... RIGHT AND WRONG ...
|| Om Om Om ||
WISDOM FOR DAILY DOINGS ...
RIGHT AND WRONG
`Right' and `wrong' are relative terms. They vary according to time,
special circumstances, varna (caste), and asrama (stage of life).
Morality is a changing and relative term. The passionate man who
molests his wife frequently, to gratify his own passion is more
immoral than man who visits the house of a woman of ill-fame once in
six months. The man who dwells constantly on immoral thoughts, is the
most immoral man of all.
Do you clearly note the subtle difference? To kill an enemy is right
for a king but, a brahmana (priest) or a sanyasin (monk) should not
kill anybody, even to protect himself in times of danger. He should
practise strict forbearance and forgiveness. To speak an untruth, to
save the life of a mahatma (holy one), or one's guru, who has been
unjustly charged by an unjust officer of state, is right. In this
particular case untruth has become truth. To speak a truth which
brings harm to many is untruth only. To kill a robber who murders
wayfarers, is ahimsa only. Himsa (violence) becomes ahimsa (non-
violence) under certain circumstances.
Even great sages are bewildered sometimes in finding out what is
right and what is wrong. That is why Lord Krishna says in the
Bhagavad Gita: "What is action and what is inaction? Even the wise
are herein perplexed. Therefore I will declare to thee the action, by
knowing which thou shalt be liberated from evil. It is needful to
discriminate action to discriminate unlawful action and to
discriminate inaction. Mysterious is the path of action. He who seeth
inaction in action, and action in inaction, he is wise among men. He
is harmonious even while performing all actions." (Chapter IV, Verse
16-18).
Rishi Kanada, author of Vaisesika Philosophy, says in the opening
verse: "That which brings supreme bliss and exaltation is right. That
which elevates and brings you nearer to God, is right. That which
brings you down and takes you away from God, is wrong. That which is
done in strict accordance with the injunctions of the scriptures is
right. That which is done against the injunctions of the scriptures
is wrong. To work in accordance with divine will is right. To work in
opposition to the divine will is wrong." This is one way of defining
right and wrong.
-- Swami Sivananda Saraswathy
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