Saturday, December 1, 2012

Instant Karma

Karma is one of those words we don't translate. Its basic meaning is
simple enough — action — but because of the weight the Buddha's
teachings give to the role of action, the Sanskrit word karma packs in
so many implications that the English word action may not be able to
espouse its luggage. This is probably why we've simply airlifted the
original word into our vocabulary.

But when we try unpacking the connotations the word carries now that
it has arrived in everyday usage, we find that most of its luggage has
gotten mixed up in transit. In the eyes of most western people, karma
functions like fate — bad fate, at that: an inexplicable, unchangeable
force coming out of our past, for which we are somehow vaguely
responsible and powerless to fight. "I guess it's just my karma," I've
heard people sigh when bad fortune strikes with such force that they
see no alternative to resigned acceptance. The fatalism implicit in
this statement is one reason why so many of us are repelled by the
concept of karma, for it sounds like the kind of callous myth-making
that can justify almost any kind of suffering or injustice in the
status quo: "If he's poor, it's because of his karma." "If she's been
raped, it's because of her karma." From this it seems a short step to
saying that he or she deserves to suffer, and so doesn't deserve our
help.

Have you ever caught yourself in a position where you want to do
something, but you end up not doing it fearing the outcome of the
action? A few days ago, I met an American lady in one of the compounds
in Riyadh who is a dog lover. She was sharing how her friend wants her
to adopt his pet dogs. She refused the offer. Her reason was —“What if
something happens to the dogs or they fall ill while they are with me?
I will be held responsible and it will also add to the account of my
deeds. I will get caught in the web of karma because of them, so it is
better not to take the responsibility.” While she shared her simple
reason for refusing with me, I got thinking, “Is this what karma is?”

In my conversations with people from different walks of life, I have
realized that a lot of them believe that the principle of karma is
only a manifestation of guilt and the fear of being punished in some
way by someone. The belief is that there is an external source
somewhere keeping a ledger of all your deeds, good and bad, like
maintaining a balance sheet of your accounts. In the end there will be
a calculation, the credits (good deeds) and debits (bad deeds) will be
measured and that will decide the quality of your future life. There
is God up there. That supreme power is the judge of right and wrong,
and based on his judgment, we will get our rewards or punishments.

In my understandng, I find it difficult to believe that a reality
called "karma" does exist. There are people who believe that there
will be rewards, punishments, redemptions, and atonements but the myth
is that the accounts are external and unrelated and whoever maintains
them is also an external entity (like God, as they believe). They
presume that the judgment of our deeds is being done somewhere else by
God. Actually this judgement is always an internal process. We judge
our deeds and intentions; we decide their outcomes and impacts. There
is never an external entity keeping an account, the punishment is also
not decided by that entity nor is our quality of our lives. It is we
who decide what’s wrong and what’s not. It is we who decide what
punishment we deserve for a particular deed, if at all. The key word
here is CHOICE, in my view.

It is we who have the power to forgive ourselves, learn from the
situation and move on, without the baggage of karma. All of us are the
creators of our own lives and destinies.
I decide what goes on in my universe as I am the center of my
universe. It is from me that the universe originates, and it is as
much internal, as it is external.

In fact, just like we all understand or even do not understand, God,
differently and our understanding as well as our relationship with God
is completely dependent on our interpretations and perspectives, so is
karma. What He is for you is not what He is for me or anyone else.
Similarly, what deeds are good for you may be not good for someone
else. Hence, our karma boils down to how we interpret our actions and
intentions. If our analysis is based on guilt and fear, we will
accumulate a lot of karma to deal with.

All of us at some point decide whether to take an action or not based
on our fear of the outcome. At that point we fail to understand that
the outcome is not only a result of our action itself, but also of our
intention behind that action. When we carry out an action based on
fear or when after the action we feel guilty, we create negative
karma. For this action, we keep punishing ourselves directly or
indirectly. Little do we realise that we always have a simple choice —
to eradicate the guilt and fear. If we realise that our action has
hurt someone, we can simply apologize and work towards not repeating
the same action or intention again. It is easier to learn from a
mistake, forgive ourselves and become better persons in the process.

Karma is what we make of it. We all have our own versions of truth,
reality, right and wrong. Your version might be true for you and false
for me and vice versa. All I share here is my own thinking,
interpretation and understanding of this thing called karma, that most
people like to jump on to.

