Deconstructing Karma

There are many misunderstandings about karma. People make it into what they like. They often portray it as a Law, something irrefutable, something given by a great mystical World saviour, Buddha.

But Karma according to the ancient Indian tradition for thousands of years before Buddha Gautama, is not a law because there is no lawmaker. Neither is it scientific because it is not a phenomenon outside the human body which can be measured, dissected, held to account, because science is not complete without internal knowing.

Karma is the nature of all existence. In fact, it is existence itself. In existence and nature it is true that if you sow a seed, at some point its centre will force outwards and sprout. It could be almost immediately if the conditions are perfect for the ground and moisture but it could also be months or years later. But it is true to say that it will germinate. The germination is the result of the seed and so it is possible to say that there are conditions in the world and they produce results.

We each have a nature, our true nature, and so each crime or contradiction against it is recorded in our unconscious—the storehouse of not only your entire existence but also that of your ancestors. Some call this storehouse a book, so everything that is contrary to your True Nature is written of the book of you and creates a reaction. It may be guilt or unworthiness, insecurity or self-condemnation—the names of these uncomfortable feelings are of no consequence. Think of them as a closing of a small window or extinguishing of a small light inside you. They create a blockage to the smooth flow of your energy because in our original natural state we were totally available, nothing was held back – thus we were and still are completely pure. Negative Karma, which we can potentially create every moment, is like static causing things to stick.

If you lie then you can be certain that many other lies will follow. If you speak one truth then many other truths will follow. Because we are special humans in progress from animals to super-beings then goodness registers as a credit and evil as a discredit.

Karma is the epitome of human hope which we have in our peripheral vision at all times as we create ourselves. The choice is ours as we are our own creators: either we create grace or disgrace. But it is strange, an anomaly, that those who have accumulated so much disgrace are in the majority and those who create only grace are in a minority.

Karma is continuously produced in the process of human life. The results are simultaneous and it is easy to observe in practice. If you smile at a stranger, they will probably smile back and reach out with a glowing word. The smile returned is the response to or result of the smile offered. Conversely, if you raise a fist at someone, they will probably raise one back or rush away from you terrified. The fist returned or the fleeing is the reaction to or the result of the fist you raised.

Karma is precious life and every thought, word and deed that we have.