To believe in karma, even though it doesn’t always seem to work?

I know someone who's been through absolutely awful abuse and trauma in her life. In childhood, and as an adult. Really awful, and she's still having a very hard time.

She's spoken to me several times, about needing to believe she was bad in a previous life - she feels it would be unbearable for there to be no reason for everything she's been through. She also hopes for karma in the next life on those who've harmed her in this life.

I personally feel uncomfortable about the idea - but I don't feel I have any right to judge her. For her, believing in karma is a source of comfort.

The problem with it is that in nature more ruthless creatures survive and thrive.
Therefore often "bad people " thrive.

I look at karma like this; existence is all about energy. What we put out in energy, in terms of intention, that being a “positive” or “negative” intention, must have an energetic reaction, at some point down the line that will come back to us.

How does that account for children that are trafficked or have awful things happen to them? I’m not so sure, obviously the people doing the wrong doing are starting the bad karma. Perhaps the theories of past lives karma debt balancing hold some weight but we will never know…..it does seem so very unfair that children and some adults go through awful lives and just don’t deserve it.

I do believe that the wrong doers get karma even though it might not be obvious on the outside, on the inside the worthlessness they feel is karmic.

I don't particularly believe in karma but I do think there are consequences for choices. For example if you're an arsehole your whole life some people will dislike you. If you choose a shit man you will have a shit marriage and shit dad for your children. If you lead an unhealthy lifestyle you are likely to get sick. Most people who I know struggle have made choices that put them on that path, although sometimes subconsciously.

This is understandably one of the most common objections to the teachings on karma.

However karma doesn’t feature the idea of blaming or ‘deserving’ - that comes from God based religions. Buddhism teaches that everyone can become a Buddha - it’s just a person who has removed all traces of negativity from their mind through training. Even if they wanted a Buddha would not have the power to mete out bad karma.

Karma is simply an instance of the law of cause and effect. Like gravity - no judgement, just is. Like pp says it is based on a multi life model. The children suffering, people being raped, yes they have done these things to others in a past life. But we all have. We can tell that we have been harmful in the past if we still suffer - doesn’t mean we are bad but a previous incarnation of ourself has committed bad actions. We all do bad things when angry, anxious, self absorbed unless we have really trained our mind. Understanding the law of karma means we have the chance to change our future by avoiding negative actions - trouble is as pp said, the results of our actions may not be seen in this life. To me this is a compelling explanation for why bad things happen to good people - the common understanding of karma is based on this life only so of course doesn’t bear out.

@BarbedButterfly ... but he didn't deserve you! Maybe that was your good karma.

No. People find it comforting to believe in some universal scale balancer. In reality, bad people do bad things and mostly get away with it.

When my husband cheated everyone said karma would get him. He is still happily married to his affair partner with children over 15 years later. Nothing bad ever happened to the people who hurt me.

I prefer to just live well and move on.

Karma is about perspective and context. For example, recovery from being on the end of abuse is often "best revenge is living your own life" That's how many are told to live on after narcissistic abuse and go no contact. I always thought that this is about taking back your power and depriving the abuser of what they ultimately want, power over the victim. So you can always have this.

So this is really asking what we think karma is.

I wasn't responding to you but I assume from the snotty reply that you can't account for the 'bad karma' of children.

I suggest you do a search on the origin of the word 'Karma' and what it means to the societies in Asia that have believed in it for thousands of years.

I expressed my belief in the reply to the OP and you can make of it what you like.

calling other people's beliefs "drivel" sounds quite "smug" to me.

Smug? No it's nonsense.

Do you think the hundreds of millions of people in Hindu and Buddhist countries like India, Nepal, Tibet, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Burma, Cambodia etc who believe in the consequences of Karma are "smug and living a good life "?

You can believe in the devil if you like, no one is stopping you.

But calling other people's beliefs "drivel" sounds quite "smug" to me.

I definitely believe in karma.
In fact I had a chicken karma a couple of days ago and jolly nice it was too. Although it was quite mild, I think next time I'll just have a bag of chips and some curry sauce.

No I don't believe in it. My loveliest, kindest, most generous friend has one awful thing after the other happen to her. And they're not all down to her not being assertive as some of them are random.

utter buttocks.

Yes, this is my approach too. Having a rotten soul is bad enough in itself. I honestly believe that is the true meaning of "Hell": being stuck at being a bad person.

No , no such thing as karma in a magical mystical supernatural sense . But if you get up people’s noses enough well then someone will obviously retaliate and get up yours . Same as kindness . Someone will repay you eventually in some way . All natural.

I strongly believe most your actions have consequences, and that even if we don’t see people experiencing the consequences, it doesn’t mean they have been avoided. It can be as simple as eating poorly or drinking too much = iller health eventually. Another example, a person who is dishonest to their spouse, who seemingly lives happily ever after. However, they are secretly sad they didn’t find someone they could be their truest self with (deprived themselves of unconditional love).

Like you reap what you sow, yes people can't get away with arseholes without some form of comeuppance. Unless one is a sociopath with no ability to learn from harm they've done and being called out or the same treatment done to them, most humans I hope realise the errors of their ways.

It’s a deeply self-deluding belief.

I think you have to be very smug and living a good life to believe all that.

Its actually an appalling belief when it is broken down like that. Children suffering, people severely unwell, murdered, raped etc - according to all that drivel they deserve it because they were bad in a life that they don’t remember.

I’ve changed my mind, I wouldn’t like to believe there is karma, but I stick with the thought that the only thing that seems to reveal itself in this world is the devil.

So does that mean children who are trafficked, abused or caught in a war zone are receiving their share of bad Karma?

You are not being unreasonable in questioning it.

I 100% believe in Karma and my understanding/belief is as follows.

To believe in Karma, you have to believe in the Soul and Reincarnation.

The three of them work together.

What we are born as and what happens in this life mainly depends on accumulated Karmas from previous lives.

There are some rare cases of 'instant Karma', but just like it takes time for fruit to ripen, it takes time for Karma to give its consequences, and one life is too short for that.

As you say, we see people who do terrible things but seem to get away with it, while others are good but struggle endlessly.

But we also see people who are good and not struggling and people who are bad and are struggling.

With a firm belief in Karma, we can connect these situations.

Those struggling endlessly, are actually paying for the terrible things they did but got off with in previous lives.

Those having it good are benefiting from good Karmas from previous lives.

Ultimately, it is a matter of faith and everyone is free to believe what they like.

It is impossible for anyone to prove to anyone else that Karma and/or Soul and/or Reincarnation are true or not.

Any talk of 'scientific proof' or 'scientific evidence' in this matter is therefore utter nonsense.

I read a book on karma when I was in Thailand. Before reading it I didn't realise that the concept of karma wasn't as immediate as I thought, apparently karma can span lifetimes, so it doesn't always come back to the person in this lifetime, it can come back in the next. I know not everyone believes in reincarnation but I thought it was interesting to look at karma from a broader perspective.

I don’t believe in karma. People go through a whole host of ups and downs throughout life, there’s no rhyme or reason as to why the majority of it happens.