In both Eastern and Western cultures there are explanations of the karmic law of cause and effect. In this blog we will briefly look at the six fundamental principles of the karmic law of cause and effect. Before we move on, there’s one thing we need to understand clearly, that is, a karmic cause is whatever we think, say or act. Now, let’s find out what the six principles are.    

Listen to my teacher’s original lecture in Chinese: The Eternal Karmic Law of Cause and Effect.

Listen to the podcast in English: The Eternal Karmic Law of Cause and Effect.

1) The first principle is that there is correspondence between a karmic cause and its effect. In other words, a karmic cause and its effect are of the same attribute.

This means that a good karmic cause definitely results in a good effect whereas a bad cause undoubtedly results in a bad effect. There’s no mistake about it. The earliest book on history in China, The Canon of Ancient Documents, states that ‘Following the law of nature brings good fortune, abandoning it results in misfortune. They follow us like the shadow of the body and echoes of a sound.’

In Christianity it says, ‘Misfortune pursues the sinner, but prosperity is the reward of the righteous’ (Proverbs, 13:21, NIV). In Judaism it says, ‘There shall be no mischief befall the righteous, but the wicked are filled with evil’ (Proverbs, 12:21, JPS). In Hinduism it says, ‘… none who performs good deeds come to an evil end’ (Bhagavadgîtâ, Tr. Kashinath Trimbak Telang, 6.72). In Islam it says, ‘Whosoever does a good deed, it’s for his own-self, and whosoever does evil, it’s against (his own-self)’ (Qur’an, 45:15).      

2) Now, the second principle is that the harvest of the karmic effect takes time. From a karmic cause to its effect, it has to take a certain amount of time.  

It is like planting a seed. The seed cannot instantly bear fruit. We have to wait for a certain amount of time before it blossoms and bears fruit. Similarly, after we have done a good or bad deed, we will not immediately receive a good or bad consequence. It has to be after a fairly long period of time before the consequence emerges.   

Many people do not believe the karmic law of cause and effect, it is because they do not understand this principle. We often see people who practise virtues and do good deeds receive no good results whereas those who do bad deeds receive no bad consequences. In some cases, those who do good deeds even seem to receive misfortune, those who do bad deeds, however, seem to receive good fortune. Because of this superficial observation, many of us deny the karmic law of cause and effect. If we think like that, we are just too short-sighted.

Why is it? If we stretch the time span to several years or even decades, we can clearly see that there is no doubt about the karmic law of cause and effect. Just as the two Chinese sayings go, ‘It’s not that there is no consequence, it is just that the time has not come’ and ‘Be it a good or bad deed, it will eventually bear fruit, it is just a matter of time’.   

Having said this, some of us might ask: ‘So why do people who practise virtues and do good deeds seem to suffer bad consequences? This is because the bad deeds they committed previously, either in this life or previous lives, bear fruit first. So they receive bad consequences first.

As for those who do bad deeds seem to receive good results, it’s because the good seeds they planted in previous lives bear fruit first, so they receive good consequences first. However, given time, after the consequences of old karmic causes have been depleted, those of new karmic causes will emerge. We will then clearly see that there is an unmistakable correspondence between karmic cause and effect.  

Here is a real-life example. At the beginning of the 20^th century, there was a rich man in Shanghai. He loved doing good deeds and helping those in need. If we just look at this aspect of what he did in life, we would predict that he would die peacefully and it would be auspicious. However, he suffered immense pain on his deathbed and the karmic path he took after death was not good either.

Having seen that, those who knew him started to suspect that the karmic law of cause and effect was defective. But later, they found out that the rich man used to be a government official. At one point, he took possession of a large public fund for relieving local people from starvation. It resulted in many people dying of hunger innocently. The consequence of this bad karmic cause was too huge to be relieved by the good karmic causes he accumulated later in his life. So the bad karmic cause bore fruit first and he suffered the bad consequence in the final moments of his life in this lifetime and also his immediate next life.  

(To be continued…)

DEDICATION

The effort and gains of explaining, transmitting and listening to Buddhas’ teachings are dedicated to

the entire Universe and all beings of all dimensions and all existences. May they all listen to Buddhas’ teachings, awaken to the truth of the Universe, be mindful of the name ‘Amituofo’ (Amitabha Buddha),

aspire to go to the Pure Land, and become Buddhas. (Read this line three times.)

I pray to Buddhas and bodhisattvas for unconditionally solving all man-made and natural disasters around the globe.

For all of those who died in man-made wars and natural disasters across the world,

and for all of those who are related to me in all kinds of ways in this life and previous lives, may they listen to Buddhas’ teachings. May they awaken to the truth of the Universe, aspire to unearth their innate and most sincere, pure, equal and awakened mind, be single-mindedly mindful of Amituofo, aspire to go to the Pure Land so as to see Amituofo and listen to his teachings, removing all their delusions and unveiling their innate wisdom, gaining the real peace and happiness, instantly escaping from the cycle of birth and death, speedily becoming Buddhas, and helping all beings (in the entire Universe) like all other Buddhas.

The effort and gains are dedicated to the leaders of all countries on the Earth. May all countries be prosperous. May all disasters be solved. May the world enjoy eternal peace. I use the effort and gains to return the help from the enlightenment of Buddhas, by the correctness of Buddhas’ teachings, from the purity of sangha, from all beings, from my parents (in this life and previous lives), and from my country(ies). I also use the effort and gains to help alleviate the suffering of those who are already in and will be reborn into the animal realm, the ghost realm and hells as the result of their bad thoughts, speech and deeds. For anyone who sees and hears me chanting or being mindful of Amituofo and doing other good deeds, may they aspire to unearth their most sincere, pure, equal and awakened mind so as to go to the Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss, together with me, at the end of our present lives.