The Connection Between Meditation And Karma
While many people have an idea about how the law of karma works it may not be so obvious what the connection is between meditation and karma.
Karma is most commonly known as the law of cause and effect. In other words, what we put out from us in thought, word, and deed, is what we get back in our lives. For some people, this also includes the concept of past lives in which what we sowed in a past life we get to reap in this life – be it good or bad.
Good Karma Versus Bad Karma
This brings us to my next point. There is also the idea that karma can be defined as good and bad. The good karma being that when things are going our way then we like to think of it as good karma, and when they aren’t going our way we tend to label it as bad karma.
While there may some merit to this I actually think that in reality, it’s a bit simpler. I see karma as the result of every choice we make from moment to moment, whether we make those choices consciously or not. This includes every choice we have ever made in life, or will make in the future.
Let’s face it, we don’t always make the smartest choices in our lives. I know I have made more mistakes than I can count. By becoming more conscious of the choices we make we can start to create the type of karma that we prefer to experience in our lives rather than have it be as a result of unconscious behavior.
Life has taught me that all the choices we make have one of two energies attached to them. They either come from love or fear. When we make a choice from fear this usually happens because we allow our limiting or negative beliefs about ourselves or the world around us to influence our decisions.
This is a huge factor in many people’s lives, especially when they make decisions that keep them stuck in their health, wealth, happiness or relationships. Even not making a decision around something that you need to is still a decision – a decision to not make a decision. Then the karma we get back is that we get to stay stuck.
When we make choices from love then we are are following our heart and spirit without hesitation and stepping towards a more joyful and abundant life. With every step forward we take with love and joy in our heart, then we are creating good karma and better results for ourselves.
How Does Meditation Effect Karma?
When we meditate, at various times during our meditation the mind stops for a moment and a gap in our consciousness appears. This is often experienced as stillness or ‘no-mind’ by seasoned meditators. For a novice, it can feel like you nodded off for a moment and then came crashing back to your body with a jolt.
When this happens, we have in a sense entered a space of deep meditation for a moment. When we do this we access a deeper level of consciousness that is not bound by the law of karma. Karma only means something in the physical world because it is bound by the dual nature of life. But once we transcend the mind and enter a space of non-duality, then karma ceases to exist.
By accessing a higher state of consciousness through meditation, then we instantly start to dissolve karma from our cellular and Soulular memory. While this information is not common knowledge it is nonetheless still important to at least consider when you are looking at the law of karma and how to balance it out, or have less karmic baggage in your daily life.
It is said that meditation at it’s deepest source helps us to purify our mind, body, and spirit. While this is obviously challenging to measure by the usual scientific studies and research we see around meditation, the ultimate way we can tell is by how much If happiness and peace we experience in our everyday lives.
If we were to measure the success of meditation as how much calmer and at peace with ourselves we became over time, then that would be a better way to keep track. However, I’m talking about consistent and on-going meditation practice of at least 20 to 30 minutes a day, twice a day if possible. Anything less is probably not going to cut it.
It’s no surprise that one of the main sources of suffering for people is their own mind. A mind that is filled with worry, fear, doubt, anxiety, rage or victimhood is a mind that is in turmoil. The karma of this turmoil is that more turmoil is created in both the mind and body, which then flows out into every area of your life.
This cycle only ever ends when you make a choice to value inner peace and happiness more than chaos. When you add meditation into the equation, then what you find is that you are choosing to put your mind and body into a practice of embodying inner-peace – even if just for 5 or 10 minutes a day to get started.
Then, as you get more comfortable sitting longer in meditation you are letting the Universe know that you are sincere about clearing the mind and being at peace with your life. What we put out during meditation definitely comes back to us in our everyday lives. I have seen it, felt it, and enjoyed it since the first time I meditated.
So what is a simple karma clearing meditation to get started with? Here’s a simple 5-minute mindfulness meditation course that’ll help you get into the habit of finding that place of stillness within.
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Michael Atma
Meditation Dojo Blog
Skype: michaelatma
Email: Michael@MichaelAtma.com