Failure Is Not Possible If You Understand The Essence Of Karma

Buddhism is about winning in life — winning over our so-called lesser selves, i.e. selfish ego.

Easier said than done.

But karma, or the law of action, comes in handy when the brown substance hits the fan.

The Buddhist Dictionary has a good explanation of it:

Potentials in the inner, unconscious realm of life created through one’s actions in the past or present manifest themselves as various results in the present or future. Karma is a variation of the Sanskrit Karman, which means an act, action — a former act leading to a future result or result. Buddhism interprets karma in two ways: as indicating three categories of action, i.e., mental, verbal, and physical, and as indicating a dormant force thereby produced. That is, one’s thoughts, speech, and behaviour, both good and bad, imprint themselves as a latent force or potential in one’s life.

The Buddhist view of karma is not fatalistic

Often we hear people talking about karma as a synonym for destiny. Nothing could be farther from the truth.

Because the Buddhist approach always focuses on the future, it makes us take full responsibility for our thoughts, words and deeds in the current moment.

The simultaneity of cause and effect liberates us from destiny and allows us to forge a future that transforms our lives for the better. It may take time for the results to appear, but once a good cause is created, so is the positive outcome.

Why do things then go so often pear-shaped?

In Finnish, there is a saying: so you sleep as you make your bed. I guess almost any culture has this kind of basic understanding of the causality of life. It is called common sense.

But Western (linear) thinking has caused us to forget the simultaneity of cause and effect. As long as we can sweep our dodgy deeds under the carpet, we think cutting corners or pulling the trigger is OK. You can get away with murder — if you are not caught with the smoking gun.

Or that’s what we think. But you cannot fool your life; you cannot pardon yourself by pretending that you have done nothing. The consequences are deeply engraved into your being, and every adverse action will erode your life and make you suffer the results in the end — in some way or another.

Nobody can escape the karma they have created — good or bad.

We are accountable

It is all about accountability. Are we brave enough to take full responsibility for our lives? Or do we blame circumstances and others for our failures and hardships?

Yes, I hear you asking what about those people born in poverty, or those with genetic disorders, Jews in concentration camps and children in the war zones, etc. It is cruel and heartless to say those people have caused their suffering.

You are right. But it is not that simple.

Going into that mental trap of linear cause and effect, we think of karma superficially.

Every shelling in Ukraine will also hurt us in the bigger picture of karma if we don’t take action against war — or any negative causes in the world, whether it is pandemic, inequality or inflation.

A beautiful metaphor for that is Indra’s net in Buddhist mythology.

Each intersection of Indra’s net has a reflecting jewel that mirrors all the other countless jewels in the net. Indra’s net is frequently employed as a metaphor for the interrelation or mutual inclusiveness of all phenomena. — Buddhist Dictionary.

If we think of life as a whole, like this Indra’s net, we see that the proverbial Butterfly Effect is reflected in it. As human beings, we must be mindful and aware of the interdependent reality and act accordingly.

The human side of the creation of karma is compassion, wisdom and courage. It acknowledges the complexity and interdependency of all life and our responsibility to eradicate the causes of suffering.

When we see suffering, our privilege as fellow human beings is to help and elevate the lives of those who suffer. Thus, we create good karma for ourselves and others.

Our good circumstances and well-being must become a source of transformation that helps to create a virtuous cycle for all. It is our responsibility to help to end wars, inequality and injustice.

In Buddhism, it starts from within: we can and must transform our negative karma into positive actions and create opportunities for goodness, kindness and prosperity for all.

Individual, national and universal perspectives are one continuum.

When we suffer or see somebody having a hard time, it is easy to look in the rear mirror. Asking repeatedly, why me, why this, why you will only deepen the suffering.

It is useless to dwell in the past. Because our life is way more interlinked, complex and multilayered than our mind can analyse and comprehend, it is impossible to find all root causes for everything by looking at the past.

Instead, we can focus on the current moment and the future. Nichiren Daishonin (1222–1282), the revolutionary restorer of Buddhism, put it in concise form:

“If you want to understand the causes that existed in the past, look at the results as they are manifested in the present. And if you want to understand what results will be manifested in the future, look at the causes that exist in the present.” — Nichiren Daishonin, 1272.

Instead of asking, why me, we should say: because of me.

Because my life has had all the causes, I am now here in this shape and form. I don’t need to understand and analyse them, but I need to use the current situation to make conscious causes to change for a better future.

In that way, we can see that our individual karma is part of the nation’s karma — and, further, it is a living, pulsating and fantastic fragment of the whole universe.

The only thing that prevents us from transforming our lives and that of the whole planet is not our karma but our limited understanding of it.

As said earlier, karma means action — and if we take that seriously, we can become accountable and start contributing towards a massive shift in the consciousness of our communities.

Instead of blaming karma as a messenger of destiny, we can start looking at our karma as a springboard to aim higher because it is we that determine our future, not our karma. It’s a result — we decide whether it is positive or negative.

We fail only when and if we surrender to self-doubts and fear of failure.

By understanding karma, we open the path to victory and happiness. And we are not alone: we are one pearl in the infinite Indra’s net of existences across the universe — and our immediate communities.

Let’s start from the nearest and dearest: being kind, compassionate and courageously helping each other are the first steps towards fulfilment in this life and transforming our karma.

Small matters and small actions have a powerful impact in the long run.

Easier said than done. But cultivating wisdom to choose the right action is what matters.

Karma is just a principle, not a destiny, and it’s up to us to use it to work for a better future. It’s winning over the lesser self — stopping complaining but starting to act one good thought, word and deed at a time.