Energy is continuously added to your subconscious/aura through various types of karmas you engage in. Karmas can be broadly divided into three types; good karmas, bad karmas and neutral karmas.
Though it is difficult to achieve exact definitions for them, let’s try to understand broader definitions for them. If you engage in an action, speech or thought with the intention of benefit of others, it is called good karma. If you engage in an action, speech or thought with the intention of hurting others, it is called bad karma. If you engage in an action, speech or thought with the no intention or desire, it is called a neutral karma.
It should be noted that a karma is decided by the intention and not by the expression. Let’s try to understand this concept with the help of some examples. Suppose a criminal kills people for money. Since his primary motive is to earn money and he’s killing people for this motive; these karmas are bad, since he’s making other people suffer for his own benefit.
Suppose a police officer kills this criminal in an encounter. If this officer’s intention is to do his duty and restore balance by killing the criminal, it is a good or neutral karma. However, if he’s personally biased against criminals and he kills this one instead of arresting him, though the latter may be surrendering; it is a bad karma. In this case, the officer is not killing the criminal to restore balance or to do his duty; he’s killing him to satisfy himself. Since he’s taking human life for selfish motive, it’s bad karma.
Suppose the officer arrests this criminal and the latter faces a trail. The judge punishes him with death penalty. If the judge has made this decision on merit and he’s not biased against the criminal, it’s a good/neutral karma. However, if the judge has personal bias against murderers and he goes out of way to ensure that the criminal is punished; it’s a bad karma.
Taking another example, suppose your brother is in dire need of money, he asks from you and you give him such money. If your intention is to help him and strengthen the bond; it is a good karma. However, if you help him so that he may feel small in front of you for the rest of his life; it is a bad karma. If you help him and no good or bad intentions are there, it is a neutral karma. In this case, you’re neither looking for reward nor for selfish motives. He needs money, you have it and you give it. That’s all there is and the thought of doing good or the thought of gaining advantage doesn’t cross your mind.
This type of karmas are rarely practiced since most people consciously or subconsciously look for rewards when they’re helping others. Looking at conscious desire for fruits; you help your brother and you consciously wish for the rewards. For example, you may tell other family members and friends how you helped him. Your intention is to gain praise for this karma. Since you have conscious desire for fruit of this karma and you mean well for your brother; it is a good karma.
Looking at subconscious desire; you help your brother and expect that he’ll respect you more or your bond may strength after this. Though you don’t tell anyone about this, you may wish that he does so. It means you don’t tell your family but if he tells them; they praise you and you feel happy. It means in this case, a subconscious desire is there for fruits. Hence it is a good karma.
Looking at neutral karma; you help him and the chapter is closed. You don’t feel like telling anyone about this act. At the same time, you’re not affected in any way if he tells other people and they praise you. This is a neutral karma. However, if you feel happy when others praise you for this karma, it’s a good karma since you were subconsciously expecting these results.
Looking at another variation, if you feel embarrassed when they praise you and you even advise your brother not to tell anyone as you feel uncomfortable when people praise you for good deeds, it is not a neutral karma and it is a good karma. This is because the fruit of this karma is still affecting you. In the first case, it made you happy whereas in the second case, it embarrassed you.
The embarrassment may be there because you may be a very good person and you may think that getting praise or rewards for good karmas dilutes their goodness. Though you’re noble in thinking so; a desire for fruit is still there. It means you’re trying to increase goodness in you as well as protect it. Hence deep down; you’ve engaged in this karma in order to become a better person though you may not want any outside rewards at all. Hence this may be a good karma of the highest order but it is still not a neutral karma; since the desire for fruit is there, even if such desire is to become better as a person. Only if there is no desire and you’re not affected by the outcome of this karma in any manner; it is a neutral karma.
Let’s look at another scenario. Suppose relevant authorities of a country ask their soldiers to invade another country for selfish motives; and the soldiers also know this fact. If a soldier chooses to be a part of such invading unit; he’s engaging in a bad karma. Though it may seem that he’s only doing his duty like the police officer or the judge; it is not so in reality.
Whenever there is a clash between priorities; the higher ones should be saved. A person who serves government is bound by two obligations. The first one is his obligation to his job whereas the second one is his obligation to his conscience or himself. As long as his duty is in line with his conscience; he’s engaging in good or neutral karmas, even if he’s killing someone. However, if there’s a clash between his conscience and duty; conscience takes priority. Hence if he chooses to harm others under pretext of duty by suppressing his conscience; it is a bad karma.
