I won’t make friends with this post. I’ve been waiting to post this after the COP list argument so that I’m not just writing this in anger. I don’t even know if I can frame this in a coherent way, but I feel the need to try.
The Western idea of Karma is for the weak minded. It is fire and brimstone only as much as threatening your child with with no presents at Christmas is. Eventually the kids grow up and realize that you can’t take presents away at Christmas because that’s not the point.
I’m sorry if you believe in the Wiccan bastardization of Karma. The (idiotic) idea that every thing we do will be visited back on us in horrid or wonderful ways instantly is problematic in the extreme. It assumes several things:
1. Some one, with nothing better to do and with the powers of the universe at their behest, has nothing better to do with their time.
2. That you have no control over you lives.
Both of these ideas are the purest form of bullshit. I will not reiterate my beliefs on the gods. You can read the Statement of Belief linked at the top of this page. As for the second point the fact that every down-your-luck, squalor living pagan blames their situation on karma and not on the fact that they rather buy a boat than a vacuum cleaner, makes it suspect.
The worst part of this is that they love telling folks, it doesn’t matter what you believe in, Karma is real. You better be having a WTF moment…if not keep reading:
It doesn’t matter if you don’t believe Jesus, he still loves you.
Sound familiar?
It absolutely matters whatever the fuck I believe in. Otherwise tolerance means nothing. And I really believe that everyone can have their own religion separate from everyone else AND that the consequences of your religion only apply as you believe them. We are powerful creatures, we have FREE WILL and if you don’t believe in the boogieman, he can’t harm you.
Chew on that.
Now lets talk about Eastern Karma for a moment. For the (misinformed) folks that believe that the western version of karma and the eastern one are the same…you are not paying attention. I actually love the Matrix movies…all three. I know I’m the only one on the planet. BUT in the third movie there is an explanation of Karma that is just beautiful.
Karma is the duty to learn this life’s lesson.
That’s it. It doesn’t mean that if you punch Joe Smoe that some bored deity will instantly bring down horrible things on you (threefold or not). It doesn’t mean you can blame your predicament on anything but yourself. And it doesn’t mean that that you can impose in on any one else.
Don’t get me wrong. All actions have consequences. The thing is, they just aren’t always direct consequences. You may never see the result of your actions, or they might affect you for the rest of your life. Think butterfly in the field. One flap and a war starts halfway across the world. The butterfly is never affected by that war.
This gets me to responsibility. Take it. What you do and what affects your life is ultimately your responsibility. Playing the victim isn’t going to move you forward. You get mugged. That part…not your fault, but being in a position to get mugged…yes, you chose to walk down that ally, you came unarmed, you resisted in some way. You made a conscious decision. The results were not happy. You need to take responsibility and move on. It sound harsh, but that’s how it is. Did you call for help? How can anyone help you if you don’t? Being responsible also means knowing when to call for help.
So I’m sure some of you are pissed and are wish bad karma on me right now. Sticks and Stones folks. Sticks and Stones.
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