imagination/fantasy vs actual deed , Karmic effect

[Guest guest]

Very good quesiton, Adiji. I think it depends on your spiritual

level-for higher souls even thinking evil thoughts has a Karmic

effect, while for normal people its not so important.

 

The reason is normal people have no control over their thougths, while

the 1st things Yogis learn is to control the mind & thought waves.

 

In Autobiography of a Yogi, Yogananda was once about to kill a

mosquito, then he stopped, thinking he mustnt do violence. His Guru

scolds him "You should kill the mosquito now. What difference is there

between killing, & thinking of killing?". But Yogananda was a highly

advanced Yogi- for normal people rules are a little relaxed.

 

But there is no need to feel guilty of bad thoughts. Instead the

correct way is to reject them, to not even think about them any more.

These thought waves need the support of the Soul & mind to survive, &

if they dont get it, they die. This is what advanced Yogis do.

 

Some of these thoughts may arise due to Karma. So if you are to kill

someone due to Karma, he will anger & irritate you , till you lose

your temper & kill him. If you dont kill him, but get angry inside,

you are still creating a sanskaar(thought pattern) on the chitta, that

will arise another day, maybe in another life time, & you might kill

him then.

 

Unless the Vritti(thought wave) is killed as soon as it arises, it

will grow in strength. So if you think about killing someone but dont,

the Vritti will remain, & it might arise again.

 

Karma is nothing but hidden memory of previous lives that forces us to

act in a certain way.

 

For ordinary people, this doesnt matter so much-they dont get punished

until they actually kill someone. But Yogis know that any negative

thought pattern must be destroyed from its root, otherwise it will

keep coming back in different forms till it is fulfilled.

 

As Patanjali says in his Yoga Sutras, Yoga is the cessation of Thought

Waves. How to do this is the whole science of Yoga.

[Guest guest]

I think Shanracer has replied it beautifully. He is right..it

depends upon your spiritual levels.

 

Until I was not into sadhna my thoughts did not have much

effect...but when i was on this path things changed. I give u an

example...during the earlier days of my sadhna..when i had just

started it and there were some visions and sounds but not much

progress...One of my colleague fought with me. I was furious and

during meditation too i thought about him. I planned I will break

the glass of his car window, as in that country, car glass was not

easily available..I cherished the pitiable condition of his, he

driving his car without glass on the back side putting some plastic

sheet there.

 

After a week, thieves entered our garage and they broke the glass of

my car and I had to go with a plastic on my back glass pane.

 

So for a serious sadhaka, even thoughts are dangerous and bring

immediate punishment

 

For common people, these type of thoughts bring bad dreams and their

punishment is over in a dream

 

with love

 

baba