Theos-Talk Archives (October 1997 Message tt00001)

Chuck Cossimano's short article in 'world' about karma makes me
wonder- is he just'stirring' or really serious? We have an
expression here in Australia about this' its called 'Winding me
up'.  If he is serious- which heaven forbid- there will be a
muffled rumble as thousands of expired theosophists turn in their
graves.

We can observe the 'Law of Karma' in operation everyday.  Karma
may be said to function at more than one level of actuality:
current life in the physical; current life at the non-physical;
past-life karma on the same two levels; future karma.

The idea of 'retibution' inherent in many religious systems has
its origin in the age-old concept of karma.  Each religion did
distort the philosophy to suit current notions of morality or the
demands of their 'prophets'.

It is interesting to speculate on the various possibilities of
karma in action today.  Between nations it is sometimes seen.
Take China- in the nineteenth century European traders, with the
approval of their governments, used opium addictionn as a means
of securing trading access against wishes of the rulers.  Now
most European countries have a drastic narcotic problem.  Within
nations we can observe similar karmic situations.  In America a
minority religious group managed to pressurise the government
into enacting 'Prohibition' against the expressed wishes of the
majority.  Successive governments are still confronted with
criminal organisations that were the result.

Records of the recall of previous lives are redolant with
examples of past good or bad conduct having an effect on the
current life.

Admittedly, it is always possible to dismiss the idea of karma
and maintain that consequences of actions are simply the result
of physical laws.  Thus if a person drinks alcohol to excess the
physical and mental consequences are simply due to the physical
effect of ethyl alcohol on the system- not due to karma.  But how
pray, can karma act on the physical level without employing
physical means?

Generally, karma is not expected to act in a range of narrow
specifics.  Thus if I die owing someone $10,000 karma will not
charge me with $10,000 plus interest in some other life.  Rather
if I live without caring for others such conduct does, over time,
have an effect on my subtle components (the Astral-lower mental
etc.) and this by a mechanism well-known to theosophists,
influences the constitution of the next bodies- physical and
subtle.  Thus karma is merely another name for 'cause and effect'
except that the operation is on many levels and independent of
time and not just the physical and here and now.

Never mind Chuck- it was amusing reading- we ought not to take
ourselves or our beliefs too seriously!