This hour long presentation delivered by spiritual teacher Thich Nhat Hanh is a wonderful introduction into spiritual community also known as “Sangha”. Thich Nhat Hanh goes on to explain the importance of spiritual support from your community of brothers and sisters. It’s important that on the “spiritual path” we recognize the dynamics of our relationships to those around us.

Other topics that are touched on are being present and cultivating the ability to center yourself and be mindful in the midst of chaos. One contributing factor to cultivating mindfulness and awareness is through the support of your sangha or community.

Thich Nhat Hanh always delivers an enlightening message graced by many years of life experience and wisdom. Please have a listen to another great zencast. If you would like to leave a comment with regard to your sangha or this lecture please do so.

It seems as though we use the word karma in casual conversation like we would use the word luck or chance. I always hear the word used in casual conversation and it makes me wonder, what does karma mean for most people?

I’m guessing here but I think that most people use the word karma like they would use the words magic, lucky or fate. I’m not sure that people who use the word have actually ever thought about what it means.

I’m asking myself, what does karma mean?

When I think about the word karma all kinds of images come to mind. I’m picturing an old Indian guru wagging his finger at me warning I should take care of what I do in this life or it will come back to haunt me in the next. If I’m not good now I might be incarnated in my next life as a cow or monkey!

I also see the glamorous and trendy brand of the word “Karma”. I see it plastered on tattoo shops and new age stores that sell crystals and incense. I also see it marketed in Trader Joe’s on bags of pasta or cans of soup.

None of these things can be what karma is… right?

I don’t think any of the above has much to do with karma at all. So when I examine all that and ask myself again… what is karma? I realize I have to look past all those imprinted images, I have to go beyond my conditioning and see what’s really there.

After careful consideration it appears to me that the word karma is truly a beautiful and precious word that can imply an infinite amount of love.

Let’s take the generic definition of karma and break it down. Basically most of us think karma is tit for tat… what you do now will determine how the future will be for you later. I don’t know if any of you really believe that or not but lets forget all that and go further.

I wouldn’t say I believe in the generic definition of karma or most other definitions but I’ll tell you what I’ve come to understand it to be.

I don’t see karma as something to be feared or threatened with. I also don’t see it as some sort of cosmic game or anything fantastic like that. I do see however the opportunity to express love at every moment of our lives.

We’re not loving one another to keep score or save up points for the next life, we love one another because it’s who we truly are. We love one another because it’s natural and it feels great!

All the bad things that happen in our lives or in the world for that matter… aren’t due to bad karma, rather there’s not enough love present. If there were enough love present then there wouldn’t be any room for fear, crisis and confusion wouldn’t arise.

I have karma, karma doesn’t have me.

I say this because at every moment in my life I have the opportunity to express myself via the vehicle of love as opposed to fear. When I live my daily life I am fully aware of the dangers and opportunities that present themselves. When something bad happens unexpectedly or  I’m approached by someone with aggression or hate… how will I respond?

If I’m present at the moment life takes a turn for the worse then I can see that there is no need to fear the danger or aggression trying to rock my world. I see this as an opportunity, an opportunity to respond with love and nothing else. I don’t respond with love because I’m hoping to gain enlightenment or a higher incarnation my next life (if there is a next life). I respond with love because I want to be loved back, I want nothing but love around me and there isn’t any room for anything else in my life.

So when I think of the word karma I think of love. I see the opportunity for all of us to love one another and be loved back.

I would like to leave you with this question…

what does karma mean to you?

In the beginning of the video -K- recaps on the previous days discussion touching on the topic of thinking together. He emphasizes how important it is to put ones own history, dogmas and beliefs behind so that the group can think together.

He then asks us to examine the very nature of thought. If we look closely we can see that thought itself has been conditioned. The very nature of thought as we know it is an evolutionary process our thoughts are always trying to do something or be something.

-K-, then asks us to ask ourselves, psychologically is there a tomorrow? If we find that there isn’t a tomorrow psychologically what then is the relationship between 2 humans?

It seems that over time we as humans have accepted the idea that gradually with time things will get better. It is also apparent that measurement has become extremely important to societies around the world. This becomes notably clear when you see the individuals mentality within a society is… what one was, what one is and what one will be. This is all measured in time.

If you can see this then one must ask is there psychologically time at all or has thought invented time psychologically?

Is it possible that thought has invented time because it is trifling and lazy? Thought doesn’t want to deal with what is happening right now, thought puts a plan together to fix whatever the problem is in the future, down the road somewhere. If you examine this closely you will see that this is how we’ve been taught to think, this is a reflection of our conditioning. It goes the same for us here in America as it does in Africa, Europe or wherever else, the root of this is the conditioned mind.

-K-, then briefly looks at the history of mankind and how we’ve tried to create perfect and peaceful societies. He compares the systems that were put in place by the ancient Greeks and Hindus. Both of these systems were independent of one another and for a time succeeded but as any system or idea that is implemented into society both of them eventually failed.

Now here we are today in present society, can we together create a good society?

If we are to bring about a peaceful and good society will it come about from some set of ideas or a system or is it something that has to happen immediately with us thinking together?

If we are thinking together is time involved in bringing about this new society or is that something our minds have been conditioned to think?

Please do watch this video and ad your comments. Tell me what you like or didn’t like about it, let talk and investigate together.

Peace.

The beginning of this video starts off like most Krishnamurti videos, he asks the audience to think and investigate together. I must say however that this particular introduction is the best one I’ve seen to date. The attention that -K- demands is amazing.

In order to think together -K- points out that one must let go of all oppositions, accepting or denying. In order to think together there cannot be your thinking and my thinking, separate… it is together thinking. He goes on to explain either you understand it as a intellectual concept which then becomes your concept and the others concept drawing from all your previous experiences and the other drawing from their previous experiences and you both intellectually reach separate conclusions. That is not thinking together.

To think together there cannot be any barrier between your thinking and the others thinking… you have to do it together. If you can think in this way where there is nothing personal then you can move forward to investigate questions together. This movement is a totally different quality of insight into a problem and you can see things for how they really are.

Is it possible for you and another or for any 2 people or group of people to actually do this? Can you put aside all of your previous experience and judgments so that your mind and the others can come together?

Peace.