Karma and Samskaras Part 2/2
This article is an excerpt from the book The Definitive Yoga Sutras – The Journey of the Soul by Radhika Shah Grouven (to be published in May 2024).
Out of the colored mind patterns called kleshas, spring many actions that you perform (Karma and Samskara Part 1/2). The impressions corresponding to these actions are stored in the karmashaya. Karma means “action” and ashaya means “resting place”. Karmashaya is another word for the unconscious mind. Jiva is another word for the unconscious mind. The samskaras in the unconscious mind result in experiences that are lived out in the present or a future life.
Impressions stored in Jiva
These impressions in your mind motivate you to go out in the world and perform some action. If you think about anything you have done in your life, you will realize that before it actually manifested in the world, it was initially a desire in the unconscious mind. If you thought one day that you wanted to learn a musical instrument, the desire sprang out of the unconscious mind and motivated you at the level of the conscious mind. Maybe the thought was planted by somebody who suggested you play an instrument. Or perhaps you saw somebody play a musical instrument and thought: “How beautiful! I wish I could do that!” This thought was impressed upon the mind and you started to look for a teacher, who could teach you how to play the chosen instrument. You manifested this impression in the external world. This is true for any action that you have performed. Everything is first a thought in the reservoir of impressions called jiva.
The unconscious mind is called jiva. Illustration: Radhikaji
The Threefold result of Samskaras
As long as the jiva is full of impressions the root remains. The impressions in the jiva will ripen and result in the following:
Jati, “birth”
Ayus, “life span”
Bhoga, “experience”
Birth, lifespan and experience are the fruit on the tree of life; some are sweet and others are sour. The jiva is filled with impressions, some virtuous, others harmful. Thus, depending on the samskaras in the karmashaya, the experiences will be painful or pleasurable. Your samskaras, the result of white, black and mixed action (and maybe even not-white-not-black actions), are stored in the unconscious mind and will provide you with a suitable body to live out those very samskaras.
There are three broad categories of bodies:
plant
animal
human
If your Consciousness is expanded enough, it can only unfold itself in a human body. This is a privilege. Even human bodies are of different kinds, for instance, gender and race. The body may be healthy or unhealthy. The birth may be in a family that can provide opportunities for you to evolve further or not. Once you have a certain body, you will experience the fruit that is karmically ordained. A man will go through different experiences from a woman due to the nature of the body. A person with a physical handicap or disease will experience limitations that go with that body.
The nature of the impressions in the unconscious mind also determine your lifespan. Lifespan is not measured in the number of years you live but by the number of breaths you take. Thus, leading a relaxed life with slow, natural breathing will extend your lifespan. To aspire for a long life is good provided you utilize the time to live out the samskaras that will lead to a better birth in the next life or devote yourself to spiritual practice with the aim of attaining Liberation.
The Tree of Life
In this modified version of the yogic anatomy, you see the mysterious Tree of Life, with roots in the sky. The overlapping of yogic anatomy with a tree explains the mysterious symbol of the tree of life which is found in almost all spiritual traditions throughout the world.
The Tree of Life Illustration: Radhikaji
Individual Consciousness is the seed. Everything emerges from the seed of Pure Consciousness.
The latent and active unconscious mind are the roots. The conscious mind, breath, body and the senses are the trunk, the branches and the leaves. The roots, that is, the impressions in the unconscious mind decide what kind of body you will be born in. Your gender, your physical traits and health condition will be determined by the impressions in the jiva. It will also determine your span of life and the experiences you will live out as a result of the body you are born in. If you have strong animal tendencies you can be reborn as an animal. Animals merely live out their destiny.
Destiny is living out the samskaras stored as a result of samskaras in the jiva from a previous life. The human body allows the unfoldment of Consciousness to its full potential. In a human body you the will to direct your own destiny. Greater the self-awareness, greater the possibility to be the architect of your own life. In other words, the human body is the finest instrument to attain Liberation from the bondage of karma.
