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10 signs of a spiritual awakening

Spiritual Reality A Journey Within

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Forgotten Air Spaces Meditation Music (Heart Centre)

Transforming Meditations

Meditation is a method for acquainting our mind with virtue. The more familiar our mind is with virtue, the calmer and more peaceful it becomes. When our mind is peaceful we are free from worries and mental discomfort, and we experience true happiness. If we train our mind to become peaceful we shall be happy all the time, even in the most adverse conditions, but if our mind is not peaceful, then even if we have the most pleasant external conditions we shall not be happy. Therefore it is important to train our mind through meditation.
When our mind is peaceful we are free from worries and mental discomfort, and we experience true happiness.
There are two types of meditation: analytical meditation and placement meditation. When we contemplate the meaning of a Dharma instruction that we have heard or read we are doing analytical meditation. By deeply contemplating the instruction, eventually we reach a conclusion or cause a specific virtuous state of mind to arise. This is the object of placement meditation. Having found our object through analytical meditation, we then concentrate on it single-pointedly for as long as possible to become deeply acquainted with it. This single-pointed concentration is placement meditation. Often, analytical meditation is called simply `contemplation’, and placement meditation simply `meditation’. Placement meditation depends upon contemplation, and contemplation depends upon listening to or reading Dharma instructions.
Since most of the problems we experience when we are new to meditation come from overstraining at placement meditation, it is important to be moderate and avoid becoming tense from exerting too much pressure. The effort we apply should be relaxed and steady, and whenever we become tired we should rest.

Breathing Meditations

Breathing Meditations
Generally, the purpose of breathing meditation is to calm the mind and develop inner peace. We can use breathing meditations alone or as a preliminary practice to reduce our distractions before engaging in a Lamrim meditation
A Simple Breathing Meditation
The first stage of meditation is to stop distractions and make our mind clearer and more lucid. This can be accomplished by practising a simple breathing meditation. We choose a quiet place to meditate and sit in a comfortable position. We can sit in the traditional cross-legged posture or in any other position that is comfortable. If we wish, we can sit in a chair. The most important thing is to keep our back straight to prevent our mind from becoming sluggish or sleepy.
The first stage of meditation is to stop distractions and make our mind clearer and more lucid.
We sit with our eyes partially closed and turn our attention to our breathing. We breathe naturally, preferably through the nostrils, without attempting to control our breath, and we try to become aware of the sensation of the breath as it enters and leaves the nostrils. This sensation is our object of meditation. We should try to concentrate on it to the exclusion of everything else.
At first, our mind will be very busy, and we might even feel that the meditation is making our mind busier; but in reality we are just becoming more aware of how busy our mind actually is. There will be a great temptation to follow the different thoughts as they arise, but we should resist this and remain focused single-pointedly on the sensation of the breath. If we discover that our mind has wandered and is following our thoughts, we should immediately return it to the breath. We should repeat this as many times as necessary until the mind settles on the breath.
Benefits of Meditation
If we practise patiently in this way, gradually our distracting thoughts will subside and we will experience a sense of inner peace and relaxation. Our mind will feel lucid and spacious and we will feel refreshed. When the sea is rough, sediment is churned up and the water becomes murky, but when the wind dies down the mud gradually settles and the water becomes clear. In a similar way, when the otherwise incessant flow of our distracting thoughts is calmed through concentrating on the breath, our mind becomes unusually lucid and clear. We should stay with this state of mental calm for a while.Even though breathing meditation is only a preliminary stage of meditation, it can be quite powerful. We can see from this practice that it is possible to experience inner peace and contentment just by controlling the mind, without having to depend at all upon external conditions.
So much of the stress and tension we normally experience comes from our mind
When the turbulence of distracting thoughts subsides and our mind becomes still, a deep happiness and contentment naturally arises from within. This feeling of contentment and well-being helps us to cope with the busyness and difficulties of daily life. So much of the stress and tension we normally experience comes from our mind, and many of the problems we experience, including ill health, are caused or aggravated by this stress. Just by doing breathing meditation for ten or fifteen minutes each day, we will be able to reduce this stress. We will experience a calm, spacious feeling in the mind, and many of our usual problems will fall away. Difficult situations will become easier to deal with, we will naturally feel warm and well disposed towards other people, and our relationships with others will gradually improve

How to Meditate

With the hectic pace and demands of modern life, many people feel stressed and over-worked. It often feels like there is just not enough time in the day to get everything done. Our stress and tiredness make us unhappy, impatient and frustrated. It can even affect our health. We are often so busy we feel there is no time to stop and meditate! But meditation actually gives you more time by making your mind calmer and more focused. A simple ten or fifteen minute breathing meditation as explained below can help you to overcome your stress and find some inner peace and balance.Meditation can also help us to understand our own mind. We can learn how to transform our mind from negative to positive, from disturbed to peaceful, from unhappy to happy. Overcoming negative minds and cultivating constructive thoughts is the purpose of the transforming meditations found in the Buddhist tradition. This is a profound spiritual practice you can enjoy throughout the day, not just while seated in meditation.
On this website you can learn the basics of Buddhist meditation. A few books are mentioned that will help you to deepen your understanding if you wish to explore further. Anyone can benefit from the meditations given here, Buddhist or not. We hope that you find this website useful and that you learn to enjoy the inner peace that comes from meditation.

Sahasrara Chakra

Sahasrara Chakra
Seventh Chakra
The seventh chakra: "the crown chakra", located at the top of the head. This is related to one's personal spiritual connection to the universe. Blockage manifests as psychological problems.
Meaning, Plane, Effects of Meditation
The thousand petalled lotus, which represents the plane of truth and reality, is like an umbrella of petals with all the colors of the rainbow, and the yogi identifies Self as the guru within.
Planes:
Radiation: Light, fire, or sight in it's finest essence. The yogi becomes illuminated like the sun. His aura of light is continually radiant.
Primal Vibrations: Om is the first sound, continuing infinitely. Here the frequency of AUM becomes manifest within the yogi.
Gaseous Plane: The yogi attains supremacy over prana, which becomes so subtle that all of the prana (life force) within his body is said to be thumb-sized; if one were to bring a piece of glass in front of the yogi's nose, no condensation would deposit on it (haole, ha a`ole--no breath)
Plane of Positive Intellect: All value judgments or dualistic perceptions must be balanced, or negative intellect, the negation of the divine, may arise within the mind.
Happiness: Arises when a proper balance in body, psyche, and mind is established.
Laziness: May occur when the yogi attains a state of bliss, only to stop all action: when he goes into a state of “Samadhi”, the physical body becomes totally inactive.
Effects of Meditation:
Immortality is attained within Sahasrara Chakra. Before attaining this chakra the yogi is unable to reach the unconscious-conscious state called “asama-prajnata-samadhi”. In this state there is no activity of the mind and no knower, no knowledge, nothing to be known: knowledge, knower, and known all become unified and liberated.
Samahdi is the pure bliss of total inactivity. Up to the sixth chakra the yogi may enter a trance in which activity or form still remains within the consciousness. In Sahasrara Chakra the prana moves upward and reaches the highest point. The mind establishes itself in the pure void of Shunya Mandala, the space between the two hemispheres. At this time all feelings, emotions, and desires which are the activities of the mind, are dissolved into their primary cause. The union is achieved. The yogi is “sat-chit-ananda”, truth-being-bliss. He is his own real self, and as long as he stays in his physical body, he retains non-dual consciousness, enjoying the play of “lila”, the temporal world, without becoming troubled by pleasure and pain, honors and humiliations.
When the Kundalini is raised up to Sahasrara Chakra, the illusion of "individual self" is dissolved. The yogi becomes realized, one with the cosmic principles that govern the entire universe within the body. He obtains all “siddhis”, powers, up to Soma Chakra, where he encounters Kamadhenu, the wish-fulfilling cow within himself. He is a “siddha”, but has transcended the desire to manifest those wishes.
According to the “shastras”, Sahasrara is the seat of the self-luminescent soul, or “chitta”, the essence of being. Here, chitta is like a screen upon which the reflection of the cosmic Self is seen, and through it the divine is reflected. In the presence of the cosmic Self it is possible for anyone to feel the divine and indeed to realize the divinity within himself.
Thought, Universal identity, oriented to self-knowledge. This is the crown chakra that relates to consciousness as pure awareness. It is our connection to the greater world beyond, to a timeless, spaceless place of all-knowing. When developed, this chakra brings us knowledge, wisdom, understanding, spiritual connection, and bliss. Spirit.
Lives in an Extended State of Consciousness and Attains Enlightenment.
Known as: Crown Chakra, Sehasara, Sahastrar
Sahasrara = thousand spoked, thousand-petalled.
Location: Top of the Head.
Colors: Violet, white
Element: Cosmic kingdom = THE SOURCE
Attributes: Kundalini Shakti rises up the spinal column to unite with Shiva here. One understands Non-Duality, Governs connection to cosmic consciousness ,spiritual, wisdom aspirations knowledge of truth.
Deities: The GURU Within.
Symbol: One Thousand Rainbow Colored Petals.
Mantra: Each of the 50 Sanskrit Letters Repeat on the Petals.

