Question asked by Tashi.
I like to know how karma really works practically in this life time..some instance..i notice malicious people whose intention is to use,misuse and abuse others kindness,help,generosity,when they got what they want through mind game…they abuse relationship,friendship etc…I m confused..leaving the good people emotionally frustrated..please help me in answering this question..thank you..!
Dear Tashi,
Karma is the law of cause and effect. Karma is: “All intentional bodily, verbal, and mental actions that are the cause of rebirth in the higher or lower realms”. This means that the result of a virtuous action can only be happiness and the result of a non-virtuous action can only be suffering. The question is: why do good people suffer? To answer this, we must understand that karma created in the present lifetime does not always ripen in this lifetime. It may ripen in the next life or many lifetimes later. The suffering of the “good people” you mentioned here could be due to causes created in their previous life or many lifetimes ago. Karma ripens as a result of causes and conditions. Without the causes and conditions, karma remains dormant. Since beginningless time, all of us have committed many sins and also many virtues. They will all bear fruit one day when the causes and conditions are there. If we understand karma and accept it as an impersonal, natural law that operates in accordance with our actions, we will be able to accept our sufferings of this life, as they are the ripened results of past actions. For future lives however, we can create better karma by modifying our behaviour, become virtuous people and stop harming others. I hope this helps to answer your question.