| Karma
Posted: 7/17/2008 6:10:17 AM | We've all heard of "Karma". The idea that "What goes around, comes around." But is there any proof of this? Is it just a belief without any rationale?
It would seem that bad things happen to good people. It would seem that the rain falls on the just and the unjust alike. Therefore, there doesn't seem to be any evidence of Karma in action, at least not this side of the sod. Is the "Law of Karma" limited to events that occur after death, based on your actions while alive? | |
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| Karma
Posted: 7/17/2008 5:17:30 PM | I believe in it. If a person, is miserable throughout their entire life, and treats other people miserably, that treatment is bound to come back at them. In the Wiccan creed, it is said, what you do unto others, will come back to you threefold.
According to science, every action causes a reaction. So you see...if you keep putting out negative actions, eventually, it is going to come back and bite you in the arse whether in this life, or the next... | |
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Posted: 7/17/2008 5:21:30 PM | I am a TOTAL believer in Karma.
I do not seek my own revenge,I sit back and wait...and yes it does go around.
Perfect example....
Went to Hard rock park,and the kids wanted to ride some ride,so as im waiting for them to go, I see huge water guns that allow me to shoot at the people as they go by on the ride.
Me being me,im squirting all i can,and laughing at how im going to drench my kid.
When a monsoon of water fell on me and drenched everything in,on and around me.
Havent laughed that hard in years. But to me....that was Karma
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Posted: 7/17/2008 5:58:41 PM | yes I believe in karma..I don't believe it affects me in the afterlife,my body is dead How is anything gonna affect me...I am a ball of energy...I am just gonna float around for awhile in the universe..then I don't know...maybe go for a swim in the sun | |
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Posted: 7/17/2008 6:46:20 PM |
In the Wiccan creed
Try the Reed.
And I haven't seen any evidence in favor of karma. | |
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Posted: 7/17/2008 7:05:42 PM | Ooh sorry, I made a typo. I'll make sure it doesn't happen again.
Some do refer to it as the Wiccan Creed. (creed being prayer or chant).
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| Karma
Posted: 7/17/2008 7:42:30 PM | I believe in Karma, I have experienced it. I was reading this qigong book teaching how to take chi from trees. So I started taking chi from trees, then I remember some karate masters taking energy from people to their stunts. So I started stealing chi from people. What I accumulated was karma. I didn't know at the time. I got very sick and I couldn't figure out why. I even had a few spiritual healers do they energy healing on me but my karma was too large. Finally I ran into a site with true teachings about virtue and karma.
From what I learned there it amazed me what karma really is and how it effects all not just this life time but other lives as well.
Now I meditate to get rid of the karma I accumulated from many life times. | |
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Posted: 7/17/2008 7:54:03 PM | yes i can read that...lmao ..good one | |
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| Karma
Posted: 7/17/2008 10:22:19 PM | | Karma is far to complex a topic to properly categorize in a single thread. You have to ask yourself, which group's view of karma are we discussing? For some it is good, some it is something to get rid of, others it is a neutral chain of causation. There isn't really a "Law of Karma" outside of new age misunderstandings. | |
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| Karma
Posted: 7/17/2008 10:22:20 PM | | If all you see in life is negative then all you get out of life is negative. That is true karma. | |
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Posted: 7/17/2008 11:08:24 PM |
We've all heard of "Karma". The idea that "What goes around, comes around." But is there any proof of this? Is it just a belief without any rationale?
In a very basic way, for every action there is a reaction (good and/or bad). It's just a question of "when" that reaction occurs. | |
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| Karma
Posted: 7/18/2008 10:30:28 AM | If we're going to be nitpicky about the spelling, it's Rede.
Yes I believe in Karma. It took me awhile to clue into it though. It's very easy to look around and see ignorant twits getting ahead in life; seemingly getting all that they want or desire.
On the flip side:
- They may not be learning/growing from the experience of getting things they seemingly do not deserve.
- Who knows what makes these people truly happy as individuals? Perhaps they are getting things in life that make *me* happy, yet are being denied the fundamentals to their own. | |
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Posted: 8/1/2008 6:52:24 PM | I believe in karma, or something like it.
A few qualifications, though:
1. it may or may not be instant or there may be apparant exceptions to it which may or may not be true
2. it may simply be that the world, existence, is completely and utterly logical. And logic may or may not having anything at all to what we term good or bad as moral judgments.
So, for me, that begs the question: is it natural or supernatural?
Is it natural in the sense that the world is simply logical.......a, b and c lead to d, 1+1=2, etc.... maybe in ways we just dont get because we are creatures here, driven by mental constructs, hormones, emotions, limited awareness, etc.... and if we could somehow see a much, much bigger, clearer picture.........we would connect the dots?
Or is there some supernatural force we can call karma.....in the way justice and freedom are "forces" .... ?
And lastly, does it matter? If it does matter, why?
It matters to me because I want to know that goodness and honestly and hard work pay off, that these create goodness for me and maybe protect me from bad..... or that thieving and lying and trecherous things are punished. Somehow, some way..... my life has to be bounded by consequences, one way or another.... | |
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Posted: 8/2/2008 4:46:04 AM | Karma is very real to me. It's not an instant thing as some would like it to be, but it is also very 'subjective'.
To use the first example of the rain falling... the rain can be many different things.
One person may think: Oh great, it's raining and I left my umbrella in the car and the windows are down.
Another person will think: Oh great, it's raining. The flowers need a chance to grow and the ground has been so dry of late that it will help the farmers.
Which one is wrong? Neither. Which one is right? Both.
