6. Purity in Action - Karma
The Law of Cause and Effect.
Karma is the fourth aspect of the Fivefold Path. The law of cause
and effect in physics, when carried to subtler levels, is the law of
Karma. It is the law of “reap as you sow".
The law of Karma leaves no scope for fatalism of any kind. The law
of Karma states that “you are the planter of the seed and you are
the reaper of the deed." You make or mar your own future. Your
present circumstances, apparently pleasant or unpleasant, are the
result of your past actions. This clearly means that your efforts in
the present moment determine what you will be in the future.
One might say that all life is the operation of the law of Karma.
Karma is like a vast trap in which all of us are caught although the
bonds are subtle. We cannot remain without action even for a single
moment. The action may be physical or the action may be mental. If
one has to reap what one has sown it would appear that there is no
end to this chain of Karma. However, the law of Karma states that if
you do action without attachment to the fruit thereof, then it does
not bind you and no chain of future reaping is forged. Only by doing
good actions without attachment can we get rid of this trap of
Karma.
The law of Karma is inevitable. If you have an evil thought about
someone and he does not know it, you might pass off as a gentleman.
However, if you realize the consequences of this single evil thought
you will dare not to have
it. Simply by having an evil thought you are creating a tiger which
will roar at you all the time. Karmic entanglement is subtle but
inevitable. As you sow, so you reap.
If you say that you shall be good to the other person only if the
other person is good to you then you pass the initiative into
someone else's hands. It would be foolish to do that. You have to
reap what you sow and hence, you have to take care that you sow good
seeds and not wild weeds.
If you think that someone has done you any wrong or you think he has
spoken ill about you, do not be in a hurry to blame the person at
once. The law of Karma does not work in a narrow way. Your first
consideration should be, perhaps you are reaping as you have sown in
the past. Maybe it is the working out of some past Karmic account.
If you get into this habit you do not involve yourself into further
bad sowings which you may have to reap.
The laws of the superphysical realm are as true as the laws of the
physical realm. They are inviolable. You connive at them only at the
risk of great harm to yourself. If someone asks you to jump from a
skyscraper you are going to say no, because you believe that the law
of gravity operates and you will be hurt. Even if you do not believe
in the law of gravity, the law of gravity believes in you and it
operates. However, people are not aware of the law of “reap as you
sow" which is a law in the superphysical realm. Therefore, a person
does not hesitate to do wrong action. The superphysical law believes
in him and he has to pay the price for his action. You may have to
pay sooner or later but pay you must.
Any intense Karma, good or bad, fructifies within a short time.
Devotion to a high Master who has transcended the law of Karma and
following his commands is intense good Karma. This purifies the mind
and reduces the pangs of previous bad Karma. We need the guidance
and blessings of a high Master to become aware of the Light which is
within us. He takes you towards the Light. The Light is merely an
unfoldment which takes place when the six crocodiles mentioned in
the last chapter on Tapa become weak and fade out. The journey
towards the Light is the Divine Path.
Elementary physics swears by the law of cause and effect. However,
when physics enters the realm of microparticles, that is, when it is
quantum physics, we recognize that the law of cause and effect as we
normally
understand, does not operate. This is sometimes termed as
indeterminacy. However, this indeterminacy is upheld by some
Omnipotent Will. The religions sometimes call this God. The law of
Karma states, “Repent and you shall be forgiven." This is Grace.
This may be compared to the nullifying of the law of cause and
effect in the realm of microparticles where the so-called
indeterminacy works as manifestation of the one Omnipotent Will.
When the mind takes the total coloration of LOVE we enter a higher
state of consciousness and GRACE operates. Love and attachment are
two different things. Love without attachment cleanses the mind of
all its former grooves and the law of Grace operates.
Do action for self-purification. Let there be no ego about it. The
doership of “I” has to go. Then you become a fitter instrument of
this one Omnipotent Will. The reactions of your mind to all
circumstances and conditions take the total coloration of Love. LOVE
is the alchemy which transmutes the baser instincts and your journey
on the Divine Path, the Path of Light, is done.
When it is said that you do Karma for self-purification one might
say, Will this take away all fun from my life? Will I be able to
enjoy this world if I have to do every action for self-purification?
