3

Many people say that our next destination ( next birth , heaven/hell or moksha) determined by what we think at the last moment of our death .

Even in Bhagvad Gita it is written whosoever thinks of Krishna at the last moment of his death reaches to him (i.e. attain Moksha).

BG 8:5

And whoever, at the time of death, quits his body, remembering Me alone, at once attains My nature. Of this there is no doubt.

BG 8:6

Whatever state of being one remembers when he quits his body, that state he will attain without fail.

So my question are -

  1. Then is it not the best to commit suicide by some means which is painless and remember Krishna so that we can attain Moksha ? Because letting yourself dying naturally is risky as most deaths are painful and generally it is very hard to remember God at the time of death for most people.

  2. What is use of doing good karma throughout one's life when our next destination will be determined only by our last moment of death ?

Many people will say that suicide is sin , so this method will not be valid. But there are many sins and according to this theory all karma done by a person is useless , what matters is just the last moment of death. Nowhere it is written that when one commits suicide , then this method will not be valid. Because if god forgive all sins done by a person just because he remembers him at the last moment of his death , then why will he not forgive suicide ?

Disclaimer - I am not encouraging anyone to commit suicide , this is just a theoretical question. I am not an expert in hinduism anyway.

Improve this question
7
  • 2
    it's like asking whether promotion to next class is determined by Annual exam results. Of course, yes. But your Annual exam results are not determined only during the exam, but mainly determined by what you study all year. Similarly, your last minute thoughts are determined by what all you think all life.
    – mar
    Jan 31, 2022 at 2:35
  • 1
    @mar Many people died in atomic explosion in Hiroshima instantly. So, according to you all of them must be thinking the same thing their whole life so they deserved to die together.
    – user23977
    Jan 31, 2022 at 11:21
  • even after doing austere practice King Bharata born as deer and brahmana in his next life because of last minute taught he had..
    – Prasanna R
    Feb 1, 2022 at 15:01
  • @user23977 - huh ? your statement makes no sense. where in my comment did I mention anything about method of death ?
    – mar
    Feb 1, 2022 at 23:47
  • @PrasannaR - you can study hard all year, and still make silly mistake in Annual exam. if you studied harder, the fewer silly mistakes you make. e.g. Bhishma Pitamah knew exactly what his last minute thoughts must be and achieved it by practicing Brahmacharya all his life.
    – mar
    Feb 1, 2022 at 23:48

2 Answers 2

Reset to default
0

Just as the quality of your sleep is determined by what you did during the rest of the day, in the similar manner what you did during your lifetime determines what will happen to you at the time of death. This we all know.

But Shri Krishna is here telling that even if you waste your whole life in turmoil chasing stupid things, if you get some sadbuddhi (good sense) in the end realizing the futility of everything and spend your last moments thinking about Shri Krishna, you will attain Him. This is true. Since even if you wasted your whole day, if you do something useful before going to sleep, you will indeed have a great sleep.

Now coming to your questions -

Then is it not the best to commit suicide by some means which is painless and remember Krishna so that we can attain Moksha ?

The goal of Bhagavad Gita is not to give you a better afterlife. Who has seen whether afterlife afterall exists or not? The goal of Bhagavad Gita is to bring truth in your life right here and right now. The goal is that you experience what you were born to experience.

What is use of doing good karma throughout one's life when our next destination will be determined only by our last moment of death ?

If a person leads a bad life going bad karma and in the end if He takes shelter in Krishn's feet, then surely Shri Krishna will forget his past sins. This is well known among followers of Shri Krishna. There's actually no use of doing good karma throughout one's life other than for one's satisfaction. If you enjoy killing animals and eating by stealing but still don't do it for the fear of Krishna, don't expect that after death someone is going to bow to your feet and greet you in the manner - "Oh great Lord, you did so many great karmas, what do you want to have now?" You should better be Duryodhan and do bad deeds in life, atleast to realize it won't give you any satisfaction. Then you will realize the value of good karma.

Good karma is the good result in itself. You don't need to wait till you die to get its reward.

People who do good karma just for better afterlife are those don't realize the value of this life just like a madman who is interested in doing good things during the day just because he wants to have a good sleep at night.

Source - Acharya Prashant (Expert in Advaita Vedanta)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y7SzaWo-Te4

Improve this answer
15
  • How is bad karma bad results in itself ? Sociopathic men get success in life, while good men are being exploited and are being given nothing in life . Though you are right doing bad feels bad but only for a good person. So, a good person will not do bad thing just for the sake of it and not for afterlife. But a bad person don't feel bad on doing bad things.
    – user23977
    Jan 31, 2022 at 7:59
  • So, according to you if a person enjoys stealing or doing other bad things then he should be doing those things and just remember Krishna always. On the one hand you are telling that there is no surety if afterlife exists or not and on the other hand you are saying that we should remember krishna at the time of death. Also it is anyway technically not possible to remember god at the time of death as most people are unconscious before dying.
    – user23977
    Jan 31, 2022 at 8:15
  • @compaq How do you know good men are exploited and people who do bad karma enjoy in life? Have you ever lived with a sadhu and saw his hapiness when he chants Ram Ram? Compare this to miserable life of a cunning married wealthy person.
    – Lokesh
    Jan 31, 2022 at 8:16
  • Good men are always exploited . We all know girls are attracted towards bad boys while they despise good men . What happens is bad boys first enjoys with multiple women in their lives while good men get nothing but get to marry a used up women in an arranged marriage , a woman who just exploits him financially and continue to enjoy affair with other men even while being married her husband ( It is common phenomena now-a-days). So, tell me Isn't good men getting bad results while bad men enjoying life ?
    – user23977
    Jan 31, 2022 at 8:22
  • @compaq Remembering Krishna and doing bad karma is impossible. What do you understand by remembering Krishna? Remembering Krishna means living a life full of awareness.
    – Lokesh
    Jan 31, 2022 at 8:23
-1

You are taking the verse out of context. If you read a little further Sri Krishna says (Swami Nikhilananda translator):

8.7 Therefore, at all times, constantly remember Me and fight. With your mind and understanding absorbed in Me, you will surely come to Me.

8.8 Engaged in the yoga of constant practice and not allowing the mind to wander away to anything else, he who meditates on the supreme, resplendent Purusha reaches Him, O son of Pritha.

The way to have your mind absorbed in the Lord at the time of death is through the practice of constant remembrance. There are no shortcuts, no royal road. The Lord says directly how to ensure that you will remember him at the time of death - through the practice of constant remembrance. A mind absorbed in the Lord has no time to think of suicide, it only has time to think of the Lord. You cannot trick the Lord.

Improve this answer
1
  • 2
    There's nothing out of context here. OP has a valid point.
    – Lokesh
    Jan 31, 2022 at 7:13

You must log in to answer this question.