Karma Yoga

Ambika di Maria, speaks about karma yoga, the art of dedicating your sense of agency in this world for a higher purpose and letting go of the outcome. We will first get to hear the interesting story of how Ambika came in touch with her yoga teachers through serendipitous events.

Transcript

Have you ever heard about karma yoga? Today I'm talking with Ambika, Yoga teacher and blogger from Toronto about karma yoga. Hello yogi, Welcome to my podcast. I'm Aiko and on this show we explore ways to put spiritual theory into sustainable practice. Welcome Ambika to my podcast. I'm very happy and honored you came here. Thank you very much for having me. Thank you. And I have heard you speak on karma yoga and I would like to hear more of your thoughts and experiences about this. But first maybe would you like to introduce yourself? Sure. Thank you. So I currently live in Canada, In Toronto, Canada where I practice yoga, I teach yoga as well and I live here with my husband and before that we were living in Mexico. We spent, Well I spent about three years there living in a yoga ashram. So I dedicated those three years to sort of more I guess of an internal spiritual kind of inward facing time to kind of. I think what started that was that I was looking for some kind of meaning and purpose that I wasn't, That I wasn't experiencing before that. So that kind of I guess ignited the whole stay in the ashram things. Yeah and how did you get there? That's a long story but it's a very, But it's a fun story to tell. I like telling it because it makes me remember all of the beautiful coincidences or maybe they weren't coincidences or whatever they were. They're really nice. I guess I started, Well I started with yoga. I started practicing yoga in university. It was kind of a way to de-stress, Reduce anxiety and that sort of thing. It was more of the asana practice that I would engage in. And so I got really into the asana practice and then eventually I started to learn about ashtanga and the limbs of yoga, The yamas and the yamas and all of kind of the more philosophical principles that went along with the yoga practice and they really, Really, Really called my attention. I was really, Really interested in that and I wanted to learn more about how to make yoga my life. How I could wake up in the morning and live yoga until I would go to sleep at night and then even while sleeping, You know, Practice yoga. It was, I guess, Search and I mean I guess simultaneously while I was searching for that I was experiencing, I guess, A certain insatisfaction with the things that I was doing. I had finished university. I had studied theater and I had, After that I studied dance for a couple of years and I really enjoyed what I was doing but at the same time I felt like some kind of connection was missing, Some kind of, I guess, Motivating purpose that went beyond just, You know, The next show or the next performance or the next, I don't know, Award or whatever those kind of goals are which I think are great. I think it's great to have goals and it's wonderful to have, To be successful I think as well and I think it's important but there was something missing. There was something missing and I remember on my 23rd birthday I had like my little altar and I was really into like crystals and meditation and all kinds of sort of new age but then I also had, You know, Pictures of Mother Mary and Jesus and things that I had grown up with as well. It was just kind of an amalgamation of all my inclinations and spiritual beliefs at that time I think. And I remember I lit a candle on my birthday and I was in a really bad place. I was feeling really desperate about that meaning that I was looking for and not feeling and I sat in front of this altar and I made a prayer, A very loud prayer I think in my heart where I said I think I don't know what it is that I'm supposed to be doing or what I'm really good at or what direction it is that I'm supposed to go in but all I knew at that time and what I was praying for was that I wanted to serve God and I was like that's I don't know what it is but that's sort of my and I guess I had all of the representations and understandings of what God was for me at that time on this altar and I just kind of put all of my faith into that and said please, Please I need to do this. I need to find that connection. Sorry I don't know if you hear my dog crying in the background. She's just a puppy, She's seven months. She's kind of calming down now but anyway. So that was in December of my, Well my birthday was in December and then I was planning a trip to Brazil because at that time I was studying Brazilian dance and I had been planning a trip to Brazil because I wanted to go and kind of study a little bit more of that culture and dance and while I was planning the trip I was thinking all of a sudden it was really funny I was thinking oh I want to go to Argentina. I had never once thought about Argentina in my life like it was not even on my radar or anything and I was also thinking you know I don't have time or money to go to Argentina and Brazil it's just not gonna work out I just I'm gonna go to Brazil because that's where the specific teacher that I wanted to study with teaches her workshops. In January I found out that that teacher wasn't going to be in Brazil at the time that I was planning my trip for but she was going to be in Argentina. So I said oh that's perfect I guess I kind of get to fulfill that purpose and so while I was planning my trip I had about I had about 10 days before the the course started to decide what exactly I mean I could do anything in Argentina for those 10 days and at the time I was also really interested you know in finding like a conscious community and this whole idea of service and I was also I had recently become a vegetarian and just a more healthy lifestyle and of course I was really into yoga and a friend of mine she had directed me to a website that was like conscious communities worldwide sort of thing kind of could type in wherever you were going and a bunch of conscious communities would appear. So I typed in Argentina and there was only one that popped up and it was an eco yoga park that's what it was called eco yoga park I believe is also called