RIN Theory of Motivation

Name : Rashida Kapadia

TYBMS
Roll No. 21
Man has to discharge his debt (Rina) more to release himself than for any other reason. There are
higher classes of Rina that have to be discharged for the sake of self-release

An elaborate theory of rina (debts) was developed in classical Hindu literature. These rinas
were classified into three categories -

(a) Dev Rin - is our debt towards powers which control nature and its various phenomena
and which have endowed us with invaluable gifts of air, water, fire, food, vegetation etc.
Human beings get easy access to the objects created by God, hence they become indebted
to the deities. This debt must be repayed by performing various religious acts and
worships (puja).

(b) Rishi Rin - is our indebtedness towards our teachers, great Seers, sages, discoverers
and inventors who have brought our civilization and culture to this stage and have
imparted knowledge and wisdom to the whole humanity. Human beings acquire the
knowledge generated by the ancient sages and intellectuals. Thus humanity is indebted to
them. By studying and acquiring knowledge (and if possible adding matter to the existing
knowledge), this debt can be repaid.

(c) Guru Rin - In this a person is indebted to their GURU.

(d) Pitri Rin - is our debt to our ancestors, parents and society as a whole for giving us
birth and providing conditions for our survival and development by maintaining the
institution of family. A person is indebted to his/her ancestors as they have propagated
their lineage and are the cause for his/her birth. This is called "Pitri Rin". To replay this
debt, Hinduism advocated (righteous) procreation as well as performing rituals in
rememberance of the ancestors.

(e) Matru Rin - May earth provide us with all the things of our requirements just like a
'mother', who breast-feeds her child. This beautiful richa compares the earth with mother
 and rightly so because she gives us all that we need for our survival- food to eat and
water to drink just as a mother, who breast feeds her child. Therefore, we should protect
the dignity of mother Earth because that's the only way we can atleast repay some
fraction of our debts to Her.

(f) Bandhav Rin - In this a person is indebted to his/her relatives.

(g) Nriip Rin (also called Manushya-rin) - In this a person is indebted to humanity at large
which can be repaid by treating others with respect and helping them.

(h) Bhuta Rin - In this a person is indebted to plants, animals and nature. These debts are
repaid by performing the five great sacrificial fires.

These rins are paid of by performing five kinds of Yajnas (sacrifices) namely, (a) Deva Yajna,

(b) Pitri Yajna,

(c) Rishi Yajna,

(d) Bhuta Yajna and

(e) Nri Yajna.

The term Yajna is sometimes misunderstood to mean simply performance of certain rites in
which ablation of various kinds are offered to fire. But performance of this ritual is only a
symbolic gesture signifying the duty of every individual to offer a portion of his possessions
towards the whole i.e. the Universe.

In true sense of the term, Deva Yajna consists in showing our gratitude towards natural
phenomena by contributing towards its preservation, maintenance and growth and by abstaining
from its unnecessary, excessive exploitation. For this purpose, an elaborate system of do's and
don'ts has been prescribed in Hindu scriptures which takes care of every minute detail in this
respect, e.g. watering of certain plants every day, having reverence for some rivers and
mountains treating them as divine entities etc.

Pitri Yajna is performed by procreation and by contributing towards the maintenance and well
being of the family. We can express our gratitude towards our ancestors only by parenting and
affectionately nurturing the family lineage passed on to us by them.

Rishi Yajna is performed by imparting knowledge we have acquired from our teachers to the
younger generation and by paying our share in the growth and development of our heritage and
cultural tradition.

Bhuta Yajna consists in caring for the various species of creatures (visible or invisible)
surrounding us in this universe and in having friendly relations with them.

Nri Vajna or Manushya Yajna consists in sharing our possessions with fellow human beings
and one of its most popular form is Atithi-Satkar i.e. hospitality even to a stranger. A person who
happens to visit us without any previous acquaintance or notice is called an Atithi and every
Hindu is supposed to treat him as God and all facilities and services offered to him are regarded
as service to God.

The notion of the three rinas and five yajnas is integrally woven into the scheme of four-fold
purusharthas - the four basic goals / ends of all human endeavors.

The four Purusharthas

Hinduism has defined four goals (aims) of human life which are called the four purusharthas
("purusha" means a human being or God, and "artha" means an object or objective. This
"purushartha" means the objective/goal of a human being). These four goals create a stable
social framework within which one can live peacefully and gradually evolve spiritually.
The first goal is Dharma. The root of the word dharma comes from dhri, which means to uphold
or maintain. Dharma is defined in Sanskrit as "dharayati iti dharmaha", meaning dharma is that
which upholds. Again, it is said "dhriyate iti dharmaha", thus meaning not only what is
supported is dharma, but that which does the supporting is also dharma. So dharma consists of
both the force that sustains as well as what is sustained. It can also be said that there is the path
of dharma as well as its conclusion, the object of dharma, or what we are seeking, the goal of
life. So dharma is the means as well as the goal. Dharma is the first human goal and forms the
foundation for the pursuit of the other three goals. Dharmic actions are those individual, social,
political, and professional actions which are based upon the four virtues - truth, ahimsã,
morality and ethics.