Pulling out the roots
As long as the jiva or unconscious mind remains, the impressions will ripen, come forward and manifest in the form of birth, span of life and experience. Just like a plant that emerges out of its winter sleep, even though it may have completely dried up, so also a disembodied being is reborn due to the impressions in the jiva that must be lived out. Thus, death is like winter sleep.
Death is like winter sleep Photo: Erico Marcelino
Only pulling out the roots itself, that is, uncoloring all the impressions in the unconscious mind will stop this process of birth, death and rebirth releasing the Individual Self and leading to Final Liberation. Thus, the jiva is destroyed and resolved back to the original state. The original state being Pure Consciousness.
Fast and slow fructifying Karma
Prarabdha karma is the karma that has to be worked out in this incarnation; it is your destiny or fate. Prarabdha karma is determined by the body you are born into, such as family, social and cultural background. Born in the body of an animal, animal urges are lived out. If you have qualities that need a human body to manifest them, then you will be reborn in a human body. The kind of human body you get depends also on the samskaras to be lived out.
The samskaras you have to live out lead to a birth in the appropriate body. The samskaras determine the gender of the body, as well as the family and educational background, social status and the cultural background you grow up in. They, thus, determine a whole set of advantages or disadvantages you may have for the rest of your life. This karma leading to the current birth has already fructified and cannot be undone. Using buddhi, you can transform life experiences and lifespan, even though birth predetermines some, though not all, of your life experiences.
Animals and other beings merely live out their destiny without any awareness. Humans have greater awareness and do not have to live out their destinies unconsciously. Those who have a higher level of awareness can direct and even change their own destiny using their will power. Those who have uncolored the samskaras in the unconscious mind using systematic meditation, can accelerate this process of uncoloring the entire unconscious mind and attain Liberation. This is called fast-fructifying karma.
A speedy method of meditation allows you to let go these samskaras internally in meditation or to live them out in the world by manifesting them. Samadhi can lead to fast-fructifying karma. It is like repaying a bank loan. You can decide to pay back larger amounts quickly to speed up the process; fast-fructifying karma is difficult and intense but you are free sooner. You can also decide to pay smaller installments, though it will take longer. But pay back the loan you must!
There is such a thing as negative fast fructifying karma. This means, certain black karma are not merely stored in the jiva leading to an unfavorable birth, unpleasant experiences and/or shorter life span in your next birth, rather, they manifest in this lifetime itself, maybe even directly.
Negative fast fructifying karma occurs if you harm those who:
are frightened
come to you seeking refuge
are sick or old
are noble-minded
Fast fructifying karma is called sopakrama. If you are unable to live it out quickly then it takes it course slowly. This is slow fructifying, nirupakrama.
Fast fructifying karma is the hallmark of a yogi. To understand the difference between fast and slow fructifying karma the traditional example given is that of a wet cloth. If the wet cloth is just kept in a lump it takes very long to dry even in the sun; this is like slow fructifying karma. But if you spread out the wet cloth, it will dry quickly in the sun. This would be like fast fructifying karma. Through self-awareness or buddhi you can accelerate the process of living out your samskaras. Fast fructifying karma ends the cycle of death and rebirth faster. Lack of awareness is the reason why most persons live out their destinies slowly over many lifetimes.
Kriyamana karma is the new karma that you will generate in this lifetime and if it is lived out or let go off in this lifetime itself then it is done. Else, it will be added to the rest, and has to be lived out in the future or in future lifetimes.
Twofold purpose of the world
The world exists for two reasons. It exists for you to live out your samskaras; this is called bhoga. The other reason the world exists is for you to liberate yourself. If you renounce externally, following the path of tyaga, and refuse to live out your samskaras, then you must renounce the samskaras internally in meditation as well. If you do not know how to renounce internally and will not allow the samskaras to manifest externally, then you are stuck!
Tyaga, the external renunciation of actions is not the speediest method for attaining Liberation unless it accompanied by vairagya, that is, internal renunciation of samskaras. It is important to understand this: only renouncing the world externally will not lead to Liberation!