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Selfish karma is action performed only for oneself, for one’s own interest, greed, and benefit. Such action bears fruit. Good karmas or good deeds yield good fruits. Bad karmas or bad deeds yield negative or bad fruits. Niṣkāma means selfless service without expectations. It refers to those actions you perform where there is no kāmanā. Kāmanā means expectation. Therefore, the service, the seva, the work, the help you offer without selfishness, without expecting any fruits for yourself—that kind of niṣkāma karma, selfless duty, yields very divine and spiritual fruits. It is essential for spiritual development. Now comes another word: bhāva. Bhāva means feelings, wishes. Again, you wish for something. Bhāva has many meanings. Benefit or loss resides in bhāva. Bhāva also means price. For example, today one kilo of gold may cost $20,000. Tomorrow the price rises to $25,000 per kilo. You gain $5,000. The gold itself did not increase by even one gram. If instead the price falls to $15,000, you lose $5,000. The kilo of gold did not decrease. So, benefit or loss is in the bhāva, the valuation. Therefore, bhāva refers to the kind of feelings you hold—towards God, towards Gurudev, towards your parents or children, towards your partner, towards your friends. According to the bhāva you hold, you will receive corresponding fruits. Hence, niṣkāmabhāva: when you act, you maintain a selfless feeling. A feeling is there, an expectation is there, but it is a specific kind of expectation where you wish to surrender and dedicate your seva, your work, your deeds for the well-being of the entire planet—for vegetation, oceans, rivers, lakes, forests, animals, humans, and so on. Therefore, Śrī Kṛṣṇa says, "Yogaḥ karmasu kauśalam." Kṛṣṇa said, "O Arjuna, in this entire universe, there is nothing I cannot have. Anything I wish, I can obtain. But still, I am working." He continues to perform karma so that people will follow His example. Therefore, karma is pradhāna—the main thing in our life. The results or fruits that will come in the future from our actions are what we call destiny. Destiny is a product of our karma, performed with a particular bhāva, with specific feelings or expectations. All action originates as a thought in your intellect and mind. That thought manifests as kriyā. Our entire being is kriyā. As long as your body can perform kriyā, it is alive. The day the body stops all kriyā, it is known as a dead body. That is the dharma of the body. Within the body, every gland works, maintaining its dharma. Every organ functions and works according to its dharma. Each nerve, each muscle, each joint—even a very small joint has great meaning for our being. A small finger, if you cannot bend it or if there is pain in that one joint—though it is small compared to hip, knee, or elbow joints—when it is painful, the entire body becomes restless. The movement of one finger is a kriyā. This kriyā can also turn into a mudrā, a subject we will explore in our weekend program in Vienna, where we will speak about kriyās, bandhas, mudrās, and more. Every tissue in the body functions. Similarly, our Mother Earth, this planet, is also working. The earth works, the elements are active and working, and the universe itself is working. This activity is the root of what is called kriyā. There are some kriyās which are natural, and some which we must perform to gain something. Therefore, "yogaḥ karmasu kauśalam"—one who cannot perform karma yoga, whose sādhanā is lacking, will not succeed in practice. Every kind of work—eating, drinking, cooking, going to the bathroom, washing, walking—is vital. Without these, your body cannot survive. Your body asks you, "Let's go for a walk through the forest, through fresh air; let's go swimming." That walking is a kriyā. Kriyā is necessary. Where there is movement, energy is produced. Where there is no movement, energy is consumed or destroyed. If a car battery lies unused for months, it goes flat. But if the car is running, the dynamo runs and the battery is charged. Similarly, our bioenergy within the body is recharged through our movement. Thus, movement is nourishment. Thinking is nourishment. Speaking is nourishment. Knowing when not to think is also nourishment—knowing when and what to do. Just as kriyās are essential for the body, there are also kriyās beneficial for our mind—mental exercises. We must continue our mental exercises, otherwise we lose knowledge. If a pilot does not fly for a year, they require training and practice again. If you do not drive a car for a year or two, when you begin again you must be careful and relearn. Therefore, mental kriyās—anything we do intellectually—nourish the mind, keeping it alert and up-to-date. The intellect also needs kriyā. It needs information of all kinds. Hence, in yoga, it is said: Svādhyāya. Svādhyāya has two meanings. The first is to study the scriptures. You should read and reread the subjects pertinent to you. Do not think that once you have a diploma or have passed an examination, you need read no more. You must continually renew your knowledge. Therefore, the intellect needs more kriyās, more inspiration. When you are mentally tired, it is often because your intellect lacks sufficient energy to give contentment to your mind. This is what some people call burnout. You are not burned out because you distanced yourself from intellectual activity, but because you concentrated excessively on physical work or felt that thinking was "too much." If intellectual exercise, mental exercise, and physical exercise are balanced, you will never have stress. You will be able to relax, sleep, wake up, become extroverted, or become introverted at will. This means you become the master of your body, mind, and intellect. This is what we call yoga in daily life: the harmony of body, mind, and soul. Beyond intellectual exercises comes something more: spiritual exercise for consciousness. Consciousness is consciousness, but for many who do not perform the kriyās that keep consciousness pure, it becomes covered by malavikṣepa (disturbances) and āvaraṇa (veils). This is why there are many levels