I spent most of my 20’s backpacking across Buddhist countries like Cambodia, Laos, and Thailand. Eventually, I found myself living on a Hindu island where six Ley Lines cross.
Being immersed in the diverse Southeast Asian culture taught me a lot about karma, with many generous locals sharing their wisdom during the never-ending adventure.
Buddhism and Hinduism are two examples of religions that believe in the “wheel of karma”. This philosophical and spiritual concept is sourced from a large pool of Eastern religions.
The concept of the “wheel of karma” has gradually trickled into other cultures, with followers of the New Age movement being particularly fond of this theory.
Let’s unravel the mysteries enshrouding this cycle of karma and how you can clear your karma before this journey (in this body, at least) comes to an end.
How the Karmic Spring Coil Affects Getting off the Wheel of Karma
Yogic philosophy teaches that there are three elements, or bodies, that make up a human: the physical, the subtle (astral) and the causal (karmic). Karmic energy can manifest in the physical body, so physical misalignment may be closely connected to our karma.
Sadhguru puts the concept of karma into perspective. He says that approximately 40-48 days after conception, “karmic fiber” starts compressing like a “spring coil”. Gradually, the constricted karmic fiber untightens, depending on the way that person leads their life.
That “coil” of karmic energy’s compression and tension level is determined by specific hereditary information. How much karmic energy is squeezed into the body depends on numerous factors, including:
- Past Lives – E.g., previous traumatic events or lessons that a person failed to learn in their past life.
- Genetic Nature – Generational trauma passes down from the parents, with researchers proving that it may cause epigenetic changes. (1)
- Conception Type – Even the way in which a child is conceived, such as naturally or through IVF or surrogacy, can influence karmic energy.
Sadhguru notes that this concept is deeply ingrained within the Indian branch of Hinduism. Families in India are renowned for inviting yogis into the house to assess the child’s karmic fiber. The karmic “coil spring” is supposed to loosen and unwind throughout the life journey, but not if your life is manic!
Leading a chaotic life can add negative karmic energy, whereas the goal is to substitute it with positive karmic energy. Practicing stillness is the first step to unwinding those “coils”, which can even determine a person’s lifespan, according to Sadhguru.
Why Would You Want to Reduce Karma?
The “wheel of karma” is a term used to describe the cycle of birth, death, and rebirth (samsara), where actions (karma) sway future scenarios, potentially creating cycles of attachment or suffering. There’s no shortcut to ridding yourself of karma – you’ve got to do the work!
Everybody wants to get off the “wheel of karma”, but how?
By making conscious choices that align with your soul’s true purpose.
The more karmic energy you carry, the more likely you’ll have to return to “Earth school” to clear that karma and learn your lessons.
Based on the belief that karma shapes this life and the next, it makes sense why we want to loosen and dissolve that karmic spring.
Your karma is dissolving and being produced simultaneously, proving the importance of making wise choices in this life, regardless of what happened in your past life.
“You are producing fifty times to 100 times more karma than you can work out. It is just like calories. You are burning 600 calories but eating 6000 calories – it has to pile up somewhere.”- Sadhguru
If the karmic fiber is suffused with lots of tension, lifespan will inevitably reduce, says Sadhguru… unless that individual crosses paths with a spiritual healer and/or self heals and metamorphoses his mind, body, and soul to reduce karma and shed energy blockages.
12 Genuine Ways to Reduce Your Karma
Spirituality is not all peaceful. Enlightenment maybe, yes, but spirituality? Far from it. There’s a lot of inner and outer turbulence occurring during each stage of spiritual development, including dealing with karmic debt at a much faster rate than usual.
It’s not that spiritual people deal with Karma faster, but that they are probably more aware of it. Our life choices influence the weight of karmic energy that’s keeping us bound to the 3D world. Moving through life with pure thoughts and intentions can help us dissolve karma.
Here are some practical ways to clear and avoid adding to your existing karma:
1. Be Kind & Compassionate
The kinder and more compassionate you are to others, the easier it is to foster positive energy and allow your karma to clear without piling up more negative karma. Even if someone treats you the opposite, be kind, acknowledge that they need to do the inner work, and most importantly, forgive them. Resentment and grudges create negative karma, prolonging the cycle of pain, so always forgive (even if you can’t forget).
2. Discover Your Purpose on Planet Earth
Live in the state of Dharma, as Deepak Chopra says. If you are dissatisfied with your life and are constantly dreaming of where you want to be, but not doing anything to change it, you’re hurting your karma. It means you’re struggling, but “dharma counters karma”, so stop surviving and start thriving. Take a leap of faith.
