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We read many times that a particular deva/person/asura was given a boon that he could e.g., become invincible, no one can kill him or will get something or the other.

On the other hand, some people are cursed that something bad will happen to them either immediately or after some time.

I wanted to know how can a person say something (good or bad) about another person and Gods/nature will fulfill that. In case of Gods, it is still ok to an extent that they can do anything, but for mortal persons to be able to give a boon or curse is something which is confusing.

Even in case of Gods, e.g., if they give a boon to someone that he cannot be defeated in a war, how will they make sure that he will only fight with ones who are less powerful than him and not stronger?

So what do Gods/people do for their boon or curse to really work?

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    Every person has a karma. Karma is like a seed that is planted. This seed has in it full potency to grow into a plant. It is waiting for the right amount of soil, water, sunlight, etc to become a Tree of Experience! Just as the soil, water, sunlight, etc. influence the growth of the seed, there are several forces at play (such as Devas, Navagraha, etc.) which influence karma of person. This is traditionally used in Astrology by pandits.
    – Sai
    Commented Dec 11, 2014 at 2:11
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    It is beleived that great saints have the power to present a tremondous influence on our karmas, thereby ensuring quick growth into the tree. Kind of like a growth hormone injected in a plant to make it grow fast! So a curse or a boon by a saint is viewed by Yogi's as the growth hormone that is injected into the karma of a person. It ensures quick growth into the Experience! So that's what these Gods/people do in order that the boon stands to what they say. However nothing is set in stone and a man with supreme WILL/supreme DEVOTION/supreme DETACHMENT TO FRUITS can circumvent the effects Sir!
    – Sai
    Commented Dec 11, 2014 at 2:16
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    @Sai, Thanks for your comments sir, I can take the point of Devas or Navgraha can change the fate of a person but does that mean that the person who is giving boon or curse has control over Devas/Navgrahas
    – Aby
    Commented Dec 11, 2014 at 7:31
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    Sir thank you verymuch. The person (saint) who has lived all his life according to Truth, or Dharma, or who has done intense one-pointed spritutal practice, has GREAT power in His word. The words spoken by such a saint/person acts as the growth hormone upon the karma seed. It is stronger than the influence that the Devas/Navagrahas have on the person (many devas are also very adherent to Dharma). So it is not that they influence the Devas, but they directly influence the karmas. How do their words carry such power then? By force of WILL (Jnana), FAITH (bhakti) or TRUTH (karma yogi).
    – Sai
    Commented Dec 11, 2014 at 18:30
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    Also if you are very much interested in this, then please read the Autobiography of a Yogi by Sri Great Paramahansa Yogananda, Chapter 31 and Chapter 17. It contains great information about how words of your Guru and why such words have so much of STRENGTH! Thank you sir
    – Sai
    Commented Dec 11, 2014 at 18:34

4 Answers 4

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I can't back up my answers with clear cut quotes from scriptures for this question. But I can answer what I have deduced from indirect references in multiple scriptures.

Curse or boon is indirect karmic capacity you can transfer to another person. When you meditate, pray or do poojas you start accumulating good karma. When it reaches a certain limit you get the capability to do certain things.

Every time you curse or give away a boon, you would lose corresponding amount of your good karma. I faintly remember a story of seer, who gained certain amount of power after meditating in the forest, came back to live among normal people. He started giving boons to people he liked and cursing people he didn't. Very soon he exhausted all his good karma and was rendered powerless. In the process he also accumulated bad karma and had to suffer due to his recklessness.

If a person with low good karmic limit tries to curse a person with higher karmic limit, he can either avoid or change the curse. Hence everything boils down to the amount of good karma one has in his kit.

