There are many minds that think and believe and identify themselves
as yoga and/or buddhism followers/disciples/practitioners/enthusiasts
would use the term of 'cause and effect' that they have been referring
as 'karma' (因果報應/因果循環) to
warn/threaten/intimidate/bully/manipulate/influence/exploit/lure/oppress/control
the others to behave in certain way and not in certain way, which is
not what yoga and/or buddhism teachings and practice is about.
Inquire towards the truth of everything.
Cause and effect is like object and the shadow.
Effect is the shadow of cause.
Each object has its own shadow.
Each cause has its own effect.
Without such cause, there is no such effect.
Without such object, there is no such shadow.
But more importantly,
Without light, there is no shadow of any object.
Cause (object) is fixed. The cause doesn't change into something else. It is what it is.
Shadow (effect) is not fixed, having countless possibility of manifestations, depending on the condition and position of light and/or the object, manifesting under different shapes and sizes.
The supportive elements/conditions that are influencing the effects being in certain way or not in certain way, is like the light that influence the shadow being what it is.
Without
proper supportive elements/conditions, the cause doesn't give rise to
effect. It is like a seed that doesn't grow into a plant, or a plant
that doesn't give flowers and/or fruits under the absence of proper
supportive elements/conditions.
Just like all kinds of names and
forms, the nature's law of cause and effect is neither good nor bad,
neither positive nor negative, neither constructive nor destructive,
neither meaningful nor meaningless, and that neither gives rise to
enjoyment nor suffering.
The nature's law of cause and effect is
just what it is. It is part of the intentionless indiscriminate power of
nature that governs/influences/directs the selfless impermanent limited
and conditional finite momentary existence, changes of
regeneration/decay/disintegration, and ceased existence of all and
everything.
Just like all kinds of names and forms, the nature's law of cause and effect is also limited and conditional.
All kinds of actions/activities give rise to respective causes that will turn into effects (consequences of actions/activities).
And hence, actions/activities are more powerful/dominant than the nature's law of cause and effect.
By
understanding this, one will know that it is the boundless selfless
conscious/semi-conscious/non-conscious actions/activities (the selfless
power of creation) that are determining the different types of causes
and effects ceaselessly, either wittingly or unwittingly, intentionally
or unintentionally, constructively or destructively.
No doubt that
causes are what they are, but the selfless impermanent limited and
conditional effects can be influenced/determined/dominated by the
ceaseless actions/activities, particularly the selfless conscious
actions/activities that are being generated under the presence of
conscious awareness, and more importantly, under the presence or absence
of correct understanding and/or incorrect understanding.
A non-living object doesn't have the organs of perception/cognition or the organs of action. Such as a rock.
The
rock under different shapes and sizes and consistencies has no intention of being
constructive or destructive, or it has no power of construction or destruction. It is just being what it is. It is also subject to selfless
impermanent changes under the presence or absence of certain limited
conditions, internally and externally.
It can be transformed or mobilized involuntarily either by nature (such as the impact of sunlight, heat, humidity, volcanic activity, wind, water, rain, lightning strike, current, river, ocean, gravity, and movements of the earth), or by the living organisms that come with the organs of
perception/cognition and the organs of action for something constructive
or destructive, regardless of whether consciously or unconsciously, voluntarily or
involuntarily, deliberately or autonomously, wittingly or unwittingly,
intentionally or unintentionally.
It can be used to build shelter,
or path, or bridge, or ornament, or tool that cut something, or tool that break/crack open something, or for any constructive purposes.
It
can also be used as a weapon to cause damages or injuries unto the
physical structures of anyone or anything, or for any destructive
purposes.
The different effects, or changes, or transformations, as well as the constructive or destructive possibility/purpose/utilization of the rock are influenced by both internal and external actions/activities involuntarily.
For example, there is a sharp object being there on the
path. It doesn't have any intention to be something constructive or
destructive for being what it is, where it is, and how it is.
Some conscious living organisms under the presence of conscious awareness/perception/cognition might be aware of it or see it, while some living organisms might not be aware of it or don't see it.
The conscious living organisms that are aware of it, might or might not avoid
stepping/leaning on it, might or might not reflect upon the many possible
effects of a sharp object being on the path, might or might not pick up
or move the sharp object out of the path, and might or might not utilize/transform the sharp object for any purposes, under the presence or absence of
different experiences, knowledge, understanding, and intentions.
