Sadhguru Jaggi Vasudev on Karma

[JustARandomPanda]

The following is a partial transcript for the talk Sadhguru gave April 21, 2020

 

 

Sadhguru on Karma

 

 

Life is karma. If you want to become NishKarma - that means - people think No-Karma - if you want to become No Karma - there is no such thing. You can become very minimal Karma.

So is a Couch Potato NishKarma? No no. Lethargy is a tremendous amount of Karma. It takes a lot of work to be lethargic. In a sense you will have to generate a lot of explanations for everything and convince yourself that you don't have to do anything about it.

Right now there is virus going on. Somebody is dying around you. You have to [flits hands to wave away] - tsk - do something within yourself to not to respond to that. Otherwise it's natural for you to respond to it. So being a Couch Potato is not Nishkarma. Well a yogi can become almost like a hibernating state where everything is minimized. But still he is not free from karma. He might take less number of breaths per minute. You may be taking 12 to 15 breaths per minute. When somebody simply sits (SG demonstrates cross legged position with hands palms up and open on each knee) they may just go down - maybe 3 breaths, maybe 6 or 8 but below that you can not go.

You can even stop breathing a while for some time but it's only some time. If you stay without a breath, not by holding, just by lowering the metabolism then slowly a different level of karma will begin to pick up momentum in the body. When it picks up anyway - you will breathe. Again it may go into breathless state, again it will come back. So this way you can minimize but still you're not free. You will have to get up to drink a little water or put something in your mouth. When you put something in, something has to go out.  All these things are karmas.

 

So what is the way to handle this? Well what do you think we've been doing with you? With Inner Engineering? What do you think it is? It is simply this, many of you...(laughs)...almost all of you when you did the online Inner Engineering program you still have not done any practice. Or you went through the program first 2 days, no practice yet, first 2 days we're still talking to you suddenly after 2 days you feel a new sense of life and freedom. This thing has happened to millions of people. I know this. Suddenly you light up. Not because all your old karma went away. Just those 2 days you did not create too much fresh karma. Suddenly it's feeling so light and wonderful because you are not creating an unnecessary burden upon yourself.

So what was the trick? There are various aspects, let me not go into all the aspects now. The simplest thing is this - your ability to respond. See, whether I should do something or not, if I think about it - right now, many people are struggling with this - let us say somebody around somewhere close - let's say somebody is infected in Coimbatore. [Looks up wondering] "Now should I do something or not? Why should I do? Why should I do anything? He must have a family. Let them do."

But if we just put up that man's suffering in front of you you will have to do a lot of work to not do anything. But to respond in which ever way you can. Not everybody can go and save everybody's lives. But at least do whatever you can. It's very simple. The amount of karma you have to do - mental karma - will come down dramatically within your mind - simply because your response has become indiscriminate.

Indiscriminate in response but not indiscriminate in action. Because you cannot afford to be indiscriminate in action. In action you are always discerning because action requires physical capability, energy, intelligence, means to do it, time to do it, many things are involved. And these are all limited commodities. Nobody can do indiscriminate activity. If they do indiscriminate activity they will die very soon. And that is also a bad karma. Yes, it is. Activity is not indiscriminate but our response is indiscriminate. Wherever it is I would like to do something, if possible, everything that is possible, will do. But what is not possible we at least have a little intention.

Just because of that you came to the program and you felt such a sense of freedom. People have been asking me, "Sadhguru, how will the online program work without the practice?" I want you to know before you came for the Shambhavi Initiation already you were feeling fantastic. Simply because you stopped creating fresh karma. Old karma did not go away in those 3 or 4 days. Just that new load is not happening. For the old karma actually just living is enough. Sitting here, living, breathing, heart beating is good enough to start dissolving the old karma. A few things need a little more nudge but most of the things will simply go away if you sit here and breath, live, heart will beat by itself. You don't have to do anything. Or are you doing? [flutters hands into various mudras]. Some of you think you are doing everything.

 

The whole issue of people when it comes to their health - whatever - because everybody is an Internet Doctor now. No? They've done a lot of research. The doctors are having hell. Because every patient who comes knows more about the damn thing than the doctor is supposed to know. Doctor knows something more profound because he spent 9-10 years studying and experience of treating people. But these people looked it up after they came to know they have this particular ailment last 3 days they've looked up everything that's on the Internet. And now with all kinds of questions they go with their own prescription. "Please give me this drug. Other drugs I will not take." A whole lot of them coming to the doctor saying, "I will not take this drug. I will take only this." This is supposed to be a very educated patient. A highly educated patient means you are going to be a lifelong patient. You need to understand. Yes, if you become a lifelong doctor it's a good thing. You become a lifelong patient, very qualified patient what is the point of that?

This is simply because you think you are doing this [activity with hands] you have to check your heartbeats, everybody is wearing a band...

***edited for brevity****

[SG digressed a bit about how a great many people these days have turned into excessive neurotic worry warts about their own health]
****

All the time being worried - what is happening? What is happening (health-wise)? This itself is sickness. Too much concern about health itself is sickness and it's a terrible karma. This karma will have an enduring effect on you.

So this is all that happened in the first 3 days of Inner Engineering, online or otherwise. All that happened is that we gave you little tools with which you stop creating new karma and suddenly it felt so wonderful. You did that little homework, ok? What happened today? 5 things to write down. Just because of that homework you paid attention to what you are doing and what you're not doing, suddenly tremendous sense of liberation.

If a two and half hour program can have such an impact on you, if you pay a little more attention, in this lockdown time, you can just learn how to not create karma. Simple this, your response is unbridled. You don't decide what is worth responding or not worth responding. It's not your business. A bird, a grasshopper, and a human being, man, woman, child, doesn't matter, you respond. Do you have to act? No.

Action is always a discerning action, because there are quantities involved in action which are not unlimited. Our energy is not unlimited, our intelligence is not unlimited, our actions in no way can be unlimited they're always limited. But our ability to respond is limitless. This one thing, just this one thing, if you do you will not create any karma today. You will not add up load. Just not adding up a new load, you will see it feel like liberation. That's the kind of damage you are doing to yourself. Why do you think when you were a child you are like this (gestures at his own smile) still you had warehouse loads of karma on you but still you were grinning. Now you become like this (serious look). "A virus, Sadhguru. Virus!"

 

Even before the damn virus came most people were looking so grave, it looked like they walked out of it. This is because every day building up this rubbish endlessly. Every day. Whatever happens you build it up. Build it up. Build it up. Something happens, something doesn't happen, for everything you create a mess, within yourself and that load of mess, just garbage. You're like a garbage truck I'm telling you. Yes.

But now it's a lockdown. You don't have to pick up any garbage. That's a good thing about a lockdown. You just simply - you don't be selective. Who are you to decide what is worth your attention and what is not? Whatever created this, who ever created all this do you see a blade of grass is created with as much care as this big tree or yourself or an elephant or a tiger? A little creature, a tiny little insect that is going there is better decorated than you. Hello? You have to put on all kinds of dyes, they're all very well painted by themselves. So whoever created - has creation paid any less attention to these tiny, little creatures than yourself? No. So then who are you to decide what to respond to, what not to respond to?

Your ability to respond always has to be unbridled. If you're not getting what I'm saying, well we can't come and teach you now. There is Inner Engineering Online. Just go through this 3 days, just first 3 days what is being said there, let it sink into you, soak it in completely. You will see in 3-4 days time you feel like you are floating simply because no new garbage. That's how it feels. So please make it happen. There is no need to go on adding up trash load upon your head.

Edited April 22, 2020 by JustARandomPanda
typos