does not quite help. As
you say, everybody knows that moksha is the final goal. Indeed, that is so. Yet,
people constantly go after artha and kAma limitlessly and do not hesitate to do
adharma (cheat, lie, steal, accept and take bribes, kill, etc etc) in order to achieve
their worldly goals. The reason is that they are not properly grounded in dharma.
And almost everybody, whether dhArmika or otherwise, conveniently postpones
moksha - it is after all only a final goal, not for now, always for some time later.
This attitude, combined with a lack of understanding of dharma, is what plagues
us today. On the other hand, to even enter the path towards moksha as the final
goal, not just knowing in the back of one's mind that it is a final goal, a firm grasp
of dharma is necessary. 

 

Finally, even for a householder, when the vairAgya is ripe and mature, and the
keenness of mumukshutva tolerates no more delay, giving up of all karmA is
indeed the recommendation. "yad ahareva virajet tad ahar eva pravrajet," says
the jAbAla Sruti, which is quoted often by bhagavatpAda. Trying to "balance out"
all four purushArtha-s, without admitting that moksha stands separate from the
other three, leads to morally questionable choices and to indefensible decisions.
For example, a saMnyAsI could decide to become a gRhastha in order to balance
out his pursuit of all four purushArtha-s. Please think about why this is not allowed
by our SAstra and why a regression back to pravRtti mArga is not sanctioned after
taking up the nivRtti mArga. The fundamental reason is that one should not become
a saMnyAsin if one is not prepared to let go of the other three purushArtha-s and
if one does not have an overriding commitment to the moksha purushArtha. The
prohibition against a renouncer reentering usual societal life and becoming a
householder is based precisely on the fact that dharma, artha and kAma are to
be set aside in the pursuit of moksha. As you can see, no loose talk of "balance"
is allowed here. All the balance is meant for the three, not for the fourth.

 

Vidyasankar