Part Three
KARMA
AND
CHARACTER:
THE BONDAGE
TO
PATTERN
CHARACTER traits are the etchings carved into the mind by one’s thoughts and actions. The mind is a veritable museum of character traits, from this life as well as countless previous lifetimes. It can be said that one’s personality is the sum total of his character traits, and that one’s actions tend in a direction prompted by his mental store of character traits. That is why [yoga] places such importance on character-building principles. We can try to straighten out the tail of a dog, but the moment we let it go, it snaps back into its original shape.
—Swami Kripalu
Character is fate.