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Home , Dvesha (Buddhism), Georg Feuerstein, Kleshas (Buddhism), Kleshas (Hinduism), Raga (Buddhism), Upeksha (Indian thought)

The Causes of Pain and the Yogic Prescriptions by Linda Munro from the of

Yoga is a spiritual discipline which was born out of the need to alleviate human suffering (duhkha). The ancient sages recognized that suffering sprouts from the mind and affects all levels of our human existence – physical, mental and spiritual. In fact suffering doesn‟t come from the outside; it is a response that we produce ourselves in our mind. This in a way can be reassuring because it means that we can find the strength within to do something about it!

It is interesting to see the different reactions to suffering people have. Under similar circumstances two people can have entirely different responses. A simple example: two people in pretty much the same economical situations lose their jobs. One can take it as an opportunity to do something new and exciting; the other becomes depressed, unable to leave the house. Why?

Why we suffer and can we do something?

The ancient sages too, asked themselves: Why do we suffer? And can Pertinent : we do anything about it? The sage who compiled the Yoga Sutras, Patanjali gives us insight into the core reasons for our suffering and 2.2 “[This Yoga] () has the purpose of yogic tools to apply in order to lessen our pain. It is inevitable in life that cultivating ecstasy (samādhi) and the purpose of thinning out the causes-of-affliction (). there will be pain and sorrow, however with yoga one can lessen causes and avoid future suffering! All translations by Georg Feuerstein with words in round brackets added by me ( ) to add clarity to my essay. Patanjali was a master of the mind, or a better description may be a master of the consciousness. And what I love most about the Sutras is the different layers within it. I remember during a workshop with Desikachar him saying that he went through the Yoga Sutra seven times with his dad, Krishnamacharya. Each time going deeper and deeper into the teachings. In my opinion this is one of the qualities of a truly great teacher: being able to “talk” to various levels of practitioners; from the novice who is just getting started to the long term practitioner who has a good understanding and practice but has not yet reached the highest levels of yoga.

When studying the Sutras I believe in using the teaching for the level one is at. For instance there is no use attempting to renunciant all worldly pleasures when we haven‟t even been able to give up chocolate (or coffee/tea or whatever minor desire one may have). Trying to do this before one is ready will only create repression and frustration and anger may arise. So find the tools that “talk” to you and feel natural, then apply them with all the self-discipline you can muster to make changes in your life!

Five Kleshas

So what are the 5 causes-of-affliction (Kleshas) that Patanjali speaks Pertinent Sutra: of? They are spiritual ignorance (avidya), I-am-ness (asmita), attraction (), aversion () and clinging to life (abhinivesha). Each of 2.3 “The five causes-of-affliction are [spiritual] ignorance these is firmly anchored in each and every one of us. They come with (avidya), I-am-ness (asmita), attraction (raga), aversion (dvesha) [and] clinging to life (abhinivesha).” us when we are born, they may be latent and take time to show themselves but they will eventually. As Swami Satyananada Saraswati says: “Klesha is a kind of agony which is inside our very being. Everyone feels subconscious pain, but our superficial daily activities do not allow us to be aware of it, otherwise we would see pain in all its vividness.”

Avidya: Ignorance – Lack of Awareness

This is the base of all affliction as it is said it is because we don‟t truly Pertinent Sutras: know the Self that we get tangled in the ego (Asmita), which then attaches itself to pleasures (raga), revolts against dislikes (dvesha) and 2.4 “[Spiritual] ignorance is the field of the others [ie, the clings to the life in the physical body (abhinivesha), thus resulting in other causes-of-affliction, which may be] dormant, thinned out, intercepted, [or] active.” duhkha. 2.5 “[Spiritual] ignorance is seeing the eternal, the pure, the joyous, the Self (ātma) in the impermanent, the 1 impure, the painful, the nonself.”

