5 keys to transform your destiny

Destiny is the predetermined, pre-ordained blue print of one's life. Is the path and
destination of every individual life mapped even before the person’s birth?

The individual soul carries an invisible balance sheet of debit and credit and this serves to
propel the soul to animate a particular embryo. The parents, country, marriage partner,
life span, all major and probably even minor events are determined by one's karma. Every
thought, word and deed registers in the consciousness and serves as the seed for a future
effect.

Karma has many different facets to it. Prarabadha karma is that part of the total
accumulated past karma (sanchita karma), which needs to be dealt with in this lifetime.

Where does all this leave the individual? A helpless puppet at the mercy of effects of
remote planets, buffeted around by the effects of assailing thoughts, words uttered and
actions committed or omitted in another time and space. If everything is predetermined
do I have any choice or free will?

The options are -

A. My fate is fixed by my past karmas. Might as well accept it and play along.
B. My life is pre-determined but I can try to handle it to the best of my ability.
C. Though my life is pre-determined, there is a way to transform the effects of karma and
reshape my destiny.

Well, each of the above options is as true as you make it. For millions of lifetimes, a soul
is swept along helplessly. However, there comes a special lifetime where the individual
soul encounters a catastrophe, or a series of ordeals, or a guru. There arise some questions
universal to the human heart – which act as pointers to the endless path stretched out in
front of the being. Eternal questions of self-awareness begin to arise as “Do I have a
choice? If so how do I exercise my choice towards a joyful future? What is the correct
way to live?

This probing, searching, seeking is the beginning of the exciting process of growth, self-
discovery and completion.

The spiritual truth is that you definitely do have a choice in shaping your destiny, even in
the face of negative past karma.

History bears testimony to this fact >>

History bears testimony to this fact. The story of Nachiketa ,who conquered the heart of
Yama and thereby conquered death; and Savitri who brought her husband Satyavan back
from the claws of death, both represent the heights to which the will of a single human
can rise.
Destiny is the impetus, momentum and direction given to your life by past actions. The
law of cause and effect is strict and accords with scientific reason. Every action has its
consequence and manifests whenever the external conditions are conducive. So is one a
helpless pawn at the mercy of the effects of what we don’t even remember? Well, not
quite.

Destiny or the total collection and force of your past actions can be transformed. The
alchemy of this transmutation is possible, but not easy. Swimming against a strong
current never is. To be the conscious and aware script writer of your drama is an art and
skill, which can diligently be cultivated and mastered. In fact this striving to move from
the shadows to luminosity is probably the sole purpose of human life.

KEY 1 -Always take complete responsibility for your life

All that you face today - be it bad health, an uncaring spouse, a financial crunch, an
unfair deal from parents or your child – remember nobody is to blame - not
circumstances, people, planets, God or even you. You are also not to blame; because your
past actions were committed from your level of awareness at that stage. However, taking
complete responsibility amounts to accepting the law of cause and effect not just
intellectually, but from the depths of your life; with a gut wrenching honesty you need to
logically deduce and accept your past actions.

Seeds once sown will sprout some day, unless they are roasted in the fire of repentance.
The catch is that, it is difficult to repent what you do not remember doing. One needs to
take complete responsibility, coupled with a deep appreciation for this opportunity for
growth and conscious evolution. In this painful yet heroic endeavour you always have the
divine as your constant and silent comrade, witness and guide - much like Arjuna had
Krishna. However , the difficult decision and the fighting of the war was Arjuna’s
prerogative, as is yours.

Key 2 >>
KEY 2 - Learn the art of conscious living

The character and personality of every human being is determined by their samskars or
tendencies. Every thought word and deed produces a faint crease in the fabric of the
subconscious mind. We tend to repeat our patterns of mistakes and disasters, by
unwittingly allowing compulsive patterns of irritation, lust, hatred, ahamkara and
foolishness deepen these creases into grooves, and our reactions and responses flow like a
recurring theme into these, just as, water tends to flow compulsively from a higher to a
lower level. A Herculean will and a lucid constant awareness of one's actions, and more
importantly the motives behind the actions, is mandatory to live consciously in every
moment
Intense aspiration, discipline, perseverance, meditation and prayer help you to go through
the fire of periodic critical self-appraisal.

Soon candid confessions become the order of the day. One begins to catch ones thoughts
like-
What I felt for the nubile young girl was lust or
Yes, I felt a twinge of envy at my colleagues promotion or
I am always trying to prove my superiority in obvious or subtle ways
This fire of honest self-analysis gradually purifies and destroys the old, not-so –positive
samskaras.

KEY 3: To cultivate new, positive, life-enhancing qualities.

If key 2 is pulling unwanted weeds from your garden, key 3 is to plant new seeds of your
choice.
Paint the picture of your life by cherishing a vision of a peaceful, abundant and
compassionate you. How would you walk, talk, dress, conduct yourself? What would be
the vibrations emanating from your heart if you were a perfect human being? Have a
vision, which you desire to manifest and nurture, a prayerful and humble desire to create
it. Transformation does not occur by suppression, control or magic but the sweat and toil
of assiduous moment-to-moment efforts. The scene changes when anger converts into
patience and compassionate action, lust transforms into a hunger for beauty and peace.
Seeds planted in the fertile soil of the subconscious mind invariably bear fruit. Of course,
if you sow apples you cannot expect tangy oranges. Again the choice and the
responsibility, both are yours.

Key one was to do with the conscious mind, Key 2 and 3 with the subconscious mind.
Key 4 is to get in touch with your super consciousness.

Key 4 >>
KEY 4 -Awaken to the vast potential within:

What we are aware about ourselves is miniscule compared to the unknown, boundless
treasures within. Everything one has ever dreamt about or longed for - lies deep within.

The pure, higher and deeper consciousness that is your connection with the divine
consciousness and the universe around you. The Buddha nature, eternal, transcendent,
immutable - the absolute God.
Be it the constant self enquiry of Ramana Maharishi, the scientific investigations of
Shakyamuni, the delirious bhakti of Ramakrishna or Arjuna’s karma yoga – all these are
just a means to an end. . Pick up one method which best suits your temperament.

The acid test as to whether you are touching and realizing your goal or not, is to honestly
answer the questions - are most of my actions motivated by self interest? Am I not able to
accept opposing points of view? Am I unable to love and accept others and myself? If the
answer to any of these is yes, you need to pull up your socks.

Key 5: Have faith and surrender:

Have faith in yourself and your connection to your source, which is experienced as a
living presence in the depths of your heart. It’s your choice, whether you want to stretch
out your arms to it, with a child like simplicity or turn your back to it with the disbelief of
the rational mind. The most beautiful realities of life cannot be touched or explained, but
can be felt with the heart.

Surrender with loving trust to the vibration in the deepest recesses of your being. Have
confidence that help and protection, love and grace are within you and you can access
them by simply flowing in the present moment. By making the purer, nobler choice for a
larger good at every crossroad, simultaneously, renouncing the anxieties of the past and
future – is the key to align yourself to a higher will.

By the practical application of these 5 keys you can learn to resist the gravitational pull
of your negativities and soar high to a dimension where karma ceases to matter.