Kicking Karma

This past week, a very specific meme seemed to pop up everywhere: “Be careful how you treat people. What you do to others has a funny way of coming back on you.” I do not know if the universe is trying to tell me something, but it certainly jumpstarted my self-awareness mechanisms.
 
Instantly I was off on a wild tangent about the law of karma. When crisis upon crisis seems to smother my very existence, I have always heckled the irritating annoyances with a snarky, “Boy, I must have really screwed up in a prior life.” While it was always uttered as a joke, today I took a step back in thoughtful repose. Do I believe in karma?
 
Sure, most of us think we know exactly what karma is. You can bet I know what I want it to be for some people! But once I started on this pilgrimage, I realized chances are most of us have a lot to learn. And do not fret – this is not going to be a dissertation on the principles of karma. I would snore too. It is, however, a concept that could truly change your life – or at the very least, the way you live.
 
The law of karma is the notion that all life is governed by a system of cause and effect, action and reaction, where personal deeds have corresponding effects on the future. It is the sum of a person’s actions in this and previous states of existence. According to Hinduism and Buddhism, karma is considered a precise science and something that can make or break your life.
 
Now, my life is not rigidly ruled by conceptual theories of spirituality. I tend to rely on the Golden Rule of the prophets – do unto others as you would have them do unto you. And, if that is a stretch, there is always Newton’s third law of motion – for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction.
 
Yes, I know. Newton’s law is scientific, not spiritual. But hey, the concepts all correspond. Eventually, every questionable thing you do will most likely come back to bite you in … a painfully significant way. Greek philosopher Socrates even argued that all events of the world had a rational cause. There is order and reason to everything in life.
 
But here is the kicker. Generally, we only think of karmic payback. But what about karmic pay-it-forward? Good karma is as powerful as bad karma. When deeds are truly acts of charity, without the expectation of repayment, the cause and effect are positively charged.
 
So, was the universe trying to tell me something this week? I doubt it. I live my life honestly with nothing but love and good intention in my heart. Yet, it did somehow get me to babble on and on about it here. Hmmm? Here I go again. Did I kick this concept to the curb in a prior life? Ah, but that is fodder for yet another rant.
 

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