Under
the presence of conscious awareness being aware of the presence of a
sharp object being on the path, and under the presence of reflection
under the presence of certain experiences, knowledge, and correct
understanding, some living organisms would move the sharp object away
from the path to avoid any unnecessary damages or injuries unto oneself
and/or others, or the tyres of some vehicles, and even many other
possible side-effects that might arise from that.
Some living
organisms might not have such similar reflection and action taking of avoiding
unnecessary evitable damages or injuries unto oneself or others or
anything, but they might have the similar desire, intention, and
understanding of utilizing/transforming the sharp object for different purposes, and
vice versa.
The conscious and unconscious power of
creation/action/activity that exist in all and everything, regardless of
living organisms that come with the conscious/semi-conscious/unconscious
perception/cognition/the presence and absence of freewill and the organs of action/activity/mobility (inputs - thought processing - outputs/responds, consciously/voluntarily or unconsciously/involuntarily), or
non-living objects that don't have conscious
perception/cognition/freewill and with or without components for
action/activity/mobility (non-living objects such as the
creations/inventions of clock/all kinds of
machine/vehicle/computer/TV/AI programming/robot/toy, and etc, have no
conscious perception/cognition/freewill, but there are certain
components/functions that enable certain involuntary mechanical action/activity/mobility), is influencing the effects or impermanent
changes of the existing causes, while the conscious power of
creation/action/activity can be more dominant than the unconscious power
of creation/action/activity, and vice versa.
And more
importantly, the presence and absence of the clarity, calmness, and
efficiency (wisdom/absolute knowledge and precise functionality) or the
murkiness, restlessness, and inefficiency (ignorance/corrupted knowledge
and faulty functionality) of the selfless functions of the conscious perception/cognition/intellectual
reasoning/understanding/desire/behavior/action/activity in the conscious living organisms that are functioning under the
presence of conscious awareness, under the state of
consciousness/semi-consciousness, has the influencing power that can be
influencing/determining what type of conscious
creations/actions/activities, that is also conditioning/influencing/determining whether the conscious or
unconscious creations/actions/activities is being more dominant, that is
influencing the conscious/semi-conscious and unconscious
changes/effects of the existing causes in certain way or not in certain
way, up to a certain extend, where there is certain inevitable limitation in all and everything.
Such as all and everything has limited duration of existence and function that need constant maintenance under the availability of the selfless supportive energy and different elements/conditions, while all and everything are subject to decay and disintegration.
By understanding this, one will know that under the presence
of conscious and semi-conscious awareness during the state of
consciousness and semi-consciousness, there is conscious/semi-conscious
freewill to influence/determine the states of mind throughout the
different states of consciousness, that also
influences/conditions/determines the
conscious/semi-conscious/unconscious creations/actions/activities (The
process of conscious mind evolution and conquest - what yoga and
buddhism teachings, observations, and practices is all about), although
it takes ceaseless perseverance and determination or continuous effort,
not just to attain but also to maintain the clarity and efficiency of
the mind under the different states of consciousness, that is selfless,
impermanent, limited, conditional, and non-self, even after the direct
glimpse or realization towards the truth of selflessness, impermanence,
limitation, conditional, and non-self in all kinds of names and forms,
until Silence/Samadhi, or the complete annihilation of the selfless impermanent limited and conditional modification of the mind takes place, but more importantly as well as
upmost liberating, is that, all THAT (Ignorance/Restlessness/The conscious and unconscious power of creation/action/activity and The
annihilation of ignorance/restlessness, or Silence/Samadhi - The absorption/non-activation of MAYA, the power of creation/action/activity) are non-self.
It is absolutely possible to be free from ignorance and the by-products of ignorance.
It is absolutely possible to change and/or conquer the conditional restless egoistic impure thinking and behavior pattern of oneself throughout the different states of consciousness, that hurts oneself and others and the surrounding environment, either wittingly or unwittingly, intentionally or unintentionally, even if all and everything are selfless and impermanent, that only exist and function momentarily for a limited duration.