Looking deeper; the soldier knows that if he refuses to be a part of the attacking unit; he may lose his job. Since he may not want to lose this job; he may become a part of such unit. Hence deep down; he’s doing it for job which means for selfish motive. It applies to all people working for governments when they face such choices. If they choose to harm the innocent in order to save their jobs; they may justify themselves by assuming that they were only following orders. However, they had the choice to leave jobs but not engage in such harmful acts. Since they preferred jobs over right or wrong; such karmas are bad. Hence the solider in question is engaging in a bad karma by choosing to be a part of such unit.
Let’s look at this equation from a different angle. Suppose this army attacks and the country which is attacked engages in counterattack. The authorities tell their soldiers to fight and kill anyone who tries to invade. The soldiers follow and they may end up killing many enemy soldiers. One such solider is not engaging in bad karmas since his duty as well as conscience are in alignment. His conscience guides him to protect himself, his family and his land from foreign invasions and his country is also telling him to do the same.
It means the solider in this case is not killing to gain something but he’s killing to protect his land and the people living there. Hence he’s engaging in a good or neutral karma. If the solider has conscious or subconscious desires for fruits attached to this karma; it is a good karma. If such desires are not attached; it is a neutral karma. For example, if he wishes for medal, reward or praise; he’s engaging in a good karma. On the other hand, if he doesn’t have any desires and he simply does what needs to be done; he’s engaging in a neutral karma.
Looking at another probability; suppose the invading army is defeated and they start running back. If a soldier in the defending army shoots at the running soldiers, he may be engaging in bad karmas. This is because he’s justified in killing them as long as they pose direct threat to his land. Since the threat is removed, he may now be shooting at them for personal satisfaction or in order to avenge some fellow soldiers who may have been killed by the attacking army. Since the task has become personal and the motive is selfish; such karma becomes a bad one.
Considering another variation; suppose a fellow solider is seriously wounded and he’s about to be captured by enemy soldiers. The soldiers of defending army may have set some codes for such situations and the soldier in question may find that the fellow solider is requesting him to kill the latter. The wounded soldier may realize that if he’s captured, the enemy will make his life hell and they may also be able to get some secrets out of him. Hence he may request this soldier to kill him before he’s captured. Seeing no option to save this fellow solider and seeing that a capture is inevitable now; he may shoot the fellow soldier.
In this case, the karma is good or neutral and not bad though it may look like a bad one. The key to decide the nature of a karma lies with intention. The intention of this soldier is to honour the request of a wounded companion who’s begging the former to kill him, in order to be saved from torture and to avoid passing any sensitive information to the enemy. Since the soldier in question has nothing to gain from this situation and he’s doing it for the wounded soldier; this karma is good or neutral. Here again; if such soldier has desires for fruits attached to it, like he may enjoy when other soldiers praise him for this act, the karma is good and not neutral. If he doesn’t have any desire and he’s not affected by the fruits of this karma; the karma is neutral.
Hence intention is the key to decide the nature of a karma. Accordingly, the intention and not the expression should be considered when trying to decide whether a karma is good, bad or neutral. This topic is vast and it can’t be contained even in dozens of books. Hence we’ll move forward, now that we have achieved basic clarity on the topic.
Good karmas add positive energy to the aura whereas bad karmas add negative energy to the aura. Through aura, such energy goes to the subconscious. Hence the net energy equation of the subconscious as well as the aura changes. Looking at neutral karmas; they add positive energy of different kind. This energy is spiritual and it doesn’t attract materialistic benefits like an average type of good energy. Instead, it helps you get rid of desires. It means such energy helps you achieve liberation since liberation is the state of having no conscious desires.
Let’s look at some basic examples of good and bad karmas; though their definitions may change in some cases, based on your intentions. When you help a poor man or offer service to a physically disabled person or an old person, you engage in good karmas. Likewise, when you treat an injured dog or a cat; or plant more trees so that the earth may become a better and cleaner place to live, you engage in good karmas. Such karmas add positive energy to your aura/subconscious.
On the other hand, when you rob another person or injure him for selfish motives; you engage in bad karmas. Likewise, when you rape someone, kill animals for selfish motives like for fun or you engage in acts of violence without having just reasons to do so; you engage in bad karmas. Such karmas add negative energy to your aura/subconscious.