How to Meditate?

Step by Step Procedure for Meditation Note : This is the full meditation , on days when you dont find time Step 2,3 can be skippedStep 1 : Salutation to GuruGuru Brahma Guru Vishnu Guru Devoo MaheshwarahGuru Satchad Param Brahmam Tasmai Sri Guruve Namaha.Step 2: Bending & Twisting Excercisesa.Hold both the fingers in chin mudra and placing them on the kneeFor each Chakra (Moolaradara,Swadhistana,Maipuraha,Ahanata,Vishuddi,Agnya) and Sahasrahara - 7 timesb.Bend forward on the left side and take your chin towards the outside of the kneec.Come up and do the same on the right sideBreath Control during the Excercise.Step a : While Bending forward exhale and count 1,2,3Step b. : Count 4,5,6 hold the air and keep the thought at the particular chakraStep c : Inhale 7,8,9 and come up to erect positionStep d : Hold the breath for 10,11,12 and now do the right sideNote : The thought should be placed @ Each chakra while concentration.Twisting Excercisesa. Hold both your hands in chin mudrab.Now for twsting Left for Mooladara , place your left hand on the left groin so that Middle ring and index finger are on the outside of left thigh and right hand placed against the left knee in Chin mudra.c.Exhale and count 1,2,3 d. Now hold the count 4,5,6 keeping the spine in a stretched position at the mooladara.3.Inhale and count 7,8,9 and come forward4.Hold and count 10,11,12.5.Do the same for the right sideNow perform for each chakra until the Forehead eye and the top of the headStep 3 : Salutation to the Pancha Bhootas , Wisdom and SOUL - SALUTATION to ADHARAS - Adhara Vanakaam1. Sit in Vajrasana2. Lean bend forward and and then come upsalute the EARTH priniciple at Mooladara , base of spine Salute the WATER priniciple at Swadhistana , around the urinary regionSalure the FIRE priniciple at MANIPURAHA , the stomach regionSalute the AIR priniciple at the ANAHATA , the chest regionSalute the SPACE principle at the VISHUDDI , the throat regionSalute the WISDOM priniciple at the Forehead RegionSalute the SOUL priniciple at the Top head regionStep 4 : Salutation to Mother Father and the Gurua.Sit in normal Meditation position b. Fold your thumb and then the 4 fingers ,and place it on the knees.This is called Aadhi Mudra c.In Aadhi Mudra , think of your mother in the forehead eye , exhale lean bend forward and salute your mother , MAATHRU DEVO BHAVAc..In Aadhi Mudra , think of your father in the forehead eye , exhale lean bend forward and salute your father , PITHRU DEVO BHAVAd.In Aadhi Mudra , think of your SATGURU who taught the Kundalini meditation for your welfare in the forehead eye , exhale lean bend forward and salute your father , AACHARYA DEVO BHAVAStep 5 : Meditation1.Sit in a comfortable posture with neck , spinal cord and head Erect.2.Keeps your eyes gazed at the tip of the nose.3.Concentrate your mind and place the Single-Thought Mind on the space between the eye brows.4.You will experience the pulse or a apressure or a Inner feeling of a ant crawling , now keep your mind attentive to the divine vibration for 20 minutesIf the the eyes close automatically after 3-5 minutes ,then one need not strain to to gaze at the tip of the nose.After finishing the meditation , rub your hands 5 times and place them on the eyelids.Feel the warmth emanting from the center of your palms throught the eyelids.Do it again. Now raise your hands and receive the Energy 12 inches above your head from the Dwadasantha center in the center of your palms and descend the energy through the center of th spine from the top of the head. Mentally think let my intellect be purified and energisedReceive the energy and descend and mentally think let mind become peacefulReceive the energy and descend it from top of the head to baseof the spine and then to legs ,hands and fingers and mentally think let body become fit and healthy.Now bend forward and offer yourself to the Satguru mentally offering "Satguruve Saranam"Step 6 : Blessings to the World.Keep your hands in namaskara Mudra , thumb touching the forehead eye and bless yourself ,your family,your parents, your friends, your spouse ,your children,your workplace,your city ,your country , the whole world and then Universe.Offer the Selfless thought "Let all beings attain peace and happiness""Let Wisdom FlourishLet peace PrevailLet us protect Satya Yuga by the Grace of the Sath Guru""Let the rivers be nationalised""Let the Food grains be available to one and all for eradication of povertyLet the earth cool itselfBy 9-9-2009 , let Sri Lanka find the Solution to TAMIL problemBy 2020 , let world peace be established.S A N T H O S H A M ! S A N T H O S H A M ! S A N T H O S H A M !

About Spiritual

Kundalini : That energy which performs the triple fold function of Generation , Operation and Destruction of life,both animate and inanimate is called as the Kundalini Shakti. Every system right from the smallest atom ,planets , galaxies and universe has this Energy at its core. In Every human being as well, this energy lies coiled and dormant at the tip of the spine. When this energy move through the Sympathetic and para Sympathetic nervous systems , it acts as the Energy for desire and action , when the same Energy rises through the Central nervous system , it manifests as wisdom called as Gnana Sakthi (Intelligence).This Kundalini energy can be clearly felt by the practioner after initiation at the Forebrain (Ajna) and in the Midbrain (Sahasrahara) as a pulse. This pulse is called as Meiunarvu or Divine vibrationMeditation Observing the Kundalini vibration that arises in the forehead eye is called kundalini meditation. One can observe this for 20 minutes in a session , once in the morning and evening. and can easily do all the daily activities and include this as another activity as the part of day to day life.Spiritual Initiation or Deeksha (Upadesam): When the life force is brought from the base of spine upward through the central canal (sushumna nadi) of the spinal cord crossing the backbrain and to the forehead eye by the grace of experienced spiritual instructor , it is called initiation. The screen covering the intellect is pierced by spiritual power generated by the Guru and then one can experience a throbbing or a tickling sensation or a sensation of heat , sometimes cold. This is the pulse of the soul and it is the ever present reality.3rd Eye of Wisdom or Minds Eye or Eye of WisdomLocation in Human body: The space between eyebrows , the two eyes and above the nose is a small opening which is very subtle path and is ordinarily closed. . This is the called the 3rd eyeFunction : It is the seat of intellect. Just as the naked eye is capable of perceiving sensory light which results in vision , the 3rd eye is seat of thoughts and capable of visioning spiritual Divine Light. It biologically corrosponds to Pituitary gland which controls all the other endocrine glandsNormal Life and 3rd eye : All talents gets exhibited by the intellect when this functioning very well. For all successful people in the fields of arts , music , scientific research , sports , people management etc, a little current of Kundalini Energy must have found a way through the sushumna and lights up the higher faculty in Brain centers for them to be successful. Only people are not aware of it.In the field of Yoga , we consciously understand the biologic , pyschic and causal mechanism from the 3rd eye meditation.Benefits of practiseThe biggest benefit of Kundalini Meditation is stimulation of good thoughts in ones mind and thereby guides the life from within for the practioner. It makes ones Self Realise things as they areTo the BodyWhen energy rises to brain and then flows into the body , it gives good feeling to the body. The bio heat generated as a result of meditation purifies blood.The various ills of the body also gets cleared.To the MindWhen Kundalini meditation is practised sincerely , the mind flows as a clear stream just like water currents in the middle of sea. The stress that comes with various responsibilities of life tends to wane away over a period of time depending upon practionerTo the intellectThe pleasure of the Divine Vibration in the brain enriches the intellect with wisdom. This is called as Bliss. The more bliss one experiences , the more peaceful the mind and more sharper the intellect becomes culminating in the full blown experience of Self Realisation or State of Nirvana (Samadhi)
S A N T H O S H A M !

