Understanding and Control of Kashayas

Author(s): Anop Vora
Publisher: ZZZ Unknown

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We can start appreciating our real nature and listening to what our inner voice is telling us. At this stage, we can start drawing out from our dormant divine qualities, and getting answers to our questions from within.
At this point, our own experience can lead us to start thinking about the karmic cycle that governs our lives and to start developing a strategy to break this cycle through the control of emotions. This means that the next time we run into a pleasant or an unpleasant situation, we will not react in the same way.
We can start reflecting that everything that happens is due to our own past karmas and that no useful purpose is served by blaming and punishing others for our troubles. With this frame of mind, perhaps we can start controlling our mind and acting dispassionately so as to minimize the formation of new KARMAS.
When we read the stories of Lord Mahavir, we realize that this is the path he followed, as he won over the inner enemies of defiling emotions and achieved liberation.
The remedial process of eliminating the toxic emotions and base impulses is simple to comprehend; and yet, when a real situation arises, most of us fail miserably. We simply forget the core message and our mind just overpowers us. We react instinctively without giving much thought to the situation at hand and then regret afterwards. The emotional thoughts are generated at the mind level without us being conscious of them. Because the mind plays tricks with us, we need help from wherever it is available.
One person who can provide such help and make a profound change in our daily kashaya-laden behavior is a spiritual guide (sadguru). He can steer us in the right direction, help us see the truth and more importantly our faults, provide feedback and put us on the right path. He can also work on our belief system and continually serve as a role model for us to follow.
In addition to getting help from a spiritual mentor, we also need to stay in the company (satsang) of religious people for positive reinforcement and engage in selfstudy on a daily basis. Another step worth looking at is the development of an attitude of detachment (Vairagya).
This idea is summed up in the scriptures very clearly under the axiom of Anitya Bhavana or Reflection of Impermanence. It states that all material things in life are temporary, transient in nature and come with an expiration date, a date that is out of our control, Pondering over this truth plus 11 others written in the scriptures should
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