New Vrindavan now yeah that's actually my yoga school. Really? It's so funny. It was this eco yoga park and I was like oh well this kind of all works very perfectly. So I wrote to them and a devotee well I didn't know who it was at the time it just said H-A-R-I Hari but at the time I read it Harry and I said oh I didn't know people in Argentina were named Harry as well. That was kind of funny but anyway I responded and they were really really nice and said yeah you know you can stay here and volunteer and you know do some mantra meditation and all of these things and you can practice yoga every day and for me it sounded like a dream and I was like yep this is exactly what I need so I hope I'm not going too long with this. It's a very long story. So then I was in Argentina I mean I left for Argentina in February so this was two months after that kind of meditation prayer in December. Two months later I found myself in Argentina and I really really was impacted by my stay there the 10 days that I was there. I felt that the people who were there were very I just felt like they were filled with this peace and love and they were just radiating a completely different vibe I guess and whatever it was I really wanted a piece of it and I wanted to know kind of how I could whatever it was that they were doing I figured I need to be doing that. That's kind of what I would like to be radiating as well that's what I would like to imbibe and embody and I got sick while I was there I got a really bad fever. I think it was a little bit of a kind of healing something I don't know what it was but I got really sick and especially a few ladies there were really really compassionate and warm with me and on every trip that I would go on I was used to taking a rosary with me and I had forgotten my rosary on this trip which was also really weird because I never forgot my rosary but I saw that they were chanting on beads there and I said well it can't be that different from what I'm used to doing so I asked if they could teach me how and they did and for during the time that I was ill I was just sitting in bed and chanting and after a day or two I felt very different and a couple days later I had to continue with my trip but I remember while I was there in Argentina the students or practitioners there they had also recommended reading the Bhagavad Gita maybe the questions that I had could be found there and I said yeah eventually I'll kind of look for one and after leaving Argentina I did end up going to Brazil and while I was in Brazil the house that I was staying in they had a copy of the Bhagavad Gita in English in the school in the in the house as well so I did dedicate that time to just reading the Bhagavad Gita and I was also listening to an audiobook on the Tao Te Ching and just kind of I was looking I was just looking for a bunch of answers but I got a lot of the answers to the questions that I had after reading the Bhagavad Gita and then after reading it I said I need to practice this whatever everything that it's saying in this book I need to practice it this is I mean I talked about serving God and how and specifics and very in detail and I said this is what I want to do but I had no idea how to do it I had no idea I needed I felt like I needed guidance again that conscious community that I was looking for and so this was kind of a desire and something that I would you know that was in my heart and then I went back to Canada and then some circumstances led me to another trip and to Mexico and I was living in Querétaro in Mexico and was occasionally taking some some day trips to to Mexico City and I had been directed to a this ashram in Mexico City that practice the same like they were dedicated to practicing Bhagavad Gita and all of the the practices pretty much is the same the same the same setup as what I had found in Argentina but in Mexico City I decided that all of the plans that I had made for myself in Mexico I kind of abandoned everything okay this is what I want to do and I yeah when I was in in the ashram just everything that I saw around that was there you know they also had a yoga ashram like a yoga studio and they practiced not just the asanas but also the philosophical part and you can practice service and there was the practice of daily mantra meditation as well with this with this rosary and I was very much I felt very much at home and I said this is where I need to stay beautiful yeah so that's how I got there thank you so just because you mentioned a lot about the Bhagavad Gita and how it was important for you and somehow give you the answers that you were seeking for so in the Bhagavad Gita Krishna uses a metaphor to assure Juna that he will not lose anything by letting go of the result of his actions and my spiritual master Swami Tripurari comments on this in his Bhagavad Gita he says Arjuna will gain the fruits of his work even while sacrificing them for that which he will gain by his course includes within it that which is sacrificed just as the amount of water in a small pond is contained within a large lake so I would like to ask you what's your opinion about it and if you can say also what do you think about karma yoga regarding this point too oh okay I am by no means an expert on the Bhagavad Gita I love hearing from from you know people who who do understand the Bhagavad Gita on a more you know spiritually advanced or realized level I love hearing hearing from them and hearing their sort of understandings because I mean in in in the way that I mean by by listening and by you know trying to understand what I can and put into practice what I can then I feel like I slowly start to understand what what is being what is being said and even still that understanding is very very limited very limited but I'll I'll try to again speak from from my own experience yeah from my own experience I guess and and and for me karma yoga I mean for me on on a very personal level it kind of starts with desire or comma you know that that this kind of impulse these desires to to wanna to wanna do something I feel like in my life I've had a lot of things that I want to do and I still do you know and I feel like this has been a very big motivating factor in in my life projects places I want