The second goal is Artha. The Sanskrit word "artha" has several meanings. In the context of the
four purusharthas, the word "artha" means material wealth (although in deeper spiritual
interpretation of the four purusharthas, many wise sages have interpreted the word artha as
"meaning/understanding of one's existence"). Hinduism recognizes the importance of material
wealth for the overall happiness and well being of an individual. While Hindu thinking advocates
simple living, it does not glorify poverty, and does not consider wealth as a hurdle to self
realization. It is greed and attachment to wealth that is considered a hurdle, not the wealth by
itself. Thus "Artha" means to earn wealth in accordance with dharma.

The third goal is Kãma. There is a general misconception which associates the word Kãma with
sexual desires. Kãma actually means all the physical, emotional, and intellectual desires of a
person. In Hinduism and in Buddhism, desire has been considered to be the root cause of all
sufferings. However, Hinduism acknowledges Kãma as a goal of human life and declares "he
who performs his prescribed duties out of desire in the right manner will obtain the fulfillment of
all the desires and reach the deathless state."

The fourth and final goal is Moksha or liberation. Moksha denotes spiritual perfection, which,
according to Hindu thinking, is attained automatically when one leads a life that is dedicated to
dharma.
The purpose of purusharthas is to ensure that people would not neglect their obligatory duties by
becoming obsessed with particular desires that may lead to moral and social degeneration and
destruction of values. To further ensure a stable social framework, Hinduism introduces the
concept of debts.
 Rishi Kindam describes 3 types of debts in Mahabharat :-

Life according to Rishi Kindam is like a river which flows between 2 banks right and
wrong. This river known as life includes both right and wrong a good person is a person who
takes right and does not let a drop of wrong fall on his clothes just like a swan who separates
milk from water.

When right comes in hands a person realizes that he has some debts and before leaving this
world he has to clear three debts.

These three debts are Dev Rin, Rishi Rin and Pitru Rin.

Without clearing this 3 Rins (debts) a person should not leave this world and of a person does so
then his life get's insulted and wasted.

1. Dev Rin is of Lord Vishnu it is cleared by Daan (donation),

2. Rishi Rin is of Lord Shiv it is cleared by achieving knowledge and sharing it and,

3. Pitru Rin is of Lord Brahma it is cleared by childrens by doing Pind Daan after their
Ancestors.

A person not clearing these debts is considered to by running away from Lord Vishnu, Shiv and
Brahma. Lord Vishnu, Shiv and Brahma are supreme truth and where would a person run from
them and go as the end of his journey is supreme truth (god).

Pind Daad and Shraddh is carried out as per the procedures laid down in the books and shastras
written by Maha Rishies. It gives satisfaction to the Pitrus. Performance of Pind Daan, Shraddh
and Tarpan (libations of water) relieves the hunger and thirst of the departed soul during its
journey to the Pitru Lok. By the offering of the Shraddh, the son helps his father to dwell in joy
with the Pitris.

Our ancestors are not only our family members or relatives, but also our teachers, mentors, role
models, friends, and guardians, who have contributed to our welfare and growth in this or
previous life. This creates an implied obligation on us to respect them and their parental desires
and calls for following good deeds. If by any chance this is not followed by anyone, it may
embarrass the souls of the ancestors, which, in turn, becomes Pitru Dosh.

How Pitru Dosh occurs :-

There are many ways by which Pitru Dosh can occur. According to general information from
various Puran, Pitru Dosh occurs when the soul of our ancestors and departed forefathers does
not get peace (shanti) due to any of the following main reason, and there may be others.

1. Bad deeds (bad karma) of our ancestors in earlier life, knowingly or unknowingly,
are embarrassing their souls,
2. Bad deeds (bad karma) of children, knowingly or unknowingly, are embarrassing the
soul of ancestors,
3. Lack of fulfillments of parental desires of our ancestors,
4. A sudden and unnatural death of any relative ancestors in early age,
5. If someone fails to remember and honor the ancestors properly,
6. If certain wishes are remained attached with the soul of the ancestors, etc.

it is stated in the ancient text that Pitru Dosh occurs if any ancestors up to the 7th generation on
the father side and up to the 4th generation on the mother side have expired at an early age or
have had an unnatural death.

The effect of Pitru Dosh can also be found using the Vedic Astrology.
Vedic Astrology prescribes many remedies for all the problems from simple to complex and
cheapest to costly. There are many ways available to nullify the effects of Pitru Dosh. Some of
the ways are described below.

It is believed that satisfying our ancestors and forefathers, we can have their blessings for
peaceful and happy life. For the peace of the souls of our ancestors it is advices to perform
shraddh. Shraddh is the ritual and ceremony performed for the departed souls of our ancestors.

The most widely accepted special ritual or puja for Pitru Dosh is NARAYAN BALI PUJA. This
puja is performed only at few prescribed places such as :

1. Tryambakeshwar in Nasik,
2. Chandod near Dabhoi near Vadodara in Gujarat,
3. Kala Hasti in Tamil Nadu and
4. Haridwar.

It is very important to note that the puja have to be performed at the mentioned places.

Pind Daan is just one concept of various hindu rituals but it is covered here as it is the most
important concept.