Likewise, you can engage in good, bad or neutral karmas through speech and thoughts also. As a basic rule, karmas generated through actions are the strongest type of positive or negative karmas followed by those generated through speech, followed by those generated through thoughts or wishes. This rule holds well in most cases, though the order may be rearranged in some cases; depending on specific situations.
For instance, you may discourage, demotivate or curse someone so much that they may commit suicide. Though all you’ve done is engage in bad karmas through speech; this one is higher in quantum than many karmas falling in the physical action category. Likewise, you may encourage, soothe or heal someone so much through your speech or prayers that such karma may be higher in quantum than many karmas falling in the physical help category. Hence there is the basic rule and there are exceptions.
Though many of your thoughts and mind patterns involve you only; there are some specific types of activities of your mind which may be classified as good or bad karmas. For example, when you pray for the benefit of other people or species; and their benefits include your benefits also; such karmas may be good but not neutral since you wish to gain something in return. It is like your father is in hospital fighting death and you pray for him to recover. If such prayer is motivated by conscious or subconscious desires of your own profits or losses through his survival or death; such prayer may be good but not neutral. However, if you pray for him merely for his sake and no thought or feeling of your own profit or loss is there; such prayer is a neutral karma.
Likewise, if you pray for strangers or for some causes which don’t bring any direct benefits or losses to you; it is a neutral karma. However, if desires for fruits are involved, such prayers may be good but not neutral. Suppose you’re praying for an unknown immigrant whose case is under consideration for legal status in a country where you too are an immigrant without legal status. Since you know consciously or subconsciously that if he wins his case, it may help your case also; this prayer is not neutral.
Looking at the other side of the picture, any thoughts or thought patterns through which you wish bad for other people or species without just reasons; are bad karmas. For example, wishing that a person should fall ill or that something bad should happen to him so that he may not appear for a competition or a job interview and you may win the competition or get the job due to his absence, is a negative karma. This is because you try to send negative energy to this person through your mind so that he may be harmed and you may benefit.
All other thoughts and thought patterns of this type may be classified as bad karmas. They add negative energy to your aura and more negative energy means more troubles in future. On the other hand, good and neutral karmas add positive energies of their own brands to your aura/subconscious.
Hence think positively, speak positively and engage in positive karmas. Doing so will add more and more positive energy to your aura/subconscious. Hence, if you spread more and more positivity around you, such positivity will find you and good things may start happening to you. On the other hand, if you spread more and more negativity around you through negative karmas; such negativity will find you and bad things may start happening to you. When they say, “Man is the maker of his own destiny”, it is true. Whatever good and/or evil you create, it comes back to you. Hence choose your karmas wisely.
Let’s see how good or bad karmas add positive or negative energy to the aura and change the net energy equation. Suppose there is a very old person who needs help to carry a bag back home from a place. You see the situation and you decide to help him out. The man accepts it and this is where the good karma and addition of positive energy to your aura start taking place.
As you start helping this person, he may start thinking or feeling positive about you. Though he may actually thank or bless you just one or two times, his mind may continuously keep thanking and blessing you. It means that his mind may initiate a process through which positive energy may be transferred from his aura to your aura. As a result, your aura may become comparatively more positive than it was, before helping this person or before receiving packets of positive energy from him.
Likewise, when you hurt someone, he may transfer negative energy through his aura to your aura. Such positive or negative energy is the reciprocation of good or bad karma done by you. In other words, this energy is reciprocation of good or bad energy sent by you to a person. Forces of nature make sure that this reciprocal positive or negative energy reaches you and it is added to your aura; whether your aura, conscious mind and even your subconscious mind wants to receive it or not.
This practice is supported by forces of nature in order to maintain balance of energy. Otherwise, the balance of energy in the universe may be disturbed, which may result in eventual collapse of the entire universe. For example, if a person keeps engaging in bad karmas, he keeps sending negative energy to others. When counteracting packets of negative energy from the other side reach him, he may always choose not to accept them, if he has a choice whether to accept them or not. Thus, he may keep harming others without any addition of negative energy to his aura. It means that he may keep hurting others and in return, he may not have to suffer.
If such things keep happening, more and more people may start engaging in negative karmas; and they may reject the resultant negative energies. Soon, only evil may prevail in the world as people may not be afraid of doing anything bad as they don’t have to suffer the consequences. Accordingly the balance of universe may be disturbed and the theory of karma may fail completely.
