More teachings on karma...

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Here is more, for the curious. Note in the reading what a very, very

subtle and complex phenomena karma is. It is the "usual" definitions that

should be gotten rid of. Karma as "commonly" defined to mean simply "what

you sow is what you reap" is far too simplistic, and misses the point

entirely.

 

 

Karma

 

"To find happiness and avoid suffering, we should understand the principal

causes and conditions that bring happiness, so we can practice them, and

perceive those that bring suffering, so we can avoid them.

 

The main cause of all success and happiness is your own mind, it is good

karma, a positive, pure, healthy intention, a peaceful attitude toward

life, the nature of which is non-attachment, non-ignorance, non-hatred and

non-self-centred mind. What is karma ?

 

Karma is a mental factor. Karma is the principal cause of happiness and

suffering. It is the inner cause. Karma is the mind. The experience of

enjoyment comes from the mind, which in turn comes from karma. Your present

good rebirth with many opportunities to achieve happiness comes from good

karma, your positive virtuous intention. Your mind is formless, colourless

and shapeless and in taking its place in a fertilised human egg, creates

the continuity of the physical body. The mind itself comes from its own

previous continuity, the life before this one, the past life. And there are

many past lives. Good luck depends on good karma. Success and happiness in

this life and beyond this life up to the perfect fully completed bliss and

peace of full enlightenment all depend on creating good karma, collecting

merit, practising Dharma, and keeping your life attitude in pure, positive

virtue. To understand karma more clearly, let us examine the explanations

of karma given in the teachings of Shakyamuni Buddha.

 

According to the sutra teachings of Lord Buddha, there are ten non-virtuous

actions and ten virtuous actions that have a direct bearing on karma.

Therefore, every complete negative action creates four suffering results,

while every complete positive virtuous action creates four happy results.

The ten non-virtuous actions comprise three of the body, four of the speech

and three of the mind. Those of the body are killing, stealing and sexual

misconduct. Those of speech are telling lies, engaging in slander, harsh

speech and gossiping. Those of the mind are covetousness, having ill will

towards others and having the wrong views. The ten virtuous actions

comprise abstinence of all the non-virtuous actions. Every complete

non-virtuous and virtuous action has four suffering and four happy results

respectively. And the sum total of these results is the karmic inheritance

that defines the type of rebirths that all sentient beings bring with them

in their mental continuum. This is karma.

 

The first of the four results can be described as the fully ripened result;

where the suffering of negative karma causes rebirths in the suffering

lower realms (hell, the realm of hungry ghosts or animal realms). Here one

experiences unimaginable sufferings that are far worse than the sufferings

of the human realms. The happy result causes rebirths in the body of a

happy migratory being in the human or deva realms instead of rebirths in

the suffering realms. The second of the four results is experiencing a

result similar to the cause. The suffering result is to be reborn as a

human being and suffer the result of the harmful action committed in the

past. If one has killed, one will be killed; and if one has stolen, one

will be cheated, if one has slandered others, one will be slandered

against... The happy result is rebirth in the human realm with a long and

happy life. There will be wealth and enjoyment. And if you have practised

the right view you will be reborn with a clear mind, be attracted to

virtuous actions, good friends, and right philosophies. You will gravitate

to people who help develop your wisdom. You will discover great faith in

the Four Noble Truths (True Suffering, True Origin, True Cessation of

Suffering, and True Path) and the right view of emptiness. Among the four

schools of Buddhist philosophy, you will be especially attracted to the

extremely subtle Prasangika view, which cuts through the root of samsara,

thus eradicating suffering and all its causes. Your strong faith leads you

quickly to achieve liberation from samsara. Consequently, you will be able

to liberate numberless other sentient beings from all the suffering realms

of samsara and bring them to enlightenment with the support of bodhicitta,

the pure wish to attain enlightenment for the benefit of all sentient beings.

 

The third of the four results is the possessed result. The suffering result

ripens in a future place of rebirth where food is scarce. There is drought,

war and famine. The happy result is a glorified place where food, medicines

and crops are plentiful. Your rebirth environment is clean, healthy and

filled with beauty. The fourth result creates similar results to the

previous cause i.e. continuing to commit the same action in the future, and

continuing to create the karma over and over again. All good and bad

results of actions can also be experienced in this life. The 10 virtuous

actions do not lead only to the happiness of future lives. Most

significantly, if the 10 virtuous actions are practised with genuine

bodhicitta, the altruistic mind to benefit all others, it becomes the cause

of the highest ultimate happiness - Enlightenment.

 

Karma that is repeatedly done becomes very powerful. Karma done in relation

to a powerful object such as one's parents, or one's Guru is very powerful.

This is as true of the smallest act of disrespect as to the tiniest service

or act of love. Karma is definite. It is expandable. Once it is created,

good or bad, positive or negative, its results are experienced in many

future lifetimes. Sufferings inevitably result from non-virtuous actions

for thousands of lifetimes. And negative karma created is irrevocable,

unless purified by reading profound sutras, reciting special mantras, or

following spiritual practices explained in the holy texts. Practising

genuine compassion toward others, what the Buddhists term the bodhicitta

mind, can also purify karma. The more compassion one is able to generate

toward others, the more one succeeds in achieving powerful purification.