The mind just need to initiate the conscious evolution process under the presence of conscious awareness, out of its own conscious perception/cognition towards the restlessness/impurities/doubts/suffering and fleeting impermanent changes in itself and of everything that it perceives, under its own conscious freewill, desire, yearning, effort, perseverance, and determination to be free from all that, even if it is just the rise of a fleeting conscious/semi-conscious/unconscious thought, or idea, or desire (planting a seed wittingly/consciously or unwittingly/unconsciously, that requires ceaseless effort/action for nurturing) to be free, to be happy, to be peaceful, to know and understand, to be suffering free, to stop hurting oneself and others, or to be liberated from ignorance, under the presence of any kind of impurities, unrest, fear, insecurity, doubt, dissatisfaction, disappointment, hurt, pain, sorrow, violence, suffering, or the notion/idea of "I am not free".
The cause (any seed), whether being nurtured to becoming a matured plant that bears flowers and fruits, or not, is also subject to selfless impermanent changes of growth/transformation or decay and disintegration. Just as a seed that isn't being nurtured into becoming a plant, is rotting/decaying at its own pace, and will eventually disintegrated/decomposed, not to say, the seed isn't a seed anymore, upon the initial moment of being nurtured that turns into a shoot, that might or might not eventually becoming a matured plant, that might or might not give rise to flowers, that might or might not turn into fruits, that might or might not be consumed by something or someone.
Sankalpa - The initiation/planting of the seed of wisdom/liberation/peace consciously and unconsciously, has been widely misused by the yoga practitioners/teachers/enthusiasts in the yoga practice or in the beginning and/or the end of the yoga class, as 'the mystical super mind power' to make all kinds of wishes/desires/dreams come true, which not only doesn't thin-out and eliminate the veil of ignorance, the idea of 'I', egoism of attachment and identification, desire of craving and aversion, longing, clinging, expectation, duality, passion, greed, and restlessness, but instead, it is augmenting and empowering all that.
The yoga teachers tell the yoga students in the yoga class to think about something or anything that they want to do and achieve or have, and that by thinking of that particular desire/goal (those many different desires/goals) consciously under intense focus, and all their desires/wishes/goals/dreams will come true or be materialized. It doesn't. It is the ceaseless physical effort/action/activity under the presence of specific or respective knowledge and understanding, under the presence of possibility and opportunity, and under the availability of the selfless supportive energy and elements/conditions, on top of immovable perseverance and determination, that determines whether one will be successful doing and achieving something that oneself wanted to do and achieve, up to certain extend under certain limitation.
If it is merely a thought/desire arising in the mind, but if there is no prompted follow-up continuous physical effort/activity to materialize the thought/desire, or it doesn't turn into physical action/expression/speech, then it is just a selfless impermanent limited and conditional momentary thought that arising and passing away (a seed that doesn't turn into a plant), regardless of whether the thought is something pure or impure, positive or negative, good or bad, constructive or destructive, wholesome or unwholesome, and etc.
While most of the minds are still functioning under the influence of the veil of ignorance, what the minds (being conditioned and influenced to) think and believe and understand, or reason and evaluate and discriminate, or judge and recognize towards what is good or gad, what is right or wrong, what is positive or negative, or what is constructive or destructive, or what is wholesome or unwholesome, and etc, are not necessarily the truth of what things are.
And hence, the highly importance of the practical and efficient initial mental observation/practice of non-grasping, non-attachment, non-identification, non-craving, non-aversion, non-judgment, and non-expectation towards the rise of any kind of thoughts/desires, to be observing or aware of the ceaseless thoughts/desires arising and passing away, without generating any physical effort/activity/action being prompted by the selfless impermanent limited and conditional fleeting thoughts/desires, the presence of countless seeds don't turn into any plant (the arising and passing away of countless causes doesn't lead to effect).
Upon the annihilation of the veil of ignorance, or upon the presence of clarity, absolute knowledge, and correct understanding, the mind can choose whether to perform or not performing certain action/activity that are beneficial for oneself and others and the surrounding environment, selflessly, indiscriminately and unconditionally.
Without thinking about or focusing towards achieving anything specifically, but just by performing certain actions/activities under the presence of specific knowledge and understanding, possibility and opportunity, perseverance and determination, and the availability of the selfless support of energy and elements/conditions, and one might achieve good health, good fortune, unlimited wealth, happiness, everything desirable and nothing undesirable, youthfulness, and longevity, and even so, it still doesn't change the truth of selflessness, impermanence, limitation, conditional, non-self, and the inevitable decay and disintegration, or mortality in all and everything.