Hence forces of nature ensure that if you do good or bad to someone, which means if you send positive or negative energy to someone, the reciprocating positive or negative energy is received by your aura and added to it, whether you want it or not.
Getting back to the example; as the old man you help sends packets of positive energy to you, these packets are received by your aura. Accordingly, this quantity of positive energy is added to your aura, making your aura more positive than before. As a result, you have comparatively better chances of achieving various types of good things in life. At the same time, you have comparatively fewer chances of falling victim to sufferings, losses and failures on various fronts of life, since your aura has become more positive. Accordingly, it may start repelling negative events and negative people with more strength. Though this small act of help may only result in small increase in net positivity of your aura, you are gaining positive energy and it is perfectly fine as long as you are gaining it, for this is what you need.
Let’s see how energy is transferred by species other than human beings. The energy transfer works in a similar manner more or less. Animals and other species don’t transfer positive or negative energy through their voices in all cases. However, their minds are capable of sending you positive or negative energy in response to your actions. Accordingly, your aura shifts towards positivity or negativity, depending on whether it has received positive or negative energy.
You may have noticed that when you help or hurt animals through your karmas, they make different types of sounds which come out in responses to your positive or negative actions. These sounds carry some amounts of positive or negative energies which are added to your aura. For example, when you feed a hungry dog, caress it or treat a wound on its body, you may notice that it releases a thankful type of sound. This sound carries packets of positive energy which target your aura, thereby making your aura more positive.
On the other hand, when you beat a dog with a stick or you inflict a wound on its body; you may find that the sound coming out of its mouth is different. This changed sound is the carrier of packets of negative energy which are added to your aura. With the addition of these packets of energy, your aura becomes comparatively more negative. This reduces the chances of good things happening to you and it increases the chances of you falling victim to sufferings or problems.
Such additions of positive or negative energies may be only as strong as your good or bad karmas done to this dog are. For example, if you harass the dog for some time, you may get a small amount of negative energy. If you beat it for some time, you may get more negative energy in response. If you injure it badly or kill it, you may have to deal with an even bigger amount of negative energy. Though you may only receive a small amount of negative energy by harassing an animal, even a small amount of negative energy added to your aura is going to make you more vulnerable to sufferings as your aura becomes more negative. Hence you are losing and not gaining.
Let’s look at other entities like plants, rivers and other naturally occurring things. Let’s see how these entities transfer energy. Suppose you have planted and raised an apple tree. Suppose you’ve worked hard on it and it has grown into a big fruit-bearing tree. Each time you served this tree with water, added fertilizer or tended to it in other ways, the tree receives positive energy from your side. In response to such energy, it releases positive energy which gets added to your aura, making it more positive.
However, it doesn’t stop here and it goes further. Since it is a fruit-yielding tree, it starts bearing apples. These apples reach people and they eat them. Each time a person eats an apple from this tree, he is benefitted in terms of hunger, health, taste and other aspects. Accordingly, a corresponding amount of positive energy is sent by such person to the tree. This entire mechanism works on subconscious level in a way that such person may not even consciously realize that he has sent positive energy to the tree.
Hence this person may send positive energy to the aura of the tree which bore this apple. Like human beings; all animals, species and other phenomena in this universe carry unique auras. This is because aura is a collection of energies and each entity in the universe is made up of energies. Hence each one of these entities carries an aura.
As the positive energy of this person gets added to the aura of the tree, a similar response may be generated by the tree. It feels thankful to the person (you) who planted it and served it continuously. Through gratitude, positive energy is transferred from the tree to you. Accordingly, this energy is added to your aura. As people eat more and more apples from this tree, more and more positive energy flows to you. Hence you keep gaining positive energy.
It should be noted that a part of the positive energy sent to this tree by people eating the apples may be transferred through this tree to you, if you’re letting people enjoy the fruits of this tree for free. However, if you own this apple tree, you sell its fruits and get money in return, you have already been rewarded. In this case, the positive energy from people eating apples may be added to the tree alone.
This is because you have already received your share of positive energy or rewards in form of money that was paid for apples. Hence you may not deserve more positive energy, as one can only get a specific amount of positive or negative energy in return for good or bad karmas that he does. If you claim instant rewards for something good you do, there may be little or no positive energy added to your aura. This is because you have already been paid for your good karmas in form of money or other good things.
