The Fifth Obstacle—Unbridled Cravings and Desires

There is nothing wrong with having desires. We are hardwired to seek pleasure; without this, we could not survive. We all desire to live a better and healthier life. But when desires become unbridled and obsessive and lead to cravings that distract us from our karmic work, they become obstacles to a successful life, which means having health, happiness, and peace in your body, mind, and soul. When we have cravings and desires, they bind us and drive us to satisfy them. Once satisfied, we become somewhat peace¬ful until the next craving or desire arises. Cravings keep us in the perpetual cycle of discontentment. Karma teaches us to work on disciplining the subconscious mind so we might draw the thoughts found in the conscious mind into it. Here, we can produce genuine contentment and peace. How? Quiet the mind and observe. The whole point of karma is learning to be content and at peace with what comes into your life and what goes out while observing and learning life’s lessons. When you have genuine happiness and are not attached to anything, you control cravings and desires, allowing you to control your life. Nothing in the world binds you. Yoga reminds us that if we can control the Chitta (fluctuations) in our minds, we can control everything. END: Be content with who you are, body, mind, and soul. Contentment is an inner peace independent of any external force. It means to be independently happy and satisfied no matter what enters or exits your life. When content, you are at peace with yourself and the world. Removing cravings and finding satisfaction is easy when at peace with yourself and the world. EGO: Flip your hands up and extend your index finger, symbolizing your ego. The ego wants acceptance and importance. It sees those with powerful titles and expensive cars and houses as more important than it is, so it craves these things. It believes that these things symbolize acceptance, happiness, and success. And although power and wealth can make it appear that one’s life is more important and easier, in the end, we take none of this with us. Cravings and desires can take on an addictive nature. Desires scatter the life force and keep us in the perpetual cycle of seeking pleasure but ultimately finding pain. Pull your index finger in and place your thumb on top. Take a breath and surrender to your soul. You are connected with your soul when you are truly content and happy. Here, it matters not what comes into your life or what leaves your life. The soul finds joy and appreciation in experiencing life as it is in each moment. Namaste~ may you walk the path of life with health, happiness and peace, Doctor Lynn For books, classes, consultation, and more http://www.doctorlynn.com

The Four Obstacle obstructing your karma— REVIEW

Ill health, self-doubt, boredom and apathy, and scattered or careless behavior are the first four characteristics that keep us trapped in the perpetual cycle of karma. Overcoming these requires awareness, calmness, and shifting our mindset toward contentment and peace. It is difficult to find contentment when life hands you illness, restlessness, self-doubt, and distraction. However, karma reminds us that these challenges arise so we can work through them and experience true peace. If we never faced them, we would never learn how to accept life's struggles and joys. No one gets through life without encountering these four obstacles and many others. How we work through them is how we work through our karma. Today, let's focus on awareness, contentment, and peace. Ego and the Path to Peace EGO: Flip your palms up and extend your index finger—representing the ego. The ego often asks, “Why is this happening to me?” It forgets that obstacles are simply part of life’s experience. The ego can easily slip into believing it is the center of the universe when, in reality, it is just a tiny part of the vast, interconnected whole. Now, pull your index finger in and place your thumb on top. Take a deep breath and surrender to the soul. The soul understands that we are here to experience all of life—the sadness and joy. The soul observes, experiences, and then chooses the best path toward peace and contentment. The ego gets in the way and gets us stuck in the obstacles. So, we are reminded to be aware, be still, observe, and then choose the path that leads to peace and contentment. That is how we work our karma. Namaste~ may you walk the path of life with health, happiness, and peace. Doctor Lynn For books, classes, consultations, and more, http://www.doctorlynn.com

The Fourth Obstacle—Distractions and Carelessness

When we are distracted, we are often careless, leading to mistakes, injuries, and poor judgment. Success in life requires focused effort and a careful approach. Without focus, the mind becomes scattered, and a scattered mind is precisely what karma yoga teaches us needs to be tamed. If you are trying to master something, you must give it your focused attention; otherwise, nothing gets completed. We must also be careful with our energy; otherwise, we waste time and effort, and nothing gets accomplished. Wasting time and effort can harm the health of the body, mind, and soul. Yoga reminds us to be present, aware, and careful about what we think, say, and do. This requires conscious awareness, which is what it means to work your karma. If you know the things that distract you and scatter your energy, you will be more careful about how you use your energy. Use it for the right purpose, at the right time, with the right amount of focus, and you will succeed. Emotions, feelings, desires, and cravings scatter the life force, and it isn't easy to find peace and tranquility when it is scattered. Tranquility, of course, takes work, which is what it means to work your karma. END: Life will always present us with obstacles to overcome. Awareness of these obstacles and the valuable lessons they teach us is working your karma. It is easy in today's world to get distracted by all that is happening around you. That is why karma reminds us to still the mind and focus on the important things: your health, joy, enthusiasm, self-knowledge, and self-worth. Master these and be like the warrior; focus on your energy and then carefully use it at the right time, with the right amount of force, for the right purpose, and you will succeed. EGO: Flip your palms up and extend the index finger—your ego. The ego is always looking here and there in the outside world for its worth, validation, and enthusiasm. The ego is constantly distracted in its quest to survive and thrive. It forgets that we need focus and caution to survive in the world. Distractions and carelessness can lead to stress, ill health, lack of enthusiasm, and self-doubt. Pull your index finger in and place your thumb on top. This is the symbol of the soul. Take a breath and surrender to the calmness of your soul. The soul reminds us to stop and think before speaking and acting. When the mind is focused, we can direct our energy to create a more carefully directed life for ourselves and the world. To do this, remove distractions. Stay focused on what is important and be careful where and how you direct your energy. In this, you will work your karma and prosper. Namaste~ may you walk the path of life with health, happiness, and peace. Doctor Lynn For books, classes, consultation and more http://www.doctorlynn.com

