Some thing that confuses me about Karma

• la lapine blanche

  9 Jul 06, 05:19

  Say as an example Person A has accumulated negative karma from previous life. Now I understand that the consequences are related to the nature of the original negative action - so lets say they were a robber and now the karma is
  going to result in them being stripped of their possessions in their current life.
  
  This means that they have to come into contact with a thief in order for this to happen. Does their karma impel someone to steal their things who wouldn't otherwise have done? Or how does this work? I suspect I am looking at this in totally the wrong way. But I don't understand if the times when I have treated people badly is partially because I was delivering the "consequence" of a previous negative action of theirs in the past (I'm not trying to get out of responsibility, I know I'm still to blame )
• casino_king

  9 Jul 06, 08:09

  Originally posted by la lapine blanche:

  Say as an example Person A has accumulated negative karma from previous life. Now I understand that the consequences are related to the nature of the original negative action - so lets say they were a robber and now the karma is
  going to result in them being stripped of their possessions in their current life.
  
  This means that they have to come into contact with a thief in order for this to happen. Does their karma impel someone to steal their things who wouldn't otherwise have done? Or how does this work? I suspect I am looking at this in totally the wrong way. But I don't understand if the times when I have treated people badly is partially because I was delivering the "consequence" of a previous negative action of theirs in the past (I'm not trying to get out of responsibility, I know I'm still to blame )

  Everybody does their best. That is a given. Everybody tries their best. Your best may not result in the effect that you desired due to the influence of karma.
  
  For example, you give to a begger. The begger can take your help and use your charity to start a new life or he might end up begging his whole life because you gave to him when he begged.
  
  In his head, he thinks, "hey begging is easy... I begged and he gave to me."
  
  or he might think, "good, with this help I am able to make a decent start with my life."
  
  You do not on purpose do bad deeds but your good deeds might have bad consequences...
• Fatum

  9 Jul 06, 08:17

  
  hey, I posted some questions about karma up here before, to save some time for you, you may want to take a look at the thread ...
  
  http://www.sgforums.com./?action=thread_display&thread_id=172237
• casino_king

  9 Jul 06, 08:23

  Originally posted by Fatum:

  hey, I posted some questions about karma up here before, to save some time for you, you may want to take a look at the thread ...
  
  http://www.sgforums.com./?action=thread_display&thread_id=172237

  So I guess you had written you paper. What was your conclusion in that paper? A summary, maybe?
• Fatum

  9 Jul 06, 09:22

  Originally posted by casino_king:

  So I guess you had written you paper. What was your conclusion in that paper? A summary, maybe?

  the paper was on ethics, and had nothing to do directly with karma, but the mods and some people posting some very interesting stuff in reply, so I thought I'd share it ...
  
  I'm at atheist btw ... but I do find some ideas about Buddhism quite attractive ...
  
  
• neutral_onliner

  9 Jul 06, 10:01

  Some people maintain that all the pleasant and unpleasant feelings that we experience are due to our good and bad karma that we have done during our previous birth. This is only true to a certain extent, because it would mean that we are totally powerless to change our fate because everything is determined by our past actions. Buddhism maintains that while we are the result of the past, we have the power to determine the future. According to the Buddha, good and bad deeds are done by ourselves and we are responsible for the purity or the impurity of our own mind. Others can influence us but we either purify or pollute the mind with the deeds that we have committed.
• neutral_onliner

  9 Jul 06, 13:43

  Originally posted by Fatum:

  i'm at atheist btw ... but I do find some ideas about Buddhism quite attractive ...
  
  

  Buddhism is not just for the Buddhist. It can be practiced by anyone, anywhere, anytime. May u be happy
  
• sinweiy

  9 Jul 06, 18:23

  Originally posted by la lapine blanche:
  This means that they have to come into contact with a thief in order for this to happen. Does their karma impel someone to steal their things who wouldn't otherwise have done? Or how does this work?

  i oso once query it:
  
  Yeah, t'is said we reap what we sow.
  However, considering collective karma and conditioning, we do a little bit reap what others had sow.?
  
  Said, your karma seed meet up with conditioning, reap an effect, be it good or bad. i had 'nothing' to do with your original karma seed, mingles with your conditions, effect the rate of your reaping effect. possible.?
  
  i think possiblity of karma is inconceiveable.
  
  /\
  
  http://www.lioncity.net/buddhism/index.php?showtopic=15081&st=0
• marcteng

  10 Jul 06, 09:49

  Kamma is not easy to understand, as there are a few categories of kamma, like long and short term kamma and neutral kamma etc, just to mention a few here.
  
  But what is Kamma, and how do you define kamma?
  Kamma is Upaka, result of actions. It is true we are the heir of our kamma, whether good or bad. Once a deed is committed, there is no escape, you will reap it sooner or later, either this life or the next life.