We are on Yoga Retreat this weekend. A Silent Yoga Meditation Retreat: 2 days of glorious movement, breathwork and meditation, in Silence. And on the Sunday, I traditionally do a huge Tantra workshop and one of our goals in this workshop is to burn the seeds of Karma.

In yoga, we believe the universe runs on a system of called karma so that no good or bad deed is ever overlooked. Life is cyclical. When you are born, you are destined to die. And when you die, you will be born again. A human life shouldn’t be seen as a reference point to anything; it’s simply too short. Instead, the evolution of your soul should be your reference point. Like a change of clothes, when your body dies, your soul picks up another one that is suitable to your state of consciousness and continues its journey. When you view life through this lens, each decision and action you take will affect future generations and your future incarnated self. If the idea of reincarnation is not acceptable to you, most other spiritual traditions do view life through the lens of sowing good deeds on this earth so that they can enjoy a wonderful afterlife.
According to the Padma Purana, there are 8.4 million species of life on earth. They are separated into six groups: aquatics, trees, insects, birds, animals and humans and you take birth as one of these, according to the qualities of your consciousness. Of all these types of births, a human birth is the most prized. A human is not bound by the laws of nature and has the freedom of choice. The way that this freedom of choice is used, determines your future births and your karma.
The 3 stages of Karma are: intention, action, and consequence. Like the analogy of a tree: your actions begin with an intention or a seed. The intention leads you to perform the action (the tree) and the action produces consequences (fruit) that then go on to plant the seeds for future action. You experience this phenomenon constantly.
Your karma can be changed and cleansed in this lifetime. Seva, selfless service, is one way to change your karma. We’ve been conditioned to not want to give back selflessly but the more we practice seva, the more we’ll be able to break free from the hold of the ego and give back to the good of society. Yoga is also seen to change your karma. Yoga works directly with your life force energy. Blocked life force energy is seen as an energetic manifestation of your past deeds. Through yoga as we release, change and forgive, the layers of your existence can be cleansed of impurities. The ultimate goal is that of liberation in this, and future lifetimes.
Margot Wagner
Yoga Under the Bodhi Tree
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