Expressing an internal Experience

We are in this world to experience a life in the flesh and thereby exhaust our attachments and desires. Those attachments and desires are the bonds of karma that keep bringing us back into this life of toil. It is only by clearing our karma that we can exit the cycle of reincarnation.

Our interaction with the material world is made up of three stages: First, we receive inputs through our senses of perception. Then we process those inputs and experience the effect of those inputs. Finally we respond to those inputs through an expression of our internal experience.

There is a wide array of ways in which to express what we have experienced. Great souls express their internal experience in ways that can move huge numbers of people. Those expressions have served to transform entire populations.

Today's Post is a marker for a Page in which I explore in detail the matter of internal experience and the expression of it. Do take the time to read it. I hope you find it to be inspirational.

Perceive > Experience > Express

Dealing with Karma

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Karma means action. Every action triggers a sequence of consequences. Positive actions yield positive consequences while negative actions do the opposite. Positive and negative consequences can cancel out each other. The concept of karma includes the consequences of one's action. 

The Bhagavad Gita teaches that there are 3 kinds of karma - sanchita which is the entire karmic baggage, prarabdha which is the karmic baggage allocated for the current lifetime and kriyamana which is fresh karmic baggage being added on.

From the upanishads, one learns that there are 4 paths of yoga to help in dealing with karma - bhakthi, karma, njana and kriya. This is dealt with in more detail here. The popular mainstream religions offer bhakthi (devotion) and karma (service) as essential elements of piety. The advaita practices offer intellectual pursuit and meditative inward seeking as mechanisms to deal with karma.

We each have to search for the path that works best for us. This is usually defined by the religious heritage of the individual. Those who are not satisfied with the teachings offered by their religious tradition go in search of answers. Seekers from various disciplines very often find themselves headed in a common direction. That is because all traditions come from the same source.

May you find the path that works well for you.

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Determine your personality

We generally believe that our personality is something that is outside of our control. That it was determined by fate or circumstances or something like that.

The reality is that, as we grew up, we allowed external influences to determine how our personality was moulded. Some of it was the result of copying one or more role models while some was a defensive mechanism developed to cope with stresses we faced. These influences were placed upon us in layers - from family members, from the community we grew up in, from the schools we went to, from our workplaces, from the neighbourhood we live in... all these external factors have contributed towards what we allowed ourselves to become.

The truth is that we can have complete control over what we are and how we choose to be. We can address and overcome the influences of growing up and become our own persons, stop blaming external factors for what we are. Knowing that you can determine what your personality should be, you can consciously work towards becoming a better person. 

This is not something that can be achieved overnight. It will take effort and determination. But ultimately, we will be the biggest beneficiaries of our internal transformation.

Sadhguru Says

Realisation of Purpose

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At the end of it all, what we really want to know is, what is is all about? Without knowing what life is about, it is difficult to navigate a course. If life is a random occurrence, what's the point?

This final segment examines the deeper meaning of two things - purpose and realisation.

First, I examine the meaning of purpose and the idea about everything having a purpose. In that context, I discuss the purpose of being born human.

Then I look at the word realise and discuss how one can realise one's purpose.

Best to find out at source so I'll keep this intro brief.

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This ends my intro to the multipart extract of my paper on dharma which I put up without any introduction when I first created this Blog. From tomorrow, I'll resume my regular blogging.

If you want to read my complete paper in one go, get the PDF version.

The Blessing of Reincarnation

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Yesterday turned out to be a full day so I managed to do just two Posts. I should be able to complete the last two in the series today.

One of the toughest questions faced by advocates of religion is the evident unfairness of the circumstances of the people around us. Those preaching about a loving and compassionate and just God struggle to explain why some people have to suffer so much while others seem to live charmed lives. They resort to arguments like "we cannot understand God's purpose" and "we must have faith that God has a reason". They also struggle to explain why an Omnipotent God cannot eliminate Satan and the evil spawned by Satan. Most of all, they have no answer to the reasoning that an Omniscient God would have seen the future of the people who will commit terrible evil but still allows them to be born.

The many theologies that were born in bharath have one thing in common - they all subscribe to the idea that we don't live a single lifetime and, based on a judgement of the single lifetime, need to spend the rest of eternity in suffering or bliss. The common belief is that we all live multiple lifetimes and the circumstances that we face in each lifetime is the result of what we had done in previous lifetimes. This immediately offers a sense of justice and reason for the varying circumstances of the people around us.

The next segment of my paper explores this idea and the implications thereof.

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