More on Karma: Be a Mirror

 A mirror simply reflects everything. Nothing sticks to it; no residue is left upon it, and it never makes any judgements about what it reflects. It does not discriminate between pleasant and unpleasant; beautiful and ugly. 

Sadhguru

Words of wisdom from Sadhguru and the last half of Chapter Nine, Karma Yoga and the Energy Body:

Mukti: Freeing Self from Allotted Karma

I keep saying freedom from suffering is my goal...but now I am questioning if I am simply  wanting escape more so than liberation. What about you? Are you just doing the spiritual thing to escape difficulty, or are you  naturally wanting to evolve to the next level? The more we practice meditation and sitting, we are told, the quicker our karmic consequences will dissolve. 

• The longing for liberation or mukti, is not becasue life is miserable....The longing for liberation arises only when life is good, but you naturally want to evolve to the next dimension.  Page 184 
• Those who are able to sit still will find there karmic coil unwinds rapidly (Allotted Karma) Page 185

Aging, Illness and Dying

It was interesting to view this very natural process, of aging and dying in regards to karma. It is all about staying conscious and aware.

• When the pranic (energy) body is feeble it will slip out of the body...death by old age...not being forced out of the body; you are naturally moving out. Page 186
• how rapidly you empty your Allotted Karma depends on how swiftly you are willing to move from one aspect of life to another.  Page 186
• if you function unconsciously, your karma rules you absolutely. As soon as you function with some awareness, the power of karma over your life weakens Page 187
• the human being cannot function without karma Page 188
• If our pursuit of external science and technology were accompanied by the pursuit for inner well being, this would be less of an issue.  Page 188

Responsibility.

We are responsible for our karma.

• If you live with this sense of responsibility, your tendencies will not rule you, and your future will not mimic the past. Page 187

Samadhi

That state we strive for in our spiritual practice, often without knowing what it is, is samadhi. 

• samadhi: an absolutely equanimous state of intellect where you are unable to distinguish between the concepts of you and the other; this or that; here or there...a state of samdhi Page 189
• A mirror simply reflects everything. Nothing sticks to it; no residue is left upon it, and it never makes any judgements about what it reflects. It does not discriminate between pleasant and unpleasant; beautiful and ugly. When your mind becomes like this, you are in a state of samadhi...Page 189
• mahasamadhi...ultimate aim for yogi...ultimate dissolution of the limited identity..a voluntary relinquishments of the physical, mental, and energy bodies...giving up the limited for the unlimited Page 190
• instead of sitting on the beach, you choose to become the ocean. You choose to move from limited pleasure to the unfathomable ecstasy of boundless existence Page 190

The Purpose of Yoga

The purpose of yoga is to lose the identity and become the equanimous, indiscriminate  One.

• The purpose of yoga is to open up various spaces within you that are not you. Page 191
• Initially this "not you" component is just a speck but if nurtured with practice as karmic debris is cleared away...the space gradually expands until it occupies everything within you. Page 191
• in this space you are truly "meditative".  You are now in a state of equanimity- of samadhi-when the dance of duality no longer touches you. ..You are not identified with the game of me and you anymore.  Page 191
• Existentially, no distinctions exists between the life of one being and the life of another...Page 193

On Healing and Being Healed

The healing process can be viewed differently than how we were conditioned to view it when we consider the role of Karma.  Instead of getting rid of the affliction we may begin to view it as possibly having some deeper meaning, We do not attempt to merely  get rid of the effect but look deeply into the cause so we can  transcend or offer transcendence from there. 

• when you heal, you are only appeasing the karmic effect.  You do not have the capacity to take away the cause. If you merely remove the effect, the cause will take effect in some other way.   Page 195
• So do not seek to remove the effect. The effect is only an indicator of a problem; by merely erasing it, you are only enabling the seeds of the problem to manifest in some other way. Page 195
• Pain is an opportunity to bring awareness to your system so you can investigate what is wrong.  Page 195
• never intervene with the karmic process...just help hasten it if you can Page 196
• if you do some spiritual practice, you can handle the  problem from within and minimize its impact on you,  Page 197
• what you may see as mere pain in someone else is also sometimes fuel to make them grow...Page197
• don't attempt to alleviate it...help them go beyond it...Page 197
• The ultimate guidance you can offer is to help someone transcend their suffering Page 197
• ...there is a way out of suffering.  Even though there is a pain, there need be no suffering. The ability to see this difference is the supreme human attainment...Page 197
• not offering temporary relief, but a permanent solution Page 197

Suggested Sadhana

Sadhguru offers a practice...falling off to sleep as if you are falling into death. Makes me think of why we do the corpse pose at teh end of each hatha practice...a reminder to die to be reborn.

• Sadhana...remind self that everything you consider to be yourself is an acquired identity...remind self that all memory is accumulation...detach and put away everything that is acquired including memory, thoughts, feelings , emotions
• See your sleep as impending death (corpse pose)
• If you fall asleep as if you are dying, you will see that your karma barely has any impact on you...199 

All is well.

Sadhguru ( 2021) Karma: A Yogi's Guide to Crafting Your Destiny. New york: Harmony Books