Karmic Winds

2025, June, Issue 155

Looking within,

At ease while being propelled,

Hurled aimlessly, violently

With great force by these karmic winds,

I offer this amazing light to all beings,

this bright brilliant gem beyond measure,

Ultimate Reality that I have discovered

through the blessings of my Guru,

through intensive Spiritual Practice,

through investigation of mind,

discovering the Nature of Mind,

while traversing karmic winds,

energetically at ease

through the full extents of

the Death Bardo,

beyond,

beyond belief,

effortless,

as it is,

beyond what our wandering mind can really

fathom,

through the depths of these illusions

dancing before our senses,

beyond dreams and daily life,

beyond space and time,

beyond all dimensions,

beyond all that we conceive,

beyond the higher realms of gods

which can trap us in the delusion of pleasure,

beyond the delusions of jealousy and pride,

beyond ignorance and greed,

and these great fires of anger,

beyond all traps which ensnare Us,

We Sleeping Buddhas;

May We awaken,

May We awaken at last!

By Our own realizations,

Our own aspirations,

May all beings benefit,

May we find peace,

May all beings aspire to awaken,

May all beings remove this great suffering,

These delusions of our dark dull existence,

Great compassion within

Encompassing appearances of mind,

May we all remain at ease,

May we all see that it is our great fortune,

Our rare opportunity to go beyond,

beyond, beyond all that has been

beyond what has been trapping Us

as We sleep within delusion for all eternity;

It is Our time to awaken!

A poem by Robert Aho © 2025

People might think that they have total control over their lives, or they may go to the other extreme, thinking that they have no free will whatsoever. This is quite a dilemma for the Spiritual Practitioner, because, if we investigate a little, we may think that there is no possibility to become liberated from cyclic existence. We discover that we have actions and attachments that are preventing us from freely moving forward. These are karmic winds.

We discover something energetic and quite fierce related to where we are, where we have been and where we are going. We soon discover that we will need to increase our capacity to that of a Spiritual Master, if we are to have any hope of navigating effectively through the bardos of life, death and dreams. When these karmic winds come our way, only a great Spiritual Master can ever hope to navigate that with any intention. We must master our mind before we die.

If we wish to master this transmigration, we must first learn to control mind. We need to become extremely unrelenting and courageous. We must find a way to face everything and anything without flinching. Karma needs to be exhausted. We need to be aware of this level of perseverance and dedication when we become serious about Spiritual Practice, if we wish to awaken.

We also need to be aware of the intensity of these eternal karmic winds, if we wish to have any sort of beneficial transmigration through the death bardo. Although it is obvious that we can awaken in the death bardo, as we encounter greater opportunity to do so than in either our daily life or even dreams, we need to prepare ourselves. This cannot come automatically, and it is not an intellectual endeavor. We must find a way to open our heart and mind.

When we are in the death bardo, the karmic winds will literally rip us apart, if we aren’t ready or able to control our mind, if we aren’t able to remain at ease. As you should know by now, I am speaking from experience. I remember the entire death bardo very well, and I remained at ease throughout. This meant that my transmigration became rewarding, even though it meant remaining focused in deep Spiritual Practice for a hundred years. This might not sound like fun to the novice. For me, it was blissful in every way.

Karma, as I have said many times by now, is nothing other than action. We do something, anything, and the entire universe changes. Karmic winds are nothing other than the accumulation of all of our actions in all of our lifetimes from the beginning of this universe, and even before that or any other universe appeared. We have no beginnings, or endings, consciousness simply transmigrates. If you wish to get off this crazy train, the only thing that you can ever do that will matter is to awaken. Anything else that you might do will only add to these karmic winds, whether these actions are positive or negative.

When you start to really see the accumulation of karma shared by all beings, you should start to feel a great sadness. Cyclic existence is really an avoidable tragedy. Unfortunately, beings tend to choose the continuation of suffering over any hint of actions that might prove beneficial. Awakening may be the least popular thing there is. Beings avoid awakening above all else, even though there is ample opportunity to choose the Path to Enlightenment.

Even if you have encountered the Spiritual Path, focus can be lost. We can fall into traps rather easily. Please cultivate your aspiration to awaken, make this indestructible. Discover reality, then awaken.

Blessings in Light,

Robert Aho