My morning started with the usual shit shave and shampoo, and driving
the girls and grandson to school. On my way to work, thereafter, my
thoughts raced to the fact that I will be turning 65 in February 2013.
Nice number, nice age. Only 4 short of the juicy oral fantasy that
most of us still enjoy and have also devoured during our early teen
years, be it Abbot, Housewife, or even a teenage Kella down Sagara
Road.

Then it occurred to me that all of us '59er dudes will be hitting 65
in 2013 while some ma have already reached the magic number in 2012.
It was only yesterday that someone sent me an email relating to the
life span across the many nations of the world and Sri Lanka was
placed at 74.3 or something. That meant that we still have a decent 9
years of power left inside us to ride the waves, play Bridge or
Scrabble, and even knock the daylights out of each other on email, be
it Tamil Tiger, Abbots, Rajapakshe romantics, or even business as
usual.

We do have a close and great bunch, among the six of us, who interact
on a daily basis on all these topics and more and keep laughing until
we doze off to sleep at night. What if one of us was to depart? How
would it affect the rest? Would we miss him as much as we think? How
sad would such an event be in our hearts and minds? Would we attribute
it to "KARMA" and feel that, "yes, he's gone and our time will surely
come, too"?

No doubt we have cultivated an even greater bond that we used to have
back at Royal in the 60's. This, in my view, has only been so
successful because of our age, maturity, openness, and the ability to
punch each other on the nose and still smile and be friends. A
tremendous leap from where we may have ended up not talking to each
other for weeks in the old school days.
So, there can be no doubt that we will all make that last train,
sooner than later. The question is, in what order?

Thinking loud, my own feelings are that we be thankful that we were
able to be what we are until the end. It’s a great feeling to know
that we have known each other for more than 55 years and are able to
stay in touch, thanks to old Mr Charles Babbage from Britain, and
still feel the warmth and goodness of our friendship over so many
decades, without any hidden agenda or conspiracies in our hearts and
minds.

Coming back to Karma. I don’t really believe in it based on my "out of
the box" life that I have chosen to lead in recent times. I observe
good people who are screwed over. I observe incorrigible people who
are rewarded for being assholes. The correct thing to do in life is to
try and be as "good" as possible. Some of you may then ask me, "what
is good"?. But it’s also important to be as true to who you are as
possible. And often this truth gets in the way of being good. There
is, I must confess, a great delight I frequently experience in being
"bad" or "naughty" if you may prefer the latter?. Of course, my sense
of bad is rooted in a baroque set of ethics that would take too much
time to explain. But I try not to go out of my way to hurt people. And
if I do hurt people, which is most often, unintentionally, I try to
atone with positive actions to others.

The standard understanding of karma is this: what goes around comes
around. I find this to be less true in practice than it is in
principle. I suppose I believe that if you are ultimately true to who
you are, you will encourage other people to be true to who they are.
And if karma is rooted upon this sense of personal truth, then I
approve of this. (And this seems to be more philosophical than
religious.) But this karmic idea is more rooted in action, as opposed
to some cosmic overseer who lays down the law for the universe.

If karma is rooted on coincidence, however, I cannot subscribe to it.
And I don’t see how any reasonable person can fully put their faith in
this. In fact, the sooner that other people understand this, the
sooner we can put the self-help industry out of business. Really,
they’ve made too much money exploiting human suffering.

The universe is based on one simple Newtonian precept: for every
action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. While this rule
applies to gravity, I think it likewise applies to life. But since
human beings decide how or when or if they wish to respond, one simply
can’t anticipate when that “equal and opposite reaction” will occur.
(And sometimes, it occurs from the unlikeliest of sources.) Hence, the
giddy values of chaos, which is a lot more fun than sitting around
worrying about when something will happen.

So I do look at any days unpleasant events and I figure that it’s
something I can write off as a reaction to something bad I’ve done
somewhere along the line. And I also look at the good things that
happened today, like the smooth ride I had to work on the road this
morning without even a single raghead giving me his overnight attitude
and gusto.
There’s certainly an ignoble self-justification of my own character
flaws here, but nobody’s perfect. (I’m certainly not a saint and I
even don’t want to be one if it is offered to me by the Pope.)
Certainly the universe isn’t. But if it were, then life wouldn’t be
nearly so interesting.

