Notes on Karma

 

By George A. Boyd © 1994

 

Excerpted from Light on Meditation

 

We can take three perspectives on karma: satoguna, rajoguna, and tamoguna

 

Satoguna emphasizes how you can work on karma to limit its effects on the future (consequences) through actions guided by wisdom, and to uproot and transform its stored accretions through using transformative meditational practices.

 

Rajoguna emphasizes the dynamic aspects of karma in action. This is the law of cause and effect. Methods that improve the quality of karma that you generate include basing your actions on love and compassion, feeling empathy for others, using restraint and discipline of passions, doing deeds of charity and philanthropy, studying the scriptures and observing the precepts of religion.

 

Tamoguna emphasizes the substance of the unconscious mind, the actual impressions of karma as they are layered behind the vehicles of consciousness, upon the matrix of human life, and behind the Soul and the spirit.

There are four kinds of karma — Adi, Sinchit, Kriyaman and Pralabdha.

 

Karma is a seamless web. It is divided into these four kinds according to where it is layered.

 

Adi Karma is layered behind the ensouling entity.

 

Sinchit Karma is stored in the channels of the Nada behind the spirit.

 

Kriyaman Karma is stored behind the vehicles of consciousness.

 

Pralabdha Karma is stored in the physical etheric matrix.

 

Karma operates from the unconscious mind outside of awareness and the
control of the will.

 

There are seven layers of karma — physical, etheric, magnetic desire, imagination/fantasy, thoughts, beliefs, identification, karmic impression, and karmic seed

 

Transformational methods burn away the karmic seed, which removes all of the layers of karma associated with that seed.

 

Integral meditation teaches how to transform in a balanced way, and shows you how to dissolve your karma.

 

We are built of operating units of karma. Through the process of transformation, many of these units of karma become integrated into the functioning of the personality after being transformed. For example:

 

The fantasy of motherhood becomes realized when you become a mother.

 

The fantasy of becoming an electrical engineer becomes realized when you finish your school and begin working in that field

 

The fantasy of being a minister or Guru becomes realized when your Soul attains that state of being and you begin functioning in that capacity

 

The fantasy, the drive, and the subliminal thinking of karma lead you to achieve these positive aims.

 

It also embodies your negative aspects as the seven passions: lust, greed, anger, attachment, egotism/narcissism, ignorance, and sloth/indolence.

 

The process of transformation both leads you to integrate these positive aspects, but also to transmute and sublimate those negative aspects.

 

Anger is sublimated into will power and self-discipline; it is transformed into forgiveness, compassion, and non-injury.

Lust is sublimated into respect, self-control, and cleanliness; it is transformed into chastity, holiness, spiritual beauty, and love.

 

Greed is sublimated into the acquisition of knowledge and skill; it is transformed into charity and selfless giving.

Attachment is sublimated into voluntary simplicity and identification of necessity (e.g., identifying whether it is really necessary to buy or keep something); it is transformed into the realization that everything comes from God.

Egotism/narcissism is sublimated into the drive for excellence and to live up to an ideal; it is transformed into humility and the awareness of the Allness of God.

 

Ignorance is sublimated into the quest for truth and knowledge; it is transformed into the Illumined Mind of Wisdom.

Sloth and indolence is sublimated into energy and enthusiasm; it is transformed into the All Accomplishing Energy of God, which we call Shakti.

 

Karma in the unconscious personifies as the angels of your positive qualities, which are the archetypes of your potential. It also personifies as the demons of your negative qualities, which are the archetypes of your character weaknesses—you have the potential to overcome these negative qualities provided you work diligently and skillfully to eradicate them.

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