The third obstacle is doubting your self-worth.

Self-doubt is one of the most significant obstacles to living an authentic, beautiful, and happy life. When we doubt our capacity to love, say the right thing, do good and be authentic, we fear not being good enough. This binds us to life's three basic fears: rejection, unloved, and dying. Karma teaches us to observe life, and part of observing is examining how you think of yourself. We all have moments when we doubt ourselves. That usually happens when we look externally for validation rather than looking within. We let social media, family, coworkers, and those around us define what we wear, the behaviors we should adopt, and the beliefs we should uphold. That's why karma keeps reminding us that our work here is not about the material world but about working on ourselves. According to karma, you chose this body and this life to discover the beautiful, unique individual inside you, even amid life's chaos and moments of self-doubt. END: To overcome self-doubt takes self-love, which takes work— karma! The next time you feel inadequate, take a few minutes to quiet the world around you and breathe. Loving yourself is the key to loving others and being your best. Self-doubt can ruin so many of the beautiful things in life. It causes us to miss out on new work opportunities, give back to others, and live freely. Taking a few small steps today to increase your self-love will banish doubt and help you grow in confidence. EGO: Flip your palms up and extend your index finger—the symbol of your ego. Remember, your ego wants to protect you from getting hurt. Protection can be a good thing when faced with danger, but the deeper fears of not being accepted, of not being loved, and the fear of dying come from a place of self-doubt. The ego forgets that the universe at its purest is a living, accepting, and loving place. Comparing yourself to others or questioning your abilities feeds into the ego's fear. Pull your index finger in and place your thumb on top. Take a breath and surrender to your soul. The soul knows that we are all unique and on our journey, while at the same time interconnected with everything and everyone in the world, for the sole purpose of working our karma, and part of working your karma is to overcome the obstacle of self-doubt. When it arises, and it will just remember you are alive, so live fully, love yourself, and honor your self-worth. Once you overcome the obstacles of ill health, boredom, and self-doubt, you are on the road to health, happiness, and peace, and that is what it means to work your karma and live a successful life. Namaste~ may you walk the path of life with health, happiness, and peace. Doctor Lynn For Consultations, books, classes, and more http://www.doctorlynn.com

The Second Obstacle—Boredom and Apathy

The second obstacle is what the Buddhists and Yogis call "sunyata," meaning empty and void. This also means to have apathy and boredom. Boredom and apathy can appear in many ways, but these are a few common experiences: lack of interest in activities, inability to stay interested in anything for more than brief periods, inability to rest and relax, no feeling of excitement, and difficulty staying motivated. When we experience any or all of these, we feel unfulfilled and unable to connect to our surroundings. Boredom can appear in two ways: lethargic (feeling tired) or agitated (feeling irritated). Neither of these leads to happiness, fulfillment, or success. Boredom is an emotion or signal that lets you know you are doing something that doesn’t satisfy you. Boredom could tell you two things: that you are not fully present and engaged in your current task or that your task is not meaningful. Quite prevalent in our modern world is the constant stimulation and searching for the next big thing and new experiences. These often get replaced with dull ambivalence. We get tired of pursuing our goals as they fall into overstimulation or become routine. In yoga, "tamas" is mind energy that arises from ignorance and prevents a person from finding their soulful path. Tamasic qualities are laziness, anger, attachment, depression, dependency, self-doubt, guilt, boredom, irritation, addiction, apathy, confusion, grief, and ignorance. When we replace them with enthusiasm and joy, we find satisfaction, happiness, and success. This is why yoga makes it the first order of business to tame the mind of its "chitta" (fluctuations) and find peace; to tame the mind, one must be enthusiastic, focused, aware, and kind. END: The first two obstacles The first two obstacles to overcome to find soulful happiness and success are ill health and boredom. Neither of these will give you the vitality and enthusiasm for life. We are here to work our karma; part of that work is striving to overcome life's obstacles. It is impossible to work your karma if you are ill and apathetic about life. But if you are healthy, energetic, and enthusiastic about your life, you will always find that success and happiness are with you. Appreciate life, and you will live a satisfying and enriched life. That is why we are here: to find happiness and joy. EGO: Flip your palms up and extend out your index finger—the symbol of the ego. The ego wants satisfaction, but it is never satisfied. It always wants more. When you give the ego what it wants, it’s only satisfied for a fraction of the time before it starts to want more again. This causes us to get bored and apathetic. Pull your index finger in and place your thumb on top—the symbol of your soul. Take a breath and surrender to your soul. There is no right or wrong way to control your ego. Find what works for you. When you find what works, the key is consistency. When conflicts arise, take a moment to get quiet and listen to your inner voice. Be aware of what you are trying to achieve in your life. If it's joy, act accordingly. To overcome the obstacles of life, be healthy, and be enthusiastic Namaste~ may you walk the path of life with health, happiness, and peace Doctor Lynn For books, classes, consultations, and more http://www.doctorlynn.com

