Commentaries by Vee Jay Attri during the Book Study – Secrets of Karma
Let’s joyfully continue with our study from the Secrets of Karma. We are still on the ‘ART of Living.’ We talked about acceptance, we talked about responsibility. We were reading on tolerance, religious and race intolerance. Hatred karmically binds and makes you attract to yourself what you hate in others.
You have to be very careful here. Every time you have a tendency to criticize or condemn someone’s weakness, and repeatedly you do that and your focus is on people’s weaknesses or limitations or their behavior, including the way they are dressing up, including their lifestyle; over a period of time, when you keep judging people, you will slowly start attracting the same traits of the people. That is why, in the Holy Bible, it is said so beautifully:
‘‘Judge not, that ye be not judged.”
Holy Bible
So, this is one area where you need to be very careful about. Of course, there are times where you have to apply discrimination and out of sheer compassion, you make a suggestion to somebody or to a group. This is just to bring the awareness, so that the soul do not astray too much from the path.
So, that is basically like a gentle reminder to our own brothers and sisters, to help them to move to the next level because many at times, unconsciously, souls who are gripped with so much of desires, they are basically under the control of the astral vehicle.
So, sometimes gentle reminders are necessary, but these reminders are not born out of anger or hatred, it is born out of compassion.
If you hate any religion or race, you will be born in that faith or race in some other embodiment.
If you keep criticizing someone for his or her way of life, you will come to live the same life at some point. Besides, as seen earlier, the person you hate often comes back in your life, in another life, as an immediate family member, even as your ‘difficult’ partner!
This is so important, we have talked about it several times. Even if people give you much pain and suffering and insult or they do any kind of harm, including slander, you have to be very cautious not to be affected internally.
Said very easily, I also sometimes do get affected but we have to make an effort to come out of all these reactions that are stemming from pain, stemming from repeated sufferings or pain that are inflicted on us over and over again. We have to take that extra courage.
Otherwise, two things happen: 1. You get bound with that person. They will definitely appear again in some other lifetime, giving you the same lesson you are expected to learn. 2. Even if that person doesn’t appear, the situation will come in another form. Somebody else will replace that person.
The bottom line is experience and the lesson that you gather from that experience. This you keep remember at all times. Only two things: Experiences and lessons. So, the situation or the people have been created to offer you the experience that you are expected to have and the lessons that you are expected to learn.
Apart from that, there is no purpose for us to come into this plane of matter. You are a boundless soul. You are a spiritual being. You are a non-physical being. You, the non-physical being, using the vehicle, coming into the plane of matter, is only to strengthen your spiritual muscle so that you evolve spiritually.
There is no other reason, no big game. The moment you understand this at a deeper level, every forms of reactions will gradually come under control. I am not saying stop but at least, it will be manageable.
Intolerance towards any religion or race is bad karma. There is a reason for everything in creation, which is an expression of the infinite wisdom of the Creator. Moreover, everyone is born by his or her karma and has to balance it through a preordained path.
So, cultivate tolerance and show respect for everyone; neither have hatred nor judge anyone’s path. In our long journey, what truly matters are the experiences and the lessons we learn along the way. Good or bad, all serve a purpose.
Accepting or embracing situations or conditions without any kind of resentment or anger or frustration is very important. While you do that, you will also take appropriate action, that is necessary. However, do not fall into the trap over and over again.
For eons of times, we the human souls, have been coming into embodiments after embodiments. The conditions of life have not improved substantially because there is a tendency for us to react over and over again and get trapped in the cycle of action and reaction, life and death. It continues like this. Somehow, in this lifetime, you have to make a special effort at least, to ensure that you do not face the same conditions that you have faced in this lifetime ever again in the future lifetimes.
It could be something else, but at least with the level of wisdom that you have gained, ensure that you do not bind yourself with neither people nor situations that you faced in this lifetime. You have to become a free soul. This is very important.
Alright, ART of Living is completed. We are now going for Inner reflection. Close your eyes, take a deep breath. Inhale deeply, exhale slowly. You may silently follow me or you can repeat after me also.
Chapter 3 ART of Living – Inner Reflection
1. What I resist will persist. I will accept things that I cannot change.
2. All situations of my life are opportunities for learning and growth. There are always hidden blessings in all that happens to me.
Isko Hindi mein kehte hai, Sab hi mein kalyaan! There is only good things or goodness in everything that is happening. We do not know but the higher powers, they know exactly what is happening to us and what benefits are being accrued.
3. Nothing happens without a reason. All that happens is the result of one’s choices.
It is very important: it is the result of one’s choices. Unfortunately, I am going to give you a very harsh story that I happened to hear years back. There was this lady who was actually telling a large crowd why she was abused physically.
Now, I am not trying to say anything beyond the essence of what I basically want to teach you. If you are going to display your vehicle, attracting people’s attention over and over again, you are actually pulling down people to a level of body consciousness, utter body consciousness.
How do you expect people to react to you? You have to think about it. You, the soul, you are simply acquiring your vehicle for the purpose of spiritual evolution. I am not suggesting that, do not dress up well. I dress up very well, I dress up this vehicle very well.
Anytime, I ensure that the vehicle is appearing neat and clean, perfect with a proper dress but we have to ensure at the same time not to attract the attention of the people towards my vehicle. If I do that over and over again, people are going to be attracted to me with body conscious eyes, with the vicious eyes.
That energy that comes to you deprives you of realizing that you are a spiritual being in the first place. So, you might be saying, I am a soul, I am a spiritual being but most of the time, you are only thinking about your vehicle.
Just try to picture yourself for a moment. Are you able to see yourself as a light being or as a vehicle that you are having? Check every time you look into the mirror. Surely, you will be looking at the vehicle but just make an effort to look at yourself as a spiritual being.
Say mentally that I the spiritual being, I the soul, am in the vehicle for a greater work. This level of awareness is very important. So, do not blame people for getting attracted to you because you are displaying the vehicle in a particular way.
You will attract people’s comments unnecessarily. You have to be very careful. If you are listening to me, it is understood that you are already on the spiritual path. Otherwise, you and I would not be sitting and listening to each other.
And therefore because you chose to be on the spiritual path, you have to understand these delicate subjects of your life. While you will take care of your vehicle very well, dress it up wonderfully, at the same time, keep reminding yourself that you are a spiritual being, I am a soul.
3. All that happens is the result of my choices. I am responsible for all that I experience. I will not point fingers and blame others.
4. Situations are created to balance my karma. I will work on my karma and heal past wounds.
5. I will nurture young souls with patience and care. I will be tolerant and have respect for everyone.
6. I will neither have hatred nor will I judge others as I attract to myself what I hate in others.
7. I will master the ART and transform my life.
ART means acceptance of things that you cannot change, responsibility and tolerance. This is about the ART of living. We shall move to the next Chapter.
Chapter 4 – Karmic obligations
“There is no growth except in the fulfillment of obligations.’’
Antoine de Saint- Exupery
This is by a very great saint. All that I can read is Antoine de Saint- Exupery, whatever way it has been pronounced.
Karmic obligations are duties to fulfill in one’s lifetime. More than just doing what is needed, fulfilling your obligations with love and dedication is the way to finding lasting peace, joy, and success in all levels of your life.
Sometimes, certain demanding responsibilities in very challenging conditions could be the result of unfulfilled duties or negligence in delivering your obligations in your past lives.
You have to fulfill them in this life to neutralize these karmic debts.
There are many levels of karmic obligations. We will look at seven of these.
Further reading: Secrets of Karma, Page 70- 77