It is karma operating through the law of cause and effect, actionand reaction, that governs all life
and binds the atman (the Self) to the wheel of saṃsāra (birth and death). The process of action and
reaction on all levels — physical, mental and spiritual - is karma. God does not give us karma. We
create our own. Karma is not fate; humans are believed to act with free will, creating their own
destinies. According to the Vedas, if an individual sows goodness, he or she will reap goodness; if one sows evil, he or she will reap evil. Karma refers to the totality of mankind's actions and their
concomitant reactions in current and previous lives, all of which determine the future.
However, many karmas do not have an immediate effect; some accumulate and return
unexpectedly in an individual's later lives. The conquest of karma is believed to lie in
intelligent action and dispassionate reaction.
Unkindness yields spoiled fruits, called papa , and good deeds bring forth sweet fruits,
called punya. As one acts, so does he become: one becomes virtuous by virtuous
action, and evil by evil action.
and binds the atman (the Self) to the wheel of saṃsāra (birth and death). The process of action and
reaction on all levels — physical, mental and spiritual - is karma. God does not give us karma. We
create our own. Karma is not fate; humans are believed to act with free will, creating their own
destinies. According to the Vedas, if an individual sows goodness, he or she will reap goodness; if one sows evil, he or she will reap evil. Karma refers to the totality of mankind's actions and their
concomitant reactions in current and previous lives, all of which determine the future.
However, many karmas do not have an immediate effect; some accumulate and return
unexpectedly in an individual's later lives. The conquest of karma is believed to lie in
intelligent action and dispassionate reaction.
Unkindness yields spoiled fruits, called papa , and good deeds bring forth sweet fruits,
called punya. As one acts, so does he become: one becomes virtuous by virtuous
action, and evil by evil action.