“Finding a way to live the simple life is one of life’s supreme complications.” -T. S. Eliot
As spiritual beings, we are on a continuum. According to our mentality, we’re carried from one material body, and set of circumstances, to the next. As we travel in this way, we carry with us compelling impressions from our previous lives that influence our coming activities. Being impelled to act in a certain way because of our past activities and resultant impressions is called karma. This means that my current life situation reflects a ledger that I’ve accrued in time past. The three elements that are fixed by our karma when we take a new body are jati (birthplace and body), āyuḥ, (life span), and bhogaiḥ (quotient of happiness and distress).
When the great avatāra Caitanya Mahāprabhu became a monk, he began traveling with some of his students. Somewhere down the road, he asked them if they brought anything. They said, “No, you didn’t tell us to bring anything,” and he said, “Very good. I want you to observe the world. You’ll notice that it’s filled up with food and money, but everyone can get only what they deserve. Even if you work harder, it doesn’t necessarily mean you’ll get much more than someone else.”
He pointed out that even a king, although he can have a royal feast at every meal, sometimes gets a fever and cannot eat. That’s his karma, he can’t eat that day, it wasn’t meant to be. His karma dictates his current circumstances. So, recognizing that we have a quota in this lifetime is helpful. That way, we don’t run wild trying to acquire more than what comes naturally.
What is good and bad? It’s not so simple. Kṛṣṇa says in the Gītā that actions are hard to understand. In fact, karma is your best friend, and the environment is truly friendly. Here’s another story to illustrate the depths of karma:
There were two brothers: one good, and one bad. Their parents died, and the bad brother blamed the good brother. The good brother kicked a pile of leaves in frustration and broke his foot–there was a pile of gold inside. The bad brother stole all the gold and absconded with it. The good brother asked a sādhu, “Why should I waste my time with being good? Look what’s happened to me.” The sādhu informed the good brother that there were dacoits nearby who captured the bad brother, killed him, and took the gold. “You were saved by Kṛṣṇa.”
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