Recently, I read a post by Learned Nayaswami Jyotish advising four ways to outwit karma:
- Move Away from Bad Behavior: Recognize and change negative actions and thoughts, as they inevitably return to us. Awareness and responsibility are crucial in redirecting our energy positively.
- Serve Others: Selfless service helps overcome karma initiated by self-interest. By focusing on helping others, we create positive karma and become happier and freer.
- Meditate and Practice Pranayama: Meditation, especially Kriya Yoga, helps neutralize karmic tendencies by clearing the astral spine of negative energies. Regular practice fills the spine with positive magnetism.
- Attunement with a Guru: Staying attuned to a guru can significantly reduce our karmic burden. A guru’s guidance helps us navigate and mitigate the effects of our past actions.
These practices aim to align our actions with spiritual principles, thereby transforming our karmic outcomes.
As I reflected on this article, a question arose in my mind: “Should one adopt these good practices with the objective of outwitting karma or simply as part of one’s regular spiritual discipline?” This question stems from the guidance offered by Lord Krishna in the Bhagavad Gita.
A Lesson from the Bhagavad Gita: Chapter 4, Verse 22
यदृच्छालाभसन्तुष्टो द्वन्द्वातीतो विमत्सरः।
समः सिद्धावसिद्धौ च कृत्वापि न निबध्यते॥
Transliteration: Yadṛcchā-lābha-santuṣhṭo dvandvātīto vimatsaraḥ,
Samaḥ siddhāv asiddhau cha kṛitvāpi na nibadhyate.
Translation: Content with whatever comes unsought, free from envy, steady in both success and failure, he is never bound, even though performing actions.
This verse provides guidance on a central theme of the Bhagavad Gita: performing all actions with full involvement, but without attachment to the outcome. The key idea here is that one should cultivate detachment, being content with whatever results come naturally and not striving to outsmart or outmanoeuvre karma.
The thought of ‘outwitting karma’ introduces an element of attachment to outcomes. If the consequences of one’s actions are to be softened, it will happen by divine will, not through personal efforts. Lord Krishna’s teaching calls for surrender to the natural flow of karma, not manipulation of its results.
The Story of King Lavana: A Reflection on Karma and Illusion
This brings to mind the story of King Lavana from the Yoga Vasistha, an ancient Indian text. It serves as a powerful reminder that the consequences of one’s karma are inevitable, even in the face of magical or divine interventions.
King Lavana, a virtuous ruler, once encountered a sage in his court who offered him a magical experience. Curiosity piqued; the king agreed to participate. The sage cast a spell, plunging Lavana into a deep illusion where he found himself as a wandering beggar. In this illusory world, Lavana experienced extreme poverty, hunger, and the deaths of his children, enduring years of suffering and hardship.
When the spell was lifted, Lavana returned to his court, realizing that only moments had passed, though it felt like a lifetime in the illusion.
Karma and Divine Will
Under the magical spell, King Lavana lived out the consequences of his past karma in an accelerated time frame. The illusion shortened his suffering in terms of duration, by quickly moving him through the phases of his karmic burden. However, it did not eliminate the mental agony and pain he was destined to endure as a result of his past actions. I wish to emphasize here that this rapid unfolding of his karmic debts occurred through divine will, not Lavana’s own intervention. The divine chose this path for Lavana to impart profound lessons about the nature of reality and karma.
This story illustrates that karma is inescapable. Even through magic or illusion, one must experience the consequences of their actions. The divine will may, at times, hasten this process for a higher purpose, but it is not something an individual can—or should—attempt to consciously control.
Karma, Maya, and Surrender
The story of King Lavana brings out two key lessons:
- Karma is inevitable: No matter the circumstances, the results of one’s actions will manifest in some form. Attempting to outwit karma is akin to trying to escape divine laws, which is not right.
- Life is an illusion (maya): Just as Lavana’s royal life was an illusion in his dream, so is our worldly experience, albeit in extended time frames. The real challenge is to rise above this illusion and understand the eternal truth. The divine will, not human intervention, dictates the unfolding of our karma.
At the age of 52, I endured a prolonged period of illness marked by significant uncertainty. My family and I navigated these challenging times, grappling with incomplete documentation and limited research findings about the disease. This experience, I believe, was a manifestation of my past karma. Despite the trials, it was ultimately the divine will that restored me to health after I had endured my allotted suffering. I neither had the courage nor the inclination to interfere with this divine plan. Instead, we could only offer our prayers and perform Yajnas to dispel negative energies.
This leads us back to the central question: Should we actively try to outwit karma, or should we simply perform our duties and surrender to the divine will?
The Role of Surrender in the Bhagavad Gita
While the practices advocated by Reverent Nayaswami Jyotish—moving away from bad behavior, serving others, meditating, and following the guidance of one’s spiritual leader—are valuable for spiritual growth, they should not be approached with the aim of outwitting karma. These practices, when done selflessly, help us align with our higher selves, but they should not be followed with the expectation that they would manipulate the karmic cycle.
True self-realization comes not from trying to alter or escape karma, but from accepting it as part of divine will. As Lord Krishna says in the Bhagavad Gita (Chapter 18, Verse 66):
सर्वधर्मान्परित्यज्य मामेकं शरणं व्रज।
अहं त्वां सर्वपापेभ्यो मोक्षयिष्यामि मा शुचः॥
Translation: “Abandon all varieties of dharmas and just surrender unto Me. I shall deliver you from all sinful reactions; do not fear.”
This verse emphasizes that true liberation comes from surrendering to the divine will, not from trying to manipulate the karmic outcomes. The practices we adopt—whether serving others, meditating, or following a spiritual leader—should be done as acts of surrender, not as attempts to escape the natural consequences of our actions. Unfortunately, many individuals are exploited by unscrupulous Babas who mislead their followers by claiming that they can save them from their sufferings, which are a result of divine will (please see my earlier post, “Are Quick Fix Babas and Symbolism Hurting the Profound Hindu Philosophy?”).
Conclusion
The idea of ‘outwitting karma’ inherently involves attachment to results, which contradicts the teachings of the Bhagavad Gita. True peace comes from accepting life as it unfolds, without the desire to manipulate its course. While positive actions and spiritual discipline help purify our lives, ultimate peace arises from embracing two key themes:
- When following a spiritual leader, the goal should be to learn techniques that guide us in aligning our thoughts and actions with dharma, rather than expecting the leader to absolve us from the consequences of our karma.
- We should fully engage in our duties and make necessary course corrections but remain truly unattached to the outcomes of our actions.
- Surrendering all actions and their outcomes to the Supreme, trusting that the divine will guide the karmic results in the most just and meaningful way.
Rather than striving to outwit karma, let us focus on performing our duties with sincerity, unattached to the outcomes, and leave the rest in the hands of the divine.
So, help us, Lord Krishna!
Inspire Positivity 