By Atty. Antonio P. Pekas
A client came around flabbergasted due to the grabbing of their land by a relative. Since she was not the feisty one who would take the matter to court and fight for it no matter how much it takes, no matter how long it takes, and no matter the aggravation, I tried to console her that justice will in the end prevail.
I believed in that no matter who among the parties would die first.
Which brings us to the issue on what happens after death?
It reminded me of a relative who was asking about how I was doing after coming out from the hospital. I told him I was OK but if something happened again causing my death, I kiddingly told him, it would be OK as we are supposed to be Christians. As such, what happens when we die? We go to heaven.
Then it was his turn to try to make me laugh. He said, “Are you sure we will end up in heaven?” He was right in asking that as we might find ourselves burning in hell or having to spend a million years first in purgatory.
Obviously, he was referring to sins or transgressions we might have committed which will decide our final destination.
Since I am also a yoga (path of bliss) practitioner, I broached another viewpoint. Yogis, like other groups such as the Buddhists, believe in creation through evolution.
So when one dies, he will be reincarnated into someone that befits the level of his evolution. If he did not evolve but actually degenerated and became a criminal, he might end up being reborn as a beggar or one with an incurable disease or some abnormalities. He might also be suffering from a series of illnesses.The point is he will be suffering to pay for his crimes or sins.
If he degenerated so much that his mind have become like that of an animal. He might be reborn an animal like a dog and might even be “nagodgod” (with scabies).
This might be the explanation why some people by nature seem to attract misfortune in whatever they do. They appear to be cursed no matter how much they try.
Of course, human memory do not go beyond this lifetime. So we blame everybody else for our misfortunes including accidents or illnesses, or for anything we are suffering from but not ourselves.
But some questions might be relevant which we should ask ourselves whenever we are in trouble or in inconvenient situations. What sins or injustices had I committed in the distant past to deserve being afflicted with such an incurable disease? What sins did I commit for me to get married to a cheating partner?
Such different beliefs have some commonality. In particular the accountability for injustices or sins committed. These are recorded in God’s mind or cosmic mind, if you will.
In short, there is no escaping our karma. As they say, for every action there is a commensurate reaction. And these will determine where we would be headed after death or what will become of us.
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