Spiritual Path: Karma Finally Catches Up With Me

Bangkok: 10 years ago. Today I would call it Karma.

Last summer I took a leap and followed a path that had been calling me. After a few classes on meditation I knew I had made the right decision, but there was so much to learn. Following the new year, I began attending a series of Discovering Buddhism classes offered through the Kadampa Center. This series consists of 14, six-week courses, each focused on one aspect of Buddhist philosophy. If you attend all 14 courses, including a two week retreat, and complete the assignments, you receive a certificate. 

It is possible that one day I may become a certified Buddhist, until then, I will continue working to improve myself. 

 The most recent course focused on the rather complicated topic of Karma. To complete the course, students were asked to answer this following question:  

 According to the Buddha, every aspect of our experience of life, no matter how trivial or insignificant, is the result of karma, our past actions of body, speech, and mind. Do you agree or disagree with this? Why? Whether you believe this or not, how would your life be different if you lived as if this were true?

My Answer:

Even before I took my first class at the Kadampa Center, I always felt that there was a cause and effect for all things that happen in this life – I simply lacked the framework for properly understanding it. Of course, I was previously more apt to apply this outlook to the problems of others rather than myself. From a distance it is often easier to see how someone is making a rather uncomfortable bed in which they will one day be whining about having to sleep. And, I hate to admit, I have rather bluntly and with a lack of compassion pointed out to family, friends, and co-workers that the unhappy situation in which they find themselves appears to be due to loose lips, poor choices, or not taking the time to read and follow the instructions.

Over the last ten years or so, I have attempted to think of myself as a self-contained, pragmatic person; however, following my recent introduction to the intricacies of Karma, I feel as if the light has broken through the clouds. Rather than attempting to exist as an island with no cares in the world, I now find that I am trying harder to be kind and compassionate to the people I interact with on a daily basis and more friendly to people randomly encountered throughout the day. I feel myself taking the time to recognize when I am being impatient, not practicing generosity, about to say something without thinking, or obsessing about the fly that is buzzing around my home. My nascent awareness (and sharp wit) may not prevent me from speaking before thinking in every occasion, but I do feel that by recognizing those actions that result in unhappiness and making the effort to avoid them, my happiness quotient has increased.

If I had this knowledge from an earlier age, rather than learning it at the contemplative age of 50, I am unsure how my life would be different today. Perhaps I would have worked harder to maintain some relationships and ended others more quickly. Perhaps I would have considered the long-term consequences of my choices rather than the short-term pleasures I sought. In retrospect, there are some decisions and words I wish I could take back. However, regardless of these past actions, today I can only learn from the past and act in a manner that generates positive karma to carry forward. After all, I would not be on this happy path today had I not acted as I did in the past. For that I am grateful.

Namaste!  

The Karma of Breaking Bad

Last year, I made a resolution to explore my spiritual side. This consisted of attending meditation classes at a local Buddhist temple. I followed that by taking an Introduction to Buddhism class. Since then, I have continued my meditation practice and reading. Buddhism is a bit like being your own therapist in that it forces you to be aware of your thoughts and recognize that YOUR actions and reactions result in your own happiness or suffering.  I am intrigued by these teachings, in that it is easy to see the wisdom of being both wise and kind as a means to avoid mental suffering.

I have found that my practice over the past year has made a noticeable difference in my life. I am a more considerate driver (LOL), more patient with and empathetic to others, slower to judge, more thoughtful in my speech, more focused on finding the positive, and much more analytical of my motivations resulting in a contentedness I have not felt for many years.

A few weeks ago, I took the next step on this journey by signing up for a Discovering Buddhism class, which is a two year course divided into 14 different curricula. The current course work focuses on Karma, which when directly translated, simply means “action.”

There are four laws of Karma

1)    Karma is definite: Virtuous actions always lead to happiness, while non-virtuous actions always lead to suffering.

