I’m just sitting here this Saturday evening (and now early Sunday morning) thinking about a whole number of topics but the one that is really on my mind is Karma. I have no doubt that by the time this post is complete we’ll have witnessed a long, potentially rambling, writing experience that either has no discernible point or a post that unlocks the mysteries of of the metaphysical and philosophical universes.

A number of events I’ve witnessed in recent memory have me once again wondering about the concept of Karma. On a very basic level does what go around come around?

Let us discuss these two scenarios:

The First…

You have a man who has, for the most part, acted in a self serving manner. While very successful in business he was so at the expense of others. Maybe his success was even due to questionable or illegal means. In his later years in life, after amassing a large fortune, he decides to act as a philanthropist and gives a large portion of his fortune away, or he possibly leaves his fortune to his family.  Finally, after living a long life he dies.

The Second…

You have a man who has, for the most part, acted in a self serving manner. While very successful in business he was so at the expense of others. Maybe his success was even due to questionable or illegal means. In his later years in life, after amassing a large fortune, he wakes up one day to find that his is just days away from bankruptcy.  A sudden change market conditions wiped out the majority of his financial estate. He is virtually ruined after a life of success and he dies a broken man.

If the concept of Karma is true, how can we account for the two scenarios?  If both men were equally ruthless, equally self serving, how can one end up a “successful” man and the other broken?

As religions and spiritual seekers have adopted the concept, Karma has come to mean a number of things for a number of people. Some will say that an evil act will give you “bad karma” and to expect something negative to happen to you in return  Others will say Karma is an energy force that you can “tune” yourself into, and you can take steps to avoid negative consequences by meditating; however, taking the basic definition of Karma provides us with the view that the the concept is a cycle of cause and effect.

If one takes the very basic view, there is no doubt – Karma, or cause and effect – is a reality. If you do x the consequences will be y. Taking the scenarios of our two men what if our first was calculated in his actions, he thought potential outcomes of his decisions and had plans in place for whatever may come. Each plan with an acceptable level of risk and reward. The second man did not put much thought into his decisions, he simply continued moving forward without understanding how his decisions impacted the world around him.

Now, let’s say this is the late 19th Century or early 20th Century where severe economic recession or depressions took place on a frequent basis. Our first man did not have the full trust the economic advisors around him and managed his investments as he felt appropriate. He researched, he planned and understood the impact his decisions may have.  The second man simply let others manage his business.  While being informed of changing market conditions he didn’t have an active role in saying what should happen, where is investments should move, and how he was going to manage the economic storm.

In both cases it is easy to see why both men ended up where they did thanks to cause and effect. But what about other situations?  What about Karma in the sends of “Good” or “Bad” luck?  During a conversation with my W she pointed out a concept I didn’t previous take into consideration when thinking about the subject – intent.

If Karma is more than cause and effect, and it is truly some force that is manifested by the universe on some level, what if something else plays into the determining factor of ones Karma.  What if the intent of the individual is included?

For example, I undertake some action with nothing but the best of intentions but, as a result of my actions, a large number of people end up feeling some negative results. If my intent was positive and the results was negative would I have ‘bad’ Karma?

While an interesting thought, it is a thought we’ll leave unexplored at this point as the experiment can easily unfold into a lost, unfocused, discussion.

Does intent play into the concept of Karma, no clue. I have no doubt that cause and effect plays into life, from the most basic personal decision to complex business scenarios. The one who has the ability to understand the impact of their decision on themselves and the world around them is, in my opinion, more likely to have a ’successful’ life. They are likely to have ‘good’ Karma. The individual who acts in a self serving manner without understanding the impact on the world is one who will end up facing more difficulty in life.

The scenario used above describes the Robber Barrons of the late 19th century.  If Karma was simply a “do good, then good comes your way” type event there is no way these men would have ever had success in life. They were often ruthless, and in many cases acting in ways that were less than ethical. These were very successful men who built fortunes on the backs of slaves, poor and the less fortunate and did so with the original intent of only looking out for themselves.  While history forgot a number of the industrialists that saw their mass fortunes wiped away by miscalculations and poor choices, the men who understood the impact of their decisions ended up surviving the test of time.

So, if Karma is simply cause and effect and understanding the relationship between the two, then yes, I do believe.

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