Punya and Paap

Punya is that which one earns by meritorious or virtuous deeds and Paap is one acquired by evil or vicious acts.

Every one does indulge in some or other activity. This activity may be physical or mental or both. It is possible that a person may refrain from physical activity for some time. His mental apparatus however never rests. It functions even when he rests or undergoes sleep. Every activity involves Karma and he has to bear consequences thereof sooner or later. If one undertakes meritorious activity, he earns Punya or Shubha(wholesome) Karmas; if he indulges in evil activity, he acquires Paap or Ashubha(unwholesome) Karmas.

Depending upon the intensity and accumulation of wholesome Karmas, one may be blessed with happy and comfortable situations like handsome and strong or beautiful and graceful body, good health, attractive and loving sp ouse, children to be proud of, wealth, amenities etc. Unwholesome Karmas on the other hand would result in unhappy and miserable situations like ugliness, illness, quarrelsome and wicked spouse, issuelessness or vicious issues, poverty etc. It is therefore generally accepted that every one should try to undertake meritorious activities and refrain from evil ones.

Many of the physical activities are evidently good or bad. Organized societies therefore endeavor to encourage beneficial or virtuous activities and to discourage the wicked or vicious ones. There may also be legal provisions to forbid some of the manifestly wicked activities so as to maintain peace and order within the society.

Some of the activities however cannot be clearly labelled as good or bad. In spiritual field the intention, with which and the disposition in which an activity is undertaken, play s an important role in deciding whether it would attract wholesome or unwholesome Karmas.

Let us examine this aspect with the help of illustrations. A burglar, for instance, comes across a person whom he wants to rob. He therefore fatally stabs the person . On the other hand, a patient with tumor in stomach is advised to undergo surgery. He therefore goes to a surgeon who opens his belly with the surgical knife. Unfortunately for the patient, the tumor is in too advanced stage or there are other complications. Consequently, the patient dies at the opening of the belly. In both these cases a person hurts the other person with a knife and that other person dies. Does it mean that the burglar and the surgeon would attract the same type of Karma? Obviously not. The burglar’s activity is evidently sinful, while that of the surgeon can be treated as meritorious.

Let us take a finer case. Suppose, Suresh and Raman, two young pupils of the same preceptor are going from one place to another. On the way they come across a river that is flooded. On the bank of the river, there is a beautiful young girl intending to go across but scared of too much water. Realizing her anxiety, Suresh offers his hand and leads her into water. Watching this, Raman screams, but Suresh ignores his screams and goes ahead. Flow of the river gets swifter causing the girl to drift. Suresh the refore holds his hand around her waist and leads her ahead. For Raman this act of Suresh is beyond imagination and he severely reproaches Suresh for his audacity. Suresh again ignores his objection. Water gets deeper ahead. The girl does not know how to swim. Suresh therefore carries her on his back and swims across the river. This is too much for Raman who abuses Suresh like anything for gross violation of the vow of celibacy. Suresh does not respond any way. He leaves the girl on the other bank and silently proceeds ahead with his colleague. On the way, Raman rebukes him again and again for what he had done and warns him of the dire consequences at the hands of the preceptor. Suresh maintains silence while reproaches of his friend continue unabated. Aft er listening for one hour Suresh points out that he had left the girl one hour back, while Raman was still holding her in his head.

It would be evident that in this case Suresh had no intention aside from helping a girl in crossing the river. While holding her hand or while carrying her on his back, he had no other motivation. Therefore he left her as soon as he reached the other bank . In all probability he even did not look at her beauty. For him, she was simply a person who was in need of help. He rendered it while retaining unimpassioned attitude throughout. Raman’s attitude was totally different. Though he did not even touch the girl, he was thrilled by the imaginary sensation of close contact of a beautiful girl. In the heart of his heart he longed to have a feel of her beauty. He did not actually do so simply because it was forbidden. In the spiritual sense he therefore committed sin of indulging in undesirable activity, while Suresh earned the Punya of helping a person in need. Thus Paap and Punya are to be conceived in relative terms and more often than naught they depend upon one’s mental attitude in a given situation.

Concepts of Punya and Paap are more or less identical with most of the religions. The latter concept is however more subtly treated by Indian philosophies, They take into consideration not only the actual act but also the intention behind it. They are una nimous in adoring the meritorious intentions and activities and in condemning the sinful ones.

Sant Tukaram's definition of Paap and Punya

Punya Paropkar paap te parpeeda
aanik naahi zoda dooja yaasi

Helping others out in difficult times and giving happiness (Paropkar) is "Punya". Where as, causing sorrow to others (Parpeeda) is "Paap" ie. sin. There is no pair as interesting and as perfectly opposite as this pair.

Satya tochi Dharma, asatya te karma
aanik he varm naahi dooje

Truth is the only religion, untruth and deceit are bondage. There is no secret like this on this planet.

Gati techi mukhi Naamache smaran
Adhogati jaan vinmukhta

He whose tongue chants the Lord's Name continuously attains salvation instantly. He whose tongue does not chant the Holy Names rotts here in this trap of birth and death.

Santaancha sang tochi swargavaas
Nark to udaas anargala

He who keeps company with truthful, gentle, kind, generous, God fearing people attains "swargavaas" ie. salvation. To him who does not do so, hell is destined.

Tuka mhane ughade aahe hit yaant
jayaa je uchit karaa taise

Says Tuka: - ALL THE ABOVE OPTIONS (ie Paropkar or Parpeeda, truthfulness or deceit, to chant or not to chant, to keep good company or not to...) ARE OPEN TO ALL HUMANS ALIKE. ITS FOR HUMANS TO CHOOSE ACCORDINGLY.