About Karma

Karma is the law of moral causation. The theory of Karma is a fundamental doctrine in Buddhism. This belief was prevalent in India before the advent of the Buddha. Nevertheless, it was the Buddha who explained and formulated this doctrine in the complete form in which we have it today.
What is the cause of the inequality that exists among mankind? Why should one person be brought up in the lap of luxury, endowed with fine mental, moral and physical qualities, and another in absolute poverty, steeped in misery? Why should one person be a mental prodigy, and another an idiot? Why should one person be born with saintly characteristics and another with criminal tendencies? Why should some be linguistic, artistic, mathematically inclined, or musical from the very cradle? Why should others be congenitally blind, deaf, or deformed? Why should some be blessed, and others cursed from their births?
Either this inequality of mankind has a cause, or it is purely accidental. No sensible person would think of attributing this unevenness, this inequality, and this diversity to blind chance or pure accident.
In this world nothing happens to a person that he does not for some reason or other deserve. Usually, men of ordinary intellect cannot comprehend the actual reason or reasons. The definite invisible cause or causes of the visible effect is not necessarily confined to the present life, they may be traced to a proximate or remote past birth.
According to Buddhism, this inequality is due not only to heredity, environment, "nature and nurture", but also to Karma. In other words, it is the result of our own past actions and our own present doings. We ourselves are responsible for our own happiness and misery. We create our own Heaven. We create our own Hell. We are the architects of our own fate.
Perplexed by the seemingly inexplicable, apparent disparity that existed among humanity, a young truth-seeker approached the Buddha and questioned him regarding this intricate problem of inequality:
"What is the cause, what is the reason, O Lord," questioned he, "that we find amongst mankind the short-lived and long-lived, the healthy and the diseased, the ugly and beautiful, those lacking influence and the powerful, the poor and the rich, the low-born and the high-born, and the ignorant and the wise?"
The Buddha’s reply was:
"All living beings have actions (Karma) as their own, their inheritance, their congenital cause, their kinsman, their refuge. It is Karma that differentiates beings into low and high states."
He then explained the cause of such differences in accordance with the law of cause and effect.
Certainly we are born with hereditary characteristics. At the same time we possess certain innate abilities that science cannot adequately account for. To our parents we are indebted for the gross sperm and ovum that form the nucleus of this so-called being. They remain dormant within each parent until this potential germinal compound is vitalised by the karmic energy needed for the production of the foetus. Karma is therefore the indispensable conceptive cause of this being.
The accumulated karmic tendencies, inherited in the course of previous lives, at times play a far greater role than the hereditary parental cells and genes in the formation of both physical and mental characteristics.
The Buddha, for instance, inherited, like every other person, the reproductive cells and genes from his parents. But physically, morally and intellectually there was none comparable to him in his long line of Royal ancestors. In the Buddha’s own words, he belonged not to the Royal lineage, but to that of the Aryan Buddhas. He was certainly a superman, an extraordinary creation of his own Karma.
According to the Lakkhana Sutta of Digha Nikaya, the Buddha inherited exceptional features, such as the 32 major marks, as the result of his past meritorious deeds. The ethical reason for acquiring each physical feature is clearly explained in the Sutta.
It is obvious from this unique case that karmic tendencies could not only influence our physical organism, but also nullify the potentiality of the parental cells and genes – hence the significance of the Buddha’s enigmatic statement, - "We are the heirs of our own actions."
Dealing with this problem of variation, the Atthasalini, being a commentary on the Abhidharma, states:
"Depending on this difference in Karma appears the differences in the birth of beings, high and low, base and exalted, happy and miserable. Depending on the difference in Karma appears the difference in the individual features of beings as beautiful and ugly, high-born or low born, well-built or deformed. Depending on the difference in Karma appears the difference in worldly conditions of beings, such as gain and loss, and disgrace, blame and praise, happiness and misery."
Thus, from a Buddhist point of view, our present mental, moral intellectual and temperamental differences are, for the most part, due to our own actions and tendencies, both past and present.
Although Buddhism attributes this variation to Karma, as being the chief cause among a variety, it does not, however, assert that everything is due to Karma. The law of Karma, important as it is, is only one of the twenty-four conditions described in Buddhist Philosophy.
Refuting the erroneous view that "whatsoever fortune or misfortune experienced is all due to some previous action", the Buddha said:
"So, then, according to this view, owing to previous action men will become murderers, thieves, unchaste, liars, slanderers, covetous, malicious and perverts. Thus, for those who fall back on the former deeds as the essential reason, there is neither the desire to do, nor effort to do, nor necessity to do this deed, or abstain from this deed."
It was this important text, which states the belief that all physical circumstances and mental attitudes spring solely from past Karma that Buddha contradicted. If the present life is totally conditioned or wholly controlled by our past actions, then certainly Karma is tantamount to fatalism or determinism or predestination. If this were true, free will would be an absurdity. Life would be purely mechanistic, not much different from a machine. Being created by an Almighty God who controls our destinies and predetermines our future, or being produced by an irresistible Karma that completely determines our fate and controls our life’s course, independent of any free action on our part, is essentially the same. The only difference lies in the two words God and Karma. One could easily be substituted for the other, because the ultimate operation of both forces would be identical.
Such a fatalistic doctrine is not the Buddhist law of Karma.
According to Buddhism, there are five orders or processes (niyama) which operate in the physical and mental realms.
They are:
Utu Niyama - physical inorganic order, e.g. seasonal phenomena of winds and rains. The unerring order of seasons, characteristic seasonal changes and events, causes of winds and rains, nature of heat, etc., all belong to this group.
Bija Niyama - order of germs and seeds (physical organic order), e.g. rice produced from rice-seed, sugary taste from sugar-cane or honey, peculiar characteristics of certain fruits, etc. The scientific theory of cells and genes and the physical similarity of twins may be ascribed to this order.
Karma Niyama - order of act and result, e.g., desirable and undesirable acts produce corresponding good and bad results. As surely as water seeks its own level so does Karma, given opportunity, produce its inevitable result, not in the form of a reward or punishment but as an innate sequence. This sequence of deed and effect is as natural and necessary as the way of the sun and the moon.
Dhamma Niyama - order of the norm, e.g., the natural phenomena occurring at the advent of a Bodhisattva in his last birth. Gravitation and other similar laws of nature. The natural reason for being good and so forth, may be included in this group.
Citta Niyama - order or mind or psychic law, e.g., processes of consciousness, arising and perishing of consciousness, constituents of consciousness, power of mind, etc., including telepathy, telaesthesia, retro-cognition, premonition, clairvoyance, clairaudience, thought-reading and such other psychic phenomena which are inexplicable to modern science.
Every mental or physical phenomenon could be explained by these all-embracing five orders or processes which are laws in themselves. Karma as such is only one of these five orders. Like all other natural laws they demand no lawgiver.
Of these five, the physical inorganic order and the order of the norm are more or less mechanistic, though they can be controlled to some extent by human ingenuity and the power of mind. For example, fire normally burns, and extreme cold freezes, but man has walked scatheless over fire and meditated naked on Himalayan snows; horticulturists have worked marvels with flowers and fruits; Yogis have performed levitation. Psychic law is equally mechanistic, but Buddhist training aims at control of mind, which is possible by right understanding and skilful volition. Karma law operates quite automatically and, when the Karma is powerful, man cannot interfere with its inexorable result though he may desire to do so; but here also right understanding and skilful volition can accomplish much and mould the future. Good Karma, persisted in, can thwart the reaping of bad Karma, or as some Western scholars prefer to say ‘action influence’, is certainly an intricate law whose working is fully comprehended only by a Buddha. The Buddhist aims at the final destruction of all Karma.
What is Karma?
The Pali term Karma literally means action or doing. Any kind of intentional action whether mental, verbal, or physical, is regarded as Karma. It covers all that is included in the phrase "thought, word and deed". Generally speaking, all good and bad action constitutes Karma. In its ultimate sense Karma means all moral and immoral volition. Involuntary, unintentional or unconscious actions, though technically deeds, do not constitute Karma, because volition, the most important factor in determining Karma, is absent.
The Buddha says:
"I declare, O Bhikkhus, that volition is Karma. Having willed one acts by body, speech, and thought." (Anguttara Nikaya)
Every volitional action of individuals, save those of Buddhas and Arahants, is called Karma. The exception made in their case is because they are delivered from both good and evil; they have eradicated ignorance and craving, the roots of Karma.
"Destroyed are their germinal seeds (Khina bija); selfish desires no longer grow," states the Ratana Sutta of Sutta nipata.