15 comments:

  1. Ando writes: Very interesting and thought provoking.
    I think Retribution, and rebirth fits in somewhere.
    Buddhism does mention that one can have good and Bad Karma
    And actions can avoid especially the bad version.
    I am reading this on Monday morning, let's see what our Fellow theologists have to say about your brilliant piece

    ReplyDelete
  2. Skanda says: What an intelligent indepth analysis.......without disrespect I will
    stay with the theory of Karma, with the addition....a reaction to an
    action...never immediate though.....Newtons 3rd Law ? SS

    ReplyDelete
  3. Faz responds: Skanda,

    Of course,you have every right to stick to what you believe in and I
    respect it vehemently. I only shared my own thinking with no agenda or
    intent to proselytize or convert anyone, whatsoever.

    The idea of me delivering my Sunday Morning sermon is purely to create
    an atmosphere of discussion and sharing where we can all indulge in
    some patter through the week. Look at where Mahmud's Abbot escapade
    has taken us to?

    Of course Newton's 3rd law is totally applicable in the physical
    domain but not necessarily in the abstract mental or emotional terrain
    cos there is no way it can be proven in that arena even if it looks
    plausible from the cause and effect "karma" understanding.

    Lets hear more on the topic from the rest of the Abbotboys.

    Faz

    ReplyDelete
  4. Skanda quips: The guys may be preoccupied with their next conquest !!

    ReplyDelete
  5. Faz: This is a very interesting topic for discussion by any group
    interested in bashing an idea. No one has been able to prove Karma, both Good or Bad, similar to the fact that no one has returned from
    Heaven or Hell or even Nirvana to tell us whats on the other side, they are only hypothetical deductions based on someone else's thoughts
    and meditation. I dont have any proof to deny them but the onus of the believer is to provide the proof to claim what he/she believes is
    true.

    I am glad that the buggers are taking some time to read the whole damn post and deliberate on its merits and demerits. I am sure it would
    bring out some great aspects of thinking if we could hear what the rest of the gang think and feel.

    If Karma exists then it certainly is totally INCONSISTENT and does not happen in a manner that can be proved by science, eg; blue litmus
    turning red every time it hits the acid or vice versa when it hits an alkali. People may claim that a particular cause and effect scenario
    that they are aware of is an outcome of Karma.

    Thats will well and good. However, if that be the yardstick to measure and prove karma
    then it must also be apparent in every single other case. Of course, we will then hear them claiming that Karma has its own time frame to
    play out. Now, that in my view is a gross violation of science and the rules it follows and becomes only an excuse to avoid being disproved.

    Its more like responding, "Thats the Will of God and He only Knows the true meaning of what He Has created and placed on earth" when you ask
    the question "Why did God Create Human Beings"?

    The floor is open gentleman.I hope I have opened a "GOOD" can of worms?

    Faz

    ReplyDelete
  6. Found this on Google posted by an Indian chap named GYAN RAJHANS on
    his blog, now an immigrant Canadian living in Missisuaga, Ontario.
    Interesting stuff for discussion:-

    quote
    Karma is the law that states every mental, emotion and physical act,
    no matter how insignificant it is,eventually returns to the individual
    with equal impact.

    Here are the 10 myths about Karma that I have compiled for you at the
    request of my Bhajanawali listeners. You will not find these
    elsewhere.

    Myths:

    1. Karma is not what you hear quite often on the TV or read in the
    newspapers, like “this is my Karma” or “that must be your Karma.”.
    Because, these expressions denote Karma as something bad.

    2. Karma is fate.Wrong again,. Everybody has free will. No external
    force is controlling your life. If fate means something inevitable,
    that is determined and controlled by supernatural power then Karma and
    fate are not the same. Karma is the effect of one’s past deeds. In
    Hindu view God does not create an individual’s fate or destiny. The
    individual himself, by virtue of his actions, determines his fate.
    Past deeds determine the present, and the present deeds determine the
    future, in accordance with the doctrine of Karma.

    3. Only actions are Karma, not the thoughts. Wrong. Thoughts also make
    Karmas good, bad and mixed.

    4. God gives us karma. Wrong again. Each one of us creates our own
    karma every moment of our lives.

    5. God can dispense individual Karma. Wrong again. We have tendencies
    to cry in times of personal crisis. “Why has God done this to me?” or
    “What did I do to deserve this?” Remember, while God is the creator
    and sustainer of the cosmic law of Karma, He does not dispense
    individual Karma, He does not produce cancer in one person’s body and
    develop Olympic athletic powers in another’s. We create our own
    experiences.

