Blessed Be the Journey

February 1, 2013
Katherine Austin Wooley

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By Amanda Hessling

 

Once I developed a basic understanding of the One encompassing the many, the practicality of effectively applying the service came into question. How do we serve God, the One, and OurSelves purely so that our agami - our future actions - will be cleared of the "bad" karma of our past - sanchita - and full of love, bliss and devotion?

 

How do we turn karma - the accumulated results or our past, present and future - into karma yoga - the devoting of your actions to God, ensuring good karmic effects?

 

We first begin with our thoughts. Many believe, including my former-self, that our thoughts, if not spoken, do not have any effect on our surroundings. They do.

 

In their book, Jivamukti Yoga, Sharon Gannon & David Life demonstrate this phenomenon: "... how many times have you had something on your mind and a friend has looked at you and asked, ‘What's bothering you?' Our thoughts affect others and bear karmic consequence for ourselves." (41)

 

So, what is a thought void of negative karmic consequence?

 

According to Gannon & Life, "[a] perfect thought is one devoid of selfish motive, free of anger, greed, hate, jealousy, and so on." (41)

 

Hence, we must be with our mind like a cat waiting outside a mouse hole. We must have alert, calm, and alive attention on our thoughts, diligently discerning between those that we wish to give energy to (those that serve the Whole) and those that we do not (those that cater to the small self). We pounce on the thoughts that do not serve the Whole!

 

Typically, thought leads to action, and "... the intention behind any action is more important than the action itself." (41)

 

This idea had always resonated with my inner Truth, but I hadn't taken the care to practice or test it until the resulting suffering had become unbearable and I was on my knees to the Truth.

 

I had been considering this idea when my father came home and turned on a movie - a message in disguise from my Angels <3. The movie was one of Tom Hanks's first movies in which he plays a privileged Yale graduate who carelessly acquires a large gambling debt. In order to evade his murderous bookie, he finds himself on a plane to Thailand with the Peace Corps.

 

In Thailand, he confronts a challenging dilemma: in order to "get the girl", he must show that his actions are out of altruistic compassion and not from the selfish desire to win her over. Through his experience he learns the profound lesson: it's not what you do, but the reason behind it that matters. Thanks, Tom Hanks!

 

I once read in a Shamanic book that intention is the bridge that brings the nagual (the spiritual) into the tonal (the manifested) world.

 

Intention is quite literally the magic spell that allows us to create the dreams of our imagination.

 

When we intend from our Higher Self and intend for the Greater Good, the infinite power of God, or the Universe, is behind us, strengthening the potency of our intentions and granting us the bliss of True Service.

 

To keep myself in check, when selfish, egoic thoughts arise, first, I forgive myself - I am not my thoughts; I am stronger than my ego.

 

Then, I mantra the following: "Angels, God, Higher Power, Ganesh, please remove the obstacles that prevent me from serving you in my unique fullness." In this space, all is well.

 

Including intention, there are many facets of practicing "good karma." Above all, it is very karmically beneficial to be kind and cheerful to your fellow human beings - this "... is the most potent way to create good karma for yourself." (43)

 

Gannon & Life also remind us that "[a]nother good karma activity is to be happy when others are happy. Rejoice in their happiness for the sheer sake of happiness." (47)

 

In general, we must aim to be selfless, to work purely for the sake of work, without struggle or expectation of reward, and, in this state of service we may help to shift the consciousness of the entire age! (44)

 

Karma Yoga means to serve without the small desires of the self, but with the collective in mind.

 

It is no coincidence that I find myself studying yoga teacher training at a studio called Karma Yoga.

 

It is no coincidence that I have been placed among servants of God called yoga teachers who aim to simply and passionately heal our community.

 

Most importantly, the calm that I experience when I practice selfless service tells me I must be on the right path; I must be on my way to Peace.

 

Blessed Be Your Journey <3

 

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