Can bad people have good future?

The other day I was considering this interesting question. Can bad people have good future? Can bad people aspire to become spiritual? Can bad people fit into the quota for nirvana? Well, by bad people I mean really bad buggers doing terrible sin. I am not just talking of those committing some social taboo without harming anyone. I am not also just talking of gays or incests having sex secretly and silently without bothering anyone. I am also talking of those who are causing serious harm and trouble to others. Even those who hurt and harm even their near-n-dear ones. And even those who ditch their friends or lovers! Can these people have any share of the pie we call enlightenment? Are they doomed for ever? Sorry for taking so much of space-n-time to just explain the question. I felt it important to make the question and point as clear as possible. In answering the question, I will answer from a first person point of view (presuming myself to be that bad guy!).

** First of all, as we have already discussed, everything and every happening is predestined. Individual choice is but an illusion. Its like reading a book. We discover a page every day. But that page is written long back. So, did I have any choice but to be bad? Was it really under my control to be or not to be bad?

** Every novel has heroes and villains. But for villains heroes are worthless. But for bad things good things lose their charm. So, if I have been chosen to play villain is it my fault?

** Lets say I hurt (physically or mentally) my friend. I did something which hurt him. Or is it that he was destined to get hurt, and I just acted as an instrument! He was destined to get hurt because of his karma! And I was destined to be the instrument in hurting him because of my karma.

** Coming to scriptures, the Bhagwat Gita is one of the most authoritative scriptures of the orient. What I understand from there is that, the God is trying to explain Arjuna to do two things. First of all understand his swadharma. And second perform your swadharma with all detachment. Arjuna's case was simple. In his case his caste and his swadharma concided (he was a kshyatriya, the warrior class and his natural disposition was to fight). But dont make the mistake of taking your social responsibilities as your swadharma. I may be born in a good family with good parents and with good friends. But if my natural disposition is towards the so called bad things, what am I to do? I still choose my natural bearing and interest as my swadharma. And then I perform it with detachment. Detachment here means detachment from the views of others, detachment from the thought of merit-or-sin, detachment from thought of past-n-future. So if I feel my natural inclination is to hurt people, I should do the same with all detachment. Its easy to play hero and get all applause. But it takes real talent to play villain! So am I at fault?

The clock work!

Last night I was discussing with my guru on some random thoughts. He shared a wonderful idea with me. I am just rewriting it here.

If you have opened a clock, especially the mechanical clocks, you would have seen numerous tiny gears and wheels working in enchanting unison to make the clock tick. Our life is like that of a tiny mini wheel of the clock. We keep on rotating. We tend to think that our rotation is in our hands, or may be its me who is rotating. However, for the clock maker he knows that the whole clock has to work perfectly and in unison to make that tiny mini wheel rotate.

There are two aspects to this simile. One is that we may think our actions to be independent or determined by our own free will. But its all determined by a complicated set of wheels, gears and spring systems surrounding us! Secondly, we may think that we are menially insignificant. But again as a matter of fact, if at all we succeed in stopping our own rotation, the whole clock stops!

Climb of an insect

Few days ago I was enjoying a short afternoon siesta! Suddenly I felt a tickling sensation on my arm. Looking closely I discovered a tiny insect riding happily or sadly (for you see I could not see his/her face) on my arm. At first I felt like crushing it for disturbing my slumber. But then I was already in a bad mood that afternoon and did not want to make it worse! Gently did I lift the tiny one using my fingers and placed it on floor. It took the least heed of what change has happened just then. It went on crawling with a sage like indifference! I was amused and amazed. First of all it did not crawl because it had to go anywhere. It crawled because that's what its made to do and that's what it can do. It knows that food and whatever luxury you may want or need will ultimately come to you as long as you keep on doing whatever you can. Secondly, what drastic changes may take place, it was the least bothered. It knew only one thing to do and it did it irrespective of all the changes that may happen to its surroundings! May be I am not able to express my feelings properly, but believe me it was ecstatic to observe the attitude of the insect!