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THOUGHTS ON KARMA
by Sri Sathya Sai Baba
A strong feeling of renunciation and an attempt to attain this state immediately and instantly is ‘severe detachment’. If the same is achieved over a period of time with so many interruptions during one’s life’s journey results in ‘mild type of detachment’. One can reach this state in the long run but when is this going to fructify one cannot predict.
The mind-set of those involved in karma (action) is of two ways. One section thinks that those who do the karma have every right to enjoy the results good or bad. Any karma begets the result and results belong to those who do that karma. Quite contrary to this the second kind thinks that unless one has the right of enjoyment of the results, there is no point in doing karma. Well, Gita says ‘dear saadhaka, do the karma but never seek the fruits of the karma and claim no authority on the fruits of karma what you do’. One cannot escape from doing karma. You have every right to seek for the fruits of the karma. But, relinquish your claim on the fruits willingly. If one does karma with a strong desire to enjoy its fruits, then it leads to emotional and passionate attitude towards life (rajoguna). If you have no authority on fruits of karma, you stay off doing the karma-this leads to ignorance attitude (tamoguna). Both are of the same type leading to inconsistencies. One has to aim at becoming gentle and noble with a passive and sublime nature i.e. saattwika. In this case one does the karma but never desires any result or fruits out of that karma. He is tuned to karmaphalatyagam!
However, in the path of karma yoga (yoga of action) one has to be in the devotional service of ‘Madhava’-turning to manava seva.
The natural bliss what one gets while doing the karma cannot be derived while seeking for karmaphalam (fruits or results arise out of that action). One attains a state of tranquility while doing the karma assigned to him by the classified grading of his gunas (attributes). A painter paints and a writer or a poet enjoys in writing the poetry or prose. If anybody says ‘please do not go for painting or writing and enough money will be offered to you for your subsistence’, do you think that the painter stops painting and the writer stops writing. The one who lives for his conviction of his natural inborn tendencies wouldn’t care to heed your words. While doing his karma, he derives that aananda which entirely is sattwik (noble, gentle, passive and sublime). This bliss is the desirable fruit of his action. The external benefits (money, awards or rewards) what he receives are just menial and quite insignificant to him. Day-to-day operations such as, eating, drinking, sleeping, breathing etc are all actions one has to perform for his subsistance. Doubtless, but what Gita means when it talks about karma is the righteous action what one is supposed to perform as a man. Being a man he should behave like a human but not like an animal or a brute. All the actions we perform in search of that ‘Supreme Bliss’ is called ‘vikarmas’. One’s own right action following a righteous path is karma, but this is on grocer scale. If one inducts the ‘Consciousness’ in the external action the karma turns into a ‘vikarma’. When one is paying his respects and obeisance to the other, if the humility is missing in that exterior action such an action is just useless. If this is done with all his heart, un-assuming and with the purity of his mind then the interior and exterior actions coincide yielding excellent results of the nishkama karma. As the karma, so the fruitful result one achieves.
Force generates when one combines ‘karma’ with ‘vikarma’. From this akarma (feeling of no action) is born. If one kindles karma with vikarma akarma is born. One feels as if no karma is done though he is doing karma. It appears as if the karma is a heavy burden. Though he does karma he is a non-doer of the karma. This is a strange situation. Lord Krisna says to Arjuna- ‘Partha! You feel as if you are killing all these people in the war. But you are not that!’ One finds a lot of difference when he as an outsider punishes a child and at the same time when the mother punishes for the same wrong. The child cannot tolerate your punishment, starts crying, but with her mother the child hugs her mother so closely when the mother reproaches her. In the external action of the mother there lies the concept of ‘nishkaamam’ Out of love she does it to correct the child. Due to ‘vikarma’ and purity of the heart the feeling of karma evaporates.
The Lord Vishnu sleeps on that dreadful, poisonous one thousand hooded mighty snake, yet HE is peaceful with no feelings of any fright and fear! Like-wise the liberated souls though they are neck deep in this mundane world carrying out their routine deeds (karmas), they live untouched by these karmas. They show the least concern about the effect of the turbulence these actions would generate in their inner hearts and mind. For external practice karma (action), for the internal right conduct the vikarma both are essential. External karma and its performance is a typical test to any saadhaka (trainee). The karma is to be performed but with a touch of gentleness, warm-heartedness and compassion. If these lack in one’s approach towards karma the entire exercise of one’s own right conduct has no meaning, and it does not yield any fruitive results.
Let us suppose we are serving an ailing, diseased person. This service is karma and if it is not coupled with compassion and love the service becomes laborious with no charm in that. That goes with so much of inconvenience both for the servant and the served with disease. Unless the mind is tuned to the service in a sacred way the service results in ‘ego’ and this makes one to think that ‘I have done some job for him and in return I expect some help from him whenever I need, at least I expect some rewarding words from him’. Such thoughts are quite inconsistent with the concept of nishkamakarma and keep one away from God. The karma when blended with the inner feeling, the entire structure of karma completely changes. Both the wick and the oil together must coordinate with each other then only the kindled light consistently gives brightness. So, karma must be blended with vikarma to kindle nishkamakarma (with no desire for the fruits of action) within the heart of saadhaka. When the karma blends with vikarma, as the mother pats affectionately the back of the child and the feelings of both the mother and child become one with the other and even an ordinary karma becomes a sublime one! Such a blend of noble and sublime thoughts is indescribable leading to ecstasy.
One must fix his mind with concentration during meditation. The job one is doing may be either worldly or transcendental (spiritual) he must do with utmost concentration. In either case the necessary conditions are the same and not at all different. The spiritual activity certainly purifies the mundane activity and attaches a desired ‘value’ to it. The success and failure of any ‘act’ depends entirely on the concentration of the mind on the karma one does.
One can accomplish this concentration of the mind through undeterred practice. Even in this practice one finds different stages, the first being the state of vacuum (nothingness) in which one is in a state of slumber, his eyes are fully closed feels sleepy and simply ignorance prevails. The second one is the diversion of the mind to other activities along with the one under question. Eyes are fully open attracted towards the attractive and mysterious world. The state when the eyes are neither fully closed not fully opened (a state of tranquility?) one can reach the desired state of concentration. One has to fix his inner sight in between the two eyebrows and this leads to the desired intense concentration. This is the state of tranquility replete with full of sattwaguna. Either in mundane or transcendental world anything is possible with this concentration of the mind. One endowed with such concentration, is full of energy and does not lack abilities to accomplish the one he desires in his life. As the age progresses his power of mind also increases to un-imaginable levels. Observe the fruit still hanging on to the branches of a mango tree. In the beginning, prior to its fruition, the colour is green, as time passes it is ripe and turns yellow, slowly turns black when it’s rotten. But strangely the seed inside grows stronger and stronger becomes hard.
The entire essence of external body appearance is nothing but the soul. It is the source for the flesh, muscles, bones, nerves and everything in the body. In due course of time the power of meditation increases. But, one very often complaints that he is losing his memory power due to his old-age. One’s knowledge, wisdom, memory-all these evolve out of his soul-the source of all these. The body however, withers, weakens, the muscles hang on due to old age but the faculties of the mind go strong.
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