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    Agree to this but how can one change the fate of another by just saying some words. As I already mentioned in the question, if one just says you can't be defeated in a war, at that time he has not evaluated the strength of the person, neither he can predict future, nor the enemy's strength, so just by saying some words how will the nature turn everything according to the wordings.
    – Aby
    Commented Dec 11, 2014 at 7:27
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    How do you know that the original "fate" didn't include the fact that that guy will get a boon and win the war?
    – Pradyumna
    Commented Dec 14, 2014 at 15:01
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    @Pradyumna, if that could have been so then it would have been better to write destiny such that anybody(not only Saints, Rishi Muni or Siddhas, etc) will say something and that has to be fulfilled by nature/God/fate. I believe in whatever is there in fate has to happen but why the medium chosen is these special people like Saints, Rishi/Muni, etc, why not a common man. There must be a method that has to be followed for a fate to work things accordingly. So that was my question, ie, how are the things turned according to wordings, who takes the responsibility of turning things around, etc
    – Aby
    Commented Dec 16, 2014 at 8:03
  • Curse or Boon requires strong commitment and absolute faith in truth. A person who builds up good karma with good deeds and always speaking truth also attains power of seeing through facts and realizing truth. He also gains power of speech to the effect that anything he says will become true be it blessing or curse. This is the reason people seek blessings of elders.
    – vent
    Commented Mar 6, 2015 at 6:22
  • As long there is duality inside, you won't be able to curse or boon, no matter whether you are a Saint, Rishi Muni, Siddha or a common man.
    – O S
    Commented Apr 16, 2020 at 13:12
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To add to the other answer, everything happens with the will of God, including a boon/curse.

It is just a reason or a cause for things to happen in a destined manner. It is not something that creates a deviation for the upcoming future, but just a part of it. Hence the person or God giving a boon/curse doesn't have to really go out and control the outcome of a war or a fight. The outcome will be the same and the boon/curse is a cause for the result.

Also one more reasoning is that, the Gods and many Saints have awareness of the three periods the past, the present and the future. So they already know what is going to happen and a boon/curse is also a part of that.

One more way of understanding it is, the boon/curse is received based on a persons karma. Like people undergo severe penance to obtain a boon. Or the curse is given because of a wrong doing. So based on such a karma that person has to get the result. The boon or curse is an result that signifies this karma and it has to happen, irrespective of a person/God giving a boon or a curse.

So to answer the question, it is generally not required to control the outcome. Then in rare instances, the Gods do interfere to make sure things happen the way it should. For instance, Kamadeva interrupting Shiva's meditation to kill Tarakasur, or Indra, in the form of a Brahman asking for Karna's shields.

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    You should cite sources.
    – Keshav Srinivasan ♦
    Commented Jan 3, 2015 at 23:54
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What I have deduced based on general reading of the subject is that no smart rushi/yogi/tapasvi will waste his yogic powers on needlessly giving out curses to people. For example in story of sage Milarepa he developed siddhis to take revenge, his guru warned him of the consequences and advised him to do more tapas to negate negative effects of the tantric practices he had done for revenge. That clearly tells us what happens. In more ancient stories there are rushis who give shaap and vardaan. But I feel they were more intelligent and so would not waste their tapasvi shaktis. I think the words have been misinterpreted. So when rushi predicted result of someone's karmas, a negative result was called shaap and a positive result was called vardaan. Pandurang Shastri Athavale has translated the word 'vara' as acceptance. So vardaan would translate as 'giving acceptance'. The word 'shaap' is also translated as 'time' sometimes. So it could mean that the person has time to improve and make amends as advised by the rushi.

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    Welcome to Hinduism StackExchange. You should cite some sources. Visit guidelines
    – Pandya ♦
    Commented Jul 12, 2018 at 3:17
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On Vedic Yuga everyone was good even the bad people had aslo so many goodness. On that era whatever you say that will turn true if you have earned that much merit. If someone is doing good like Saints and Pativrata Stree. God is bound to fullfill thier word. If their word's become false then there would be no truth.Unrigtousness will become so powerfull that god even cant handle.

It is their Good Work which earned that much power that even they say good/bad about someone then that must have to happen with them.

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