Page 1 - February-2026

God, Gurudev, and

My Handkerchief

SWAMI ADVAYANANDA

estiny is the experience in the present of the result of
Done’s actions done in the past. Destiny is termed ‘prärabdha’ in
Vedänta. ‘Puruña-prayatna’ or ‘puruñärtha’ is the self-effort that an
individual puts forward in the present while facing his destiny.
We have two contesting theories: (1) The ‘puruñärtha-väda’
claims that self-effort is all-powerful and man’s life depends
solely on his self-effort. The advocates of this theory claim that there
is no difficulty in life that cannot be overcome by an individual’s
self-effort. (2) The ‘prärabdha-väda’ argues that man is but a
helpless victim of his destiny.
An objective analysis of both puruñärtha-väda and prärabdha-
väda reveals that neither theory presents a complete picture of
life, as both prärabdha and puruñärtha play significant roles.

Tapovan Prasad 36 February 2026