2.20 “Although the Seer (drashtā), the sheer [power of] seeing, is [utterly] pure, it witnesses the contents [of the mind]. When Patanjali speaks of ignorance, he is not meaning lack worldly knowledge. He is not implying that we don‟t know enough about politics, languages, different cultures or countries, science or any other world topic. In fact it could be argued that if we are too caught up in acquiring knowledge of the material world that this is avidya! This is the spiritual ignorance of not knowing who we really are; our Essence, our true Self, our Spirit, Soul, , Atman, or whichever name you feel connected to. We misperceive who we really are due to avidya, which is closely related to the next klesha; Asmita.

Asmita: The Sense of “I”

When one thinks “who am I?” what comes to mind? First we point to our Pertinent Sutra: body and think: “I am Linda. I am a yoga teacher. I am a mother…a wife…I am good at…I am bad at…I like ice cream. I don‟t like cheese. I 2.6 “I-am-ness (asmitā) is as it were the unification of am a happy person.” This is spiritual ignorance because in reality I am the powers of the „Seer‟ and „seeing‟.” none of those. None of us are truly the labels we or others give us. They are useful for getting around and communicating in this world but we must cultivate a yoga practice and study in order to lessen the ties of avidya, asmita and the other kleshas.

We don‟t need to identify ourselves as the labels given. In fact I believe it is very important not to attach ourselves to these labels (these attachments are a form of raga – attraction) or even disassociate ourselves from other labels (these are a form of dvesha – aversion).

When you start to analyze these labels or judgments you will see that they are never permanently true. The only real truth is that Truth which exists beyond time and place: That which exists always and is changeless. This is the Purusha/Soul. No matter the outer covering, the Purusha exists in its pureness. It‟s been described as a pure, brilliant light which is wrapped with many layers of colored paper. The light will look pink, purple, yellow, zigzagged, polka-dotted but in reality if the layers of paper are peeled away, we will see that the light was not colored at all. This is our Soul, forever perfect and it exists in every one of us; the good, the bad, the kind, friendly, fun, the miserable, evil and mean.

Just knowing this mentally gives me joy because when we know that everyone has this star within the way we see others is transformed. We can more easily look beyond the petty likes and dislikes towards another human being: Which brings us to the third and fourth Kleshas; raga and dvesha.

Raga & Dvesha: Attraction & Aversion

Raga – attraction is one of the causes-of-afflictions not only because we Pertinent Sutras: attach ourselves to the qualities of our body/mind that we like, misperceiving the sense of I for reality but because we tend to be 2.7 “Attraction (raga) rests on pleasure.” attracted to sensual pleasures. Our eyes are attracted to beautiful things, 2.8 “Aversion (dvesha) rests on suffering.” our taste to sumptuous foods, our nose to the scent of those foods, our ears to sounds around us and the skin to stimulating touch.

These are difficult to accept as components of an affliction because since our body and mind are part of the material world they say “but I am here and I should enjoy this life and reap as much pleasure as possible.” However, only the discerning mind recognizes that the joy of worldly pleasures will never lead to true happiness. True happiness can only come from within. It‟s so clear that stuff, experiences, situations, another person can never bring everlasting happiness. It‟s always temporary, limited to a certain situation or tinged with suffering (by not leaving enough for another or the fear of losing it). We see it in innumerable examples. One yummy piece of chocolate leads us to another, another and another which leads to a belly ache. Having a nice big home leads to “needing” the car, the furniture or an even nicer and bigger home; if the desire is not fulfilled disappointment, jealousy, dissatisfaction emerges. Even a nation can experience this as a whole: when they have flourished for many years and expect to continue on flourishing, growing, getting more. Then a financial “crisis” arises and a new way of using the earth‟s gifts has to be cultivated.

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A man may have a beautiful wife who eventually starts to age, losing some of her outer beauty which may lead to finding a new, younger wife, which again leads to the suffering of another which unknowingly leads to inner suffering of oneself. We cannot cause suffering to another without inflicting it upon ourselves. This is the law of Karma – cause and effect.

Opposite of raga (attraction) is dvesha (aversion). Things, people, situation we don‟t like and avert. We must not love things so much but we also must not hate them. They are two sides of the same coin.