Generating compassion has incredible power to purify many eons of negative

karma. And it is an especially quick way to collect extensive merit and

achieve the peerless happiness of full enlightenment. And if our daily life

actions begin with a good heart, then even negative actions can be

transformed into virtue.

 

Even if you are not Buddhist now, even if you do not recite Buddhist

prayers, if you generate compassion and spend your life serving others, it

is the best way of achieving merit. Practising the kind and good heart

itself becomes a powerful purification practice; it is also the best cause

for your own happiness and success in this life and future lives. Living

your daily life with strong compassion, serving others and sacrificing your

life for their welfare - this is the way to truly enjoy your life. This is

the advice given by the fully enlightened beings. I am offering this advice

of Buddha to you. Please take care of your life."

 

Lama Zopa Soquel, California August 1997

 

 

The four properties of karma:

 

1.Actions are definite. Virtuous actions definitely bring the result of

happiness and never bring the result of suffering. Likewise, non-virtuous

actions definitely bring the result of suffering and never bring the result

of happiness. Internal causes and results function along much the same

principles as external causes and results. An example of an external cause

is planting an apple seed in the ground; in accordance with the cause, the

apple seed, the result of an apple tree is produced. Instead, if we were to

plant a pepper seed the result of a pepper plant would arise. An apple seed

cannot give rise to a pepper plant nor can a pepper seed give rise to an

apple tree. Internal causes and results function in the same manner; in

accordance with the cause, virtuous actions, we definitely experience the

result of happiness. Likewise, in accordance with the cause, non-virtuous

actions, we definitely experience the result of suffering. Just as the

small pleasure if a cool breeze on a hot day is the result of a past

virtuous action, similarly, the small suffering of a thorn pricking the

sole of our foot is the result of a past non-virtuous action.

 

2.Actions increase. In the same way that a tiny seed can produce the result

of a huge tree, a very small virtuous or non-virtuous action can bring a

great result. This is due to the fact that an action continues to increase

as long as its antidote is not applied. If a non-virtuous action is

purified using an appropriate method, even if we cannot completely avoid

experiencing its result, at the very least we will be able to stop it from

increasing. Similarly, it is possible to destroy our virtuous actions

through becoming angry or developing wrong views.

 

3.Actions not done will not be experienced. Not having planted seeds in the

ground, we will not reap a crop in the autumn. Likewise, if we have not

done a particular virtuous or non-virtuous action, we will not experience

its respective result of happiness or unhappiness.

 

4.Actions done will not go to waste. Having done a virtuous or non-virtuous

action, if it is not destroyed by its antidote, it will bring its result

when the necessary conditions come together. An action will never go to

waste due to the passage of time. Just as when we put our money in a bank

it is not used up as long as we do not withdraw it, and in the meantime, it

continually produces interest; likewise, when we do an action, if it is not

destroyed by its antidote, it will not go to waste but will continually

increase.

 

In addition to explaining the detailed functioning of actions and results,

the Buddha also explained, by way of his clairvoyant powers, why a

particular person was experiencing certain problems. He often told how at

one time such-and-such a person had taken such-and-such a birth, did

such-and-such an action, and was thereby experiencing such-and-such a

result. Many examples of these stories can be found in The Sutra of One

Hundred Actions (Skrt: Karmashataka, Tib: mDo sde las brgya pa) and The

Sutra of the Wise and the Foolish (Damamuko nama Sutra, mDzangs blun zhe

bya ba'i mdo).

 

Through understanding that virtuous actions bring happiness and

non-virtuous actions bring suffering, we see how important it is to strive

continually to develop a good motivation and to engage in virtuous actions.

At the same time, we understand that we must completely abandon committing

even seemingly insignificant non-virtuous actions so as to avoid

experiencing further suffering and problems in the future. However, even

though we may intellectually understand this, because our mind is not

subdued and is therefore influenced by many types of negative emotions or

afflictions, we continue to commit non-virtuous actions. Our negative

emotions are very strong while our positive thoughts are generally quite

weak; consequently, these two are always in competition. Most of the time

the weaker positive side loses and the more powerful negative side wins.

Thereby, our mind remains dominated by afflictions that, in turn, cause us

to engage in non-virtuous physical and verbal actions. Therefore, just as

to clean our dirty clothes we wash them with soap and water, in a similar

way we need to wash, or purify, our mental continuum of non-virtuous

actions of body, speech, and mind. To avoid experiencing their unpleasant

results it is extremely important that we develop the habit of regularly

purifying our inner dirt, the impure mind. For this purpose we need to

engage in a practice of purification.

 

(Extracted from Everlasting Rain of Nectar Wisdom Publications, 1996, ©

Istituto Lama Tzong Khapa and Geshe Jampa Gyatso. Reprinted by permission

of Wisdom Publications, Cambridge, Massachusetts.)

 

 

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