One might ask a counter question: How much are you enjoying the
world now when you are not guided by this purification? Despite
material plenty there is so much misery. Disease and mental illness
are eating up the sap of life. There is so much misery around us. No
one seems to be in a state of happiness which is not followed by
unhappiness. Every time it is a few tingling sensations of pleasure
followed by much misery. Misery is the symptom of the disease. The
disease is bondage, attachment. Everyone is placed differently by
the mould of destiny. Therefore, whatever work comes to your lot do
it in a spirit of service. Do it with love. Say to yourself, This is
the work that 1 am supposed to do at this moment. Therefore, it is
my duty to do it. I do my duty. Thus, there is no attachment to the
fruit of your actions. You feel more free to do the action and
hence, you fill every moment with joy. This frame of mind spreads
joy all around you and makes others happy. You feel that if you are
in a tight corner there is no one else to blame but yourself. By
doing all action with love you know you can get over the situation.
The result of an action which you have done in the past becomes your
destiny in the future. An action done yesterday becomes your destiny
today.
An action in the last minute becomes your destiny this minute. It is
always reap as you sow.
A mouse sees a piece of cheese ten meters away. The mouse says, “If
I take the action of walking to the piece of cheese I must get it."
The poor creature does not realize that there are a hundred other
mice which are after the same piece of cheese and there are a dozen
cats ready to pounce on all the mice. Therefore, it is said that the
best laid plans of mice and men go astray. The result of your action
is dependent on several factors of which you are not cognizant.
Imagine a lot of land. There are several automobiles on it and
people are told to drive as they like. It will be chaos, won't it?
The resultant Karma depends on several factors which we do not
cognize. Destiny is the unfoldment of the fructification of past
Karma.
The working out of destiny is to be viewed in the context of the
flux of Omnipotent Will. By proper use of free will, that is, by
doing intense good Karma without attachment, the pangs of destiny
disappear.
There is nothing that we can do about the past. Can the misery that
is yet to come be avoided? This is the question. The answer is in
the affirmative. The answer is emphatically yes. The Fivefold Path
offers you the material and mental aids to achieve this state. Past
SANSKARAS (impressions) could be wiped out by the practice of Tapa.
Intellect and action affect each other. Bad action weakens the power
of intellect to choose between right and wrong. Bad action weakens
our ability to continue to do the right action despite provocation,
as a groove is created in the mind. Clouded intellect pushes us to
commit further wrong action. We thus get involved into a series of
bad Karma, bad sowings that we have to reap. Even if there is an
evil thought, see that it is not translated into action. No doubt,
the thought will have its effect but the action will make things
worse. A person given to vice and greed needs money. He sees
somebody's purse. He opens the purse and sees one hundred dollars.
He is a novice and his conscience troubles him. He says to himself,
“Let me take only twenty. It is really not nice to steal someone's
money." He takes twenty and puts back the rest in the purse. This
wrong action weakens his power of discrimination and the next time
he takes eighty dollars and puts back twenty saying, “Let the lady
have some money to return home in a taxi."
This further weakens his power of discrimination to choose between
right and wrong. The third time he takes all the hundred dollars
saying, “Oh, to hell with it. The whole world is doing it. Why
should 1 care?" However, one day he has to pay for his bad Karma.
Thought precedes action and hence, purification has to reach the
thinking process. Mere resolutions to change our ways are not
enough. They have to be backed up by resolute practice. Good
thoughts have an effect, but when they are translated into action a
mechanism starts operating in the subtler realm and this reinforces
our will power.
People mistake charity for love. There are thousands who are
spending their time, money and labor in the service of their fellow
man but they do not make much progress on the Divine Path, the Path
of Light. Why? It is because they have not learned to do this
without self-centeredness which revolves around the personality. If
we get into the habit of offering all the fruits of our actions to
the Master who guides us on the Divine Path, we avoid this danger
and each one of our works is transformed into worship. Agnihotra
gives a push to the mind in this direction.
Good Karma sets up a new pattern in the mind which reinforces the
potency of good thoughts. Hence, an attempt needs to be made to
change the habit pattern which we think is not in harmony with our
progress on the Divine Path.
It does not require much will power to do the right thing if the
person is wise. If someone offers us nice and tasty food but we come
to know that there is a drop of poison in it, it does not require
much strength of will to reject that food. Similarly, if we are
aware that the law of reap as you sow is inviolable it will not
require much will power to desist us from doing a bad action.
The power of discrimination to choose between right and wrong is
granted to us on the day we are born as humans. The capacity to
execute this power varies from person to person depending upon the
accumulation of past impressions which is the result of past
actions. However, by practice of the Fivefold Path you get the
strength and the past impressions are wiped out. Proper and
judicious use of this power accentuates our journey on the Path of
Light.