    6. Planets and stars cause or dictate Karma. Wrong again. Hindu
    astrology or Jyotish details a real relation between ourselves and the
    geography of the solar system and certain star clusters. But it is not
    a cause and effect relation. Planets and stars don’t cause or dictate
    Karma. Their orbital relationships establish proper conditions for
    Karma to activate and a particular type of personality to develop.

    7. Karma inherited in the past life cannot be modified. Wrong. It is a
    simple equation of debit and credit. If you have acquired sufficient
    credit by doing good Karma it may wipe out the effect of bad deeds,
    the debt ,one was born with.

    8. Karma can never be completely wiped out. Wrong again. According to
    the Bhagwad Gita, Chapter 4, Shloka 37, “Just as a blazing fire burns
    firewood to ashes, true knowledge attained by the grace of God,
    through a Guru, douse all Karma to ashes.”

    9. The results of past Karma alone can lead to success without any
    effort. Wrong. The results of past Karma or destiny alone cannot lead
    to success unless effort is maximized. That is why in the Bhagwad
    Gita, Lord Krishna after informing Arjuna, that his destiny favors his
    winning the battle, advises Arjuna to fight. Shloka 33 of Chapter
    11 of the Gita, the Lord says “Arise, o Arjuna, conquer thy enemies,
    enjoy the kingdom and win the glory.” Although the impact of an
    individual's past Karma cannot be underestimated, it is the effort the
    one must control by utilizing one’s free will.

    10. There cannot be free will because the present life is determined
    by the past Karma. Also wrong. In the words of Dr. S. Radhakrishnan,
    “The cards in the game of life are given to us, we do not select them,
    they are traced to our past Karma, but we can call as we please, lead
    what suit we will and as we play we gain or lose. And that is what
    freedom is.” This freedom of choice will be explained in the next
    blog.
    unquote

    ReplyDelete
  7. Faz:

    some questions?

    1. Why do good things happen to bad people and bad things happen to good people?

    2. Isn't Karma a way of forcing guilt down peoples throats, no different from the wrath of Hellfire that awaits the sinner?

    3. The fact is that with all of that behind us Karma is the glue that people use to not go crazy and admit what seems to be kind of obvious like:
    - Some people do get away with murder.
    - Some children suffer for no reason.
    - The guys who go after what they want, sometimes at the cost of others, usually, are the ones who get rich, get laid and get even.

    4. Just because we have read it in a book or heard it from our parents or were taught by our religious leaders does not make it true... unless of course we have been trained to never question authority.

    5. As much as one MIGHT think that believing in Karma is good there are reasons that believing the opposite is just as good. Shocking thought, isn't it, but who likes to be motivated by fear to do the "right" thing?

    6. Why would anyone create te concept of Karma in the first place? One reason is to control people to do the right thing out of fear. There are other reasons if you think about them. Heaven and Hell, Nirvana, and the rest also follow the same line of thought.

    7. The absence of Karma could be liberating or a burden. It can liberate one to live free of guilt and fear but it can burden one with REAL responsibility; the responsibility to be 100% in control of their life.

    lets hear the rest of the assembly, please

    ReplyDelete
  8. Muthu says On Mon, Dec 3, 2012 at 6:30 PM,:

    I thought all intelligent people have accepted that god did not create humans (creation) they evolved (evolution), Only the religious nutters believe otherwise
    muthu

    ReplyDelete
  9. Fazli responds:
    Muthu,

    You thought wrong. The majority of people on this planet do believe in the Creation theory based on blind faith and fairy tale myths written on papyrus from ancient times.

    That doesnt go to say that they are all not intelligent. Its the brainwashing from childhood that prevents many from trying to question their faiths and writings and seek logical and scientific answers to these significant issues and questions.

    We were all raised within some form of religious structure without a doubt and its nbot easy to shed those feathers, even over decades.

    People need to start questioning themselves openly and rationally to get the right answers.

    ReplyDelete
  10. Muthu says:

    one can't help wondering why wealthy people are not religious

    ReplyDelete
  11. Suren:

    Because they are self reliant,little realising that there are a lot of things money can't buy

    ReplyDelete
  12. Fazli:

    Suren,

    On this planet humans do need the ability to be able to purchase what they need and this ability differentiates them from those are unable to do so, thereby giving rise to the RICH and the NOT SO RICH I deliberately didnt use the P Word here)

    Thats the basic logic and reality if life.

