It's My Karma

When natural disasters or human-made catastrophes happen in countries where there are Buddhists, people often ask me if the people there accepted this as their karmic retribution. My response is that intellectually we may understand something, but when life hits us hard and everything we know crumbles around us, it is unbelievably difficult to say “It’s my karma.” What the intellect knows, the emotions overwhelm and wash away.

Rarely—very rarely—a person with deep belief and understanding is able to rise to the surface of what we Buddhists call the sea of suffering and say “I understand” even as he is thrust under by another wave.

I have a very good friend of many years who is able to do this.

When in trouble he calls me. All I can do is say how sorry I am as I try to find consoling words for a pain that right now doesn’t seem to have an end in sight.

As he talks, his voice gradually begins to sound a little stronger and then he comes to the “It’s my karma.” And in his voice is an understanding that I don’t know if he is completely aware of.

Each time that he says it’s his karma, he pays down that karmic debt and lightens his burden a bit. This load-lightening is darned difficult. But when we’re in a situation that doesn’t look like it’s going to end tomorrow, what we tell ourselves about it today can either ease our suffering or increase it.

Truthfully, my friend is very unusual. We all encounter difficult relationships, physical discomfort, financial setbacks, and a myriad other problems. But how many of us blame others, look for excuses, tell anyone who will listen to us all about our problems—basically do anything but accept responsibility.

How many of us can calmly admit that we have a debt to repay as we say “It’s my karma.” How many of us are that honest with ourselves.

Silence is Golden (And Less Troublesome!)

Those who have listened to me talk in the last several months know I am having trouble speaking due to vocal cord damage.

A few days ago I arrived back in Nanango, Australia where I am living in a small Buddhist community. I had mentioned to Celine this morning that my throat was painful again, and she responded that I had been speaking too much yesterday at the centre but could be quiet today.  So, I used the Etch-a-Sketch like board she had gotten for me to write questions, etc. during the morning.  At lunch, however, I didn't have the board handy so started to join in the conversation. (We are social creatures of habit and remaining quiet even when everyone knows we're not to talk still feels antisocial.) So I began to talk, but Celine reminded me I was not to talk and jokingly said what I was going to say was not that important anyhow.

And she was absolutely right.

What I was about to contribute to the conversation was unnecessary. The conversation about the garden Nancy and Kelly were working on continued beautifully without me.  What I was about to contribute wasn't important. There's nothing unusual about that. (No. Not just for me. ;-)) Much of what most of us say isn't important. Now, a little unimportant conversation to be polite to others isn't that bad, but how many of us stop at "a little."

How much of our time is spent in unnecessary conversation every day? One hour? Two? Whatever it is, it adds up. And how many times in that unnecessary conversation do we say something that irritates or even hurts another person? However many times we did, it was that many times too much. For the sake of meaningless conversation, we will have created an enmity. One that we will encounter in the future.

So while I do not in any way recommend you go out and damage your vocal cords, I do recommned you consider before you speak. Is what you are about to say really important? Would it be wiser to simply remain silent. 

Difficult Practice Conditions

Question: How does a university student continue his or her practice while living in residence, which rarely facilitates opportunities to meditate, and is often defined by alcohol, sex and over-consumption? Also, I am unable to light incense in my dorm (which is an important part of my daily meditation time) due to fire regulations.

Response: Good conditions need to be created. We do this through our practice. I understand this is especially difficult to accomplish when we live in circumstances that do not lend themselves to the quiet preferred for meditation.

Is there a quiet place you can find to do your meditation away from your dorm? It may not be the environment you prefer or one where you can light incense, but you could do a basic meditation. Doing so will help plant the seeds for better conditions in the future.

Also, when we think of "practice," we most often think of our formal meditation. But practice is following the teachings wherever we are, so being patient in difficult circumstances and being diligent when the environment is not ideal are also invaluable forms of practices.

The Story of Vakula

Vakula means “kind countenance.” Vakula had a kind appearance and people felt joy when looking at him. He was “foremost in longevity.”

The Buddha taught that all worldly pursuits can be categorized into three groups: wealth, wisdom, and health and longevity. Think about this. Is there anyone who does not want these? These are karmic results. We must plant the causes before we can have the karmic results. It is said: “In Buddhism, every sincere request will receive a response.” Why? Because the Buddha knew the law of cause and effect and thus knew which cause would bring about which effect.