This does not mean that the Buddha and Arahantas are passive. They are tirelessly active in working for the real well being and happiness of all. Their deeds ordinarily accepted as good or moral, lack creative power as regards themselves. Understanding things as they truly are, they have finally shattered their cosmic fetters – the chain of cause and effect.
Karma does not necessarily mean past actions. It embraces both past and present deeds. Hence in one sense, we are the result of what we were; we will be the result of what we are. In another sense, it should be added, we are not totally the result of what we were; we will not absolutely be the result of what we are. The present is no doubt the offspring of the past and is the present of the future, but the present is not always a true index of either the past or the future; so complex is the working of Karma.
It is this doctrine of Karma that the mother teaches her child when she says "Be good and you will be happy and we will love you; but if you are bad, you will be unhappy and we will not love you." In short, Karma is the law of cause and effect in the ethical realm.
Karma and Vipaka
Karma is action, and Vipaka, fruit or result, is its reaction.
Just as every object is accompanied by a shadow, even so every volitional activity is inevitably accompanied by its due effect. Karma is like potential seed: Vipaka could be likened to the fruit arising from the tree – the effect or result. Anisamsa and Adinaya are the leaves, flowers and so forth that correspond to external differences such as health, sickness and poverty – these are inevitable consequences, which happen at the same time. Strictly speaking, both Karma and Vipaka pertain to the mind.
As Karma may be good or bad, so may Vipaka, - the fruit – is good or bad. As Karma is mental so Vipaka is mental (of the mind). It is experienced as happiness, bliss, unhappiness or misery, according to the nature of the Karma seed. Anisamsa are the concomitant advantages – material things such as prosperity, health and longevity. When Vipaka’s concomitant material things are disadvantageous, they are known as Adinaya, full of wretchedness, and appear as poverty, ugliness, disease, short life-span and so forth.
As we sow, we reap somewhere and sometime, in his life or in a future birth. What we reap today is what we have sown either in the present or in the past.
The Samyutta Nikaya states:
"According to the seed that’s sown, So is the fruit you reap there from, Doer of good will gather good, Doer of evil, evil reaps, Down is the seed and thou shalt taste The fruit thereof."
Karma is a law in itself, which operates in its own field without the intervention of any external, independent ruling agency.
Happiness and misery, which are the common lot of humanity, are the inevitable effects of causes. From a Buddhist point of view, they are not rewards and punishments, assigned by a supernatural, omniscient ruling power to a soul that has done good or evil. Theists, who attempt to explain everything in this and temporal life and in the eternal future life, ignoring a past, believe in a ‘postmortem’ justice, and may regard present happiness and misery as blessings and curses conferred on His creation by an omniscient and omnipotent Divine Ruler who sits in heaven above controlling the destinies of the human race. Buddhism, which emphatically denies such an Almighty, All merciful God-Creator and an arbitrarily created immortal soul, believes in natural law and justice which cannot be suspended by either an Almighty God or an All-compassionate Buddha. According to this natural law, acts bear their own rewards and punishments to the individual doer whether human justice finds out or not.
There are some who criticise thus: "So, you Buddhists, too, administer capitalistic opium to the people, saying: "You are born poor in this life on account of your past evil karma. He is born rich on account of his good Karma. So, be satisfied with your humble lot; but do good to be rich in your next life. You are being oppressed now because of your past evil Karma. There is your destiny. Be humble and bear your sufferings patiently. Do good now. You can be certain of a better and happier life after death."
The Buddhist doctrine of Karma does not expound such ridiculous fatalistic views. Nor does it vindicate a postmortem justice. The All-Merciful Buddha, who had no ulterior selfish motives, did not teach this law of Karma to protect the rich and comfort the poor by promising illusory happiness in an after-life.
While we are born to a state created by ourselves, yet by our own self-directed efforts there is every possibility for us to create new, favourable environments even here and now. Not only individually, but also, collectively, we are at liberty to create fresh Karma that leads either towards our progress or downfall in this very life.
According to the Buddhist doctrine of Karma, one is not always compelled by an ‘iron necessity’, for Karma is neither fate, nor predestination imposed upon us by some mysterious unknown power to which we must helplessly submit ourselves. It is one’s own doing reacting on oneself, and so one has the possibility to divert the course of one’s Karma to some extent. How far one diverts it depends on oneself.
Is one bound to reap all that one has sown in just proportion?
The Buddha provides an answer:
"If anyone says that a man or woman must reap in this life according to his present deeds, in that case there is no religious life, nor is an opportunity afforded for the entire extinction of sorrow. But if anyone says that what a man or woman reaps in this and future lives accords with his or her deeds present and past, in that case there is a religious life, and an opportunity is afforded for the entire extinction of a sorrow." (Anguttara Nikaya)
Although it is stated in the Dhammapada that "not in the sky, nor in mid-ocean, or entering a mountain cave is found that place on earth where one may escape from (the consequences of) an evil deed", yet one is not bound to pay all the past arrears of one’s Karma. If such were the case emancipation would be impossibility. Eternal recurrence would be the unfortunate result.
What is the cause of Karma?
Ignorance (avijja), or not knowing things as they truly are, is the chief cause of Karma. Dependent on ignorance arise activities (avijja paccaya samkhara) states the Buddha in the Paticca Samuppada (Dependent Origination).
Associated with ignorance is the ally craving (tanha), the other root of Karma. Evil actions are conditioned by these two causes. All good deeds of a worldling (putthujana), though associated with the three wholesome roots of generosity (alobha), goodwill (adosa) and knowledge (amoha), are nevertheless regarded as Karma because the two roots of ignorance and craving are dormant in him. The moral types of Supramundane Path Consciousness (magga citta) are not regarded as Karma because they tend to eradicate the two root causes.
Who is the doer of Karma? Who reaps the fruit of Karma? Does Karma mould a soul?
In answering these subtle questions, the Venerable Buddhaghosa writes in the Visuddhi Magga:
"No doer is there who does the deed; Nor is there one who feels the fruit; Constituent parts alone roll on; This indeed! Is right discernment."
For instance, the table we see is apparent reality. In an ultimate sense the so-called table consists of forces and qualities.
For ordinary purposes a scientist would use the term water, but in the laboratory he would say H 2 0.
In this same way, for conventional purposes, such terms as man, woman, being, self, and so forth are used. The so-called fleeting forms consist of psychophysical phenomena, which are constantly changing not remaining the same for two consecutive moments.
Buddhists, therefore, do not believe in an unchanging entity, in an actor apart from action, in a perceiver apart from perception, in a conscious subject behind consciousness.
Who then, is the doer of Karma? Who experiences the effect?
Volition, or Will (tetana), is itself the doer, Feeling (vedana) is itself the reaper of the fruits of actions. Apart from these pure mental states (suddhadhamma) there is no-one to sow and no-one to reap.
Classification of Karma
(A) With respect to different functions, Karma is classified into four kinds:
1. REPRODUCTIVE KARMA
Every birth is conditioned by a past good or bad karma, which predominated at the moment of death. Karma that conditions the future birth is called Reproductive Karma. The death of a person is merely ‘a temporary end of a temporary phenomenon’. Though the present form perishes, another form which is neither the same nor absolutely different takes its place, according to the potential thought-vibration generated at the death moment, because the Karmic force which propels the life-flux still survives. It is this last thought, which is technically called Reproductive (janaka) Karma, that determines the state of a person in his subsequent birth. This may be either a good or bad Karma.
According to the Commentary, Reproductive Karma is that which produces mental aggregates and material aggregates at the moment of conception. The initial consciousness, which is termed the patisandhi rebirth consciousness, is conditioned by this Reproductive (janaka) Karma. Simultaneous with the arising of the rebirth-consciousness, there arise the ‘body-decad’, ‘sex-decad’ and ‘base-decad’ (kaya-bhavavatthu dasakas). (decad = 10 factors).
(a) The body-decad is composed of:
The element of extension (pathavi).
The element of cohesion (apo).
The element of heat (tajo).
The element of motion (vayo).
(b) The four derivatives (upadana rupa):
Colour (vanna).
Odour (gandha).
Taste (rasa).
Nutritive Essence (oja)
These eight (mahabhuta 4 + upadana 4 = 8) are collectively called Avinibhoga Rupa (indivisable form or indivisable matter).
(c) Vitality (jivitindriya) and Body (kaya)
These (avinibhoga 8 + jivitindriya 1 + Kaya 1 = 10) ten are collectively called "Body-decad" = (Kaya dasaka).
Sex-decad and Base-decad also consist of the first nine, sex (bhava) and seat of consciousness (vathu) respectively (i.e. eye, ear, nose, tongue, and body).
From this, it is evident that the sex of a person is determined at the very conception of a being. It is conditioned by Karma and is not a fortuitous combination of sperm and ovum cells. The Pain and Happiness one experiences in the course of one’s lifetime are the inevitable consequence of Reproductive Kamma.
2. SUPPORTIVE KARMA