NINE OBSTACLES THAT IMPEDE OUR KARMIC WORK

Karma yoga teaches us that if we want to prosper, we must overcome the nine obstacles that impede our progress. Each obstacle must be examined and then counterbalanced or worked through by developing the nine characteristics or qualities that allow us to overcome it. Pay attention to the moment of ego awareness at the end of each obstacle. First, we need to identify the nine obstacles. The First Obstacle—Ill Health You probably didn’t get up this morning and think about how grateful you are for good health and the ability to navigate your life easily. That’s because we take good health for granted until we lose it. Yoga teaches us that the first thing we should do daily is maintain good health; everything else is meaningless without it. Pay attention to the three pillars of health daily: diet, exercise, and sleep. These are the foundations for keeping the body and the mind healthy. Attitude and gratitude for the wonderful things the body can do should be our focus so that we stay healthy and fit. Remember, the soul is here to do its earthly work and needs a healthy body and mind to do the job. END: Consciously do what you can to prevent illness rather than take your health for granted. Karma yoga is about being consciously aware of everything you think, say, and do and act in a way that creates the greatest good. Nothing in this world could be better than a healthy body and mind assisting the soul in completing its Earthly mission: being aware of and then overcoming life's obstacles from a peaceful, healthy perspective. EGO: flip your hands up and rest them on your knees. Extend out the index finger—the symbol of the ego. The ego fights for your survival. It strives to maintain its strength but often confuses strength for power. In its power struggle to excel it often takes on stress and anxiety, leading to ill health. The ego fights to maintain its importance. Do not seek to extinguish the ego. It is for your self-preservation and self-identity. Seek to temper it by drawing your index finger in and placing your thumb on top, which symbolizes your soul. Take a breath and surrender to your soul. Remember that from the soul’s perspective, we are here on Earth to overcome life's obstacles. To overcome life’s obstacles, practice karma and focus on the three pillars of health: diet, exercise, and sleep. Practicing karma yoga, you will make great progress in your life. You will learn how to overcome life's many challenges and obstacles through continual practice. Overcome ill health by making healthy choices. Namaste~ may you walk the path of life with health, happiness, and peace Doctor Lynn For consultations, books, classes, and more http://www.doctorlynn.com

KARMA – REVIEW 2024 – Read past blogs KARMA YOGA – 2025 – The Secret Pathway to LIBERATION

The Four Hands of Lakshmi Reincarnation: why are we here? D-GAP the four great passions Blocks that prevent us from working our karma The troublesome four – watch out for these END: Karma does not mean good or bad—it simply means cause and effect, so pay attention to what you think, say, and do because what you project into the world will eventually return to you. What goes around comes around, so be honest, generous, kind, and humble. EGO: Flip up your palms and extend out the index finger – the symbol of the ego. The ego acts out of harmful intentions like revenge, resentment, greed, or jealousy. Be careful because the ego can trap you into perpetuating negative karma and suffering. The ego is connected to the body, and according to the laws of karma, each body is a result of past karma. The body continues its connection to the ego as long as there is karma for you to work through. Pull your index finger in and place your thumb on top. Take a breath and surrender to your soul. “Good” karma is all about acting selflessly without expectations. This can only be done when you tap into your soul, for at the soul level, we are all one in this vast universe of energy, and what we do to one, we do to all, so be honest, generous, kind, and humble because you are what you think, say and do. HAPPY NEW YEAR – follow along in 2025 as we work deeper into the laws of Karma. Namaste~ may you walk the path of life with health, happiness, and peace. Doctor Lynn For consultations, classes, books, and more http://www.doctorlynn.com