Adduce & Excerpts

Dr. A.P.J Abdul Kalam

This excerpt is from Kalam's famous book 'My Spritual Experience with Pramukh Swamiji Maharaj', Ch. 21, 'The Highest Virtue Is the Intellectual Love of God'. This one points out the futility of human's sense of superiority in this world and tries to explain the bigger game that is at play since eternity. It goes like this:

"If a stone falls from a height on someone's head and kills him, it may be inferred that the stone fell in order to kill the man. For if it did not fall to that end, God willing it, how could so many circumstances have concurred by chance? Perhaps it happened because the wind was blowing hard and the man was walking that way. But we can persist; why was the wind blowing hard at that time? Why was the man walking in that Place at that time? If you answer again that the wind arose then because on the preceding day, while the weather was still calm, the sea began to toss, and that the man had been invited by a friend, we can press on-for there is no end to the questions which can be asked: but why was the sea tossing? Why was the man invited at just that time? And we may not stop asking for the causes of causes until we take refuge in the will of God."

Though it is not even feasible for a human mind to to do, but by some miracle, if one keeps on establishing the chain of cause and effects of such circumstance, incidents or events, one would inevitably reach the beginning of time itself. By that logic, each and every step one takes is noting but an addition in this colossal and long chain of events. This idea invariably puts a question mark on free will itself. Is everything pre-determined, are we just playing the role given my some almighty or we actually do have some say in this?

Here is a Shloka from Shrimad Bhagwat Gita which you might find relevant:

 मूल श्लोकः 3.27

प्रकृतेः क्रियमाणानि गुणैः कर्माणि सर्वशः।अहङ्कारविमूढात्मा कर्ताऽहमिति मन्यते।

Translation By Swami Ramsukhdas:

सम्पूर्ण कर्म सब प्रकार से प्रकृति के गुणों द्वारा किये जाते हैं; परन्तु अहंकार से मोहित अन्तः करणवाला अज्ञानी मनुष्य 'मैं कर्ता हूँ' -- ऐसा मानता है।

Actions are being performed in every way by the Gunas of Prakrti. He whose nature is deluded by egoism, thinks, 'I am the doer.'