How Does Our Past Life Effects Our Present Life

Once upon a time, there was a soldier who was on his way to fight a battle. As he did not have a family to call his own, except his horse and had a mass of wealth that his old father had left for him, he decided to leave that wealth in the custody of the merchant of the city and take it back from him when he returned after the war. He deposited the wealth with the merchant and went on his way to the war talking his horse along.

As he was fighting in a battle, one for his enemies managed to scare the horse such that she got petrified and got paralysed due to fear and refused to budge from the spot even after the soldier did everything to move her into action. As a result, the soldier lost his life to his enemies and the horse was also badly injured and eventually met her end. Meanwhile a son was born within a year to the merchant. He was jubilant and the celebrations of the birth ran for a month. Later, it was found that the child did not have a very healthy disposition.

Nearly 25 years later, a sage was passing through the lane in which the merchant lived, and he heard a peculiar sound of someone crying which felt like the neigh of a horse. He decided to investigate. On entering the merchant’s house, he came to know that the merchant had lost his son and the cry was the wail of his son’s newlywed. The sage sat down in meditation for some time and then with a serene face today the merchant a story which was baffling.

He told the merchant that his son was none other than the soldier reincarnate and had come back to take his wealth from the merchant. As soon as his debt with the merchant was over, he left his body. And lo behold, the wife of his son was his horse from other life because of whom he had lost his life and so in this life, she was to suffer the effects of her past life from such a young age. The merchant and everyone around was dumb struck by the narration.

This is a true story and we can only infer that the Laws of Karma are binding and exacting in their ways. We should endeavour to do only good to others to the extent possible. In case we are unable to do any good, let us not be the reason for anyone’s harm. Eventually, the Laws do catch up.