Think Smarter (Twitter) nailed it again. Karma is more complicated than we use it in the casual sense, here in the West. From a Eastern religious viewpoint, karma involves past lives and future lives, and the inner and outer states of our consciences, etc. Still the basic premise of karma is, “What goes around, comes around,” or “The energy that we put out, is the energy that we get back.”
When my kids play sports, and a bad call is made, I always think to myself, “Well, karma is a bitch,” and more often than not, the consequences of karma happens. Referees have a tendency to make good calls and to make bad calls, for both teams. Still, I find the karma idea, quite comforting. It helps me to stop ruminating in “the unfairness of it all”. The idea of karma helps me to keep my head in the game, right in the very moment, as the game is being played. Perhaps karma is just another word for “faith.” Perhaps karma is saying, “The Creator of All That Is, being incredibly creative and powerful, will best know how to take care of this situation. Trust this, and move on.”
I think that we like the concept of “karma” because rarely is justice served instantaneously. Swift justice is a rare thing. And justice is complicated. The motivations behind actions can be “good” or “bad” and even the labels of “good or bad” are often subjective. “Good” deeds can be done with bad intentions, such as a large donation being made to a worthy charity in order to sway a vote, for example. “Bad” deeds can be done with good intentions, such as stealing a loaf a bread, in order to feed a child.
The bottom line is, if you are comfortable with how you live, and your motivations, and your actions, karma is a comforting concept. You do what you have control of doing, and then you let go, and you trust the Almighty Universe with the judgments and the consequences, of all that is going on around you. Perhaps, the hardest part of all of this, is that you must trust the Universe with the timing. When it comes to karma, the Universe doesn’t use Amazon Prime. There is rarely instant gratification with the justice which we feel is deserved and we want served. But maybe that is the merciful side of our Universe. We all have made mistakes, and we all have made bad judgments, and we all have done things which we regret doing, with motivations coming from the lesser sides of ourselves. We are all relieved when we are forgiven and we are shown mercy for our own transgressions. Often, we feel the most relief when we have to pay a price for our wrongdoings. Experiencing consequences often makes us feel like we have “done the time for our crime”. Experiencing the repercussions of our actions, helps us to forgive ourselves. Finally, experiencing the negative ramifications of our actions, usually motivates us to do some self examination in order to change our future actions, so as karma states, the consequences of our future actions will be better for us in our own lives, and for all others in our outer world.
Are you passing on love or are you passing on pain? Heal your pain and pass on love.