Karma: What Exactly is It?

Thousands of years ago, when the first philosophical questions began to be expressed in scriptures, these concerns were not as concrete as those we usually ask ourselves today.

The thinkers of Antiquity tried to answer very metaphysical and general questions, such as: what is the energy that guides everything that happens in nature in a coordinated manner?

The concept of karma, born in Asia is based on the idea that reality is articulated through a law of retribution according to which what is given is obtained in a moral sense.

What is karma?

In various Eastern religions and philosophies such as Hinduism or Buddhism, Karma is an energy that surrounds everything and that makes the moral actions that are carried out have a return of the same style towards the person who has done them. That is, it is a kind of metaphysical compensation mechanism.

For example, if someone hurts someone, they do not have to be a victim of another person’s mistreatment, but karma will ensure that the consequences of this action are also negative in nature and their intensity is of a similar proportion to the evil that has been done.

Somehow, the idea of ​​karma introduces the idea of ​​justice into the functioning of the world A justice that is imposed without us having to do anything for it. According to some currents of belief, karma is put into practice by divinities, while for other non-theistic religions such as Buddhism there is no god who operates this energy, but rather this way of separating you from reality, just like those mechanisms that are described by scientifically discovered natural laws.

Actions and consequences

The whole idea of ​​karma is based on the belief that The consequences of our actions always correspond to the moral value they have That is to say, everything bad and everything good that we do will return to us in the form of consequences of the same value as the shares issued.

Furthermore, actions that produce a certain karma are not just movements. For most Eastern philosophies and religions that have adopted this concept, thoughts also cost.

The origin of the concept

Etymologically, “karma” means “action” or “doing.” That is why it has not always been used with the metaphysical and religious meaning that we are accustomed to in the West.

The first mention of karma as a concept related to retribution is believed to have appeared in sacred Hindu texts in the 4th century BC. C. Specifically, appears named in the book Chāndogya Upaniṣad written in Sanskrit.

Due to its antiquity and the influence that Hindu cultures have had throughout history, the idea of ​​karma has become adopted by several Asian societies and has merged with religions born in the south of the continent.

The types of karma

Traditionally, it has been considered that there are three types of karma. They are the following.

1. Prarabdha karma

Karma that makes itself felt at the time the action is being performed For example, when lying to a person, the nerves cause one to speak in a less fluent way and nervousness and embarrassment appear.

2. Sanchita karma

The memories that have remained in our minds and have an effect on our future actions For example, the sadness that comes from not having proposed to someone and that makes us not give up expressing what we feel the next time we fall in love.

3. Agami karma

The effect that an action in the present will have in the future For example, binge eating for several weeks will lead to poorer health for months to come.

The moral value of remuneration

These three types of karma are different facets of the same thing seen from different time perspectives. The Sanchita karma of the past produces the Prarabdha karma in the present, which generates the Agami karma in the times to come.

The three, together, form a sequence of causes and effects whose effects we cannot control However, according to the way of thinking that uses the idea of ​​karma, we can choose whether to do good or evil, that is, two types of cause-effect chains with a different moral value for both ourselves and others.

Eastern philosophies and psychology

Both karma and other concepts from Asia, such as Yin and Yang and meditation based on religious rituals, have become fashionable in certain forms of alternative therapy. However, it must be taken into account that these ideas They only make sense in a framework of beliefs without empirical foundation and that, consequently, it cannot be said that taking karma into account will allow us to make life treat us better. The concept of karma is not and cannot be reinforced by scientific discoveries.

Yes, it is true that believing in karma makes us experience reality in a different way (as happens with any new belief that we adopt), but it is also impossible to know if this change is going to be for the worse or for the better.