2/14/18
“Desire is, then, the binding element in karma, and when the soul no longer desires any object in earth or in heaven, his tie to the wheel of reincarnation that turns in the three worlds is broken.
Action itself has no power to hold the soul, for with the completion of the action it slips into the past. But the ever-renewed desire for fruit constantly spurs the soul into fresh activities, and thus new chains are continually being forged.
Nor should we feel any regret when we see men constantly driven to action by the whip of desire, for desire overcomes sloth, laziness, inertia, and prompts men to the activity that yields them experience.
Note the savage, idly dozing on the grass; he is moved to activity by hunger, the desire for food, and is driven to exert patience, skill, and endurance to gratify his desire.
Thus he develops mental qualities, but when his hunger is satisfied he sinks again into a dozing animal.
How entirely have mental qualities been evolved by the promptings of desire, and how useful have proved desires for fame, for posthumous renown.
Until man is approaching divinity he needs the urgings of desire, and the desires simply grow purer and less selfish as he climbs upwards.
But none the less desires bind him to rebirth, and if he would be free he must destroy them.”
Annie Besant
The Mark Of God: Understanding Your "I AM Presence" 