That which comes near the Reproductive (janaka) Kamma and supports it. It is neither good nor bad and it assists or maintains the action of the Reproductive (janaka) Karma in the course of one’s lifetime. Immediately after conception till the death moment this Karma steps forward to support the Reproductive Karma. A moral supportive (kusala upathambhaka) Karma assists in giving health, wealth, happiness etc. to the being born with a moral Reproductive Karma. An immoral supportive Karma, on the other hand, assists in giving pain, sorrow, etc. to the being born with an immoral reproductive (akusala janaka) Karma, as for instance to a beast of burden.
3. OBSTRUCTIVE KARMA OR COUNTERACTIVE KARMA
Which, unlike the former, tends to weaken, interrupt and retard the fruition of the Reproductive Karma. For instance, a person born with a good Reproductive Karma may be subject to various ailments etc., thus preventing him from enjoying the blissful results of his good actions. An animal, on the other hand, who is born with a bad Reproductive Karma may lead a comfortable life by getting good food, lodging, etc., as a result of his good counteractive or obstructive (upabidaka) Karma preventing the fruition of the evil Reproductive Karma.
4. DESTRUCTIVE (UPAGHATAKA) KARMA
According to the law of Karma the potential energy of the Reproductive Karma could be nullified by a mere powerful opposing Karma of the past, which, seeking an opportunity, may quite unexpectedly operate, just as a powerful counteractive force can obstruct the path of a flying arrow and bring it down to the ground. Such an action is called Destructive (upaghataka) Karma, which is more effective than the previous two in that it is not only obstructive but also destroys the whole force. This Destructive Karma also may be either good or bad.
As an instance of operation of all the four, the case of Devadatta, who attempted to kill the Buddha and who caused a schism in the Sangha (disciples of the Buddha) may be cited. His good Reproductive Karma brought him birth in a royal family. His continued comfort and prosperity were due to the action of the Supportive Karma. The Counteractive or Obstructive Karma came into operation when he was subject to much humiliation as a result of his being excommunicated from the Sangha. Finally the Destructive Karma brought his life to a miserable end.
(B) There is another classification of Karma, according to the priority of effect:
WEIGHTY (GARUKA) KARMA.
This is either weighty or serious – may be either good or bad. It produces its results in this life or in the next for certain. If good, it is purely mental as in the case of Jhana (ecstasy or absorption). Otherwise it is verbal or bodily. On the Immoral side, there are five immediate effective heinous crimes (pancanantariya karma): Matricide, Patricide, and the murder of an Arahant, the wounding of a Buddha and the creation of a schism in the Sangha. Permanent Scepticism (Niyata Micchaditthi) is also termed one of the Weighty (garuka) Karmas.
If, for instance, any person were to develop the jhana (ecstasy or absorption) and later were to commit one of these heinous crimes, his good Karma would be obliterated by the powerful evil Karma. His subsequent birth would be conditioned by the evil Karma in spite of his having gained the jhana earlier. Devadatta lost his psychic power and was born in an evil state, because he wounded the Buddha and caused a schism in the Sangha.
King Ajatasattu would have attained the first stage of Sainthood (Sotapanna) if he had not committed patricide. In this case the powerful evil Karma acted as an obstacle to his gaining Sainthood.
PROXIMATE (ASANNA) KARMA OR DEATH-PROXIMATE KARMA
This is that which one does or remembers immediately before the moment of dying. Owing to the great part it plays in determining the future birth, much importance is attained to this deathbed (asanna) Karma in almost all Buddhist countries. The customs of reminding the dying man of good deeds and making him do good acts on his deathbed still prevails in Buddhist countries.
Sometimes a bad person may die happily and receive a good birth if he remembers or does a good act at the last moment. A story runs that a certain executioner who casually happened to give some alms to the Venerable Sariputta remembered this good act at the dying moment and was born in a state of bliss. This does not mean that although he enjoys a good birth he will be exempt from the effects of the evil deeds which he accumulated during his lifetime. They will have there due effect as occasions arise.
At times a good person may die unhappy by suddenly remembering an evil act of his or by harbouring some unpleasant thought, perchance compelled by unfavourable circumstances. In the scriptures, Queen Mallika, the consort of King Kosala, remembering a lie she had uttered, suffered for about seven days in a state of misery when she lied to her husband to cover some misbehaviour.
These are exceptional cases. Such reverse changes of birth account for the birth of virtuous children to vicious parents and of vicious children to virtuous parents. As a result of the last thought moment being conditioned by the general conduct of the person.
HABITUAL (ACCINA) KARMA
It is that which on habitually performs and recollects and for which one has a great liking. Habits whether good or bad becomes ones second nature, tending to form the character of a person. At unguarded moments one often lapses into one’s habitual mental mindset. In the same way, at the death-moment, unless influenced by other circumstances, one usually recalls to mind one’s habitual deeds.
Cunda, a butcher, who was living in the vicinity of the Buddha’s monastery, died yelling like an animal because he was earning his living by slaughtering pigs.
King Dutthagamini of Ceylon (Sri Lanka) was in the habit of giving alms to the Bhikkhus (monks) before he took his own meals. It was his habitual Karma that gladdened him at the dying moment and gave him birth in the Tusita heaven.
RESERVE OR CUMULATIVE (KATATTA) KARMAThis literally means ‘because done’. All actions that are not included in the aforementioned and those actions soon forgotten belong to this category. This is, as it were the reserve fund of a particular being.
(C) There is another classification of Karma according to the time in which effects are worked out:
Immediately Effective (ditthadhammavedaniya) Karma.
Subsequently Effective (uppapajjavedaniya) Karma.
Indefinitely Effective (aparapariyavedaniya) Karma.
Defunct or Ineffective (ahosi) Karma.
Immediately Effective Karma is that which is experienced in this present life. According to the Abhidhamma one does both good and evil during the javana process (thought-impulsion), which usually lasts for seven thought-moments. The effect of the first thought-moment, being the weakest, one may reap in this life itself. This is called the Immediately Effective Karma.
If it does not operate in this life, it is called ‘Defunct or Ineffective’ Karma.
The next weakest is the seventh thought-moment. Its effect one may reap in the subsequence birth. This is called ‘Subsequently Effective’ Karma.
This, too, is called Defunct or Ineffective Karma if it does not operate in the second birth. The effect of the intermediate thought-moments may take place at any time until one attains Nibbana. This type of Karma is known as ‘Indefinitely Effective’ Karma.
No one, not even the Buddhas and Arahantas, is exempt from this class of Karma which one may experience in the course of one’s wandering in Samsara. There is no special class of Karma known as Defunct or Ineffective, but when such actions that should produce their effects in this life or in a subsequent life do not operate, they are termed Defunct or Ineffective Karma.
(D) The last classification of Karma is according to the plane in which the effect takes place, namely:
Evil Actions (akusala kamma) which may ripen in the sentient planes (kammaloka). (Six celestial planes plus one human plane plus four woeful planes = eleven kamaloka planes.) Here are only four woeful kamalokas.
Good Actions (kusala kamma) which may ripen in the sentient planes except for the four woeful planes.
Good Actions (kusala kamma) which may ripen in the Realm of Form (rupa brahamalokas). There are four Arupa Brahma Lokas.
Questions on the Theory of Karma
Question: Do the Karmas of parents determine or affect the Karmas of their children?
Answer: Physically, the Karma of children is generally determined by the Karma of their parents. Thus, healthy parents usually have healthy offspring, and unhealthy parents have unhealthy children. On the effect or how the Karma of their children is determined: the child’s Karma is a thing apart of itself – it forms the child’s individuality, the sum-total of its merits and demerits accumulated in innumerable past existences. For example, the Karma of the Buddha-to-be, Prince Siddhartha was certainly not influenced by the joint Karma of his parents, King Suddhodana and Queen Maya. The glorious and powerful Karma of our Buddha-to-be transcended the Karma of his parents which jointly were more potent than his own.
Question: If the Karma of parents do not influence those of their children, how would the fact be explained that parents who suffer from certain virulent diseases are apt to transmit these evils to their offsprings?
Answer: Where a child inherit such a disease it is due to the force of the parents’ characteristics because of the force of the latter’s Utu (conditions favourable to germination). Take, for example, two seeds from a sapling; plant one in inferior, dry soil; and the other in rich, moist soil. The result is that the first seed will sprout into a sickly sapling and soon show symptoms of disease and decay; while the other seed will thrive and flourish and grow up to be a tall and healthy tree.
It will be observed that the pair of seeds taken from the same stock grows up differently according to the soil into which they are put. A child’s past Karma may be compared to the seed: the physical disposition of the mother to the soil; and that of the father to the moisture, which fertilised the soil. Roughly speaking, to illustrate our subject, we will say that, representing the sapling’s germination, growth, and existence as a unit, the seed is responsible for one-tenth of them, the soil for six-tenths, and the moisture for the remainder, three-tenths. Thus, although the power of germination exists potentially in the seed (the child), its growth is powerfully determined and quickened by the soil (the mother) and the moisture (the father).
Therefore, even as the conditions of the soil and moisture must be taken as largely responsible factors in the growth and condition of the tree. So must the influences of the parents (or progenitors, as in the case of the animal world) be taken into account in respect to the conception and growth of their offspring.
