________________
SUTRAS
THE KEY TO THE CENTER OF THE UNIVERSE
49
does not possess consciousness, it has the characteristic to bind karmic mechanisms to our life.
Through ignorance, error, skepticism and strong negative emotions we attach this type of subtle matter to our consciousness in a similar way as the particles of our body do bind us to the material world which surrounds us in the waking state.
The activation (manifestation) of karma dissolves our bond with the activated karma. Dissolved karmic bonds do not effect us any more.
Activities caused by the manifestation of karma do not automatically bind further karma. Yet if we react to a karmic manifestation with strong - positive or negative - emotions, we attract new karma, i.e. we attach new karmic matter to our karmic field that will influence us. This renewed attraction can easily create a cycle of accumulating and discarding the same type of karma. In this case we usually get the impression that the same theme of life is occurring again and again. This cycle of attracting and discarding the same type of karma appears to us as if there exists a strong bond between our consciousness and a particular theme of life
It is important to understand that we ourselves determine which themes of life we feel so strongly attracted to. It is nothing other than our own positive or negative emotional engagement that programs us to experience these themes again and again. Karmic matter is only the carrier-substance that allows this process to manifest in physical reality.
- The termination of the process that binds karmic matter to our life (samvara) stops the attachment of new karmic matter to our consciousness.
The intake of new karma into our interactive karmic field is the main cause for our confrontation with ever the same - limiting, uncomfortable - situations. As long as we are unaware of this mechanism, we unintentionally accumulate new karma even if it is against all our intentions and will.
Jain Education International
For Personal & Private Use Only
www.jainelibrary.org