Life as continuation of karmas

This week during the regular pravachan on Sunday, our temple pandit ji talked about the life as the continuation of our karmas. This means that we have come to this earth to repay the debt incurred by us due to our accumulated karmas over multiple lifetimes. When we would have repaid this debt of karmas, we will not have to take rebirth and bear the pains on this earth. He also told the attendees that a saint (or Sant) is the one who has controlled his desires and learned his wisdom through his tapasya. People should carefully pay attention to such words of the sant vani. In the same context, he mentioned that Sant Kabir has told the essence of life in very simple words:

देह धरे का दंड है, सब काहू को होए,
ज्ञानी भुगते ज्ञान से, मूरख भुगते रोये।

Then, he explained that it means that just being born is a punishment because one has come to this earth for his repayment of the karmic debts, not because of someone else's or parent's wish. Only can he pass this test of repayment by opening up the doors of his mind and learning through the divine wisdom. Vidya or knowledge is said to be an incarnation of Mata Saraswati because it is pure and it lightens up the soul. On the other hand, a fool, as Kabir said in this doha, spends his life in his ego and material attachments and spends time crying his whole life. Therefore, the best way to live this life is by learning through our internal divinity and through the pure wisdom of others.

More on this topic in subsequent blogs...