Karma
Karma is not a punishment. At its core it means action. This action driven by an intention initiates a chain of cause and effect. Think of it as sowing seeds everywhere we go. Some seeds are negative and some positive. We are creating karma all the time because we are always in a mental, verbal and/or physical act.
I want to make sure the reader is certain that this is not a guilt trip paper. This is not a diatribe against us as humans. Looking at karma is a simple exercise in learning more about ourselves. No guilt needed please.
“We do not have to be ashamed of what we are. As sentient beings we have wonderful backgrounds. These backgrounds may not be particularly enlightened or peaceful or intelligent. Nevertheless, we have soil good enough to cultivate; we can plant anything in it.”
Choygam Trungpa (see note at the end of this paper)
Intent creates karma.
Intention is an intricate part of the karmic process. Intention-action-effect. Intent is where it all begins. Whether it is through casual musings all the way through to a detailed plan, all levels of intent carry karma. Repeat. All intent carries karma. This is why eastern schools of spirituality and practice are all about working with the mind. This is why a clear mind and compassionate attitude is so darn important. And so darn difficult to achieve on a consistent basis. But it is the journey towards this reality that ultimately makes all the difference in our lives.
How much karma?
Buddhism has often been categorized not as a religion but as a science of the mind. Wishing someone would fall down the stairs or pushing them down the stairs both incur karma. It is the degree of karma incurred because of the factor of intention and the strength of the action (cause) and of course the result (effect). For a further example. Planning a murder and then not conducting the act still incurs some degree of karma. Planning a murder of a person to annihilate millions of people still carries some negative karma but to a lesser degree due to the greater good factor. As to exactly how much karma is incurred is an unknown. There is no scale. There is no table listing actions and their results. I would suggest that if we are worried about incurring negative karma or trying to figure out just how bad an action is we should just skip it! Conversely thinking we can store up virtuous deeds in a good karma bank is not the best way to go about helping someone.
I will pretend nothing happened.
We cannot erase karma. What is done is done. Saying I was just teasing, pretending we really did not mean it, denying we even did something is a futile game. It happened. The cause drives the effect. It is the ultimate cannot take it back. For example. Saying something really mean and when the person cries then saying we did not mean it does not change the karmic effect. The damage has been done. The Dalai Lama talks about this. He uses the broken plate analogy. Throw a plate on the floor. Now make it like it was before it broke. We cannot. Nor can we erase the harm done from our harsh words. Saying we were just teasing does not erase the hurt nor does the apology.
The body knows. Again.
There is an ever-increasing body of western science looking into cellular memory. Eastern philosophies have known this for centuries. One day I will talk about the chakra system. Hurt is in our cells. The simplest way to look at this theory is that the cells of the physical body can hold memories. I go back to the idea that the body is intelligent.
Instant karma?
There are factors that determine how and where a karmic seed ripens. Conditions need to come together for the effects of karma to manifest. In eastern cosmology this may take many lifetimes. So, wishing instant bad karma on a bad person is fruitless and ironically just may incur negative karma for yourself. So if you see the worst kind of people having all the luck, money and health this is because of good deeds in previous lifetimes. The important thing to remember here is karmic results happen over lifetimes.
Is karma the same as sin?
Absolutely not. It really is cut and dried. Intent drives the cause which drives the effect.
“According to Buddhism, there is no one in charge of the universe who distributes rewards and punishments. "We create the causes by our actions, and we experience their results." We are responsible for our own experience. The Buddha didn’t create the systems of actions and their effects, in the same way Newton didn’t invent gravity. Newton simply described what exists. Likewise, Buddha described what he saw occurring within the mindstream of each being. By doing this, he showed us how best to work within the functioning of cause and effect in order to experience happiness and avoid pain.”
What Is Karma?
Ven. Thubten Palmo Answers/Tricycle Magazine 2019
Summary
Buddhism, Hinduism, and Jainism are the eastern philosophies most predominately embracing the concept of cause and effect.
The reason I ventured into talking about karma is simple. I keep seeing and hearing people in online forums, in the media and in conversation wishing someone instant bad karma.
Choygam Trungpa quote. Some thoughts. What he could be referring to when he says, “As sentient beings we have wonderful backgrounds….” Is the concept of precious human birth. It is considered extremely fortunate to be born as a human. One way to think about it is this story.
Think of a turtle swimming just beneath the surface of an endless sea. On top of this vast sea is a ring float. Once every 100 years the turtle rises to the surface. The odds of a human incarnation are as rare as that turtle putting his head through that buoy.
It is through our past beneficial deeds that we are here.
Karma indeed
I did not take this photo. If I knew who had I would give complete credit. If you know who took this photo let me know please and I will cite them as the artist.
Here is the dandelion image reminding us of our karmic actions being released into this lifetime and succeeding lifetimes.