I'll give you a better example. I think most everyone here would say an abusive relationship is a 'Bad Thing'. I would like to think I'm a 'Good Person' and yet, such happened to me. I'm still dealing with the results of the abuse years later. I could easily sit here and go 'why me'. Instead, I am sitting here and recognizing the growth that has happened in my life. Yes, it happened but, if it didn't, I wouldn't be as strong a person. I've got a long way to go still, but I realize now that if I had not been in that relationship, I would still be a perpetual doormat. Or in the case of my cousin who was born with severe cerebral palsey. Yes, her life may not have been what anyone would have wished to live through, but she was so full of pure love and taught others around her to love unconditionally.
Yes, Karma exists. It just may not be in a form of 'revenge' and it happens in it's own time. As someone who is looking at the 'outside' you may not see the karma happening, but the domino is placed and waiting to knock down the others. | |
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| Karma
Posted: 8/2/2008 6:06:38 AM | I'm a simple person so my definition of Karma is equally simple.
Karma to me simply means...
You reap what you sow
or...
For every action there's a reaction or consequence
or...
Kindness breeds kindness
or...
"I expect to pass through this world but once. Any good therefore that I can do, or any kindness that I can show to any fellow creature, let me do it now. Let me not defer or neglect it, for I shall not pass this way again."
~ William Penn ~
or...
"No kind action ever stops with itself. One kind action leads to another. Good example is followed. A single act of kindness throws out roots in all directions, and the roots spring up and make new trees. The greatest work that kindness does to others is that it makes them kind themselves."
~ Amelia Earhart ~
I guess Karma (to me) is basically the same thing as the ripple effect...whatever pebbles (pebbles of kindness, generosity, compassion etc...OR pebbles of greed, selfishness...etc.) you decide to throw in the pond (world), no matter how big or small, will be felt throughout the whole pond and it's inhabitants (humanity)...possibly for years to come.
I know this isn't the "real" definition of Karma, but since I don't personally believe in Karma "per se", I just wanted to share what it means to me...to each their own:)
JMHO | |
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Posted: 8/2/2008 7:25:35 AM | ^^yes, oldsoul, I was thinking last night if I were to try and respond, the idea of the ripple or butterfly effect is what I was thinking....as well as wishing to offer an alternative to the automatic assumption many think of when they hear the word karma that it means something 'bad'.
my understanding has been it's more objective in meaning - in that it simply means, as you have said, for every action (thought, word, written or spoken, even intention), there is a consequence or reaction....maybe not right away, maybe not to the original person or people, and very rarely as one imagines - but there are always consequences, so they say......
and, yes, I so agree - 'karma' can yield some incredible blessings too!  | |
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Posted: 8/2/2008 9:33:07 AM | Weare1, yes, the concept of karma has become thought of a vengeful justice.
There is so much more to it, though.
And it's not just how we treat "others", it's our relationship to ourselves as well. | |
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Posted: 8/3/2008 8:08:48 PM | Its a balance. Its as solid as gravity. Black and white and it just is.
Its not about how much good you 'try' to put into the world, its how much you 'are' in this life. What your intentions mean is everything because if you do things for selfish reasons, you know its not going to end up peaches and cream every time. Or for any length of time.
Its creating positive from negative.
Yin and yang. | |
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| Karma
Posted: 7/27/2009 5:11:52 PM | I'm a believer in Karma ~ sometimes, I'll look back at my past and recall things I've done that caused hurt to others and I feel that any pain I experience is justified because of what I've done
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| Karma
Posted: 7/28/2009 6:45:47 PM | Most people do not understand the concept of 'kamma' (the sanskrit-based spelling), but instead, have absorbed a modified version of the concept 'karma' or 'kharma'.
In the interest of sharing information, the following is an outline of 'kamma' from within the originating philosophical system (Buddhism):
First and foremost, the notion of kamma is not some outside force that acts. It is the fruition of one's choices (actions) and may encompass thoughts, words, and deeds.
The baseline concept is that all reactions (outcomes, results, etc) arise as the direct result of one's actions.
The actions of one create an ever-expanding wave of reactions - some of which one sees, some of which are invisible to the initiator of the action, some of which travel for long distance/time before the effect meets the initiator again.
These actions may or may not inter-weave with the actions of others, they may or may not become compounded by the actions encountered along the way, they may or may not therefore, return in much larger and more overt ways (i.e., they may or may not be immediately recognizable when they return).
Another aspect of kamma is the tendency of the interweaving of action/reaction or cause/effect can, over time, actually restrict access to or ability to find, receive, enjoy, or appreciate things that might have come into one's life were a certain action not undertaken.
In this way, kamma actively shapes the realm of possibility that the one who initiates an action can experience. (Somewhat like determinism in this regard; A person who constantly gives away any money they have is not likely to ever wind up rich.)
Finally, kamma is likened to a wave within an ocean. No matter how small the pebble dropped that created the wave, it will, eventually, reach the shore. Therefore, the only way to truly shape or change one's kamma is to both be open to the arrival of effects/reactions and to learn how to avoid actions/choices that are yet another unhelpful or negative "pebble in the ocean".
This process of becoming aware and responsible for one's kamma and figuring out how to neutralize the choices that continue the cycle of action/reaction or cause/effect is one of many goals in Buddhist practice. The underlying realization being that we DO have the power and ability to choose differently, to choose to reign in actions/choices and, when one becomes skilled at managing it, the ability to both neutralize kamma as well as generate helpful and beneficial kamma (both for oneself as well as on behalf of others) is increased. | |
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