The underlying cause of having wealth, wisdom, and health and longevity is giving. The Buddha taught us to cultivate both good fortune and wisdom. In this phrase, good fortune goes before wisdom. There is a Buddhist saying: “Cultivating wisdom without cultivating good fortune will result in an arhat not receiving any offering; cultivating good fortune without cultivating wisdom will result in a royal elephant wearing precious jewelry.”

The first statement is about a person who cultivated wisdom and attained arhatship. But as he did not cultivate good fortune, no one made offerings to him when he went out on alms rounds. The second statement is about a person who cultivated great good fortune but not wisdom. He fell into the path of animals and was reborn as an elephant. As the elephant had good fortune, it was kept by a king. Whenever the king went out, he rode on this elephant, and so this elephant was resplendently bedecked with fine jewelry.

Therefore, the Buddha taught us to cultivate both good fortune and wisdom. If one does not cultivate either one, one will be poor for all future lifetimes. It is most important that we believe the Buddha’s teaching.

Many universities and graduate schools today teach various methods to attain wealth. When we look at the courses they offer, we see that they teach students how to make use of catalytic conditions, not how to plant causes. Take business administration, for example. They do case studies. How did rich people get started? How did they run their businesses? How did they make so much money?

The experts and professors explain clearly and logically, but they themselves do not make much money. They spend their lives teaching in the universities, and if they are good at teaching, they may acquire a good reputation. When they retire, companies may hire them as consultants. They still do not attain great wealth. Since they know so many ways to make money, why can’t they attain great wealth for themselves? It is because what they learn and teach concerns “conditions,” not “causes.”

This is like planting a crop. These experts have the technical knowledge and can analyze the soil, water, climate, air, and fertilizer. The problem is that they do not have seeds. Not even an expert can harvest a crop without planting seeds. If one does not have wealth in one’s destiny, one cannot attain wealth regardless of what good methods or ideas of money making one has. If one has wealth in one’s destiny, one does not need to know any of these methods, for whatever one does, one will attain wealth.

Only the Buddha could explain this fact clearly. Where does wealth come from? From one’s practice of giving of wealth in previous lifetimes. The more one gave in past lifetimes, the more money one will have in this lifetime. If one was unwilling to practice the giving of wealth in past lifetimes, one will not attain great wealth now, no matter what skills one learns. After completing some courses, one will, at most, make money for a company. One will be an employee of that company and will not become its owner.

The giving of teachings will bring the karmic result of wisdom, and the giving of fearlessness will bring the karmic result of health and longevity. When we see that Vakula was foremost in longevity, we know that he had practiced the giving of fearlessness over many lifetimes. This was a good person, greatly compassionate and willing to help all those who encountered difficulties. His karmic result was longevity.

~ Based on Ven. Master Chin Kung's 2003 lecture series on the Amitabha Sutra

The Story of Gavampati

Gavampati was “foremost in receiving the offerings of the gods.” A religious scholar, he belongs to the group that manifests the law of cause and effect.

The Sanskrit word Gavampati means “ruminating ox,” a reflection of the way his mouth would move, like that of an ox eating. The Buddha explained that in a past lifetime when Gavampati was a novice monk, he saw an old monk chanting a sutra. Due to his old age and having lost many teeth, he chanted very unclearly.

Gavampati laughed at the old monk, “When you chant a sutra, you look like an ox eating.” The old monk immediately told him to repent, “You laughed at me and you will receive retribution because of these words.” The novice monk was terrified and immediately repented, but he still fell into the path of animals and was reborn as an ox for five hundred lifetimes. Therefore, he still had the habit of an ox in this lifetime.

We may think nothing of making fun of others. But we do not realize how serious the retribution for poking fun will be. Through this account, the Buddhas and bodhisattvas show us the retribution of hurtful remarks. All harsh remarks bring this kind of retribution. The novice monk was just mocking the older monk, which is not as harmful as lying, divisive speech, or enticing speech would be. But he still had the retribution of being reborn as an ox for five hundred lifetimes. Lying and divisive speech will bring even more serious retributions.

Although Gavampati had become a monk and attained arhatship, he still had the habit of an ox. The Buddha told him not to go out on alms rounds, so as not to give anyone a chance to laugh at him and thereby plant the same cause for themselves. He was told to go to the heavens to receive offerings from the devas. Having extraordinary abilities and knowing that he was a great arhat, the devas would respect him, not mock him. Therefore, he received offerings in the heavens, not in this world.

~ Based on Ven. Master Chin Kung's 2003 lecture series on the Amitabha Sutra