to go things I want to do all of all of these desires or and they're always there and they're always there and and for a long time I feel like I would kind of go after these desires and still wasn't feeling satisfied after kind of fulfilling yeah and that was very frustrating because you know wanting something and then completing it and then finishing it and then at the end being like well you know there was so much fire and and burning desire to want to get that thing done or or or fulfill this dream or whatever it is and then at the end there's this frustration of I still want more I still want more I still feel sad well I mean I think the wanting more is always gonna happen but I wasn't feeling satisfied from from all of the work and effort that I put into what I had just done yeah so that was really frustrating for me so then you know that's what I started to learn also in from the teachings of of you know more realized more realized souls and and the teachings in the Bhagavad Gita is a lot about Dharma is you know the duty acting out of duty rather than rather than acting out of what is the end result you know am I gonna be rich after doing this am I gonna be successful after doing this am I gonna am I gonna be liked after doing this am I going to be seen or more famous or more interesting or more or smarter or more accepted or whatever those kind of I guess motivating factors or end results you know that I feel like on at least on a personal level I kind of deposit at kind of like the pot at the end of the rainbow like if I just do all of these things and I'll eventually get this sort of thing right so I guess this this idea of Dharma acting out of Dharma becomes more about the process and less about the product more about the journey and less about the destination more about what you learn on the way rather than what are you left with at the end sort of thing like what's it for me it's sort of been this teaching of acting out of sincerity acting out of acting within my limitations acting within my nature you know becoming sincere about who am I and what are these desires and and and how can I engage and you know healthy healthy expressions of of you know the pursuit to you know fulfill these ideas and projects and things that I have in my mind but but not become but but not have you know the end result be the maximum most important thing in my life you know if this doesn't happen you know if I don't I don't know for example if I don't publish a book I'm gonna be I'm gonna die unfulfilled or something you know like all of these things or if I don't I don't know reach a hundred thousand followers on Instagram then I haven't you know become self-realized or whatever it is you know like just using silly examples but but you know that that feels feel true and ring true and I mean this this process of Dharma I think also has to go with Karma Yoga because I mean it has to go with you know the word yoga connection and you know karma which is action and yoga which is connection but it's connection to what or who what's on the other side kind of thing what what is receiving these actions you know if I'm acting as an offering you know dharmically and like acting offering my I guess my body my mind and you know the faculties that I have as a as a servant I guess who is gonna receive that am I just kind of throwing it out into the world and you know that was that was kind of something that one of the reasons why the kind of New Age philosophy and teachings didn't really work for me I think at the time because there wasn't really a direction like who's on the other side who's receiving this you know who's where's where's the back and forth the interaction where is that happening so with Karma Yoga I feel like it's that that amalgamation or that combination of here is everything that I am and all of my desires and all of the things that I wanted to do that I want to do and I have someone you know this I have someone who can receive it someone that's receiving this on on the opposite end and and I mean you know when you take it to you know when you practice Karma Yoga but you know at the same time you're practicing Bhakti Yoga you know those two parallel I think is very potent because then the amalgamation of I mean when you're kind of practicing Bhakti Yoga and Karma Yoga at the same time then then the result that end result is is a spiritual result you know it's the where I'm depositing kind of like the the maximum the maximum end sort of thing is is more in my spiritual advancement and it's more in my my growth and serve in service and and it's more of an intrinsic an intrinsic value rather than an an external an external kind of explosion into nothingness yeah exactly yeah an external show of of everything so that's kind of been my own experience and it's hard to practice it's really difficult but it's it's worth the effort I think yeah because I think there are so many again intrinsic I guess I don't know if you want rewards is the right is the right word but you know there's not that anxiety at the end of at the end you know that the anxiety that comes with thinking with worrying about the the future results and let me control everything so that I don't suffer at the end you know it's it doesn't it's not about that anymore it's it's more about whatever the result is you know it's my offering it's a loving offering and it's that love that that gets deposited into the the actions that we do that that makes the process joyful at the end of it right so back to Dr. Sridhar Swami a great teacher that you might know says that when we first come in touch with the path of letting go we will feel like there is a loss or and no gain after some time it will feel like okay there was no loss but still no gain either but finally we will realize that there was no loss but all gain and I think this is such a beautiful it's just all karma yoga like in one sentence it's just so beautiful like all the concept is there because it is just so so true and real you know there's also like many people say that like the past the journey to the goal is that is the goal you know the journey itself and it's so true and I really love this concept and as you said it's it's hard and I know because I also try myself