Quote from – God Talks with Arjuna p.703

“When the water in a pot is agitated, the moving water disturbs any reflected object. Similarly, when the calm waters of a man‟s heart are stirred by likes and dislikes, he is unable to solve his problems and to make wise decisions.” Solving our problems and learning to make wise decisions is definitely a way to reduce our conflicts within and without, this is a skill worth the effort!

Abhinivesha: Clinging to Life

The last of the Kleshas is abhinivesha, the clinging to life. This is the Pertinent Sutra: most difficult one to overcome. It is said to exist even in the sages. When a car is coming towards you it is the instinct to jump out of the 2.9 “Clinging to life (abhinivesha) flows along under its way. The sages say that it is proof of re-incarnation, karma and own inclination [and] arises similarly even in a wise [person].” samskāras because each of us has had a taste of death which lingers and this imprint is the seed of fear, which we are born with.

The clinging is evident in the contemporary Western society with the masses of people obsessed with looking young, to the point of surgery or taking pills. Aging is a natural process and if one can manage to grow spiritually and interiorly the external appearance will not affect their happiness or contentedness.

Recently I read an article about scientists who are trying to make robots to impersonate people and “make us immortal”. This seemed like a strange concept to me. Why would we want to become immortal in this life? What about the beauty of new life, if we live forever in this body, how can the planet support the births of new life if the ones here never go away? It‟s a wonder to watch the cycle of life and a blessing to be part of it but it is not our role to keep these old bodies here forever. It‟s not the natural order and we are not God therefore, it is not our role to interfere too drastically. Not to mention if one believes in re-birth we have the opportunity to come back fresh and new.

In fact, in hatha yoga the final goal is immortality but not in the sense of staying in the body, but in the sense that the true Self/Soul “lives” forever so there it is not necessary to spend so much time, energy or money on making the body immortal. If only people would spend as much time, energy and money on Enlightenment in the sense of spirituality, the consequences would be enormous! Wow, it would be a whole different place and I‟m certain the level of world suffering would decrease dramatically. But unfortunately because of avidya, there is more effort put into ways to make us live forever or at least look young as long as possible.

Intellectually we know our bodies are going to change and die but we act as though it will stay forever. We tend to focus on collecting as much as possible during our life, only to leave this world with no more material objects than we arrived with. It would be more useful, in fact, to work on burning bad karma and planting the seeds of good karma so that in our next re-incarnation we are a little more spiritually evolved.

Karma: Cause & Effect

According to Patanjali karma is rooted in spiritual ignorance, ego Pertinent Sutras: identification, attraction, aversion and the clinging to life and will be experienced now, in our present life and in future lives. If a thought, 2.12 “The karmic deposit (karma-āshaya) rooted in the word or action is considered meritorious it will result in delight in this causes-of-affliction is experienced in seen [and] unseen births” life or future lives. However, if a thought, word or action is 2.14 “According to the [karmic] cause, [which may be] meritorious [or] demeritorious, the [ie: birth, life and experience] result in delight [or] distress.” 3 2.16 “[What is] to be overcome is future suffering.”‟

demeritorious it will result in distress, again either now or sometime in the future.

Therefore, if we want to reduce our pain and suffering we need to reduce the amount of pain and suffering we cause. At first glance this sounds easy enough except remember the first klesha, avidya; because of this it is very difficult for us to notice how we actually act in the world, let alone have enough clarity in the mind to see the thoughts honestly. We don‟t like to see the “bad” in ourselves (or if we do it tends to be self pitying and seeing oneself as a victim); we prefer to point our finger at the world around us. It‟s someone else‟s fault, society, the circumstances, etc, that makes me act or think this way. “It‟s not my fault!”

There‟s a nice saying from the Buddha that goes something like this: If you want to know why your circumstances are the way they are now, look at your past. If you want to know what your future will be like, look at the actions and thoughts of your present.

