Understanding Karma

Karma is a Sanskrit word that means “action.” Karma has commonly been considered a punishment for past bad actions, but karma is neither judge nor jury. Rather, it is simply the universal law of cause and effect that says every thought, word and act carries energy into the world and affects our present reality. Karma can also refer to the “work” we have ahead of us, which includes lessons from both our past and present lives.

Part of our life’s work is to understand our individual relationship to the cosmos … to understand how the universe affects us. The energies our thoughts and actions produce can cover the entire planet, or even beyond, in the blink of an eye. An examination of karma offers clues about our intended life purpose, showing us the psychic imprint of past lives and mapping the way out of behaviours and thoughts that are no longer useful to us.

We are all here to learn lessons as “spiritual beings in human form”. These lessons are designed to help us grow into greater levels of love, joy, and awareness. They teach us to “choose love at every moment”, to “forgive everyone, everything”, and to “live happily”. Where we do not choose love, show forgiveness, teach tolerance, or display compassion, karma intervenes to put us back on the path of these lessons. Quite simply, the only way to achieve a state of karmic balance is to be love.

Karma gives you the opportunity at every moment to become open to greater levels of love and compassion. It operates impersonally: applying to everyone, all the time, and no exceptions. It is very logical: what you sow is what you reap in exact and precise measure. Karma is as predictable as the laws of gravity: what is done to you is the net result of what you have done to others.

The goal of karma is to give you all the experiences that you need to evolve into greater levels of love, joy, awareness, and responsibility. Karma teaches that you are totally responsible for the circumstances of your life. Karma is like “training wheels”. They keep you on the straight and narrow until you have mastered your vehicle and can ride freely on your own.

See that you are at the centre of the universe… Accept all things as being part of you… When you perceive that an act done to another is done to yourself… you understand the great truth. Tolerance opens the door to compassion and love.

Karma drives us from oneness to wholeness to unity with life. Karma forces us to look beyond ourselves  so that we can see ourselves as we truly are. Once we truly understand ourselves, we can see our divinity and our unity with all life.

Karma shows us that for any question love is the answer. Love is our birthplace, our final refuge, and our reason for being. If we recognize that compassion and love are the ultimate destination of our journey, the heart of the universe responds.

Through understanding your unique destiny, you can adjust your actions to either change an ongoing situation, or gain new perspective on a past situation so you can avoid making the same mistake twice. By understanding karma, you can unlock the patterns from past lives and show you how to use the laws of karma to consciously choose a better path for this life and the next.