Page 29 - Hinduism

what he sows, he has to submit meekly to what happens without any moral freedom. He has to endure what cannot be cured and is a slave of circumstances. But the scientific view is only one aspect of karma as the more important side is the assertion of the moral freedom or freedom of the will. It says that every man can control his inclinations like anger, fear, lust, hatred and jealousy and that he can control his future. The scientific theory applies only to prārabdha- karma and not to sañcita-karma. The former refers to the karma that has already happened, like the birth of a person, and which cannot be changed. But the latter refers to the future which is in our hands. Everyman is the master or architect of his destiny and not even a God can alter it. If a man has a conflict of desires, like the choice of a career, he has the moral freedom to decide for himself which career he can choose. He can control his passions, like anger or hatred and attain moral victory. But if he chooses the way of the animal, then he once again is chained to the wheel of Saṁsāra. But he too will one day begin to realise the futility and pain of choosing the animal way of life and turn towards the higher path of freedom through self-control. In either case freedom is inherent in every soul to choose the higher or the lower. A soul has freedom to choose but not the power to get the results of what it chooses as it likes. The results depend on the laws of the worlds and causation (karma).
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