What exactly is a Karmic debt? How is it repaid? (2024)

Karmic debt means that we have bound some bad karma.

How is the karmic debt repaid?

Param Pujya Dada Bhagwan, an enlightened being explains,

“There are two directions in which one can progress from a human life-form. If you have a karmic debt, which means that you have bound bad karma; you would have to go to the animal kingdom to pay it off. If your debt were excessive, you would have to take birth in hell, and settle it there, before you return to human life. If you accomplish good karmas here, then you become a more elevated human being and live an entire life of happiness. When that (stock of good karma) is over, you will either return to the same state (human form) or go into the celestial form (in heaven), where you will enjoy the benefits of your credits. Once the credit is used up, you end up back here in the human form.”

It means when a human leaves from here (upon death), (based on his karmic debt), he may reincarnate as a cow and experience the life of a cow, after which he may be born as a goat. It is not definite that he will be a goat; it could be anything depending on his karmic account. It depends on the causes (the kind of karmic debt). He may even be born as a donkey.

How does one incur karmic debt?

If through our thoughts, words or actions, we hurt others, we incur a karmic debt.

Pujya Dadashri says, “The humans bind karma. If they cause harm or misery to people, they go to the animal form or a life in hell. If their karmas give happiness to others, then they return to human life or go to the celestial level. So the life level (the life-form, whether human, animal, hell or celestial) depends on the type of karma bound. Once the level is decided, one has to go through that level, experience the effects and return to the human form.”

What if we want to undo our mistakes? Is there any way?

Let’s ask Pujya Dadashri…

“It is through his internal intent (bhaav) that he creates a new karma (if one’s intent is bad, he binds bad karma, if his intent is good, he binds good karma). Now if he were to ask me, what he should do for his spoiled intent, I would tell him, ask for forgiveness from whichever God you believe in. If you ask for forgiveness and vow not to repeat the mistake again, that new karma (the cause) will be erased immediately. Changes, in a letter that has been written, are possible only until you have not mailed it. Once the letter is mailed (i.e. you have left this life), it is no longer in your hands thereafter, and the karma gets bound (caused). However, you can erase everything before you leave this body”, says Pujya Dadashri.

Therefore, so that we do not have to go through the process of repayment of any karmic debt, we must spend our spare time, to the extent possible, in recalling our mistakes, and seeking forgiveness for them, as explained by Param Pujya Dadashri.

How do we come out of this cycle of incurring the karmic debt and then repaying it?

After many years of such wandering and paying off the debt of karmas, one takes birth again in the human form. The process of passing through different life forms happens from the causes (karma) created in the human life form. These causes are in the form of layers (due to the multiple mistakes that we make of one kind). One layer is shed in each subsequent life form (when the effect of the cause is suffered, the layer of the karma is shed). When all the layers are gone, he then comes back to the human form.

Then, only such a balance of karma, worthy of a human form, stays with him. It is because of this balance that he is able to return to the human form. Keeping aside this balance, all other karmas (karmic debts or credits) are discharged through experience in that particular life-form.

Pujya Dadashri further specifies, “He has with him a balance of human karmas. The balance is there, but if a debt is incurred (bad karma), then you have to go and repay it before you can return (to human form). If one has acquired a credit, then he must experience that before returning. The balance (worthy of human birth) remains with you and it never gets used up. When does the balance get used up? It is used up when the ‘doership’ goes away. Only then can you be liberated.

One who does not bind any karma at all, not an iota of cause karma, they are liberated from this cycle. One can attain liberation only in the human form. There is no other place from which one can attain liberation.

How does one not bind any karma?

This happens when they do not become the ‘doer’ of the karma.

Param Pujya Dada Bhagwan suggests the only way, “The doership will never go away unless the ego goes. The ego is the doership. If the ego is there, you experience your karmas elsewhere (in other life-forms) and return back to where you were before (in the human form). When they come to me and receive this knowledge of Self-realization, they become free from all doership of karma and thereafter only the experiencing of previously created karma remains. The ego is the doer of karma.”

Thus to save ourselves, not only from incurring any further karmic debt, but from the very bind of any kind of new karma at all, come, let’s attain Self-Realization from the Living Gnani, the Enlightened One and follow his given principles through our life!!

For more details, you may please read at https://www.dadabhagwan.org/