Dormant, Thinned Out, Intercepted or Active Kleshas

As we know all individuals come to the world with these kleshas, however Patanjali tells us that they can exist in four different states. They are called dormant when the klesha is not currently active but can be triggered at any moment. For instance take abhinivesha; one may feel untouched by the fear of death so long as it is way down the line, something not to ever think about, however when something happens in one‟s life which brings death to the forefront all of a sudden one sees that abhinivesha has been sleeping within all along. This happened to me, before I had children I thought I was in a place where I could reasonably accept death since I had a happy and spiritual life and trusted that if it was to come that that was what was meant to happen. Until I had my first baby, all of a sudden I was feeling the fear of death quite vividly. I feared something happening to my baby and in addition I feared something happening to me or my husband because I knew that my baby needed us for at least another 18 years or so. I‟ve worked hard to thin out that fear with positive thoughts and spirituality to trust in the circle of fate. I continue to use my yoga practices to thin out the effects of abhinivesha and I‟m determined to maintain the practices for the rest of my life. So, the second state Patanjali says exists is the thinned out or weakened state. Most of us will have to actively keep a watch on the kleshas to try to put them in a weaker state so that they don‟t take control of our minds and our lives.

The next state is the intercepted state. This is when one klesha intercepts another. A great example of this is with raga and dvesha in a mother. We are totally in love with our little one (a type of raga) until that little one does something to make the mother totally angry (in my case, it tends to be when the little ego is in full flare and becomes endlessly demanding). I‟m shocked by how that beautiful love of my life can suddenly become something I am incredibly furious with! A side note: in general I‟ve found being a mother the most intense yoga practice yet; they are like little which manage to light up all your non-yogic behavior more than anyone else.

The fourth state Patanjali notes is the active state. This is the state of the average person who lives their life without reflection, self-inspection or discipline practices and thus has no control over their actions. They just act according to their ego‟s needs, their own likes and dislikes and live in a place of constant subtle fear of losing all they have worked for. They have no control over their minds because they haven‟t exerted any force to make the changes needed.

Finding the Source

It‟s imperative that we learn to locate the sources of the afflictions so that we can live mindfully and use yogic principles and disciplines to eradicate the afflictions at their roots. Otherwise we are just reacting; we have no control over our actions.

Vikshepahs - Distractions: Obstacles to Mental Clarity

Patanjali speaks of many obstacles which need to be worked on in order Pertinent Sutra: to bring some mental clarity to your life and your practice. First and foremost, we must have good health. Our health is not to be neglected! 1.30 “Sickness, apathy, doubt, heedlessness, laziness, When you feel well you feel enthusiastic. If you are not well, you want to dissipation, false vision, nonattainment of the stages [of Yoga and] instability [in them] are the mental post-pone things and apathy develops towards yogic practices. distractions; these are the obstacles.”

4 Vikshepās: vyādhi – styāna – samshaya – pramāda – ālasya – avirati – bhrānti darshana – alabdha bhūmikatva – anavasthitatvāni

Excuses – “I am not well, I don‟t want to practice.” This mental sloth gives rise to doubt. Doubt is a particularly destructive obstacle to yogic and personal growth. This leads to heedlessness/carelessness in practice and in life. “What‟s the point of this practice; I don‟t even know if it‟s going to work for me.” This penetrates the physical level and then you develop the attitude of not feeling like doing anything.

This equation of doubt, carelessness and physical laziness leads to lack of control (dissipation). You are no longer able to concentrate which can then develop into varying degrees of delusion/false vision. Continuing to spiral downwards you are not able to progress on the path of yoga and may even lose the progress previously made. Now you have a big problem that needs to be tackled. So be aware, develop and take care of your physical and mental health first! Once this is taken care of the rest can be dealt with in a steady progressive way.

Teacher, Teacher

It is strongly suggested to have a teacher and a community of like-minded people who are working on their personal growth and spirituality to help you stay away from these obstacles. Patanjali doesn‟t specify the need of a teacher nevertheless it is part of Indian culture to learn yoga from a qualified teacher. So we can assume that Patanjali thought it would be obvious that one studies with their teacher rather than relying on their own mind and ego to point them on the pathway of yoga. With the availability of books and the internet the modern day often thinks they can “teach themselves” though personally I‟ve found my teachers indispensible to my personal evolution in life and yoga!

How to Develop Mental Clarity?

