Sometimes your spiritual progress can accelerate a process of ‘karmic cleansing’ and may force you to clear your karmic debts rapidly. Hence it is quite natural for people on the spiritual path to experience several challenges that crop up all at once. Though quite painful at times, it is a blessing in disguise that enables one to clear the path for rapid progress. The story of the great Tibetan Yogi Milarepa is a classic portrait of the life of an earnest spiritual aspirant.
About one thousand years ago, there lived in Tibet a boy by name Thopaga, who was later known as Milarepa. In the instance of his mother, he learnt the black arts of sorcery to wreak vengeance on the family of his uncle and aunt who had deceived them. With his black power he killed several of their family members and punished the villagers by causing hail storms that ruined the fields of barley crops.
Milarepa deeply regretted his evil actions and approached Lama Marpa. To help him work out a great deal of his evil karma the Lama deliberately put him to strenuous labours. He asked him to build a stone structure on a high rocky ridge, then instructed him to demolish it and build a new one on another ridge. He made him repeat this ordeal three times. Milarepa’s body was worn out with bruises and sores on his back, yet the Lama made him build a multi-storied edifice on a fourth ridge.
Also, when he tried to join other disciples to receive teachings, the Lama would drive him away with angry shouts causing him great distress. Once he even threw him to the ground with great force, and in many such ways the Lama forced him to cleanse his past karma. Finally, he initiated Milarepa into many advanced spiritual practices and instructed him to meditate in a cave.
One day four hunters in that area, who were passing by his cave, demanded some provisions as they had no hunt on that day. Since Milarepa had nothing to offer they got furious and picked him up and dropped him several times- even kicked him and made him roll on the ground, causing great pain to his body, which was quite weak due to starvation.
Milarepa repeatedly underwent many sufferings that forced him to neutralise all his karmic debts and made him one of the most revered Tibetan saints.
You cannot make much spiritual progress without clearing a substantial amount of your karmic debts. However, as stated earlier, you may generate good karma that can act like a ‘shock absorber’ when your negative karma matures. Practising advanced spiritual techniques without sufficient good karma would be like driving at high speed on a bumpy road in an old car, and without a shock absorber! That is why in the ancient times the disciples had to commit themselves to service in order to balance the acceleration of negative karma.
For this reason, it is extremely important to serve in proportion to the wisdom you gain from spiritual teachers. The accelerated spiritual development as a result of acquired wisdom will automatically speed up repayment of your karmic debts as well.
Some people simply receive and do not share anything in return, and sometimes look for free services as well! Simply receiving and not sharing sufficiently will result in ‘spiritual constipation’ and ‘karmic liability’ that will block your progress.
People on the spiritual path who ignore ‘service and sharing’ not only have many obstacles in life, but often fall out from their spiritual practices.
Extract from the book “Secrets of Karma” by Vee Jay Attri
