Karma and its Definition
Karma is defined as an activity that has consequences. That is, if one does a nice deed, it results in agreeable karma and thus positive effects. Similarly, committing an immoral act will result in negative Karma. In the end, it provides an unexpected outcome. According to this viewpoint, the significance of Karma is determined by an individual's decisions and the circumstances that the individual chooses.
The Role of Karma in Achieving Harmony
Through engaging in the act of Karma, one can achieve both internal and exterior harmony. Working hand in hand with the Dharma, Karma offers a chance for morality in the society. Furthermore, it provides a basis for the enforcement of justice within the associated religion that exhibit the effects of Karma on the current life of an individual under the same beliefs. After death, the concept also leads the soul of the person entering the afterlife into achieving the ultimate goal. The target is realized through proper mastery of the art from the present life. Karma then leads the steady performer to the enlightenment stage through reincarnation. Thus, this paper gives some crucial roles of Karma to the Buddhist.
Roles of Karma
A person has to go through several aspects that have been given out to realize the importance of the concept of Karma. Before getting to the enlightenment point, each phase arrived at during the process plays its distinct role in the Buddhism religion. In each life, the same features of karma repeats. However, the chances to end up with different results every time are much higher. At some point, the events repeat to give an individual an opportunity to improve on the things he/she failed to do during a lifetime. Also, the ones who feel that they should commit bad karma have the chance to do it, but with the knowledge of the consequences. Some of the roles associated with this process include harmony, morality, and attributes. Also, reincarnation forms part of the advantages offered by Karma.
Karma and Harmony
Dharma teachings state that the world is harmonious naturally. Therefore, humans must work with all diligent to eradicate any situation or activities that will end up bringing suffering unto the people. Events such as war and theft easily lead to pain. Therefore, the terms are assumed to be immoral and must be avoided. Dharma and Karma are explanations of the overall way of decent living. The act of eating to do away with hunger that causes suffering is an example of dharma. The process of ingesting food results in the harmonious state.
Karma and Morality
Another aspect of Karma is the morality. By performing Dharma, the harmonious state is achieved. That means that the type of Karma incurred will provide something that is beneficial. The actions give morality in the society that the individual has come up with. Immoral deeds are usually selfish. People who perform actions have no senses and care for the other people in the society. Hence, their doings inflict pain on others. The final consequences are bad Karma. However, maintaining the activities undertaken while minding others, results in harmony. Thus, suitable Karma is achieved. Notably, the act of ensuring morality in the society promotes harmony.
Karma and Buddhism Principles
Through Dharma, karma is in a position to unify the principles of Buddhism. The four core codes of Noble Truth; existing of suffering, the beginning of agony, cessation of torment, as well as the pathway to the termination of anguish are achieved. Combining with another component of Karma that portrays it as a natural causal force provides an individual with the guidance of the soul as it passes through several lives. The baseline of the teachings is that each action was done leads to a consequence. At the same time, it educates the individual's soul that whatever one chooses, he/she should expect an outcome.
Role of Karma in Reincarnation
As one of the central teachings of Buddhism, the current state is one of the many lives that an individual has to go through. However, each experience is different from others. The next rebirth depends on the events that have taken place in the present life. During renewal, those who exhibited terrible Karma in the previous life are born in lower forms. For instance, an individual may be born a dog or a rat, depending on the number of bad Karma he/she performed in the previous life. In the new life, the person has a chance to avoid the adverse outcomes of the past decisions. Individuals who keep and observe the good Karma through the processes of living and dying gain a possibility of entering a state of eternal joy without undergoing the state of life and death. Therefore, through Karma, one is in a position to achieve reincarnation, which is the primary goal of Buddhism religion.
Individuals Affected by Karma
Karma is a way of life; hence, cannot be avoided. All individuals in this life have been in another life before. Furthermore, as the time goes on, people prepare to enter another cycle of life. Karma helps the person to plan for a better life in the next rebirth. Whatever action that any person may decide, the end of the choices made is Karma. As the processes of life and death are underway, the incidences are usually reversed. For example, parents turn out to be children in the next rebirth. Given that other people are born as dogs and mice, the scoop of individuals affected by Karma is not limited to humans alone but extends to other animals too.
The Influence of Past Karma
When an individual is still alive, Karma gives him/her a chance to coexist in harmony. As people strive to achieve better status in the next life, the vices are reduced to an insignificant level. With that achievement, the society is in a position to attain developments that are of benefit to the community. From the impacts of ensuring the proper Karma, human beings grow with mutual love and respect. Furthermore, individuals learn to value others and also other creatures such as the dog with the understanding that they too were once people. For instance, a child will respect the parent, bearing in mind that mother and father were, and can still be their child; therefore, he/she will need respect from them. Concurrently, the parent will respect the child, putting in mind that at one point, the kid will turn out to be the parent. In a society that does not have many vices that cause pain, the art of intention is much vital for its development. Individuals living currently get to understand that the good that one does will come back unto them, as well as repaid by good.
The Impact of Karma on the Afterlife and Next Life
After passing on from one life to the next, the state that the individual is doomed to change, depending on how the person performed concerning the principles of Karma. If he/she upheld good morals, that individual is likely to be reborn in a higher level of life, say, a royal home, whereby his/her life will be good. If an individual is reborn in a lower life like the dog, his/her life will be miserable. Furthermore, nothing that happens in the next life is a matter of coincidence. The people around an individual are there due to their actions and decisions from their previous lives. Karma is the aspect of the arrangement of the whole society in the next generation, meaning that the life cannot be realized without the works of Karma. Secondly, every individual can get to understand that in case he/she misbehaves, that person would end up in the worst situation. Through the manifestation of the current arrangement of the creature, the society gets to conduct itself well in preparation for the next life.
Achieving Enlightenment through Karma
The process of undergoing life and death repetitively is associated with suffering and pain. Therefore, all Buddhists strive to achieve the enlightenment stage called the Nirvana, which is the ultimate phase that an individual who exercised good Karma in the past is expected to attain. In this state, an individual is eased from sufferings encountered by living and dying all along, a precise implication that once a person enters this phase, he/she ceases to exist. In the non-existence state, the person dwells in the state of everlasting joy. Those that could not keep the societal harmony are left in the cycle to suffer.
Conclusion
Generally, for the life of any individual, understanding the principles of Karma is an important step. With the knowledge that every person seeks a peaceful life, the acquisition of the nirvana state is much vital. Also, Karma plays a significant role in the development of the society and mutual respect of all members. Therefore, this act should be enforced adequately to handle the overwhelming situations of terrorism and other vices of the same nature. In the present life, Karma ensures harmony and morality. In the next life, it leads to the placement of the individuals according to their actions. Accordingly, Karma is a path that leads all people to achieve nirvana.
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