2)    Karma expands over time like a seed that grows into a mighty oak tree.

3)    There is no result without a cause (i.e. cause and effect)

4)    Karma cannot be lost; however bad Karma can be purified and good Karma can be destroyed by anger.

Pretty simple actually - I am not to blame, but I am responsible for my life, my joy, and my suffering. Which brings me to the topic of today’s blog post: The AMC series Breaking Bad.

Several family members, friends, and colleagues have recommended this show, but I have been actively trying to reduce the amount of time I spend in front of the television, so I simply added the first season to my Netflix queue last year. A few weeks ago, the first CD made its way to my mailbox and I am now obsessed with the tragic life of Walter White.

If you are not familiar with the series, this synopsis from IMDB pretty much sums it up: “Informed he has terminal cancer, an underachieving chemistry genius turned high school teacher uses his expertise to secretly provide for his family by producing the world's highest quality crystal meth.” While there is plenty of tragedy, sadness, and anger, there is also plenty of love and humor to balance the series.

What intrigues me is that while I watch it, I see all the laws of Karma at work. Walter’s motivations are honorable, yet the non-virtuous means he utilizes for obtaining his goal does not lead to happiness and security for his family. Rather, as he states in a fit of anger, for every step forward, he is pushed three steps further from his goal. The karmic seeds he plants in the first season continue to bear bitter fruit in the second season and probably into seasons to come. His actions negatively affect not only his psyche, but also the lives of his family, co-workers, partners and “employees.”

Buddhists do not believe in chance, meaning we are where we are in life due to the choices we have made in the past. I am beginning to think there may be something to this since my Netflix queue seems to have been perfectly attuned to my spiritual journey.  Or maybe I am simply more attuned to Karmic results due to the classes I am attending. Either way, I am grateful for the life lesson and excellent entertainment this series provides.

Lesson learned: Meth is bad and will ruin your life – whether you are cooking, selling, or using it! 

Long Time, No See

Wheel of Life

Wow, I can't believe how long it has been since my last posting. Time flies when you are living your dreams....

Who am I kidding? I have been swamped with work and just haven't had time to organize my thoughts into a coherent, entertaining essay. However, following dinner with my friends Clodagh and Jerry last night, I realized that I am in a rare place of happiness. I have found a blissful moment where the hectic swirl of the world seems far away.

Since I am five weeks into the new job, the radio silence can be lifted. As you may remember, I accepted a new position at Lulu Press in March. Although I am no longer working in my beloved downtown Raleigh and I have to actually drive to the office now, I am thrilled with my work and excited by the team of highly dedicated and creative people with whom I get to spend my days. I am still drinking from the fire hose, so to speak, but I am getting my head around the job and I am eager to get to the office every morning.

Of course that is not how it started. Sometime around 2:00 PM on my first day, I started wondering if I had made a horrible mistake. So many new faces, names, personalities to learn - not to mention that I barely understood a third of what people were talking about in meetings. And, boy, you better believe these people do have some meetings. I have learned that being the oldest person in the room sometimes has its advantages in that I can use my experience and distill it into a varnish of artificial self-confidence. After all, these people didn't know that I was really a walking meat bag composed of jitters and self-doubt. Simply raising my hand and reminding people that I am the new guy, seems to jolt everyone back into English - for a few minutes anyway. Fortunately, I am picking up the jargon pretty quickly, thanks to Google.

Since those tentative days and sleepless nights, I feel that I have begun making a contribution to the success of the company. Perhaps only a small contribution at this point, but I do see a bright future for myself there and hope to stay as long as they will have me.

As to my former position, well, I am still moonlighting for them in the evenings. I just couldn't leave them in the lurch. Somehow I think this generosity has contributed to my recent karmic happiness, but it could also be the consultant-level hourly wage they are paying me that has smoothed the way for paying off the credit card, insurance, and future vacation debt yet to be incurred during my upcoming visit to the Greek Isles in August.

Life is good!