Sufferings as per Bhagavad Gita resulted from indulgence in bad karma. Prompted by a bloated ego most human beings one time or other indulged in activities not conforming to our intellect. We may not desire bad of someone yet, at times… we definitely did! This indulgence results in our suffering immediately or at a later date. To avoid suffering in future… our indulgence in good karma, positive karma all the time was necessitated.
What of bad karma indulged by us in past or previous manifestations. As per Bhagavad Gita… the human form… the human journey was only a temporary sojourn in the entire life cycle of soul atman, the spirit within! Bhagavad Gita of Hinduism says… journey of life always belonged to our soul atman, the spirit within and never the manifest human form! Our soul atman, the spirit within manifested human form to work out its karma… remove dross impurities within!
Moment dross impurities within a soul atman removed permanently forever… human being is said to have reached stage of enlightenment (termed kaivalya jnana in Hinduism)! From first manifestation to last… effort of every soul atman remained… removal of dross impurities within. As per Bhagavad Gita… it is not within the capability of a soul atman to purify itself. It needs a medium… a body to work out its karma… remove dross impurities within!
Similar as one KG of pure gold embedded in hundred KG of gold ore could not separate self of its own and needs requisite mining machinery and processes… a soul atman in its cosmic life cycle also required a chain of 8.4 million bodies to purify itself completely. Of these 8.4 million manifestations on the whole… the last 1.1 million manifestations by a soul atman occurred in human form. Does it mean… for human beings to reach stage of enlightenment… our soul atman needs a maximum of 1.1 million manifestations… yes, the cosmic truth is so!
A soul is termed atman in Hinduism.
Prompted by a bloated ego whenever we indulged in wrongdoings… bad karma, we suffered! One could get away from the vicious cycle of bad karma by indulging in pious deeds that included intermittent prayers to God Almighty. But the problem is… how many people world over knew the right way to pray! Most prayers world over went unheeded… unanswered by God Almighty! Every single prayer that had a vested interest was not answered by God Almighty… so was how life on mother earth ordained by God Almighty.
Apart from our present indulgence in bad karma… wrongdoings, we may have also have indulged in bad karma in past or previous manifestations! To get out of clutches of bad karma indulged in previous manifestations was a difficult task… as most people world over did not know mantra for the same. A portion of karma that did not manifest immediately is termed Prarabdha Karma in Hinduism. This portion of karma termed Prarabdha karma could manifest any given moment of time in present life or many manifestations henceforth.
Most human beings suffered in present life owing to existence of a residual balance of negative karma from previous manifestations. We can negate the residual balance of negative karma from past only by indulgence in positive karma… good karma in present! There was totally no escape from this vicious cycle of karma. If we desire a joyous journey ahead in future… we must always indulge in good karma, positive karma in present manifestation.
We just could not expect mangoes to grow on a guava tree. Law of karma says… as we sow so shall we reap, nothing less or more! Believing in law of karma… indulgence in good karma, positive karma all the time finally results in reducing sufferings in present and future. Karma was that inherent ingredient of cosmic system that facilitates movement of life from one manifestation to another. In absence of karma… life in cosmic system would become stagnant, decay and die.
We could also indulge in saying right prayers to God Almighty to decrease sufferings in present life. By asking forgiveness from God Almighty… we could definitely reduce our sufferings. When indulging in bad karma… human beings never think of its effect in future. Only when they suffered in later stages of life… they regretted having indulged in bad karma, wrongdoings!
Every kind of suffering at the hands of fate can be overcome by understanding doctrine of karma as detailed in Bhagavad Gita of Hinduism. We must never forget… after death of present physical form… what transfers to next manifestation was residual balance of karma. The closing balance of present life becomes opening balance for next manifestation. The life cycle of soul atman moved precisely like the balance sheet of a chartered accountant.
If the residual balance of present life at the time of death of body demanded our soul atman manifesting new life form in the house of a laborer… we just could not be born a Prince in next manifestation. In the domain of God Almighty there never are free lunches. Everything results from karma performed in present or past. For having a jovial future ahead… for remaining happy all the time… our indulgence in positive karma, good karma was the only way out.
We could not deviate from fixed laws of nature. If we erred in past… sufferings in present life were bound to follow.