1.
Q: Once vasanas are expended, will jeevatma remain individualistic. I am told that ego and feeling of I is a major problem for realising God ( I do, I feel, I am this etc). Will the Jeevatma come in the way of oneness.
A: The VAsanas will get exhausted only when "I" and the associated ego disappear.
2.
Q:As regards purification of the Jeeva, right approaches would help. For example I seem to treat a snake or a scorpion differently if seen in the wild, in the garden or in the bathroom. Ahimsa is fundamental feeling in all the three situations but sometimes himsa seems to be inevitable. Ants and cockroaches in the kitchen may be a more blatant example, I use insecticides etc to kill them. Further, human body is having both friendly bacteria and unfriendly ones, and I take anti-bio-tics to kill them when not under control.
Q:As regards purification of the Jeeva, right approaches would help. For example I seem to treat a snake or a scorpion differently if seen in the wild, in the garden or in the bathroom. Ahimsa is fundamental feeling in all the three situations but sometimes himsa seems to be inevitable. Ants and cockroaches in the kitchen may be a more blatant example, I use insecticides etc to kill them. Further, human body is having both friendly bacteria and unfriendly ones, and I take anti-bio-tics to kill them when not under control.
I use milk on a daily basis, while it belongs rightly to the calf. Plants are lower forms of life and I live on it, while it is possible to avoid animal products. Will it be possible for the entire world to avoid animal products.
To top it all, we use milk and honey in worship. Even using flowers plucked from plants and offered to God, slightly disturb me. The bees and some birds seem to coexist with flowers and depend on their nectar. I do not think it is perfect to offer to God these things, though we like to worship God with nice things.
Thus it seems one can never get rid of vasanas completely. We can only reduce the vasanas.
I am sure some answers should be there in our Vedas for these. Kindly share this knowledge.
A: Himsa without selfish interest and for the purpose of dharma is not reckoned as Himsa.
According to GItA, leaf, flower. fruit and water( patram, pushpam, phalam and toyam) are the acceptable offerings to the Supreme . But the moot point is the inherent Bhakti BhAva. Without that God does not accept anything from anyone.
We should not stretch our compassion to other living beings too far so as to die of starvation. The Vedas say that "annam na nindyAt ! tad vratam !." Human life is very rare and hence for protecting it one has to take proper care by consuming appropriate food. As regards killing of animals " Mens Rea" should be there for one to be held guilty.
Any offering to Supreme with devotion does not incur sin. He relieves one from all known and unknown sins . aham tvA sarvapApebhyo mokshayishyAmi mA Sucah !
3.
Q:Worldly existence seem to be having many contradictions. Animals, which are programmed to live in certain way and have no free will, some of them kill others for prey. Himsa is apparent to us but it happens naturally. As if it is meant that way. Vegetarians seems to be only doing less himsa, considering plants are also lives of different order. It seems creation itself, like good and bad bacteria within human body, is in a larger scale, seen in nature, with such happenings, one harming the other. Many humans do not like a deer being killed and eaten by a tiger. Thus what we feel and what nature is, are not in sync apparently. Neither we can agree nor disagree. But no doubt that the feeling of sadness when a deer is killed is there and we may try to protect the deer, given an opportunity. At the same time, we know very well that wild animals starve to death if they are not given or getting such prey and in zoos wild animals are offered such prey.
In a very very subtle way vegetarians are also not absolutely harmless and of course, we seem to have no qualms about offering milk to god, which rightly belong to its calf. We seem to be sort of conditioned, rather than being true to ourselves.
What we feel and what is nature, I feel, is not in sync for some reason. If, for so many thousands of years, great thinkers have not found an answer, will it be worthwhile searching for such answer. If answer is there, why it is not apparent or common knowledge.
I definitely know that I am not the first one to feel so, but since I have not come across answers, I am searching. Hope you will appreciate and through some light.
A: Animals live by instinct while human beings are bestowed with the power of viveka. Animals do not incur any sin by eating other animals as they are programmed in that fashion.
All the milk from the cow cannot be consumed by the calf. It is our duty to first feed the calf with cow milk and take only the extra milk gracefully for offering to Supreme and for human consumption. By offering to God, food becomes prasAda .and is free from contamination of sins.
Everything is well-connected in nature by design and we do not perceive it due to our own limitations in understanding.
People bestowed with intellect always search for answers for the puzzle of creation. But only a few succeed with the grace of BhagavAn.
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