PART III: Practical Considerations and Polarity

Along the personal subjective continuum, karmic precipitation that we generally class into the duality of pleasure/pain, actually serves to confirm, validate, mirror, express, and often challenge (particularly in the case of "bad karma") prevailing trends and tendencies already resident within the recipient soul to whom appears. We are only being given back discretely apportioned elements of ourselves, no matter how miserable it may feel.

As internal trends and tendencies of the personal human mind are generally poorly seen, known, and accepted (if not totally ignored) by souls in 3rd density fixation, the process of karmic precipitation serves to reveal the deeper self to the conscious self. This is both the path and fruit of the universal Way of Return: the return of conscious awareness to all-awareness, self to Self, god to God, and the lesser manifest light to the One infinite light.

Obviously, the axiom that "we create our own reality" is far more difficult to recognize, apply, and use constructively in the case of painful inbound catalyst (ie, so-called "bad karma)," which may be quite horrific in its appearance. For example, why was it that earth humanity suffered over 100 million wartime deaths in the 20th century? At our level of being, such represents incalculable personal tragedy, and yet, this was but the karmic result of innumerable causal sequences, some of which are significantly inter-dimensional in their origin.

It is not that the Creator ordained such primitive bloodletting, but it was certainly not stopped from occurring through intervention from higher levels of being. And yet, it did serve multiple spiritual re-orientation goals for both individual souls and the entire human soul group family on this planet. The specific purposes -- including a needed "lightening of the astral plane," as stated by Djwhal Khul through Alice Bailey -- are well known by those who guide our evolution.

Thus, whatever comes down the pike is just our own face in various guises. This can be considered (especially in San Francisco, my hometown) the Logos in drag, and a mirror-appearing opportunity for greater freedom from our unseen inner distortions. This is hard to realize, of course, when the incoming guest is violence and bloodshed.

And yet, despite the drama, souls are just being shown on the palette of ‘external life’ their own deeper aspects, patterns, layers, potentials, and general mind/spirit qualities. In the case of what we call "good karma," karmic law operates to give us what can be seen as congratulatory support for further advance upon that soul's own chosen path. In contrast to the inherent fixity of the "reward" view, karmic activity is in fact intensely, immensely dynamic and finely ever shifting, inconceivably sensitive to all minute shifts in soul consciousness and the actions that proceed therefrom.

In the case of those upon the positive path of service to others (which is the major way of soul evolution, directly seeking love-unity through truth, balance and non-grasping), the support granted by harmonious karmic inflow serves to reduce various kinds of personal limitation. It thus increases opportunity for further evolution (including opportunity for service to others) to the soul that has proven itself capable of progressing in harmony, not needing severe restraint for re-balancing and re-orientation.

Interestingly, the real benefit given by such beneficent physical, mental and spiritual conditions is the fact that such experiences and influences demand no further attention. The deeper value of so-called "good karma" is the fact that it releases and frees up soul attention and energy for increased work on matters of greater priority than simply dealing with the latest crises of the day.

Various forms of "good karma" obviously feel like some kind of reward, and generally elicit pleasure, but in actuality, the matrix of such august conditions is simply the removal of potential obstacles. The dispensation of such conditional harmony was never meant to become a stopping point upon the ageless path of ceaseless growth. It is only humanity, which sees life through the lens of corporeal identification, that interprets karma in static terms implying some kind of "final resting place."

Clearly, when karmic law is seen strictly through the bi-focal lens of fixed reward-and-punishment, souls are more likely to pause, stop, and grow entangled in life conditions. Ironically, this involves emotional attachment to the very same outer and inner conditions that were only meant to be the basis for further non-attachment. This is quite interesting, and likely represents a successful ploy on the part of negative higher dimensional forces influencing religious notions of karma -- seeking to retard human soul progression.

In another light, these pleasing outer/material karmic manifestations (including the so-called 'inner conditions" of radiant body and finely tuned mind by birth) simply all mirror the inward grace, harmony and beauty already achieved by that soul. This is echoed by Jesus's statement: "to him who has much, much shall be given." Harmony within certainly generates harmony without.

As a glimpse of glory (some semblance of perfection in form) and completion (primarily through the function of removing additional soul obstacles), such karmic dispensation is meant as a light above the path, leading that one on to the further greater light. From the perspective of karmic administration, the single motivation is always the intention to support further soul progress.

On the other side, considering those on the negatively oriented path of service to self (the minor way or left-hand path of seeking Oneness through separation via control), the process is somewhat reversed. For them, what we would consider good fortune (ie, harmonious karmic dispensation) is actually the ripened fruit due them by previously achieved 'evil.' Regardless of path, harmonious karmic down flow results from efficient use of catalyst, granting them a platform for quickened evolution and further progress according to their own chosen orientation.

Thus, successful use of catalyst on the negative path reaps fruit of the conqueror, and may be seen as karmic "rewards" that allow even greater polarity. Those at a high level on the negative path may be born with native strength and beauty of body (respectively for men and women); this serves the purpose of further drawing in other souls, so as to dominate them. They may have luxurious and abundant material conditions, great powers of logic and intelligence (though no degree of kindness), well-oiled social networks to aid further power aggrandizement (ie, "the right connections"), and well-honed instincts of smooth manipulation of others.

Possession of these qualities may be considered to be "karmic reward" by those on the left-hand path, but ironically, these conditions are highly valued by all Earth humanity. In this way, we can see how our planetary world culture can rightly be considered "leftward leaning," though not quite fully service to self.

Though the phrase, "successful evil" may seem paradoxical, it is not so from the view of Higher Self. In essence, what is deemed to be "efficient use of catalyst" (which is key to the quality of karmic dispensation programmed from higher being) on the negative path is exactly opposite from what it is on the positive path. It is not quite correct to say that such beings simply "need love and self-healing" -- for those ingredients do not further at all their continued soul progression on the so-called "left-hand path."

For those of negative orientation, ever greater control of self and others is key, and is the measure and mark of efficient use of catalyst. Achieving greater external/social and internal/spiritual dominance is exactly their goal and just what they require to progress.

On the other hand, the key to the positive path is continued body/mind/spirit balancing in love-light manifestation, with increasingly demonstrated appreciation of unity. For while the path of self-service demands deception, the heart of the positive path is maintenance of evolving wholeness.

In both cases, what is considered "reward" or "good karma" is perfectly suited to further soul growth upon their chosen path, which is a far more dynamic process than the relative stasis assumed and imbedded in the dichotomous paradigm of reward and punishment. Humans may call it "good karma," but beyond the comfort and pleasure experienced, the essence of what makes it "good" is simply the potent support it grants for further soul polarization.

Of course, well-processed and intelligently handled "bad karma" may also function to boost soul growth, which is also its native intention and purpose. In general, the value of conflict, pain and hardship comes through its power to shatter and interrupt certain ingrained patterns of mind-distortion (whether established in past lives or created in the current one).

Thus, Higher Self will not save us from the consequences of our own doing, though guidance and comfort are available. Interestingly, earth humans often seem to require (and thus perpetually re-create) painful circumstances to revitalize their soul growth...

Indeed, it is a very important achievement to recognize misfortune as opportunity, misery as self-created, the reception of human injustice as cosmic justice, and personal limitation as a wide-open door to further spiritual expansion. Of course, these are lovely phrases, but hard to realize amidst the intensity of disharmonious experiential catalyst. As RA once said, 3D human life provides "an adequate heaven, and a more than adequate hell."