Four Chapters on Freedom: Commentary on the Yoga Sutras of Sage Patanjali by Saraswati Swami Satyananda

Author:Saraswati, Swami Satyananda [Saraswati, Swami Satyananda]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Yoga Publications Trust
Published: 2016-07-04T16:00:00+00:00

Sutra 16: Future pain avoidable

Heyaṃ duḥkhamanāgatam

Heyaṃ: to be avoided; duḥkham: misery; anāgatam: future

Suffering which has not yet come should be avoided.

Suffering should be avoided, and we can avoid what has yet to come. The present suffering has to be undergone and finished with. According to the law of karma, the present suffering which has become ripe cannot be set aside. It must be finished with through experiencing it, but future pain and misery must be avoided. So long as one has a body, one has to suffer but so far as the future is concerned, it can be changed. For example, the harvest you are reaping cannot be changed, but you can modify the next harvest by changing the seeds and other conditions. The bullet which has been fired cannot be brought back, but the one which has yet to be triggered off can be held up. Similarly, the future fruits of karma can be modified if you do your present karma accordingly.

In human life there are certain karmas which have become ripe and their effects must be enjoyed in the form of destiny, in the form of happiness and misery. One should do tapasya, discrimination, sadhana, and undergo them, but the karmas which ripen in the future may be disposed of by right action now. According to the law of karma, there is one department which is beyond your control but there is another department of karma which you can amend or modify. Thus the sutra declares that the suffering which is yet to come can be avoided.

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