Posts Tagged ‘Bodhidharma’

“Karma is a cosmic incentive system.”
~ Ron Rattner, Sutra Sayings

“The Book of Life is a karmic comic book.”
~ Ron Rattner, Sutra Sayings

“Every action, every thought, reaps its own corresponding rewards. Human suffering is not a sign of God’s, or Nature’s, anger with mankind. It is a sign, rather, of man’s ignorance of divine law. . . .
Such is the law of karma: As you sow, so shall you reap. If you sow evil, you will reap evil in the form of suffering. And if you sow goodness, you will reap goodness in the form of inner joy.”
~ Paramhansa Yogananda

“It is true that we are not bound. That is to say, the real Self has no bondage. And it is true that you will eventually return to your Source. But meanwhile, if you commit sins, as you call them, you have to face the consequences. You cannot escape them.”
~ Ramana Maharshi

“Clear your past, to live as presence.

Clear your karma, to live your dharma.”
~ Ron Rattner, Sutra Sayings

“To go from mortal to Buddha, you have to put an end to karma,
nurture your awareness, and accept what life brings.”
~ Bodhidharma

Introduction

Dear Friends,

We are living in difficult times, with many people enduring much suffering.
In such hard times, laughter and levity always help. Also, truth said in jest can help us understand and remember previously unknown ways to transcend suffering.
 
So the following “Close Out Your ‘Karma Card’ Accounts” whimsical sutra-poem is about suffering from karma, a spiritually significant subject that many people don’t yet consider or comprehend.

As hereafter explained, it is dedicated to helping us transcend inevitable cause and effect suffering from the earthly illusion of duality.

And so may it be,

Ron Rattner

Close Out Your ‘Karma Card’ Accounts

Coming from subtle planes to Earth
(the plane of space/time and causation)
the soul dons an “earth suit” – a human body/mind  –
as its vehicle to explore this realm.

Each such vehicle comes equipped with
a revolving “karma card” account.

The object of the visit is to clear all “karma card” debits,
without incurring new ones.

Until we close out all our “karma card” accounts,
our visits to Earth become endless revolving round trips
repeated in a different vehicle for each trip.

So, we’re here to try closing out
all our “karma card” accounts.

Ron’s Karmic Commentary:

Dear Friends,

Karma is the subtle spiritual manifestation of Newton’s Third Law of Motion, that for every physical action there is an equal and opposite reaction.  It is a natural tendency which governs all space/time interactions including those on on subtle or spiritual planes, where we ‘reap as we sow’. 

Thus, for every space/time thought, word or deed – there is also an equivalent and opposite reaction on subtle or spiritual planes.  So  karma can be seen as  “a cosmic incentive system”, of cause and effect.
 
As explained by Paramhansa Yogananda: “Every action, every thought, reaps its own corresponding rewards” – either joy or suffering.

Hence, knowing the law of karma can encourage us to do good and be good – even if initially we are motivated by what the Dalai Lama has called ‘enlightened selfishness’.   Yogis say that by selflessly doing good we can transcend inevitable suffering from identification with this physical world, which they see as unreal illusion – maya or samsara. 

But, as Swami Yogananda observed, “those who cling to the cosmic illusion must accept its essential law of polarity: flow and ebb, rise and fall, day and night, pleasure and pain, good and evil, birth and death.” 

So to help us transcend suffering from the illusion of polarity, I sincerely invite your mindful consideration of the foregoing whimsical sutra-poem verses about karma.

May they help us sow ever more loving-kindness and compassion, bringing everyone everywhere ever more worldly happiness and fulfillment, until ultimately we reap eternal joy.

And so shall it be!

Ron Rattner


Ron’s audio explanation and recitation of Close Out Your ‘Karma Card’ Accounts