Preallocation (Skt. प्रारब्ध कर्म Prarabdha Karma) is the preallocated portion of accumulated past impressions (karma) that has been set aside to be experienced as the trajectory of the current lifetime. In the nondual framework of the path of knowledge, it is understood as the preallocated "karmic fuel" that drives the gross body and mind.

The Concept of Karmic Fuel

• Exhaustion of Fuel: The physical body and waking state run entirely on this preallocated karmic fuel, which is composed of latent desires and tendencies (vasanas). Just like an arrow that has already been shot from a bow, this preallocated karma must run its course. When this fuel is completely exhausted, a natural death occurs.

• No Real Doer: Because this preallocated script unrolls mechanically according to past causes, the individual has no actual control over the baseline events of their life. Realizing that the life is preallocated helps the seeker to drop the false belief of doership.

Freedom in the Preallocated Flow

• Attitude of a Guest: Knowing that the trajectory of the body is preallocated, the seeker lives like a guest in a hotel. They do not struggle to change what is destined, nor do they resist the experiences that arise.

• Abiding in the Witness: The preallocated experiences must play out, but they cannot affect the experiencer. By practicing awareness and remaining detached, the seeker experiences the unrolling of their preallocated karma without creating any new karmic seeds (agami karma), leading to ultimate liberation.

See also

Karma, causal body, desire, death, doer, awareness, liberation.