3. Engage in Selfless Service (Seva)
In various spiritual and philosophical traditions, such as Buddhism and Hinduism, generous acts are widely believed to create good karma, so give without expectation. Do it because you want someone else to feel good, not just because you want to feel good. Focus on acts of service with selfless intentions, such as volunteering, giving, or supporting others.
4. Lead an Honest Life with Integrity
Dishonesty returns like a karmic boomerang, so it goes without saying that we should always treat others how we want to be treated. Avoid committing (and associating with low-vibrational people who commit) lies, deceit, betrayal, and manipulation. If being honest means intentionally hurting someone’s feelings, you’ll be adding to your karmic debt, not clearing it.
5. Practice Awareness & Mindfulness
Karma is a principle of cause and effect, so it’s not just your actions that create negative or positive karma. Your thoughts also affect your karmic imprint, so practice mindfulness with daily meditation (even just five minutes per day) to shift your mindset and cultivate awareness over your thought patterns.
6. Practice Non-Attachment (Detachment)
Transcending karma through non-attachment involves releasing mental and emotional attachment to our desires. Expectations can cause suffering, which creates negative karma and stunts the process of shedding old karma. The “law of detachment” allows Divine knowledge to flow through us by simply letting go of the outcome, and focusing on the action instead. Live in the present moment and don’t dwell on what’s to come, just embrace the journey.
7. Replace Negative Emotions & Thoughts
Swap feelings and thoughts of hatred, jealousy, or fear with gratitude, love, and optimism. Negative thoughts can cause personal suffering and lower your spiritual vibration by cosmic proportions, not to mention affect others around you. Energy is everything, so even if you’re just thinking about something, the people around you will feel it – that’s not good for your karma.
8. Pray or Explore Spirituality
Engaging in regular spiritual practices means you’ll be karmically connected to the Divine White light from which we derive. There’s nothing purer than that, making this one of the most effective methods of clearing karma. Learning from spiritual books, practicing daily prayer or chanting, and leading a fulfilling life can inspire greater wisdom and knowledge that everything is connected. This wisdom produces good karma, overriding bad karma.
9. Repent For Your Sins & Mistakes
Sinners can become saints, so don’t live in regret. If you’ve made a mistake, own up to it. Acknowledge your mistakes, repent for your sins, and make an effort to clear past negative karma by doing good. You have to really want to do good and feel remorse for your past actions to attract good karma. The Universe knows if you’re authentic or not. Charitable donations, fasting, or simply making amends with someone you’ve potentially hurt can work wonders karmically.
10. Be Grateful for the Little Things
Gratitude creates the perfect karmic conditions for abundance, happiness, and peace. Acknowledge every blessing (even those blessings in disguise) to shift your spiritual vibration. Vibration plays an important role in karma because the higher you are vibing, the more positivity flows into your life! Plus, when you’re spreading your light to others, you’re creating plenty of good karma.
11. Practice Patience & Acceptance
Impatience can cause us to overthink, feel frustrated, and generally feel negative emotions, which results in the accumulation of negative karma. The same applies for resistance, so go with the flow and trust in Divine timing. Everything is happening as it should and you don’t have to force anything. By acknowledging the fact that everything happens for a reason, you can reduce karmic burdens and float through life, instead of feeling like you’re sinking!
12. Seek Guidance from a Spiritual Teacher
Teachers and mentors in the spiritual industry can offer immense support on the journey of self-improvement. You could attend one-on-one sessions with a spiritual teacher who can enlighten you on lifestyle habits to reduce karmic imprints and/or you could join a spiritual community. Both options will help to reinforce positive attitudes and habits which, consequently, reduces karma.
Meditations and Mantras Can Also Clear Bad Karma
Aside from making conscious choices to reduce your karmic debt, meditation can help us maintain our energetic field (AKA “aura”). Regular meditation can also strengthen our connection with the Divine and allow us to connect with our “Higher Self” – the???? – so that we can make choices that align with our soul’s calling.
Combined with energy-clearing mantras, meditation can influence our energy field and help promote a consciousness shift, leading to greater awareness of one’s actions, while lifting our spiritual vibration to attract positive events.
One such mantra that proves popular in Tiibetan Buddhism is the Vajrasattva mantra – “OM BENZA SATTVA HUNG” – which is often used to purify negative karma. Another mantra – “OM MAHADEVA PARMATMA KARMATMA SHANTI” – is used to attract balance and peace.
I highly recommend reading “A Yogi’s Guide To Crafting Your Destiny” by Sadhguru to understand karma from his well-explained understanding. You can buy the New York Times bestseller by clicking here. Deepak Chopra also published a fascinating article on Medium about karma, which you can read here!