Why study karma philosophy?

• Sometimes we feel we are free, and we can do whatever we want, but a lot of the times, we feel like we do not have control over things.
• Samvaay helps us analyse what leads to completion or execution of an event.
  Of the 5 Samvaay, Karma is one.
• Karmvaad's Ch-14 and Ch-16 talks in detail about Partantrata and Swatantrata.

1. Studying and practicing Dictionary#Granthibheda, Preksha Dhyaan helps us execute on the swatantrata.
2. Studying karma philosophy is important to study the limits and mechanism of our Partantrata.

Theoretical Premise

The Soul

• Jeev/Aatma/Jeevastikay/Soul is an eternal, non-physical substance whose very essence is consciousness (chetana).
• In its pure state, the soul possesses infinite qualities, Soul's core properties includes perfect knowledge, perception, energy, and bliss.
• The worldly soul is in a state of beginning-less (anadi anant kaal) entanglement with karma, and its experienced reality is a product of these obscurations. The goal of all spiritual practice is to remove the karmic veil and manifest the soul's inherent, pure nature.
• The elementary particle (Pudgal) of matter is the paramanu, and these combine to form functional aggregates called Vargana.
• A specific class of subtle matter, the Karman Vargana, provides the raw material for karma.
• The soul's impure psychic states (bhava karma) attract and bind these physical particles, which then become dravya karma.
• This dravya karma forms a subtle karmic body (karman Sharir) that adheres to the soul, acting as a physical record and the mechanism through which karmic consequences are delivered across lifetimes.
• These Karma particles make the soul deviate from it's core properties.

How does karma bind to soul

• Yoga is the vibration of the soul that manifests as the activity of mind, speech, and body. It is the direct, mechanical cause of  Asrav (karmic influx).

• The three main channels of  Yog are man (mind), vachan (speech), and kaya (body) are further divided into 15 subtypes, providing a detailed map of all possible actions.

• The nature and intensity of yoga determine the Nature (prakriti) and Quantity (pradesh) of karma that flows into the soul.

  • This process is so fundamental that it continues until the final moments before liberation, even after all passions are conquered.

• Kashay (Passion) is the "adhesive" that binds karmic matter to the soul.

  • The four primary passions are Krodha (anger), Maan (pride), Maya (deceit), and Lobha (greed).

• The intensity of kashaya at the time of an action determines the duration and strength of the resulting karmic bond.

• This intensity of bondage ranges from Sprusta (loose) to Nikachita (tightest), with the latter being extremely difficult to shed before it bears fruit.

• Karmvaad - Acharya Mahapragya ji is a great book to understand the core philosophy and how to control these internal passions to figure out the direct path to happiness and the most effective way to weaken the grip of karma.

• Leshya is the aura or "current of feeling" of the soul, a product of its activities (yoga) and passions (kashaya).

• There are six types of Leshya, from the impure Krishna (black) to the pure Shukla (white), each with distinct psychological and sensory characteristics.

• Cultivating purer leshyas is a direct method to prevent the formation of deeply-bound karmas.

• Look up concept of Samvar to stop new bondage and Nirjara to shed existing karma.

Karma Bondage

As stated above, there are four properties of Karma bonds: Qty, Types, Duration and Strength.
These properties describe the way in which the karma system works.
Check this out to dig deeper into those - Karma Bandha

Transforming and manipulating Karma

Karma can be transformed read here for more details - Karma Transformations