these vrittis. And, what are the experiences that we have to pass through in this life?
That, also, is determined. So, jati, ayuh and bhoga—the category into which we are
born into this world, the length of life, as well as the experiences in life—are all
external shapes taken by the internal roots of these vrittis. Because of the non-
fructification of some of these vrittis in a particular physical incarnation, they remain
potential in the lower layers of the mind and become the causes of further births.
This is the great law of karma, very beautifully put in a single sutra by Patanjali: sati
mūle tadvipākaḥ jāti āyuḥ bhogāḥ (II.13). Every action that we perform is a
confirmation of a desire, and it is the fulfilment of a particular urge of the individual
in respect of its atmosphere. And, inasmuch as the release of a particular urge in the
direction of its fulfilment brings satisfaction in the form of that fulfilment, and
because it is satisfaction that is the aim of temporal life, every satisfaction gained
through the contact of senses with objects becomes an added confirmation of the fact
that pleasure is in the objects. Hence, there is a repeated effort on the part of the
mind and the senses to come in contact with the objects, and this chain of action
continues.
Every experience of pleasure or satisfaction in respect of contact with an object of
sense creates an impression in the mind. There is a memory of past pleasure. “I came
in contact with that object yesterday, and I had great satisfaction from it. I was very
happy at that time. There was pleasure in that contact, so I would like to repeat that
contact.” This desire to repeat the contact arises on account of a memory of the
pleasure of yesterday. This memory is a groove that has been formed in the mind by
the experience of pleasure that was undergone earlier. So, what happens? This
groove that has been formed in the mind by the pleasurable experience urges the
mind to further action in that very direction, and there is again a grasping of the
object in a manner similar to that which was employed earlier. There is again a
pleasure which confirms, “Yes, I am perfectly right. There is great pleasure in this
contact.” There is an ecstasy, a rapture and a thrill of contact with objects, and there
is ennui and surfeit. We retire with a memory that the repetition of the contact has
brought about an added pleasure. So, why not repeat it three times, four times, five
times, a hundred times, a thousand times, as many times as possible? Why should
not we convert the entire life into a repeated activity of coming in contact with
objects which give us such satisfaction?
Every such contact which brings about a pleasure creates an impression, so there are
impressions and impressions endlessly created in the mind. There are millions of
grooves in the mind which can urge the mind towards any object of sense at any
time, according to the favourable conditions. There is nothing which cannot attract
us, if only the necessary conditions are provided. There is nothing which we cannot
pounce upon at some time or the other as a means to the satisfaction of the senses.
The reason is that there is present in the mind a groove for every type of experience
on account of the various births through which we have passed in our earlier
incarnations.
This impression that is created in the mind at the time of a pleasurable experience is
a karma that is added to the stock already there. Karma is not merely an action. It is
also the effect that is produced by an action, a force that is generated—an apurva, as
it is called in some schools of thought. An invisible potency is generated in the mind
by an experience of any kind. This invisible force is the urging factor for further