To reduce our suffering it is imperative that we develop mindfulness otherwise we won‟t be able to notice where and why we are experiencing pain or suffering. It‟s impossible to effectively reduce suffering if we have no idea why and where it is coming from. We‟ll just continue to spin in circles never actually getting anywhere. Patanjali gives several suggestions on how to overcome the obstacles to mental clarity.

Concentration

One suggestion is to practice concentration on a single principle. Pertinent Sutra: This is the cultivation of a practice, picking one object or notion and using it as your “prop” for concentration which will perhaps 1.32 “In order to counteract these [distractions] [the yogin should resort to] the practice [of concentration] on lead you into meditation. a single principle.”

However, even when not on your cushion “doing your meditation” this single principle idea can be brought into your daily life. In our day and age we tend to do too many things at the same time. In fact it‟s even considered desirable to have the ability to “multi-task”. But, in my experience I‟ve found that when I concentrate effectively on one thing at a time the quality of what I‟m doing is much higher and I‟m much less distracted or overwhelmed. The mind can become quieter rather than being caught up in a whirlwind of activity and chaos. So when cutting the veggies, you be present, concentrating on the single principle of cutting the veggies. When a work being fully present in what you are doing there, you will see a huge increase in your efficiency, giving you more time to devote to your yoga practice and/or quality time with your family.

Friendliness, Compassion, Gladness &

Pertinent Sutra: These qualities are simple but bring a profound sense of well-being to the mind. They are virtues also used in Buddhism to project loving 1.33 “By cultivating friendliness, compassion, gladness kindness to all beings everywhere. The most powerful aspect of [and] equanimity towards joyful, sorrowful, meritorious, Patanjali‟s suggestion to cultivate these virtues is that he states to [or] demeritorious [beings as their] objects, the mind‟s clarification [is accomplished].” develop them towards those which are happy, those which are sad, those which are meritorious and those which are demeritorious. maitrī – karunā – muditā – upekshānām There are so many layers here that it is worth the time to go through in detail.

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The Joyful

It‟s easy to be friendly and feel happy for those we like and who don‟t pose a threat to us. Although, it can be more difficult to cultivate friendliness and gladness towards someone you don‟t like or who has what you want! We tend to feel jealous of those who have accomplished something we would like, we‟re more likely to find reasons as to why that person doesn‟t deserve to be successful rather than rejoice in their joyfulness. Jealousy is a like a vicious disease which if not combated with, penetrates into your very being. Remember the effects of karma! A virtuous thought on your part will bring beneficial results, unlike an un-virtuous thought. It weighs on you to carry ill-will or unfriendliness towards another, even if that other hasn‟t been honest or virtuous towards you. Rise above their level and you will find serenity of mind!

The Sorrowful

There is so much suffering in our world and Patanjali says we should cultivate compassion to those who are down for whatever reason; even if we think they got what they deserved. If we are able to help them, then we should do so. We should always remain merciful and compassionate and show kindness towards all living things. Everyone deserves love and kindness no matter what they have done, maybe even those who do bad deeds need it more than the others?!

Calm and Composed

This is the dictionary meaning of equanimous and what a peaceful feeling one receives from someone who is able to stay calm and composed even amidst the madness of worldly life! Equanimity is the result of cultivation of a sincere yoga practice consistently over a long time. It‟s important to be clear about what we want to gain from our yoga practice and to me; to have a serene mind and feel equanimous in all circumstances is a pretty amazing place to work towards! This is useful in keeping in mind when we start our yoga practice to be sure we don‟t get caught up in the performance rather than the yoga.

Often upeksha is translated as indifference however, I think this word can be misunderstood and cultivated by becoming cold and heartless and I trust Patanjali didn‟t have that in mind. I like how Georg Feuerstein describes it: “The term upeksha…does not stand for mere „indifference‟, but is denotative of a more subtle and positive attitude, namely a dispassionate but nonetheless empathetic witnessing of mundane events.” Beautiful.

