Wise Action and Karma

Why Wise Action?

According to the Buddha, our destiny, good luck or bad luck all depend on our own actions. There is nothing that happens in the universe accidentally or haphazardly. The result of our actions is the effect that is caused by our actions.  This, he called Karma. Karma (action and the result of action) can be positive/good or negative/bad. It all depends on the intention of the doer and the amount of change the action causes.  Karma is also defined as “the effects of a person’s actions that determines one’s destiny in his next reincarnation.“ Thoughts and intentions are interchangeable, for actions with intention do not happen without thinking first.

In order to understand this better we consider the following:

  1. Cause and effect (Karma) is a law of nature. Nothing happens without a source or a cause.
  2. Just like a combination of letters and words become sentences, combination of actions and behaviors including verbal action create Karma or results.
  3. Action is driven by purpose and intention or thought. I. e. we look at the topic of this paper and decide to read it.
  4. Karma is both internal and external

There are 3 categories of external Karma:

  1. Intention leads to Action
  2. Action happens without Intention
  3. Intention without Action
    1. The nature of Karma is that every thought whether acted upon or not affects our mental environment. And we are the owner of our own actions – meaning we did them – hence we will reap the consequences of it, whether good or bad. i.e. when we study for a test diligently we get good results and visa versa. If we tease a dog, we get bit by it.
    2. Some effects are immediate like the case of teasing a dog and others may take years or even lifetime to arrive.
    3. Often it is not possible to know what happens to us linked to what action we might have done. It may be due to a forgotten action in this or previous lives.
  4. World Effects: The sum of our bodily and verbal actions / Karma has an effect on the world.
    1. These effects of our karma are unfathomable, going on through time and distance with a ripple effect.
    2. Ripple effects are caused by movement –  i.e. one cannot sit in water and not move. The smallest movement makes the water move and the water movement also affects the person in it. Likewise, every physical movement in the air causes waves in the environment. I. e. rushing, impulsive behavior causes nervous energy or anxiety in the environment.
    3. Whenever we act, the world reacts based on the change we impose on it.
    4. All the changes we make eventually circle back to us because we are not separate from the world. We are interconnected and interdependent.
    5. For this reason, slow, gentle, caring actions we put into the world, the world will respond in slow, comfortable and caring actions. Likewise, aggressive, deceptive, or hostile actions will bring us the same.
    6. Time and conditions affect the result of our actions – everything is moving forward in time and the result of our actions will eventually catchup with us.
    7. Change requires time for the effects to happen – movement creates movement and all our actions create movement. It is not linear.
    8. Death of the body does not end the ripple effect and movement of energy we cause. Our responsibility for our actions do not die with our death.
    9. We may be free of this responsibility only when we break free of the cycle of actions and impacts we have on the world.
    10. Karma is not – what goes around comes around – is not tit for tat.
    11. When the heart and mind act separately it is a broken self and causes negative karma.
    12. A most important factor is that since our actions cause change and we reap the benefits or consequences then we are not stuck with a past negative karma. There is nothing random or haphazard about the universe.

Five laws of reality / nature.

  1. Biology works the way it works
  2. Chemistry works the way it works
  3. Physics is set up and works the way it works.
  4. Karma – Cause and Effect work the way it works
  5. Action is the only law of nature that we have something to say or do about and change the course of any event. Our actions are the ground we walk on. It is reliable.
  6. Our Karma finds us in this or the next lives. It works like channels and frequencies – whatever frequency or channel of energy we travel on we shall experience the qualities of our own actions – the tone of the frequencies echo through future time and place.
  7. There is no deserving or not deserving in Karma – If we thought someone or ourselves deserved negative consequences it would be thought from a heart that lacks compassion which by itself can cause negative consequences for the thinker.
  8. Lack of compassion is disconnected from the pure heart and connected to the mind, which can be deluded and contaminated – causing suffering. Deserving perspective is harmful and should be avoided.
  9. We may find ourselves accident prone or bad luck – it is said that is the effect of forgotten actions.

We are not stuck:

  1. Properly lived present will not create bomb filled future
  2. We can change our karmic experiences in the present moment and by doing good.
  3. We can build a wall of harmonious actions and moral conduct to protect ourselves and others from our past unskillful deeds.

How to Create Good Karma:

  1. Keeping the 5 precepts
    1. Training to refrain from harming or killing any being
    2. Training to refrain from taking that which is not given
    3. Training to refrain from harmful and false speech
    4. Training to refrain from sexual misconduct
    5. Training to refrain from intoxicants that dull the mind.
  2. Being aware of mind states and protecting oneself from that which causes defilements.
  3. Help and support wise and well-intended people to create positive waves
  4. Make Merit and Give – Giving cultivates waves of positive energy – it is not about how much we give – about how much change we create in the world. i.e. feeding a volatile, aggressive and hostile person may give you one point for the good deed and feeding a wholesome person who brings goodness into the world can give you 100 points for the good deed because this person or entity is enabled to create even more goodness into the world.

How to change past negative karma:

  1. Becoming a better person, keeping those five precepts creates trust, which can soften negative judgment. If we do not change we will likely receive the anger and judgment of those we have harmed.
  2. Living in the high ground of precepts will put us in a cleaner more suitable environment and echoes and waves that are different, more good, and better actions are more encouraged and more normal. Higher, better network of people who will  not lie and cheat will surround you, a valuable asset.
  3. Improving our odds by actively doing good.
  4. Kind, honest, and harmless values carry powerful strengths that can help our lives be lived at its best.
    1. Recognizing virtuous deeds and values and every morning reminding oneself of those values.  Creating a mental habit by repeating statements of intention. For example,
    2. “I, your name, have the intention to hold my precepts with kindness and compassion and by the power of these precepts may my life be filled with comfort, joy and smooth transactions. May I have a good, harmonious, and happy relationship with everyone I come in contact with for business and personal matters and may my business not burden me. May it be successful.”
    3. “By the power of these precepts may I be patient, intelligent, wise and present.”
  5. Practicing precepts through awareness of our bodies – movement, thoughts, and verbal actions to reduce suffering and increase positive karmic effect.
  6. When breaking the precepts to forgive ourselves and recommit to the intention.

Concentrating on Precepts:

  1. Evaluating bodily and verbal behaviors – Is it wholesome or not?
  2. Holding precepts as the object of concentration – returning to them over and over again.
  3. Noting the result of telling the truth – life becomes simpler, smoother, cleaner, easier. No extra time, effort, energy and thinking is spent to try and hold the illusion of the unreal. Lying steals freedom.
  4.  Concentration on the precepts cultivates wisdom – cultivates mindfulness.

How different traditions / sects look at Karma and the solution for bad Karma:

  1. Christianity: Hear no evil, see no evil and do no evil
  2. Zoroastrianism: Good and kind thoughts, Good and kind speech, Good and kind actions
  3. Buddhism:  Practice not doing bad – practice doing good – practice purify your mind.