    Of course Happiness may not always be available in your purse since human emotions are not always available for a price.

    But to think that there is some UNKNOWN quantity that will determine this factor is a kinda way above the top of logic or reasoning.

    I understand that religions are all based on BLIND faith and this is exactly the vision I am trying to restore within myself and those with whom I interact with in an honorable and positive manner.

    Faz

    ReplyDelete
  13. Ando:

    Gentleman
    Enough on this subject pls
    Otherwise keep me out of it
    Thanks
    Ando

    ReplyDelete
  14. Skanda's Comments with fazli's responses in UPPERCASE:

    On Tue, Dec 4, 2012 at 11:47 AM, Somasundram Skandakumar wrote:
    Here is mine......
    1) Previous Karma....
    SO EVERY PRESENT SITUATION THAT WE FACE CAN EASILY BE BLAMED ON SOME UNKNOWN PREVIOUS ACTION THAT IS ASSUMED TO HAVE BEEN COMMITTED BY US EVEN IF WE HAVE NO CLUE ABOUT IT?

    2) No....its meant to appeal to your conscience and encourage accountability....
    WHAT PERCENT OF HUMANS CONDUCT THEIR LIVES BASED ON THEIR CONSCIENCE? IF THE NUMBER IS LARGE THEN IT REALLY DOESNT CARRY MUCH WEIGHT OR VALUE?

    3 ) to 7)...." The Wheels of God's Justice Grind But Slowly.... But
    they DO GRIND ' !!.......
    THEREFORE IT COULD BE IMPOSSIBLE FOR MANY OF US TO SEE GODS JUSTICE BEING METED OUT TO ANYONE WHO MAY HAVE HURT OR HARMED US? WE MAY ALSO NEVER SEE THE FRUITS OF OUR HARD WORK ON THIS PLANET REWARDED IF THE REWARD IS PLANNED TO BE GIVEN TO US IN OUR NEXT BIRTH. IN WHICH CASE WE DO NOT REALLY RECEIVE THE REWARDS OR PUNISHMENTS AS WE UNDERSTAND IT AND SOMEONE ELSE (OUR NEW FORM AFTER REBIRTH) IS THE ONE WHO HAS TO BEAR THE CROSS? THAT DOESNT SUPPORT MUCH LOGIC AT ALL. ITS MORE LIKE SOMEONE ELSE BEING REWARDED OR SUFFERING FOR ANOTHERS ACTS.

    No Karma does not invite fear.....it merely supports good responsible living.
    Man is born fallible and so he needs some form of control to stay out
    of harm's way.
    THE REASON WHY I CLAIM THAT KARMA and RELIGION BOTH IMPART FEAR IN THE MINDS OF THEIR BELIEVERS IS BECAUSE I AM SEEING THEM ALL SHIT SCARED OF THE HEREAFTER OF WHICH THEY HAVE ZERO KNOWLEDGE ON PRETENDING AS IF THEY KNOW EXACTLY HOW AND WHAT WILL HAPPEN WHEN THEY ARE DEAD AND GONE

    All of this pre supposes that one believes in rebirth....as Hindus do.
    YES, I UNDERSTAND THAT KARMA IS BASED ON THE PREMISE THAT ONE HAS TO ACCEPT REED AND MORE LIKE HEAVEN, HELL, BIRTH AS A VALID HAPPENING. BUT THEN ISNT REBIRTH STILL A CONJECTURE ONLY SIMILAR TO HEAVEN, HELL, VALHALLA, NIRVANA ETC?

    (A lay mans response !!) SS
    SKANDA, I AM NO PRIEST OR POPE.I AM A SIMPLELAYMAN JUST LIKE YOU, TOO, BUT I TRY TO USE MY COMMON SENSE OVER WRITTEN SCRIPTURE THAT IS KIND OF TOO MYTHOLOGICAL AND CONCOCTED FOR ME TO ACCEPT AS TRUE

    FAZ

    ReplyDelete
  15. Muthu:

    I think men who employ others should be on top of the Reverence list. After all the most important thing for an adult male, next to his donga, is a good job. That is the reason why wealthy people are not religious

    ReplyDelete