A desire emerges as an attitude and becomes manifest. This causes
disturbance as it creates a sense of wanting. If some time is
allowed to pass, this attitude becomes a propensity. Then a signal
goes to the intellect to find out means for the gratification of
that desire and mind becomes colored by the desire and then it acts
like a wave. To check this flow some effort is needed. The effort
may be physical or mental. It is difficult to check this flow
sometimes, even for yogis. This wave leads to the action that is
gratification. However, in this process some impressions are created
in the mind and our next thought and action tend to flow out of this
groove. Agnihotra and Daan are the two material aids to help us
check this wave if it is in the wrong direction. Tapa is the mental
effort. The following suggestions will help you in your progress on
the Path of Light.
You work forty hours in a week for the boss. Work for a few hours
for yourself. Spend this time in the company of fellow travelers on
the Path of Light. Do some work with them or for them and receive no
material benefit from that work.
Never hanker after name or fame. It does not matter whether people
respect you. Make sure that you show proper respect to others.
Do not discuss in public about your own progress on the Divine Path
or about your Master who guides you on the Divine Path.
While moving about in the world doing what you consider to be your
duty, try to inculcate contentment in life. Say to yourself, I have
done my duty. There is nothing better that I can do.
Treat all your visible and invisible assets as a trust and put your
Master who takes you by the hand on the Path of Light in the center
of all your activities.
Avoid discussing shortcomings of others.
Do not waste time over discussing with others again and again
routine matters relating to your work, profession, service, etc.
Choose a fixed time for sitting quietly with closed eyes every day
practicing meditation. Avoid too much food, too much sleep, too much
talk, too much
worry.
Take note how much energy is wasted in:
- Sex exuberance
- Earning more money
- Caring for name and fame
- Worrying over things. People tire themselves out more by worry
than by work. Learn to conserve this energy by turning it inwards
over meditating upon your Master and the Light within you. Avoid
brooding over:
- Sins committed in the past
- Sex
- Financial and other material losses
- Fame and name that you might have earned in the past
- Bodily disease that troubles you
Karma is sometimes viewed in three aspects:
- KARMA (good action)
- AKARMA (bad action)
- VIKARMA (specific allotted work of a person)
To find out what is Karma and Akarma you need not consult your
neighbor. Books of ancient wisdom, books of the prophets, literature
of the saints tell us what Karma is and what Akarma is. However,
Vikarma, the specific allotted work of a person, is known only when
you meet a Master who has traveled on the Path of Light and has the
ability not only to point it out to you but to take you by the hand
and help you walk on it. Such a Master is called a Sadguru. The
company of travelers on the Path of Light who are
trying to cast out all prejudice from the mind and who are
attempting to fill every moment with love is called SATSANG. Company
of such people makes the journey on the Path of Light easier.
Purification of the mind does not necessarily come through
intellectual exercise. It is possible that the sharpened intellect
can lead to chicanery. Hence, it is the purification of intellect
that matters on the Path of Light. This purification comes when the
trouble from the six crocodiles becomes less. Purification is
getting out of the grips of desires that haunt us all the time.
Purification does not come by gathering knowledge from more and more
branches of science. Purification begins by reducing attachments to
worldly possessions. This puts us into the habit of doing good Karma
all the time. Proper use of free will is the only way to get out of
the trap of KARMA. Proper use of free will means learning to reduce
attachments to our actions and doing things in a spirit of service.
It means reducing the habit of the mind to hanker after pleasure
through sense gratification. The fountain of Joy is within you. The
Divine Kingdom, the Kingdom of Light, is within you.
One might ask, How do I meet my Master? The answer is simple. When
the disciple is ready the Master appears. There are various grades
of Masters. They are all too high for all of us. When you start
treading this Divine Path things will come to you in silence. Things
will be unfolded to you from within. You will recognize the signs. A
true Master, SADGURU, will help you to become a better member of
your religion, a better follower of your prophet. You may look at
the water from your own window. Sadguru will help you to see the
depth of the water. When you get a glimpse of the depth view you
come to know that depth view is the same whichever window you look
into. The Kingdom of Light is within you.
The Master puts you in touch with the “un struck music" of Creation
which you hear from within. This accelerates the process of
purification of the mind and the Kingdom of Light shines in all its
glory. Then you realize that there is another world waiting to
welcome you. It is BLISS ETERNAL. This world is not a location in
space. It is Here and Now.
Om Tat Sat!