From other write-ups on Karma Margas, we already know that:
1. We are born to repay a part of karma, called Prarabdha. This karma decides what situations we will be facing in life.
2. Prarabdha also influences Gunas, which decides how we are going to react in those situation, good or bad way.

That means, by default, we are pretty much programmed to stay in this infinite cycle of life/death (called Samsara), FOREVER.. This is called as Bandhan (बंधन) or Bondage, in Vedic literature. 

BTW, Do you think, it’s really Karma/Gunas that are forming these bondages, or is there something else, who is really holding onto them. Lets try to understand through an example.

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Unlike todays kids, as a child, we all seen a madaari (juggler) playing with monkey in some village jatra (festival). Have you ever thought, how they catch monkey in the wild? 

One of the trick is, when they spot a group on monkeys, they sit around eating something monkeys like, say peanuts. They show monkeys what they are eating, but don’t share, and act like they are enjoying the food. 

After sometime while they are leaving, they drop the remaining peanuts in a pre-made hole in a tree trunk. The whole is made of the size enough to fit empty hand of a money. Then the madaari appear to leave, and hide at a distance. 

Once all clear, one of the monkeys try to put their hand in the hole and get peanuts. Once the hand is full of peanuts, it can’t come out as the hole is enough only for empty hand. But, Monkey doesn’t want to leave the peanuts, and due to that, it gets stuck, captured by Madaaris.

As you can see, monkey had every chance to free itself, only thing it had do, was to give up those peanuts. If it leaves the peanuts, hand can come out. But longing/carving for those peanuts become the reason for capture.

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Like monkeys, for us too, karma/gunas have setup perfect trap. But it’s not the trap that is keeping us captured, it’s our desires, our longing for indriya-sukha (sensory pleasures) that is not letting us free. 

In short, it’s we ourself are holding onto our peanuts, that is keeping us in this infinite cycle of life/death.

We can be free at any moment, it’s just that we have to give up our peanuts.

What are your peanuts? Think about it.. And try to see, if we could break ourselves free.