The parents’ share in the Karma determining the physical factors of their issue is as follows: If they are human beings, then their offspring will be a human being. If they are cattle then their issue must be of their species. If the human being is Chinese, then their offspring must be of their race. Thus, the offspring are invariably of the same genera and species, etc., as those of the progenitors. It will be seen from the above that, although a child’s Karma is very powerful in itself, if cannot remain wholly uninfluenced by those of it parents. It is apt to inherit the physical characteristic of its parents. Yet, it may occur that the child’s Karma, being superlatively powerful, the influence of the parent’s joint Karma cannot overshadow it. Of course, it need hardly be pointed out that the evil influences of parents can also be counteracted by the application of medical science.
All beings born of sexual cohabitation are the resultant effects of three forces:
The old Karma of past existence;
The seminal fluid of the mother, and
The seminal fluid of the father.
The physical dispositions of the parents may, or may not, be equal in force. One may counteract the other to a lesser or greater extent. The child’s Karma and physical characteristics, such as race, colour, etc., will be the produce of the three forces.
Question: On the death of a sentient being, is there a ‘soul’ that wanders about at will?
Answer: When a sentient being leaves one existence, it is reborn either as a human being, a celestial being, (Deva or Brahama), and inferior animal, or a denizen of one of the regions of hell. The sceptics and the ignorant people held that there are intermediate stages – antrabhava – between these; and that there are being who are neither of the human, the celestial, the Deva or the Brahma worlds nor of any one of the stages of exist recognised in the scriptures – but are in an intermediate stage. Some assert that these transitional stages are possessed of the Five Khandhas (Five Aggregates: they are Matter (rupa); Feeling (vedana); Perception (sanna); 4. Mental-activities (sankhara); and Consciousness (vinnana).
Some assert that these beings are detached ‘souls’ or spirits with no material encasement, and some again, that they are possessed of the faculty of seeing like Devas, and further, that they have power of changing at will, at short intervals, from one to any of the existence mentioned above. Others again hold the fantastic and erroneous theory that these beings can, and so, fancy themselves to be in other than the existence they are actually in. Thus, to take for example one such of these suppositious beings. He is a poor person – and yet he fancies himself to be rich. He may be in hell – and yet he fancies himself to be in the land of the Devas, and so on. This belief in intermediate stages between existences is false, and is condemned in the Buddhist teachings. A human being in this life who, by his Karma is destined to be a human being in the next, will be reborn as such; one who by his Karma is destined to be a Deva in the next will be appear in the land of the Devas; and one whose future life is to be in Hell, will be found in one of the regions of hell in the next existence.
The idea of an entity or soul or spirit ‘going’, ‘coming’, ‘changing’ or ‘transmigrating’ from one existence to another is an idea entertained by the ignorance and materialistic, and is certainly not justified by the Dhammas that there is no such thing as ‘going’, 'coming’, ‘changing’, etc., as between existences. The conception, which is in accordance with the Dhamma, may perhaps be illustrated by the picture thrown out by a cinema projector, or the sound of emitted by the gramophone, and their relation to the film or the sound-box and records respectively. For example, a human being dies and is reborn in the land of Devas. Though these two existences are different, yet the link or continuity between the two at death is unbroken in point of time. The same is true in the case of a man whose further existence is to be in hell. The distance between Hell and the abode of man appears to be great. Yet, in point of time, the continuity of ‘passage’ from the one existence to the other is unbroken, and no intervening matter or space can interrupt the trend of a man’s Karma from the world of human beings to the regions of Hell. The ‘passage’ from one existence to another is instantaneous, and the transition is infinitely quicker than the blink of an eyelid or a lightening-flash.
Karma determines the realm of rebirth and the state of existence in that realm of all transient being (in the cycle of existences, which have to be traversed till the attainment, at last, of Nibbana).
The results of Karma are manifold, and may be effected in many ways. Religious offerings (dana) may obtain for a man the privilege of rebirth as a human being, or as a deva, in one of the six deva worlds according to the degree of the merit of the deeds performed, and so with the observance of religious duties (sila). The jhanas or states of absorption, are found in the Brahma world or Brahmalokas up to the summit, the twentieth Brahma world: And so with bad deeds, the perpetrators of which are to be found , grade by grade, down to the lowest depths of Hell. Thus are Karma, past, present and future were, are, and will ever be the sum total of our deeds, good, indifferent or bad. As was seen from the foregoing, our Karma determines the changes of our existences.
"Evil spirits" are, therefore, not beings in an intermediate or transitional stages of existence, but are really very inferior beings, and they belong to one of the following five realms of existence:
1. World of Men: 2. The Lowest plane of deva-world; 3. The region of hell; 4. Animals below men, and 5. Petas (ghosts).
Number 2 and 5 are very near the world of human beings. As their condition is unhappy, and they are popularly considered evil spirits. It is not true that all who die in this world are reborn as evil spirits; nor is it true that beings who die sudden or violent deaths are apt to be reborn in the lowest plane of the world of devas.
Question: Is there such a thing as a human being who is reborn and who is able to speak accurately of his or her past existence?
Answer: Certainly, this is not an uncommon occurrence, and is in accordance with the tenets of Buddhism in respect to Karma.
The following (who form, an overwhelming majority of human beings) are generally unable to remember there past existences when reborn as human beings: Children who die young. Those who die old and senile. Those who are addicted to the drug or drink habit. Those whose mothers, during their conception, have been sickly or have had to toil laboriously, or have been reckless or imprudent during pregnancy. The children in the womb, being stunned and started, lose all knowledge of their past existence.
The following are possessed of a knowledge of their past existences, viz: Those who are not reborn (in the human world) but proceed to the world of the devas, of Brahmas, or to the regions of Hell, remember their past existences.
Those who die suddenly deaths from accidents, while in sound health, may also be possessed of this faculty in the next existence, provided that their mothers, in whose womb they are conceived, are healthy. Again, those who live steady, meritorious lives and who in their past existences have striven to attain, often attain it.
Lastly the Buddha, the Arahantas and Ariyas attain this gift which is known as pubbenivasa abhnna (Supernatural Power remembering previous existences).
Question: Which are the five Abhinna? Are they attainable only by the Buddha?
Answer: The five Abhinna (Supernatural Powers): Pali - abhi, excellent, nana, wisdom) are:
Iddhividha = Creative power; Dibbasola = Divine Ear; Cetopariya nana = Knowledge of others’ thoughts; Pubbenivasanussati = Knowledge of one’s past existence; Dibbacakkhu = The Divine eye.
The Abhinna are attainable not only by the Buddha, but also by Arantas and Ariyas, by ordinary mortals who practise according to the Scriptures (as was the case with hermits etc, who flourished before the time of the Buddha and who were able to fly through the air and traverse different worlds).
In the Buddhist Scriptures, we find, clearly shown, the means of attaining the five Abhinna. And even nowadays, if these means are carefully and perseveringly pursued, it would be possible to attain these. That we do not see any person endowed with the five Abhinna today is due to the lack of strenuous physical and mental exertion towards their attainment.
Nature of Karma
In the working of Karma there are maleficent and beneficent forces and conditions to counteract and support this self-operating law. Birth (gati) time or condition (kala) substratum of rebirth or showing attachment to rebirth (upadhi) and effort (payoga) act as such powerful aids and hindrances to the fruition of Karma.
Though we are neither the absolutely the servants nor the masters of our Karma, it is evident from these counteractive and supportive factors that the fruition of Karma is influenced to some extent by external circumstances, surroundings, personality, individual striving, and so forth.
It is this doctrine of Karma that gives consolation, hope, reliance and moral courage to a Buddhist. When the unexpected happens, and he meets with difficulties, failures, and misfortune, the Buddhist realises that he is reaping what he has sown, and he is wiping off a past debt. Instead of resigning himself, leaving everything to Karma, he makes a strenuous effort to pull the weeds and sow useful seeds in their place, for the future is in his own hands.
He who believes in Karma does not condemn even the most corrupt, for they, too, have their chance to reform themselves at any moment. Though bound to suffer in woeful states, they have hope of attaining eternal Peace. By their own doings they have created their own Hells, and by their own doings they can create their own Heavens, too.
A Buddhist who is fully convinced of the law of Karma does not pray to another to be saved but confidently relies on him for his own emancipation. Instead of making any self-surrender, or calling on any supernatural agency, he relies on his own will power, and works incessantly for the well-being and happiness of all. This belief in Karma validates his effort and kindles his enthusiasm, because it teaches individual responsibility.
To the ordinary Buddhist, Karma serves as a deterrent, while to an intellectual, it serves as in incentive to do good. He or she becomes kind, tolerant, and considerate. This law of Karma explains the problem of suffering, the mastery of so-called fate and predestination of other religions and about all the inequality of mankind