Just by ceaselessly 'thinking' about or 'focusing' towards 'being at the mountain top', it doesn't transport oneself physically and practically to be on the mountain top, it is the continuous physical effort of physical movements/actions/activities internally and externally that bring oneself to be at the mountain top physically and practically, eventually.
The Sankalpa that is stated in the teachings of yoga and/or buddhism, is merely about the seed of dhamma that might or might not lead to the liberation from all that depending on the presence and absence of effort/action taking, where it is not even "I want to be free, be happy, be peaceful, be liberated," under the presence of the idea of 'I' and egoism, but it is, "May all be free, be happy, be peaceful, be liberated," indiscriminately and unconditionally, dropping of the idea of 'I' and egoism, devoid of the sense of separateness/duality of 'I' and 'not I' or 'others', and without egoism of grasping, attachment, identification, desire of craving and aversion, comparison, judgment, or expectation, but only through ceaseless effort, action, activity, observation, or practice, under intense perseverance and determination, one will eventually attain direct self realization towards the truth of the selfless impermanent limited and conditional finite momentary existence and function of all and everything, that are non-self, and be free, be happy, be peaceful unconditionally.
Such as, without telling/asking/guiding/instructing the yoga students to deliberately setting any kind of intention before/during/after the yoga class/yoga practice, but just by indiscriminately disseminating the dhamma, or the teachings of yoga and/or buddhism as it is, in the yoga class, regardless of whether the yoga students are paying attention (receiving inputs consciously) or don't pay attention (receiving inputs unconsciously) onto the dhamma dissemination, whether they understand or don't understand, agree or disagree, like or dislike, desire or don't desire, and practice or don't practice the dhamma/the teachings as it is, but that is already what Sankalpa is about. An intentionless seed of wisdom is being randomly planted into the minds of the yoga students either consciously or unconsciously (the gift of dhamma). But then it is up to the effort of the yoga students whether to embark onto the journey of self-inquiry and attain self realization, or not, a.k.a. whether to continuously nurture the seed until it becomes a matured plant that bears flowers and fruits, or not.
That is also why the highly importance of the observation of renunciation, solitude, and seclusion to not just mentally but also physically move away from all kinds of conditional highly influential worldly egoistic conscious and unconscious inputs/influences/ideas/affairs/beliefs/values/practices/rituals/behaviors/activities/interactions/communications/ties and connections, that is absolutely practical and efficient for the minds that genuinely and eagerly want to attain direct self realization towards knowing Thyself, or knowing the truth of selflessness, impermanence, limitation, conditional, and non-self in all and everything.
Conscious and/or unconscious thought/intention/desire (Sankalpa) is nothing or powerless, if without continuous physical effort/action/activity (which includes mental activity, that is also part of the physical activity. Without the physical structure and activity, there is no mental activity) under the presence of respective knowledge and understanding, possibility and opportunity, perseverance and determination, and the selfless support of the supportive energy and elements/conditions.
There is nothing super extraordinary, or mystical, or transcendental, or miraculous in the teachings, observations, practices, and realization of yoga and/or buddhism. It is merely the truth of everything, as it is. However, under the influence of the veil of ignorance, it is common and natural that there are many existing 'teachings, observations, practices, transcriptions, translations, and understanding' of yoga and/or buddhism have been contaminated by the many different worldly egoistic ideas, beliefs, values, and practices. And hence, the highly importance of "Inquiring the truth of everything to attain direct self realization," as stated in both the teachings of yoga and/or buddhism.
One doesn't necessarily need to learn, read, hear, study, know, or memorize about many teachings of yoga and/or buddhism, but only need to know and inquire about, "Silencing and withdrawing the restless outgoing mind and performing self-inquiry to be inquiring towards the truth of everything to attain direct self realization." One needs to inquire why is that highly important, what is and how to silence and withdraw the restless outgoing mind, what is/why and how to perform self-inquiry to be inquiring towards the truth of everything to attain direct self realization?
The mind that knows this, is free from all kinds of worldly egoistic superstitious mystical spiritual/religious/cultural beliefs, values, and practices, as well as the unnecessary fear and many obstacles or inconveniences deriving from all that. Such mind cannot be threatened/intimidated/bullied/manipulated/influenced/lured/exploited/disturbed/offended/hurt by anyone and anything.
Yoga and/or buddhism is the science of the mind.
Inquire the truth of everything.
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