Will dying while saving someone’s life give ghost body?
Akshay Khamankar asked like this:
I have a question, i was thinking what if i die in saving someone’s life. Would i turn into a ghost? or Would Lord Krishna give me one more opportunity to redeem my loyalty to him by taking next birth in a Krishna Conscious family?
REPLY:
First of all, you will not get ghost body. So, no need to worry.
Ghost body will be given only for the materialistic persons who die in an accident or suicide.
If the accident and death happen as per his previous karma, then, he clears that part of karma and hence he will not get ghost body. But, if he willingly creates an accident and die because of his carelessness and/ or will, he will get ghost body.
(WHO BECOMES A GHOST AFTER DEATH? FULL LIST! READ HERE!)
If a kind hearted person who is helping many people in an accident dies while saving others from danger, that means, he is dying for others, not for him.
For example, a few years ago, tsunami waves took the lives of thousands of people in a single shot within seconds / minutes. During that episode, many persons saved the lives of many people from being carried away by the waves, but, they themselves died. So, this is a sacrifice done for unknown and unrelated people. So, he will not be punished for this sacrifice.
Ghost body is given only for materialistic and selfish persons who lead a sinful life. In case, a man who is leading a seriously sinful life and also dies while protecting anyone from accident, he will be given hellish terms for his sins and also some period of heavenly life for his good act of saving one from accident.
In case a selfish and sinful person dies in an accident, NOT WHILE SAVING OTHERS, he gets ghost body.
In case a good hearted person who committed very good acts without much sins, commits suicide, he gets ghost body till he completes his allotted life time.
If he dies in an accident, he gets a short term of ghost body because he died in an accident because of his severe karma of previous birth that could not be cleared in a single birth, and hence he has to face a short ghost term.
(Why most people get Ghost body even without committing suicide? READ HERE!)
Even if a sincere Krishna devotee commits suicide, he gets ghost body till he completes his allotted life term because, he has severely violated the rules of Lord by committing suicide though he is a devotee.
Suicide will definitely give Ghost body whether a person is a devotee or not. Because one has no right to violate his own karma by committing suicide and dying earlier than his fixed time of death.
A devotee should be an example for others to follow and the punishments for violation will be severe for a devotee or a brahmana, than the punishments given for others. However, he will get good birth in his next birth after completing ghost period and also continue his devotion to Lord. There will be no barrier for it.
Remember, a Krishna devotee will not get any excuse from Lord if he commits serious sins though being a devotee. He will get more punishment. So, a devotee committing suicide is also a serious violation.
However, if a devotee dies in an accident, he will not get ghost form because, dying in an accident is not a new bad karma but happens as per past karma, whereas, committing suicide is a new bad karma that is eligible for ghost body.
(If a Person commits suicide to protect his country, will he go to hell? READ HERE!)
Now, as asked by you, if a devotee dies while saving another guy from facing an accident, he will not get ghost body. He will get heavenly life for his good acts and after heavenly period, he will be given a good birth in a devotee family and from that birth, he will continue his Krishna Conscious sadhanas stopped in his past birth and if he is sincere, he will get Krishna in that birth itself.
Some devotees need 4-5 births to get purified and attain Prema state in devotion. Some devotees need 2-3 births. Some devotees need just another birth. Whereas, sincere people can get Krishna in this present birth itself.
All depends on the level of dedication and the level of diversions that a devotee has.
More dedication and less diversion gives you speedy travel to the kingdom of Lord.
I have explained all cases of death above. I hope that you are clear now.
(Is becoming ghost after natural death possible if rituals aren’t done? READ HERE!)