यदाज्ञया देवगणा दिविस्था ददन्ति वै कर्मफलानि नित्यम | यदाज्ञया शैलगणाः स्थिरा वै तमेकदन्तं शरणम व्रजामः || Ekadantasharaņāgati Stotra – Mudgal Puran, verse 17

Translation : "By whose orders the Gods distribute fruits of karma and by whose will the mountain ranges remain steadfast, to That supreme Lord Ekadanta, I surrender myself" 

An interesting verse that demystifies an aspect of the karma-karmaphala-devatā upasana conundrum. A question often comes in the mind – If we are bound by the inviolable law of karma then what role does devatā upāsanā have in this whole mechanism ? Does it have any mitigating effect ?

One line of thought is, karma that we do and its phala (fruit/results) is such a sacrosanct algorithm that it cannot be modified by any force, divine or otherwise. But then there is another line of thought (as per many stotras across different puranas) that it may not be set in stone after all.

This above verse makes a bold revelation in this eternal debate and clarifies that…while human has the agency to do karma (and hence accumulate karmaphala), deities/devatās (being manifested varied forces or forms of the ultimate supreme being/divinity/entity) do have the final say in how the human is delivered his karmaphala. The manner, quantum (whether spread out or at one go) and timing of the delivery. We often hear in scriptures about these devatās. Mostly graha (planetary) devatās and their supervisory devatās, and so on. And this is where the various graha-puja/upāsanās take a serious meaning. While karmaphala will be borne, the trajectory and duration/timing and manner of how the person receives it can be changed by deity upāsanā.

In this verse it basically says…the supreme divinity (in this case Lord Ekadanta or Shree Ganapati) is the behind the scene director of devatās on how the karmaphala is to be dispensed on a regular basis. The supreme divinity can change names and forms according to which path you believe in (Vaisnava, Shākta, Shaiva, Gānapatya, Sourya, Koumāra, etc).

H.H. Sri Jayendra Saraswati (Shankaracharya of Kanchi Kamakoti Peetham) while writing about Shree Ganesh upasana says, in a different context (translated) – “आज हम चमत्कारों को देखकर नमस्कार करते हैं ; किन्तु नमस्कार करनेसे चमत्कार उत्पन्न होता हे, यह बात हम भूल गए हैं” |

My interpretation of the verse, in combination with this remark by Shankaracharya ji is this…while devatā upāsanā has other higher results to be had (like moksh or self-realization), we should remember that doing their upāsanā for matters related to karmaphala is equally significant and vital. A sharp blow delivered in a concentrated short time period is more painful than it being dispensed in longer, slightly more diluted form. Devātā upāsanā for this purpose is aimed to do just that. And a miracle is nothing but the visible manifestation of this in action (a higher force or entity bending, not ending, the way we receive our karmaphala)

Another question that is asked by some…what of those who don’t believe in vigraha puja or the cycle of karma ? they lead a fairly balanced life and are not in the dumps due to their non-worshipping of deities. In my mind the answer to that is simple. The karma algorithm doesn’t need a believer to continue its work. It just works, unceasingly, relentlessly, with zero error. So one can be a rank atheist but may continuously adjust his karma so as to reap good karmaphalas. That much common sense a human has. But the difference comes (versus a Devata upasak) in the supplementary or collateral benefit that accrues in case of a deity upasak. A deity (or Ista Devata as we commonly call them – our own favourite form of the supreme) when invoked, the right way (via various paths or methods) in time of extreme distress, not only changes the way the karmaphala is borne, but also starts pulling the upasak towards divinity, towards the central goal of spiritual practice, self-realization and merging in the oneness of ParāBrahman. For the deity is an active and unsullied force or energy that is no different than the supreme reality. Unlike anything in the material plane.