Cultivating the Opposite

One may say that these are great attributes to aspire to but “I‟m not a Pertinent Sutra: saint and it‟s too hard to feel friendliness to the people I don‟t like or 2.33 “For repelling [unwholesome] thoughts, [a Yoga equanimous even during life‟s trials.” And, it‟s true, it is seriously hard practitioner should pursue] the cultivation of [their] however, it‟s not about succeeding all of the time it‟s more about the opposites.” process. First bringing awareness to your thoughts and actions, Pertinent Sutra: noticing them, not judging them or condemning yourself. This will not be helpful at all! Also, not suppressing them; again this will not be 2.34 “[Unwholesome] thoughts, [such as] harming and helpful at all. Instead Patanjali suggests that we cultivate opposite so forth, [whether] done, caused to be done [or] thoughts. When we witness an unwholesome thought arise we can approved, [whether] arising from greed, anger, [or] delusion [whether] mild, medium [or] excessive- [all ponder it, try to notice why it has arose and replace it with an opposite, these find their] unending fruition in ignorance [and] more positive thought. suffering; thus [a Yoga practitioner should pursue] the cultivation of [their] opposite.”

Kriya Yoga Pertinent Sutra: Going back to the beginning of this essay where I noted sutra 2.2; Patanjali said that the purpose of Kriya yoga is to cultivate samādhi 2.1 “The Yoga of [ritual] action (kriya) [consists of] austerity (), self-study (svādhyāya) [and] and thin out the kleshas. According to Patanjali Kriya yoga comprises dedication to the Lord (-pranidhāna).” of tapas (austerity/self-discipline), svādhyāya (self-study) and Ishvara- pranidhāna (dedication/surrender to the Lord).

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Tapas: Austerity – Self-Discipline

The word tapas literally means “heating”. It is used to denote austerity Pertinent Sutra: or self-discipline with the image to burn out the impurities of the body (including the mind) and the senses. As we know when our body and 2.43 “From austerity (tapas), on account of the mind are well, we feel good and are able to act with more mental dwindling of impurity, perfection of the body [and] the clarity. If the senses are out of control and are leading us off into senses [comes about].” worldly pleasures this affects our mental clarity. Therefore, we need to apply self-discipline in order to reduce physical and mental impurity and to be the master of the senses rather than the senses being the master of us.

Patanjali doesn‟t specify the details of the practices of tapas right here, which seems to have lead to many different approaches. I imagine that he left freedom here because of the huge scope of practices available and the fact that the perfection of the body and senses would have to be a continual all day, every day practice. To me it includes the discipline of keeping the body (and consequently the mind) healthy by being aware of the foods you eat, the sleep you need, the physical exercise you need, etc.

Then another aspect is having the discipline to do your spiritual practices, whatever they may be in suiting to your character, culture, age, lifestyle, level of spiritual attainment: asana, pranayama, , meditation, prayer, volunteer work, fasting. Throughout the sutras he gives many practices to do. One of BKS Iyengar‟s interpretations of taps is “a burning desire to reach perfection”. This kind of attitude and discipline is necessary in succeeding in anything and even more so if one wants to reduce their suffering and attain enlightenment.

A last note of what the tapas are not: they are not acts that injure the body. Some Sadhus have been known to do extreme acts of self-discipline (lying on beds of nails, holding an arm up above the head to the point of the arm withering and dying) but from all the contact either through books or directly with advanced teachers, they all say that harming the body in the name of a spiritual discipline is not tapas! This seems pretty clear to me in Patanjali‟s choice of words “perfection of the body” nevertheless I guess in some circles it is showing a sign of strength to be able withstand certain extremes.

Svādhyāya: Self-Study

Traditionally, svādhyāya is the study of scriptures and the recitation of Pertinent Sutra: and . 2.44 “Through study, contact with [the yogin‟s] chosen deity [is established].” Studying the writings of the wise and spiritually evolved is definitely a useful practice for reducing avidya – spiritual ignorance. The more contact we have with the teachings and experience of those wiser than ourselves, the more we can learn from them. It helps us put our yoga practice and personal growth into perspective and apply the various remedies to our lack of mental clarity and spiritual .

It is said that the recitation of mantras and the sound of Om brings about the innate understanding of the mantra and the OM. Patanjali says through study we will establish contact with our chosen deity.

