Today I recovered some lost notes that I had reflected upon while I was reading Bhagavad Gita a few years ago. I would love to hear your thoughts
Provoking others into sense gratification is the biggest sin of all. it is my duty to not increase suffering of fellow beings by provoking them into sense gratification. if they are provoked, they will commit karma, mere expecting desire fulfillment from it, they are now trapped in the material existence. this is the opposite of the path of liberation. hence, i should not by intention provoke anyone into sense gratification of any form, either mental or physical.
02 – Sarvam dukkham dukkham – buddha
The root of all suffering is desire for material pleasure. Things like money, food, car, sex, clothes are gross forms of pleasure whereas love, appreciation, expectations, emotions, and thoughts are subtle forms of material pleasure. The moment you have a desire, you take some action with the purpose of gaining fruits or satisfaction, either gross or subtle. But you don’t understand that satisfying sensual pleasures is like adding fuel to fire. Constant desire and reaction is what your life is. This is the law of karma. EVERYONE is in misery regardless of their material possessions because they desire. By desiring you become the cause and suffering is the effect. All karma happens in the material world therefore we must sacrifice material pleasures to break free of the cycle of karma. Nirvana is the cessation of all karmic activities therefore it is the cause for breaking the ultimate karma birth-death cycle and effect into ultimate bliss.
03 – Sarvam Kshanikam Kshanikam – Buddha
You can’t forgive because you think someone hurt you. Really? do you think so small of yourself that someone can hurt you? You feel hurt by someone because you are delusioned. You place yourself so high yet so low at the same time. Forgiveness is higher than grudges. Only the person who realises he is much more than his body, mind and intellect can forgive. Hurt was a momentary thing and it passed away the moment it happened. You prolonged the hurt by desiring either of revenge or disappointment or pride or self pity. Take a look at all of your sufferings and you will find unfulfilled desire at it’s core. Expectations, Appreciation, Validation, Attention are all desires. They give you pleasure when you see their fruitation. Otherwise they are sufferings. Round and Round we go in trying to accumulate which is temporary, and the desire is so strong that we cant forgive when it’s unfulfilled. Moment has passed, it was momentary, it is illusory that it still exists, knowing this forgive.
04 – Aham brahma asmi – Brihadaranyaka Upanishad
The whole point of studying vedas is to realise our relationship to god and our true nature which we have forgotten as we came into contact with material energy. Aham brahma asmi is one of the four mahavakya which summarises one veda. This sentence tells you who you are. You are brahma. It does NOT mean you are god. It means you are Brahma the first being. You are not the god but a part of the god. Like the wave is the part of the ocean. Brahma is the spirit soul. Spirit soul is called as jiv-atma. You are jiv-atma, realising this is the whole point. You are NOT param-atma. Param-atma is a part of the god which resides along with jiv-atma in living beings. Both souls are similar in nature but different in quantities and that is why you can never be god. You can only know. You can only KNOW what god is and who you are in relation to him. Your forgetfulness made you ignorant and only cure for ignorance is KNOWLEDGE.
05 – I searched for god I found me, I searched for me I found god – Rumi
It was concrete I loved someone then this delusion broke. What is it that I love about that person? Their body? Even if their legs are cut away I’d still love them. Even if they go bald I’ll love them. Even if their bodies go away I’ll love them. Personality and character change all the time. So I can’t love it as well or my love would have changed with it. Now It is concrete I am not in love with their body or personality but their presence. I cut off my body parts one by one and in the end I am the same presence I was loving in the other person. Infact it is the same presence in your dog, your plants, cow on the street. Not realising this that I will only find me in others and others in me, god in everything, I suffered in the trap of impressing, seeking love and respect. Whose rejection I fear? mine. This fear is illusional because it seems as if someone is other than me, they are something special or extra and by having them i can be fulfilled. But I am already fulfilled, nothing can be added. what possibly their body can give me? nothing. In the end I am only finding a way to love the presence in me.
06 Do it or do not do it – you will regret both – Soren Kierkegaard
There is Karma, Vikarma and Akarma. Karma is action, Vikarma is sinful action and Akarma is actionless action. As long as you are performing karma or vikarma your are going to suffer. Karma is the effect of desire. Whenever you do something either to gain or avoid you suffer. Whenever you don’t do something either to gain or avoid you suffer. Suffering is fundamental to action/karma. Karma cannot be avoided as it is our duty, and suffering cannot be avoided because we do things. The only way to do something and not suffer is to have no desire behind action. To cease suffering regardless of action you have to give up the desire of fruit or pleasure. When action is done sitting in consciousness it become akarma. Akarma is the path of liberation also known as actionless action. It is a realisation that you don’t work, your mind and body works, you don’t move, don’t change. When the awareness is fixed on this witness any action becomes akarma.