you know but that that's also part of the goal the the challenging the difficulties because without that we wouldn't be here now with this consciousness you know absolutely and I I love that that that quote actually I'm glad that you I'm glad that you shared it it's nice to remember that and and and absolutely I think there I mean part of that difficulty I think when you know when you just start kind of practicing it is is from that fear that fear of I'm gonna lose everything yeah if I let go of the the result sort of thing and like I it feels very scary and and I don't know maybe it's that fear that that makes it so hard to kind of practice it's kind of like okay I'm gonna jump into the water but it's you know yeah it's gonna be cold what if there is a shark over there yeah exactly yeah exactly yeah absolutely yeah so like to to conclude I would like to ask you if you can briefly like give your own opinion of a concept of karma yoga and some practical tips for people who would like to put this in practice because there's so much theory you know yeah and the difficult part is to put it in practice once you understand the theory absolutely so if you have any tips there yeah I would say the first thing is get a copy of the Bhagavad Gita and and look for guidance look for guidance because like I mean like I experienced while I was in Brazil and reading the Bhagavad Gita I said yes this is you know serving devotional service this is what I want to do and this is this I know that this is the the path to fulfillment and and true satisfaction and and I can feel it and I and I know it's this but but I had no idea how to practice and even though I still feel like I have no idea what I'm doing but I feel really fortunate to you know that that these teachings and the source of these teachings have kind of manifested themselves in my life in the form of you know these more spiritually advanced souls that that truly care that truly care about one spiritual advancement and it's really easy to find people in this world I think who maybe want something from you or or that you want something from so there's kind of like this give and take of what's in it for me what's in it for you I'll scratch your back you scratch mine it's really really easy to find people like that in this world you know they're a dime a dozen and you know I consider myself one of those people as well I think 90% of the time I don't want to be I don't want to be like that forever but which is which is why I practice you know this these teachings as well because I'd like to advance myself but it's really really really rare I think to find to find somebody who wants nothing from you who wants nothing from you and they only want your benefit and who even want your benefit more than you want your own benefit yeah so I think if you can if you can kind of detect that in in a guide and and really kind of come to that with with with a sense of you know humility and a willingness to be taught then I think that that is the biggest key in practicing karma yoga you know if you have that you have everything yeah and I guess from my own I guess understanding of of what karma yoga has been at least in my life and from what I've practiced and what I've kind of learned is that it connects us to our to who we really are to our true identity and I think there are a lot of layers of who we are or who we project ourselves to be or or who people think we are or what we think that other people think we are and all these kind of external layers but karma yoga really kind of takes us into who who we actually are on the inside and puts us on a kind of fast track to to really imbibing that and and yeah and becoming that and it also connects I mean in knowing our true identity you know we also come into contact with our true source because wherever we whoever we are it must have some connection with where we come from and by result does also where we're going you know I think it makes us dutiful and stable I think it brings a lot of stability into our life spiritually materially on all levels and that it it does make an effect on us and it transforms us from I guess this exploiting mentality exploiting or or I mean it could go two ways than exploiting or just the frustrated mentality it transform us from from that to to a more service mentality more again that's more in in line with who we actually are and what's actually going to make us happy and keeps us on track to filling our spiritual goals and grants us a sense of self that's coherent with our spiritual nature which you know I heard once I don't remember where I heard it but it was something like satisfaction comes from when you're when when you think what you speak and what you do are all in line and what you believe like when all of those things are are in line that's you know when you feel kind of satisfied in that sense but very beautiful so how would you define karma yoga I would I would probably go to the definition of karma yoga in the Bhagavad Gita which I probably which I don't have in front of me at this time but action in action in a sort of service consciousness in a in a in God consciousness action action that is dedicated at and connects us to our source action sincere sincere action where we can use our our faculties and our God-given talents and capabilities and and use them in connection to serving the ultimate good baby and I apologize profusely for any errors either philosophically or no it was contextually that I was everything wonderful pardon yeah it was everything wonderful don't worry oh and thank you again for for having me I it's again this is also a challenge because it's kind of lets me sit with myself and see okay Ambika what have you learned have you really learned anything no it was very beautiful and I was inspired from from the video you publish on your Instagram with it that is also very nice I'm glad I was nervous publishing that too that's very beautiful yeah well I'm glad I'm glad it led to us being able to connect like this yeah thank you yeah thank you I hope this episode fulfill its purpose of inspiring you if you like it feel free to share it give a review or a rating subscribe and if you have any questions please get in touch at Ico yoga reiki. Com namaste