Ishvara-Pranidhāna: Devotion to the Lord

The third and final limb of Kriya is devotion to the Lord. Once again Pertinent Sutra: leaving freedom for the individual to choose “their” God, Patanjali doesn‟t 2.45 “Through dedication to the lord [comes about] the give any details about the concept of God. Really in the end, all paths perfection of ecstasy.” are leading to the same place, so whatever name we give is irrelevant and doesn‟t be quarreled about: therefore, use the name you feel most connected to. In reality this concept cannot be summed up with man‟s created words.

Yet Patanjali obviously felt it was important for us to have faith and devotion in a power far greater than ourselves. We need not take ourselves to be so important or take too much pride in our accomplishments, as individuals nor as mankind 7 in general. We have will power and this must be strengthened however, at the same time we release the expectations of the outcome. This is a concept difficult for us to understand; we expect that if we do XYZ then ABC will occur and if it doesn‟t we are back into our samsāra of suffering. Although, this doesn‟t have to be the case. If we are able to work, live and grow spiritually in the world to our best abilities while all along trusting in the higher power to direct us and surrendering to the fruits of our actions whether they are the fruits we expected or not; then we‟ll slowly develop a clearer and softer mind, able to find peace, happiness and contentment within despite the ups and downs of life. This will surely lead to less suffering!

Step by step we bring the kleshas under the control of our higher mind, slowly reducing our interpretation of suffering in this world. Feeling we have some control over our lives; not because we can change all the circumstances but because we can change our relation to them!

Circle of Fate

My favorite illustrations of living in the world, cultivating inner growth, while surrendering to the fruits of our actions is a beautiful children‟s story which I found in for my kids, called The Circle of Fate by Raja Mohanty. I highly recommend this book for all ages, it is beautifully illustrated and a beautiful message!

“Garuda carries Lord Vishnu over the snowy peaks of the Himalaya, to , home of Lord Shiva. Garuda waits while his master visits Lord Shiva, and spots a tiny and exquisitely beautiful bird sitting on a nearby bush. He is moved by its beauty, and can scarcely believe that something like it exists. Lord , god of death, comes riding by on his buffalo. There is something wrong with his account books and he wants to clear the matter with Shiva, the god of destruction. His eyes fall on the tiny bird, and he peers at it. The look on Lord Yama‟s face throws Garuda into despair. „When the god of death looks at a creature in that way,‟ he thinks, „it can only mean its time has come.‟ He wants to save the bird from death. One part of him says it is not wise to fight the will of the gods, the other part cannot let him stand by, doing nothing. Garuda is ruffled. Finally the whisper of compassion triumphs over the certainty of knowledge. Garuda decides to save the bird‟s life, all the while begging the of the gods. He carries the bird off to a faraway forest. Garuda leaves the tiny bird on a safe perch on a tree in front of a hermitage. Satisfied with a job well done, he wings his way back to the mountains. No sooner has he landed, than Garuda meets Lord Yama, the god of death coming out of Lord Shiva‟s abode. Unable to bear his curiosity, he asks Yama why he looked at the tiny bird so strangely. Yam replies that he was perplexed to see the bird near the mountains. According to his records, it was to be in a forest, on a tree near a hermitage. A python was supposed to eat it, and the bird was to be re-born in the hermitage. But since the workings of fate are above the god of death too, he left it to fate to take care of the matter. When Yama has gone, his words weighing like a stone in Garuda‟s stomach, the great bird realizes the truth. The world is a never-ending cycle, where everything has a time and place. Even a thing of exquisite beauty must come to an end and be re-born as something else. There is a pattern. If you want to change it, you must act in the way your heart dictates. But in the end, it is you who belong in the pattern. It does not belong to you.”

Bibliography and Inspiration:

Four Chapters on Freedom: Commentary of the by Swami Satyananada Saraswati God Talks with Arjuna by Paramahansa Yogananda Light on the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali by BKS Iyengar Raja Yoga: Being Lectures by the The Yoga-Sutra: A Nondualist Interpretation by Georg Feuerstein The Yoga-Sutra from a Woman‟s Perspective by Brenda Feuerstein The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali Translation and Commentary by Sri Swami Satchidananda

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