Spiritual Questions and Answers with Radhanath Swami
Can I kill animals for my experiments? Radhanath Swami Answers
Question to Radhanath Swami: I’m a medical student and have to use animals for experiments. Since animal killing is not allowed in the Vedas, is the performance of my duty a sin? And if it is a sin, how does one get away from that sin?
Radhanath Swami: We should try to avoid these activities as far as possible. Sinful karma can be graded according to our motivations.
Question to Radhanath Swami: Due to my sinful activities in this life, if I am reborn as a unicellular organism, will my activities as a human being in this birth be considered in my next birth?
Radhanath Swami: Krishna says in the Bhagavad Gita, “In this endeavor (of spirituality) there is no loss or diminution, and a little advancement on this path can protect one from the most dangerous type of fear.” (Bhagavad-Gita 2.40)
Question to Radhanath Swami: Is it the innate nature of the mind to be disturbed continuously and ultimately get depressed? Radhanath Swami Clarifies…
Radhanath Swami: It is the not the nature of the mind to pursue selfishness and egoism and thus experience frustration and depression in due course of time.
Question to Radhanath Swami: Sometimes someone causes us so much pain that even if we forgive that person, the memory of that incident keeps coming back to our mind. We want to forgive that person completely, but somehow we find ourselves helpless. How do we deal with that situation?
Radhanath Swami: Real forgiveness must come from the heart. In the beginning we may forgive on a more superficial platform, for real forgiveness to come from the heart it may take time. If our experience had been traumatic, it may even take a long time. But we should have that aspiration to really forgive, we should have that prayer.
Question to Radhanath Swami: Sometimes we have to think of our body and have to take great care of our body, especially during disease. Is that ok?
Radhanath Swami: How to realize the soul? By simply using this precious and sacred body that God has given us in harmony with the true interests of the soul. We like to eat, so we eat prasäd, food sanctified by first offering it to God.
Question to Radhanath Swami: It is said that a prayer should be a cry from the heart. But many times it is mechanical. In that case, should we artificially try to cry or should we wait till the cry naturally comes from the heart?
Radhanath Swami: We shouldn’t be artificial, but we should be sincere. If we do not have sincerity, we can honestly pray for that. Our Guru used to say that everything is based on our desire. Our whole life is built up on the foundation of our desires;
