An Introspection Framework

In Bhagavad Gita, chapter 4, verse 21, Lord Krishna says that persons who are bereft of action and doing things only to maintain the body, relinquishing all conceptions of ownership, never incur any sin.  Although this level of perfection may be difficult to reach, we can always strive to reduce the barriers to our connection with the universe. In the book Karmasutra, this idea has been mentioned using the term Cosmic Sensitivity Barrier (CSB), in Chapter 1. How a thick CSB interferes with our ability to interact with the universe (or god, allah or ishwar or personal divine deity), if one prefers that nomenclature, is also dealt with.

Our CSB thickens over the course of time because we practice guile in our daily lives. We laugh when our boss at work tells us a joke, even when it is not funny.  Similarly, we tell people that we will keep in touch with them, when we have no such intention. In order to be considered close to our superiors at workplace, we pretend to agree with their views and flatter them unashamedly.  All these inconsistencies between our actual thoughts and our actual words and actions, build up the thickness of our CSB and then we find that the universe does not seem to be listening to us. We also seem incapable of receiving the communication from the universe. 

Some people are lucky that they are born with less guile. When they are angry they are unable to hide it. If they dislike someone, they are unable to pretend otherwise.   Despite living in the world, they seem unable to learn the tactics of diplomacy that the world seems to teach. Of these people, Jesus had said in Matthew 5:5 ‘Blessed are the meek’.  I have indeed met many such people and am lucky to count some of these meek ones among my friends.

However, even some of us who consider ourselves smart, intelligent, diplomatic, cunning and very skilled in the ways of the world might have a desire to increase our spiritual growth and communication with the universe (or god/allah/ishwar/personal deity etc.).  This post and the introspection framework given below are primarily meant for those in this category. Unfortunately, those of us who belong to this category might not be able to straightaway remove the CSB thickness. However, we could start by all working on reducing the impact of some stress-building emotions such as bloated ego, anger, fear etc. because many intelligent/rational people are blessed with the ability to introspect their actions and feelings.

Having said this, the rational mind is also very clever. When a person tries to reduce bloated ego, the mind assuages him/her that indeed humility has been achieved.  Then the mind slyly shifts the same suppressed ego into other variations of the ego, namely, anger or envy. A person who is extremely humble and avoids bragging might be notoriously short-tempered or find himself unable to lavish praise on anyone else.  If this happens, this is a sure sign of the same ego being channeled into other areas.

Those who are indeed capable of introspection might therefore be benefited by this introspection hexagon (figure given below) to see if all these six manifestations of negative emotions are balanced. The wheel at the center of the figure is the depiction of balance. It is rare to completely eradicate these feelings/emotions because they are often result of our human birth, but remembering this introspection hexagon can help us to self-examine, which of these are becoming bloated and disturbing our spiritual equilibrium.  (See figure below. Explanation follows.)

Let us have a look at the possibilities and see whether we fit any of these common categories:

• Bloated Ego re-channelized into Anger: A person who calls himself extremely humble might lose his temper at short notice with his family, friends or colleagues at work. This means the person has really not been able to get rid of the ego. A grudge or anger held against person/persons can later on be transformed into hate.

• Bloated Ego re-channelized into Jealousy: These people think of themselves as extremely humble, but always ridicule or belittle the achievements of others. They cannot stand someone else being praised. If this is true, it means this person has not been able to get rid of the ego.

• The bloated Ego can also be re-channelized into Shame, Guilt or Fear.

The hexagon can also be used for introspection into other negative emotions. For example, Fear can be re-channelized easily into Hate/Anger. Hence, if we are searching for fear inside us and we find none, we should also scrutinize our feelings of hatred and anger. Similarly, jealousy can easily change forms into greed. Greed can be for sex (lust), for power (often changing into megalomania, if unchecked), food or alcohol (gluttony) or money/wealth.  Jealousy also changes form easily into hate or anger against the other person who creates this jealousy in us. Similarly, fear (or insecurity) changes form easily into anger (or hate) against the person we perceive to be the cause of this fear. Politicians often use insecurity to stoke hate and anger against some community or race. If there is unemployment, this fear of lack of jobs is used by politicians to blame other communities and whip up anger/hate.  Racists use insecurity to create hate for other races. 

Fear also changes form into guilt. If we did not stand up to support my best friend in the workplace due to fear of annoying the boss, this fear quickly transforms into guilt or shame. Similarly, shame or guilt is often a cause for fear – ‘what if someone knows about this?’ ‘What if someone sees me here?’ Fear also can change form easily into greed. Fear of penury can lead to greed for money. People who have some inferiority complex in one area (a form of shame/guilt) can easily channel this into lust (having sexual conquests to re-affirm their worth). {In my book Karmasutra, and in other blogs I have never condemned sex with single or different partners, but I believe that just like gluttony is bad despite eating being healthy, lust is detrimental while normal sexuality (without undue guilt baggage and with mutual enjoyment and consent) is healthy.}

The point of the above discussion is that if we are trying to get better control over one of the above negative emotions, it is essential to also observe the other emotions carefully, to know whether the balance is being maintained and to check whether our excessive control on one emotion is leading to imbalance in other areas. This introspection hexagon will hopefully be useful for those who are blessed with the intellect and inclination for self-examination.  

This calm, dispassionate periodic introspection will reduce our CSB thickness in course of time and help us in our spiritual quest. As always, comments, additions to this model and criticisms are always most welcome. 

©Staju Jacob, 2016.

Staju Jacob is the author of the path-breaking book Karmasutra The Karma of Sex, which deals with the karmic spirituality of consensual sexual actions. This book is available globally on various Amazon sites in Paperback and Kindle, Sony Kobo, Google books, Iphone Ibook etc.  He may be contacted on Twitter @KaRmasutraTKOS