We finished the last of the Four Tenets, "In all endeavors be true."
There are many examples around us of people who are true to their duties and responsibilities, and people who would do anything for money or power. In terms of karma, everyone eventually gets what one deserves. However, this may take a day or many lifetimes.
We told the story of the Ming Dynasty person Mr. Yuan Liao Fan. See if you can find the "Four Lessons of Liao Fan" in English.
The key to understanding issues such as fate, past, present, future, why we suffer, why someone is gifted or fortunate, etc., is in the verse:
To know what you've done in the past,Contemplate on this deeply.
Just look at what is happening to you in this life.
To know what will happen to you in the future,
Just look at what you are doing now.
As a review, please answer the following questions:
- What is "karma"?
- Do you see the Principle of Causality at work around you? Why or why not?
- Accepting what happens as a result of past karma can bring us peace of mind. However, doesn't that seem too passive? Why not?
- Causality is the basis of both science & Buddhism. Explain.
- Everything that happens in life is a result of a long chain of causes and effects. Actually, a result of many causal chains intersecting at one point. Can we ever see this interrelated karma network clearly?
Posts
I'm not sure I'm a big believer in Karma. Bad things will just happen to good people, and vice versa. More of a universal randomness.
ReplyDeleteSome people will just end up with unlucky streaks, not due to some sort of payback for some sort of past mistakes. Like that woman that lost her husband in the 9/11 twin tower attacks, then she herself died in a plane crash today.
I don't think she did anything, in this life or another, to make this occur. Just really unlucky.
While we do observe events like Roy mentioned, we should consider also:
ReplyDelete1. Are there other hidden factors that we haven't considered in those examples? After all, what we read or observe is only a glimpse into the whole situation.
2. Aren't there many other examples where karma/causality do seem to work?
3. If the Principle of Causality does not hold, instead it is more of a "universal randomness", what does that imply to the order of our societies or the world we live in?
Shifu,
ReplyDeleteSometimes, I accidentally killed some bugs such as a spider while vacuuming the house or a worm while removing weeds in the yard. Those accidents brought me sadness and anxiety because I am committed not to kill. The worst part is that I may be thinking about it for a few days. As a Buddhist, what would be the right way to deal with this situation?
Thank you.
Shifu,
ReplyDeleteSometimes, I accidentally killed some bugs such as a spider while vacuuming the house or a worm while removing weeds in the yard. Those accidents brought me sadness and anxiety because I am committed not to kill. The worst part is that I may be thinking about it for a few days. As a Buddhist, what would be the right way to deal with this situation?
Thank you.