God Poems

Is there a higher power or a G-d out there? Why did It create us? What is the meaning of it all? When one is on a spiritual quest, these are some of the questions one encounters. Of course, if such a being were to show itself, that would answer all our questions. But without questions, might that take some of the excitement out of the search? The world is intended to be a place of free choice. The more clearly G-d is manifest in the world, the less we can choose to ignore his presence. His choice not to show himself is a gift to human beings to be able choose their own destinies

Spiritual Poems about Death

Death is life's greatest mystery. What happens when our soul leaves our body is the most important question. The answer will affect how we live our lives. The world is plagued with the question of what comes after this. When we are faced with the death of a friend or relative, we are stunned with grief. We don't understand, he was here and now he's not, where did he go? Where does the spirit go? The truth is that our soul knows of its eternal nature. If we ask our souls this question in a real way, we will find that we know that are made from the stuff of eternity.

Sound Healing

The concept that sound is able to bring healing to the physical and emotional bodies has been used since the time of Lemuria and Atlantis. This ancient form of transformation is now beginning to surface in our modern world The vibration made by sound frequencies that are connected to the chakra centers release stagnant energy, negative imprints and old patterns around the chakra centers and allow more energy to flow through them for manifesting the life you desire.. Abby has been working with many of the tools of sound healing, which include tuning forks, crystal and Tibetan bowls and toning. Her clients have reported physical healing to areas of major surgery, emotional healing from loss and opening of the intuitive centers.A sound healing session can focus on any of the chakra centers that connect with a problem. A session can be done to open and energize all the chakra centers.Sound healing must be done in person. Abby has found that doing the sound healing at the vortexes in Sedona heightens the affect of the sound experience. The sound healing session can also be done indoors with great results as well.

yoga poses

Asanas

A pose or posture designed to stimulate glands, organs or body awareness, and to quiet the mind for meditation. Asanas often apply pressure on nerves or accupressure points, reflexing to the brain and body for certain effects.

(taken from best-selling book - Transitions to a Heart Centered World - Guru Rattana, Ph.D.)

The most common meditation asanas are: EASY POSE (or Sukasana): Cross the legs comfortably at the ankles or both feet on the floor, pressing the lower spine forward to keep the back straight.

PERFECT POSE (Or Siddhasana): Right heel presses against the perineum, sole against left thigh. Left heel is placed an top of the right heel and presses the body above the genitals with the toes tucked into the groove between the right calf and thigh. Knees should be on the ground with heels one directly above the other. This is the most comfortable asana for many and is believed to promote psychic power.

LOTUS (or Padmasana): Lift left foot onto upper right thigh, then place right foot on left thigh as close to the body as possible, This locked-in posture is easier to do than it looks and it enhances deep meditation. The right leg is always on top.

ROCK POSE (or Vajrasana): Kneel and sit on heels (tops of feet on the ground) so that they press the nerves in the center of the buttocks. (It is named "Rock Pose" because it is said that its effect on the digestive system enables one to digest rocks).

CELIBATE (or Hero Pose): With feet hip width apart, kneel and sit between the feet. This posture channels sexual energy up the spine. If you sit in a chair, be sure that both feet are flat and evenly placed on the ground, and keep the spine straight by sitting on the sit bones.

PARANJOTHI SUBRAMANIAM

PARANJOTHI SUBRAMANIAM

Kundalini Power

In the human body at the base of spinal column, there lies a primordial power.

This fundamental power is described as lying coiled in the Mulathara, i.e. at the lowest bodily centre; This power is the KUNDALINI SAKTI.

In the human body at the base of spinal column, there lies a primordial power.

This fundamental power is described as lying coiled in the Mulathara, i.e. at the lowest bodily centre; This power is the KUNDALINI SAKTI.

MAHAN

HIS HOLINESS GNANAVALLAL PARANJOTHI MAHAN

Mahan was born in a respected family of Kansapuram, a small village in Tamil Nadu located in Ramnad District. His parents were poor, Swamiji learned to be very hard working and industrious from his very early childhood.

He never went to school as he was not at all interested in education, but he was very pios and sincerely adhered to all religious practices. Being always restless, inquisitive and seeking the Truth, traveled to all the places of worship, observing various penances.

At the age of sixteen, he left India and went to Burma and lived with his uncle who was a businessman in Rangoon. An incident in his early childhood, sparked of his imagination towards GOD.

