As You Sow, So Shall You Reap

By -Pavas Shrigyan 

Any phrase is called a proverb when it is a short, well-known pithy saying, stating a general truth or piece of advice.’ Well, we all have learnt one or the other proverbs and idioms since our childhood, and most of us forgot about it when textbooks get changed yearly. But at least we can realize how helpful their meanings could be. One of the most famous proverbs amongst them that I can recall is, “As you sow, so shall you reap”. Let’s get back to it and understand how applicable it is.

Origin of the Proverb

This phrase is originally quoted in the bible, meaning that ‘man is responsible for the effect of his actions.’ It also says, ‘goodness is the child of good deeds and misfortune and calamities are the children of evil.’ The texts in holy Gita and Quran also emphasize on the same.

Meaning of the Proverb

‘Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows’

‘The one who sows to please his sinful nature, from nature will reap destruction; the one who sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life.’ You always get the fruits of whatever you plant, bitter or sweet depending upon you. You always get back your performed labour. Your karma is what defines you and everything gets reciprocated to you because of that. For example, if a farmer sows the seeds of bitter gourd then he won’t be receiving sweet potatoes from the plant. In the same way, you will always get what you decide to give or do for others.

Philosophy of Karma Involved

When a pessimist progresses in life and becomes successful, we surely come to a point of questioning the legitimacy of this theory, and that is the hardest part about karma; when it comes into existence, it somehow diminishes our capacity to understand. But the main point to understand about karma is that it is unbreakable, and in fact, many texts strongly advise that karma is not limited to a single lifetime. The chakra goes on to many life spans. Hence, people don’t have to get their reciprocation of karma in the present life only. And thus, what you sow can make you reap in some other life as well. What is needed from a person is to balance their credits of good and bad deeds, and it sounds absurd but the universe or the supreme power directs you the same way. Sometimes we also don’t know if we are repaying for something or achieving something better in life just because of our actions. It happens so anonymously that it is hard to understand sometimes. For reaping what we sow, is not direct, rather many of the times it comes to us even through other people, either known or unknown.

Significance in Our Real Life

Not only for sacred and karma based philosophies, but the proverb is equally significant in our daily life as well. A dedicated and honest child performs better in academics as compared to a less hard-working child. Similarly is the case with behavioural implications too. A person with good and humble behaviour is automatically looked up to by others in the friends’ circle whereas a rude and arrogant person is not considered to be worthy of any kind of respect.

How Much Applicable is it for the Youth?

It is believed and even scientifically suggested that what one gets to know and understand during the early ages of life stays forever. Youth is seen to be a golden age period of anyone’s life. During this time, if a person sows seeds of any bad and unacceptable habits, life becomes full of misery. However, if the seeds of hard work and perseverance are sowed then definitely the person gets to have sweetened fruits of the work put into it. We are the architects of our destiny, hence, we can either make it or it will break us. Youth is the correct example of this proverb. What we sow during this age, we can reap it forever.

A Sane Concept 

As a human being, our prime duty is to keep working hard to fulfil goals. The results might slow down, or sometimes it may take much longer time beyond expectation, but then definitely, for all the hard work, and patience, it is always rewarded. This proverb and its in-depth concept are known to stand against any time trials. 

We should always keep this in mind that goodness never gets wasted and similarly bad deeds are also seen and punished accordingly. In both cases, the person is either rewarded sooner or later, but it’s always done and dusted timely. Even on a basic scale, when you spread and sow happiness, there shall always be peace and happiness in life and when you sow the seeds of bad deeds then automatically a sense of fear and insecurity comes in complementarily. 

To Take Note

In the proverb, ‘as you sow, so shall you reap’ is already an inbuilt powerful message for all humanity. It is really important to keep in mind the usage of words which is ‘as you sow’ and not ‘the more you sow’. So from this, you should understand that it is not enough as to how much more quantity of seeds you sow of your actions, but it is very important to sow a good quality of it and try to spread it over a large area as well. The quality, fertility, right maintenance, and also including the protection from other unwanted weeds is equally important. This is a very deep, yet a simple and powerful version of the understanding of this proverb if taken under consideration.

The Bottom Line

There should never be a blame game. You should not justify your reaction due to someone else’s action. For exchanging actions and reactions in life, you always are eligible to bear the consequences as well. Our actions shape our future. Just keep on doing your best with whatever you get, and only good will follow you too. And nonetheless, be answerable about your decisions, not to anybody else but you. You will get what you have given, and there is no turning back from it, no matter which life you live in.

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