Looking at some other facts, the person planting and serving a tree may be rewarded with positive energy or money or something else, only if he had charged nothing for planting such tree and for taking care of the tree. Suppose someone has a paid job of growing and managing a number of apple trees. He may not receive much positive energy when the fruits of these trees are eaten by people, as he already received money in return for his services. This means that his good karmas were already rewarded. Therefore, he may not deserve more positive energy or rewards for these karmas.
When you do bad things to others, they are hurt and accordingly, negative energies are released through their auras. These energies target you. At times, you may instantly get punished for such bad karmas whereas at times you may be able to skip the punishments. In such cases, negative energies are added to your aura, which may ensure that you don’t skip such punishments forever. These energies may bring punishments to you, later on.
Suppose you engage in a fight with a comparatively weak person, when you don’t have any just reason to do so. The other person may not be able to defend himself and/or cause you as much harm as you may cause him. Accordingly, a corresponding amount of negative energy may be released by him and it may get added to your aura. This energy may make your aura more negative, making sure that you are punished for this bad karma at a later time.
Looking at the same example from a different angle, suppose you get into a fight with a person equal in strength or a person stronger than you. Here again, there is no just reason for this fight and you may simply want to take your frustration out or prove a point. The other guy is fully capable of causing equal or more damage to you. Hence you may receive more physical damage than him. This is instant punishment for your bad karma. Since you have received due punishment on instant basis, the equation is settled and no negative energy may be added to your aura.
Hence if you do a good deed and get rewarded for it duly, you may not get positive energy added to your aura to be rewarded later. Similarly, if you do a bad karma and get punished for it duly, you may not get any negative energy added to your aura to be punished later. However, if you do a good deed and don’t get rewarded instantly, or you only get rewarded partly, you may get due positive energy added to your aura. Such energy may bring pending rewards to you at a later time. Similarly, if you do a bad deed and you don’t get punished for it instantly, or you get partial punishment for it, you may get due amount of negative energy added to your aura. This energy may bring the pending punishment to you at a later time.
It means anyone who is being paid for a job but he’s not doing it properly, may be engaging in bad karmas. This is because he is given rewards in form of money; and he may not deserve them fully or partly; since he’s not keeping his end of the bargain. Since he’s being rewarded with more than he deserves, a negative balance becomes due. This adds negative energy to his aura.
Therefore, when you commit to deliver a certain amount of work for a certain reward, complete it or do your duty properly as otherwise, you may gather negative energy. Such energy may cause instant problems, which means that you may get fired from the job or your contract may be terminated. In case none of these things happen, negative energy may be added to your aura, as you have somehow managed to get the rewards and haven’t done what you committed to do in return for such rewards.
On the other hand, if you are paid for a job and you are putting in equal amount of work or more amount of work than what you committed, you are justifying the rewards or you’re doing more than that. If you’re doing more; corresponding amount of positive energy may get added to your aura. This energy may bring you good results later on.
Looking at another important aspect of this theory; the amount of positive or negative energy added to your aura by various entities is dependent on their value in the system. Among all living beings like plants, animals and human beings; good or bad karmas done to plants or trees add the least amount of positive or negative energies to your aura. Good or bad karmas done to animals add comparatively stronger positive or negative energies to your aura. The strongest type of positive or negative energies are added to your aura when you do good or bad to human beings.
As a rule, more conscience a species may grow, more valuable it is. Trees can only work in some specific ways and even if they wish, they can’t work in other ways. For example, a tree may not choose to provide shade to some people and not provide the same to some other people. Animals are also guided more by instincts and less by their conscious decisions. For example, a lion may feel helpless if he chooses to eat grass. Hence he may have no choice but to kill.
Humans are blessed with conscious choices almost in all situations. Hence a human can rise as high as God and he may drop as low as the devil. It means the potential to grow is maximum in humans, followed by animals and then followed by trees. Hence humans are valued the most in this system. Taking an example, thousands of trees can’t produce a single human being. However, one human being can plant thousands of trees.
Likewise, hundreds of animals can’t cater to a human in the way; a single human can cater to them. For instance, if a human falls ill or gets wounded, there is nothing much that animals may do. On the other hand, a single human being can treat the wounds of many animals. Hence humans are valued the most and good or bad done to them results in the highest amounts of reciprocal positive or negative energies.
This is how the concept of transfer of positive or negative energy in response to positive or negative karmas works. Though there may be many other aspects of this concept as this is a vast subject; we’ve covered the basics.
Himanshu Shangari