On 11.11.1911 exactly at 11.11 a.m. there was a great rejoicing and celebration. When he enquired about what happening, he was told that they are celebrating the coronation of the KING. This made be a great person. That is why, this pomp and pageantry are going on. Immediately another question arose in his mind that who is greater than KING and he ask the elders. They told him that “ GOD “ is the greater than KING. If so, he asked whether he could see the greatest of them all “ the GOD” and they said, YES, he could see the GOD if only, he observed all religions practices and became a staunch devotee.

This incident was a turning point in his life, and from that moment onwards the only aim in his life was to see the GOD. He used to pray again and again, undergo varios penances and practice different types of YOGA.

He was in business with his uncle and in the year 1932 he got married to Lathita Bibi Begam. In the year 1933 he stared his own business and led a normal family life. Two children were born, a boy and a girl. The boy died at an early age. The daughter Mumtaz Begam now lives in Madras.

He mind was always restless and yearning to see GOD. True knowledge was his goal and not one single moment the diverted his thought from his avowed object. Finally in the 1938, he obtained “ INITIATION ” from a Guru, onto Jantrik system of Yoga. Since then a great change came over him and he devoted most of his time in meditation and thought. In a very short time he attained enlightment and self-realization.

Many admires and devotes began to visit the Swamiji. The number of devotes who called on the Swamiji increased day by day. The called Swamiji as

“ PARANJOTHI MAHAN “, the word meaning “ as one enlightened” and great man of divine wisdom”.

Soon after this , Swamiji realizing his purpose in the world, closed down his business in Rangoon, and returned back to India. There he established “ The Universal Peace Sanctuary” in a small building in the city of Madurai. The sanctuary established in a small way, in the year 1939, has now branches not only in India but also all over the world. Millions of people from various walked of life have benefited by the Kundalini initiation from the Gnavallal Paranjothi Mahan.

Swamiji has produced a treatise called ” I GOD “ based on his many years of research and experience, It comprises his philosophies and teachings on varios subject such as elements, concept of God and Kundalini Yoga, proving an insight to TRUTH.

Swamiji has visited all the towns in INDIA and traveled widely even to the nook and corners. He had lived in BURMA and MALAYSIA, SINGAPORE for number of years and been to SRI LANGKA more than ten times. Between the years 1955 and 1970 Swamiji had visited INDIONESIA, THAILAND, TAIWAN, COMBODIA, VEITNAM, HONG KONG, BANGKOK, JAPAN. In the year 1970, he had been LONDON, PARIS, ROME, CAIRO. Later he made extensive tour in CANADA and the UNITED STATES.

PARANJOTHI SUBRAMANIAM

Paranjothi Subramaniam (Spiritual Master, Co-Founder & Program Director) of Self Awareness Centre (SAC) is a true intellect, holds an Honours Degree in Electrical and Electronics Engineering from United Kingdom. He had served with Tenaga Nasional Berhad (Malaysian Power Board) for 14 years as a Senior Engineer. Upon receiving the blessings of his Spiritual Masters, His Holiness Gnanavallal Paranjothi Mahan and Principle Guru, Paranjothi Sivasankaran, Paranjothi Subramaniam left his successful career to become a Spiritual Master. He embraced the latest Western concepts in psychology and psychotherapy which took him to the United States. There he met his mentor W.Brugh Joy, M.D. who made him realise the importance of Heart Centre Meditation. Blending ancient teachings with the latest Western concepts, he created the “Best of the East and the West”.

In 1988, he established Self Awareness Centre (SAC) and developed a basic program called 7-Day Transformational Journey (7DTJ). To date, over 700 Transformational Journey programs have been conducted, benefiting and changing the lives of over 30,000 participants. This dynamic and effective program has benefited all level of seekers. All these were done with a simple yet generous aim, “Build People Psychologically, Uplift Them Spiritually, And The People Will Build The Nation”.

PARANJOTHI SUBRAMANIAM

Paranjothi Subramaniam is the founder of the Self Awareness Centers, the first of which was opened in Kuala Lumpur in 1988. He has guided the development of the Centers, which now number five. Over 20,000 participants have attended his seminars and workshops. Paranjothi Subramaniam combines his understanding and insights into meditation, kundalini energy, levels of consciousness, and the shadow aspects of oneself with his deep understanding of modern psychology and science, creating dynamic programs that benefit all levels of seekers.

After graduating with an honors degree in Electronics and Electrical Engineering from United Kingdom University, Paranjothi Subramaniam returned to his place of birth, Malaysia, and began a long and successful career as an engineer. However, he felt drawn to a more spiritual life after receiving the blessings from his Holiness, Gnanavallal Paranjothi Mahan. He was guided and initiated in the Kundalini Yoga Meditation by Gananavallal Paranjothi Mahan's prime disciple in Kuala Lumpur, Principal Guru Paranjothi Sivasankaran. Under guidance from his revered gurus, he began practicing Kundalini Yoga Meditation in 1979 and soon became a teacher himself in Kuala Lumpur. While continuing with his spiritual development, Paranjothi Subramaniam also studied and embraced the latest Western concepts in psychology and psychotherapy. This took him to the United States where he met W. Brugh Joy, M.D. who made him realised the importance of Heart Centre (Anahatha) meditation. Brugh Joy is the author of 'Joys Way' and 'Avalanche'.

In 1988, Paranjothi Subramaniam established the first Self Awareness Centre in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Then, in 1992, he decided to devote his life solely to teaching others and resigned from the engineering profession. His skills as a Spiritual Master were already in great demand at this point, and Paranjothi Subramaniam developed the exciting programme called the 7 Day Transformational Journey. This ambitious programme was to change the lives of many. This programme was designed in hi own words to "Build People Psychologically and Uplift them Spiritually". Paranjothi Subramaniam now guides seekers through a programme module of five levels of courses, each of which builds upon the previous course and takes the individual step by step toward eventual self realisation. Self Awareness Centres now total in five, four of which are located Malaysia and one in Singapore.

About Heart Centre (Anahatha Chakra)

  The Heart Centre (Anahatha Chakra) is the fourth energy centre within us. We think and understand what is happening around us from the perspective of this chakra, in which our awareness is most habituated. The heart chakra is the middle Chakra in a system of seven. It is related to love and is the integrator of opposites in the psyche: mind and body, male and female, persona and shadow, ego and unity. A healthy fourth Chakra allows us to love deeply, feel compassion, and have a deep sense of peace and centeredness.

The lower 3 chakras fulfill man's basic needs like sex, money, power, prestige, fame, security and comfort. By focusing our consciousness out of the lower three chakras and meditating on the fourth (Heart Centre) chakra, we can attain an integrated balance between the material and spiritual self. This brings about a state of true balance in our body, mind and soul; reducing turbulences and feeling of wholeness in our lives. 

By meditating at the Heart Centre, we free our mind from limited consciousness and are able to guide our daily decision makings toward attributes of compassion. It establishes in us the calm, creative and compassionate understanding that becomes the true source of happiness.  
Chakras (energy centers) are the entry points for the cosmic higher frequency energy into the physical body. A person thinks and understands what is happening around them from the perspective of the chakra in which their awareness is most habituated. The first, second and third charkas fulfill man's basic needs on the material plane. 

The primary desire of the first chakra is for the security of our physical existence. It is a very self centered place. The individual acts from the motivation which is violent behavior based on insecurity and fears about basic needs. 


The focus of the second charka is drawn towards sensual desires and fantasies. Sexual energy is connected mainly to this chakra. When we operate primarily from this chakra we see the world in terms of our desires and our main motivation is to make sure they are gratified. 

The unrestrained third chakra personality is dominated by fire and intellect, moving towards her or his goals without considering the consequences in an extremely competitive, assertive and courageous fashion. One will even sacrifice family and friends in search of power, respect and recognition. Out of balance third chakra energy results in a person who is willing to run over others to achieve their ends, control of others through the violence of anger, resentments, vengeance and inflamed emotions.

The first three charkas will be the driving force behind most people's lives. Many will never have goals any higher than the basic drives surrounding sex, money, power, prestige, fame, security and comfort. And for most the centre of all these issues will revolve around sex.

We must become aware of how our basic fears rule our lives and prevent us from following our own paths. We must free our minds. We must get our consciousness out of the lower three chakra concerns and move our focus up into the ANAHATHA CHAKRA or Heart Centre! We must think and act from the heart.