Karma is an ancient concept that has been around for thousands of years.
In Hinduism and Buddhism, karma is an important part of their belief system and is closely tied to the concept of reincarnation (Samsara).
In a nutshell, karma is the belief that our actions have an effect on our future destiny.
In this article, I will briefly explain karma in Hinduism and Buddhism.
What is Karma?
The literal translation of karma is “action”, and it is an important part of Hinduism and Buddhism.
Indian philosophy and Buddhism each have different theories, but they lead to similar meanings.
- Indian philosophy: If you create good or evil karma, you will be rewarded according to the principle of cause and effect.
- Buddhism: Denies all consequences that occur by chance, suddenness, or divine creation, and teaches their causes.
*Causal is a term that means cause and effect. When used as a Buddhist term, it is associated with karma theory and is spoken as a causal relationship related to one's own circumstances.
In other words, we can say that our actions influence our future destiny.
This idea is strongly associated with Samsara (reincarnation) in Indian religions (Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, Sikhism) and Taoism.
* Taoism is one of the three major religions in China (Confucianism, Buddhism, and Taoism), and is a religion unique to the Han race in China.F
If you want to know more about Samsara, please read this article.
What is Samsara? Exploring the Ancient Beliefs
Samsara is the term used in Hinduism to describe the cycle of life. If you want to learn more about samsara, keep reading for our article.
Many of these theories bring about each of the following:
- Good intentions and good deeds: good karma and happy rebirth
- Bad intentions and bad deeds: bad karma and bad rebirth
Karma also affects not only the past but also the present and future.
Our past actions affect our present, and our present actions affect our future.
It is a universal law that whatever you do, good or bad, will come back to you in some way.
What is Karma in Hinduism?
In India, karma has been important since ancient times.
It developed in connection with the idea of reincarnation from the Vedic period to the Upanishad period, and gradually became fixed between the 10th century BC and the 4th century BC.
*The Vedic period is the period when the Vedas, the scriptures of Brahmanism and Hinduism, were created. The Upanishads period is the period when the last part of the Vedas, the Upanishads, was created.
The early Upanishads begin with questions about
- How humans are born
- Why are humans born
- What happens after death
With the composition of the Epics – the common man's introduction to dharma (ethics and pursuit of a moral life) in Hinduism – the ideas of causality and essential elements of the theory of karma were being recited in folk stories.
For example, the Mahabharata, one of the two great Indian epics, states:
As a man himself sows, so he himself reaps; no man inherits the good or evil act of another man. The fruit is of the same quality as the action.
Furthermore, in Mahabharata, a character asked
Is the course of a person's life already destined, or can human effort shape one's life?
The person answered
The future is both a function of current human effort derived from free will and past human actions that set the circumstances.
Thus, the Mahabharata repeats the key points of karma over and over again.
Intent and action (karma) have consequences and don't disappear.
And, all positive or negative experiences in life require effort and intention.
What is Karma in Buddhism?
In Buddhism, Karma is the idea that our choices and actions have consequences.
Karmaphala is the result of our Karma, which determines our future rebirths in Samsara.
Good actions create good results and bad actions create bad results.
The Noble Eightfold Path, the eight virtues to be practiced, is a set of guidelines that can help us escape the cycle of rebirth and suffering in Samsara.
It is important to make good choices and be kind to others to create positive karma.
Karma is something we do intentionally, like a deed or an action.
It could be something we do with our body, like helping others, something we say or think.
These actions have consequences, which can affect us in the future.
We have to be careful with what we do and say, because it will have consequences.
Buddhism teaches us so.
Nichiren Buddhism teaches that if you have faith and do good things, you can make your future better.
What is Karma in Jainism?
There are many different ways of thinking about karma in Jainism.
Let's take a closer look below.
Foggy existence
In Jainism, karma is like a fog that is around us.
It is made up of very small pieces that come from what we do, say, and think.
Karma affects us and helps to create the life we have now.
Jainism tells us that there are seven truths that makeup reality.
They help us understand how karma works and how we can be free of it.
What happens to you is because of the things you do.
Jainas, Hindus, and Buddhists all believe that.
Hindus and Buddhists also believe in things like special prayers and giving gifts to help make things go their way.
Jainas don't believe in this and have stuck to their beliefs.
Gold mixed with impurities
Karma is like gold mixed with impurities.
The soul is not pure by nature but can be purified with effort.
Karma can make the soul dirty or clean and this affects what happens in the future.
Karma is a law of the universe
In Jainism, Karma is a law of the universe.
Everyone has an equal chance to be free from bad things like evil thoughts and bad actions.
A person can become free by having the
- right faith
- knowledge
- good behavior
This will lead to a perfect and blissful state.
Everyone can reach this perfect state on their own with hard work.
A kind of energy
Karma is a type of energy that attaches a soul to the cycle of birth and death.
There are 8 different kinds of Karma that affect the soul.
- Knowledge-obstructin prevents the soul from knowing things.
- Perception-obstructing prevents the soul from seeing things.
- Sensation-producing makes the soul experience pleasure and pain.
- Deluding makes the soul think things can affect it.
- Lifespan-determining traps the soul in a particular life.
- Body-producing gives souls different types of bodies.
- Status-determining gives the soul a high or low status.
- Power-obstructing stops the soul from using its power.
What is Karma in Sikhism?
Sikhism teaches that all living beings are influenced by three qualities called maya, which keep us connected to the physical world.
We all do things, called karma, which bring us the results of our actions.
Karma is like a seed that you sow in a field.
What you put in, you get back.
Your past actions will decide how close you are to God in this life.
What is Karma in Falun Gong?
Falun Gong is a religion that is different from Buddhism.
They have different ways of thinking about karma.
Karma means bad things we have done in our lives, and it can cause us to have misfortune.
Cultivators have to overcome these karmic obstacles, which lead to things like aging and death.
If we are kind and do good deeds, our spirit can be released from the cycle of rebirth and reach enlightenment.
Falun Gong teaches that.
Falun Gong is a spiritual practice that believes in the idea of karma, which is when you get back what you give out.
If someone does something bad, they will get something bad back.
People think so.
Falun Gong teaches that if someone is sick, it is because of karma and that they should work on their spiritual practice to try to get better.
However, it is ok to take medicine if they want to.
What is Karma in Taoism?
Karma means that
what you do will have good or bad consequences.
Deities and spirits keep track of your actions and will give you rewards or punishments based on your karma.
If your karma is bad, you might be reborn as another person or even an animal.
To help your karma, you can do good things and perform rituals at Taoist temples.
What is Karma in Shinto?
In Shinto, the spirit of becoming is important.
It's called musubi and it's about creating and working together.
There are many gods connected to musubi.
Please read this article.