Is Changing Karma by Prayers possible or not?
A devotee (Name hidden) asked like this:
Hare krishna prabhu!! I belong to a family where every1 is krishna conscious except me. I m not an atheist.
My prblm i cn nt chant holy name of lord even if i want.. how to engage myself in krishna consciousness.
Its said dat evrythng is pre-written by god. But sumwhre i heard dat wid prayers evrythng cn b re-writtn.. Is it true?
I mean, if 1 has nt sumthng in his fate due to his activities of previous birth then is there any posblty to get dat by doing bhakti?
REPLY:
If anyone tells you that you will have to chant for seven days with a rest break of just five hours a day, if not, you will be killed, will you remain without chanting? You will be chanting all the specified hours to avoid getting killed.
(Parents’ karma or Child’s karma – Which gives a child with disabilities? READ HERE!)
If a saint tells you that you will get one billion rupees/ dollars if you chant Hare Krishna for seven days with a rest break of just five hours a day, will you remain without chanting? You will not even eat and sleep, but will always be chanting.
So, you skip chanting because you do not know the real pains of this material life. When you advance in age, you will understand it. Pains, diseases, rejection by youngsters in old age, difficulty to move, difficulty even in cleaning your body, etc are common in the old age.
If you are a wise person, you will live your present life in a responsible manner keeping Krishna at the center and take all steps to prevent further births in this painful material world and get an eternally blissful life directly with Krishna.
(How Can a disciple reduce his guru’s Karma? Wonderful Tips! READ HERE!)
So, be with all your friends and relatives, but, without attachment with them and start to chant Hare Krishna atleast one round initially and increase the rounds month by month. Chanting will bring all auspiciousness in your life and also prevent further births in these painful material worlds.
Your next question, ie, Changing Karma by Prayers:
(1) If any bad thing is destined to you, you can reduce the severity of that pain by just praying without losing attachments from the material affairs.
(2) If any bad thing is destined to you, you can completely get rid of all effects of that karma by giving up ALL the attachments with the material affairs and lead your life like a sanyasi though you are with the people. Once you renounce your material desires, except the disease and death, other things will be moderated to the bearable level.
(Are Siva and Brahma subject to karma and death like us? READ HERE!)
Thus, only through MENTAL SANYASA, we can get relief from karma. Praying without giving up the attachments can reduce the severity of karma and also gives more strength for you to face those effects of karma.
(3) If any good thing is NOT destined to you in this birth, you can not get that thing by just praying without losing attachments from the material affairs.
(4) If any good thing is NOT destined to you in this birth, you can get REAL BLISS and HAPPINESS by developing detachment from material affairs. In your case, Krishna will help you by giving you a detached mindset because you will not feel for not having anything good.
However, if anyone follows devotion and also develops material detachment, in selected and extreme cases, Krishna alters his karma and offers something IF HE IS SURE THAT THIS DEVOTEE WILL NOT MISUSE THAT BOON IF GIVEN.
(How our next country and religion of birth are decided by karma? READ HERE!)
So, my advice to you is FOLLOW DEVOTION SINCERELY. AT THE SAME TIME, DEVELOP MATERIAL DETACHMENT. ONLY THEN, KRISHNA WILL ALTER YOUR KARMA.
IF YOU DO NOT SKIP MATERIAL ATTACHMENTS THROUGHOUT THIS BIRTH, YOU WILL GET ANOTHER BIRTH IN WHICH YOU WILL DEVELOP MATERIAL DETACHMENT.
This is the procedure to reduce or some relief from karmic effects. No other short cuts.
Hope you are clear about Changing Karma by Prayers.
(Why should we fear for karma as we forget our karma in next birth? READ HERE!)