Karma. I hear the term tossed around like a small insignificant piece of paper in a blizzard. “Did you hear about the Anderson’s getting a divorce?” A neighbor stands at the fence between spreading the news. “Saw that one coming a mile away. He sure goes on a lot of “business trips” these days.” Or... “You will never believe what I just heard. Bob lost his job because he was always late. Well, what did he expect?” The flowers get a good soaking, while two women enjoy the juicy bit of details that almost seem to make them happy. Then the line that places the seal of truth. Justifying somehow that if it isn’t us, everybody is fodder for our entertainment. “Karma. It always comes back around doesn’t it? Well, off to work. Have a good day neighbor.” The salutation wasn’t heard because the neighbor was already on her way down the street to tell the “latest” about a friend that has slipped losing his way. Here’s the thing. That isn’t karma. That is hurtful, deceptive, and flat out wrong. From the tidbit of news that was just “too good to pass up”. Karma by definition, is from the teaching of Buddha. It isn’t a reward system for what we get in this life, rather what we do in this life will affect our existence in the next life. So the divorce, the job lost, the ill will that befalls those around us is not deserved. Karma is not the same as cause and effect. If I smoke, I stand a chance of getting cancer. If I drive reckless, my chances rise significantly that I could kill or be killed in a wreck. If I tell my boss off, I will most likely be fired. That is the result of an action that was a choice. That does not mean that I am deserving of pain for my family and myself. That means in this extremely flawed world, bad judgement may not end well. It does NOT mean that we are terrible people, thus the gods have struck us down. It almost would seem that I am speaking of the same thing but I am not. I am addressing the ignorance of the people who say, “well that’s karma for you.” The self congratulatory attitude toward another who has hit hard times boarders on cruel. From the teaching of a spiritual leader, a true man of God, Buddha didn’t teach that about karma at all. I guess this hits a sour note for me because I, like so many you been in the dark abyss of the worst this life has to offer. I have wished death over life, more than I would even care to admit. And yet, there are so many that have far worse problems than me. Yet they have handled it with grace and true dignity. I just seem to withdraw and fall apart. I am far from brave. I am a coward, who has been broken and can’t ever seem to find the parts that would make me whole. Yet, I have never believed I deserved it. I choose to reject this. If this is the way karma works, who among us is truly deserving of a full, great life? Who earns the love from our spouses, or the sight to watch the sunrise when the day is new and filled with promise? I choose to believe that our internal thoughts, our souls will be looked fairly upon by a God who loves and sees the good in my heart. Not the failures of my choices. Buddhist’s have beautiful beliefs, and they are wise to learn the thoughts and teachings of such a pure, good man. One day, there will be the moment our deeds of this life are examined, looked at, and studied. It won’t be by neighbors or co-workers saying, “well that is karma.” It will be your God, standing with those who went on before you. A warm embrace and the kindest of beings welcoming us home. It is not chance, it is heaven. Thanks ladies for the notes of concern and love. I am touched. I am doing well, you are my friends, the people who I bear my soul to. How lucky does this make me? The luckiest gal in the world. Have a great day. We will talk tomorrow, I will bring the coffee.
Posted on: Tue, 23 Sep 2014 20:29:13 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015