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One sentence. That’s all it took to set me back a few hundred steps in my spiritual journey. And to build a dozen or more karmic debts that I’m going to have to pay up at some point.
I keep falling down the rabbit hole — by allowing people to play me, letting my emotions to get the better of me, and trying to use logic where none exists.
But these are all excuses.
It was my damn ego once again. I allowed “I” to take control and forgot my true SELF (my atma). NO ONE else is to be blamed.
The Jainism principle of Aparigraha is going to be my focus for the near future. It means non-attachment.
Although it includes non-materialism — having no more than what is necessary and limiting attachments to our worldly possessions, sharing wealth, giving to others, and not hoarding things (like toilet paper, lol), etc., that is not my focus.
For me, those external attachments are not my problem. I do love the finer things in life, but I’m not attached to them. I enjoy what I have. But the things that I don’t have or can’t afford, I don’t pine for them or allow them to make me unhappy.
But then there are the internal attachments — our passions.
They are the main cause of karma bandh (bondage). And passions like anger, pride, deceit, and greed are the worst. They are like glue making karma stick to our soul for long and multiple lifetimes.
