Guiding Light: The Law of Karma

The law of karma may be described as the law of causation – the foundation on which this universe evolves. It affects all aspects of our existence – spiritual, psychic, physical; it influences our thoughts, intentions, motives and actions. It embraces our past, present and future.

Any action, thought or feeling generated by an individual leaves behind a trace, which has the power to bring joy or sorrow. These traces, or karmic residue, can bring about consequences on three different levels:

1. The type of next birth – bird, animal, plant or human

2. Life span – long-lived or short-lived

3. Life experiences – pleasurable or painful

Let me pass on to you a few suggestions that can be helpful in daily life:

1. Always be aware of your thoughts. A thought is power; it is energy. As you think, so you become. Every time an evil thought approaches you, push it out of your mind.

2. As you sow, so shall you reap. Therefore, be aware of every little thing that you do. Every day, spend some time in silence, preferably at the same time and at the same place. Sitting in silence, go over all that you did during the earlier twenty four hours. You will surely find that there were things which you did which you should not have done. Repent for them all and pray to the Lord for wisdom and strength to never to do such things again.

3. Take care of your sanga – the people with whom you associate. If you move in the company of holy ones, something of their holiness will penetrate your life and fill you with holy aspirations and vibrations.

4. Develop the spirit of detachment. Attend to your duties but be inwardly detached, knowing that nothing, nobody belongs to you.

5. Grow in the spirit of surrender to God, “Not my will, but Thy Will be done, O Lord!” Repeat the Name Divine, and pray with a sincere heart that you shall be at peace with yourself and with those around you.

6. Do as much good as you can, to help as many as you can, to lift the load on the rough road of life.

We could say that it is the law of karma that upholds dharma, and maintains justice, equity, order and balance in the universe.

Dada J P Vaswani is a humanitarian, philisopher, educator, acclaimed writer, powerful orator, messiah of ahimsa, and non-sectarian spiritual leader

Published on: Tuesday, September 13, 2022, 05:00 AM IST