of consciousness: unconscious, subconscious, conscious, superconscious, and cosmic consciousness. Progressing from one level to another is the work of kriyā. Therefore, Kriyā Yoga does not mean merely sitting and performing some mental exercises. That comes later. It begins from the very foundation. Consider this building we are in: they did not construct the fifth floor first in the air. They began with the foundation. The strength of the foundation determines the safety of the building. Our foundation is our physical being. The physical being needs those essential kriyās. This is called Nitya, Niyama, Śaucaṁ—daily, disciplined purification and observance. The body has its own rotation and timetable; it manages everything. But we must have the motivation to keep our body going. Thus, body, breath, mind, intellect, and consciousness must be trained through different kinds of kriyās. Then your Kriyā Yoga will be successful; otherwise, it cannot succeed. In Haṭha Yoga, there are six kriyās, known as ṣaṭ karma. Āyurveda adopted from Haṭha Yoga what is called pañca karma, five kriyās, leaving out nauli, though they may replace it with other exercises for stomach cleansing. Nauli is a very important kriyā of Haṭha Yoga. If you practice Haṭha Yoga kriyās, I can tell you that many problems will be solved automatically. If you have physical problems and begin practicing Haṭha Yoga kriyās from now on, within a month you may not even remember what problem you had. It is like dreaming at night: you think, "In the morning I will tell my father or mother what I dreamed." You wake up and cannot remember, though you know you were dreaming. Similarly, physical problems, nervous problems, stress problems—if you practice disciplined, regular (niyamit rūp se) Haṭha Yoga, you will be the happiest person in the world. But it requires discipline and strong mental willpower. Our mind is very flexible, like a fish in water. It comes for food, but if you try to catch it, it darts away. It is not easy to catch a fish in water with your hands. Similarly, our mind is not naturally disciplined. If the mind is undisciplined, all activities become undisciplined and imbalanced, and problems begin. First, practice Haṭha Yoga kriyās that you can do alone at home. What is good about yoga is that you need nothing else. You need only one thing: your decision to do it. In Āyurveda, you need a doctor or Vaidya, herbs, medicines, or massage. In acupressure, you need someone to apply pressure or make punctures. But in yoga, you need only about one and a half to two square meters of space to lie down, get up, and move your body. Yoga is designed for human well-being. In every respect, humans can be successful—if we practice. The obstacle is laziness. Our laziness is our greatest, worst enemy. A lazy person cannot be successful. That is why it is said: self-discipline is the key to success. With self-discipline, you can succeed. But first, you must learn. You must learn from a master, a Haṭha Yoga master. There are many masters for every kriyā; you need one master, or one master who knows all kriyās to teach you. Otherwise, it becomes dekhā-dekhī sajāyog, ghaṭekāyā or bādheroga—if you merely imitate, you may harm your body and exacerbate some condition. Books can inspire us and answer some questions. When we read a page clearly written, answers are within. But when we begin to practice, thousands of questions arise, and that one page does not contain a thousand answers. Therefore, a living master is very important. You can practice saṅgha prakṣā at home, but first you must learn. For lazy people, we organize group, collective saṅgha prakṣā practice, where 10, 20, 40, 50, 100, or 200 people come together. This provides motivation. Afterwards, you can practice at home if you know how and if you are disciplined. Haṭha Yoga kriyās purify our entire physical body, regenerating all its functions. This is called kāya kalpa. In Āyurveda, there is a technique and a word: kāya kalpa. Kāya means body; kalpa means regenerating. It is in your hands to regenerate your entire body. Begin. Say, "Yes, this morning I will do it." Then keep the promise you made to yourself. Next come other kriyās: breathing kriyās (prāṇāyāma), concentration kriyās, then mantras, and then chakras, which we will speak about in this quarter of the year, until our summer seminars. Every lecture will include a systematic explanation or guided techniques of Kriyā Yoga. Finally, that Kriyā Yoga which we have heard and read about from many yogīs is a combination of bandhas, mudrās, breath control, mantras, concentration, and imagination. All this together directs our consciousness towards spirituality, creating a highway. Then there are no crossroads, no traffic lights. The road is directed over bridges or under them; you go straight forward. Similarly, the yogī who performs all these kriyās and advances to the spiritual kriyās finds themselves on the highway. Where is the destination of that highway? It is called Ātmā Jñāna, Self-knowledge. When you are on that highway and see your destination only a few kilometers away, you will feel profound gratitude: "Thank you, my Master. You are the savior of my prāṇa, my life. You are the one who guided me here." Then you will understand what is guru kṛpā, divine grace and blessings. That is where we must arrive. Gurudev is the one who, with great love, attention, motivation, and divine consciousness, leads the disciples. Every father and mother leads their children into māyā. Gurudev leads you to Brahman. Māyā and Brahma are the two poles. The difference between parents and Satguru Dev is this: parents guide you back into the material world, while Guru Dev guides you to the cosmic supreme world. That is liberation and the aim of life. Tomorrow is Guru Pūrṇimā, the full moon day, a Guru Vāra (Thursday). Jupiter, the Guru, is the master. It is a true Guru Pūrṇimā tomorrow, and we will continue speaking about Kriyā Yoga then. Today, I wish you all the best and the blessings of our divine lineage of Śrī Alag Purījīsida Pīṭha. I wish you good health, happiness, and spiritual development. May God protect you. Dīp Nārāyaṇ Bhagavān.