Karma. This is a word that's thrown around a lot - many people believe in it, although it may be a different word, but a rose is a rose is a rose. . .There are many meanings, actually, for the word Karma and everyone interprets those meanings in different ways.
I, for one, see it as some kind of goal. I use it as my conscience - as my guide to be a good person. Others see it as some sort of extrinsic reward to work for and yet others hope that it will take form as a punishment - to get those people who have done us wrong. Ultimately, it's necessary to see that Karma has no personality - no human qualities - it is a force, young skywalker. A force that is under no one's control.
People do bad things. People do stupid things. People do good things. If you wander around with a negative forcefield, you will attract that negativity - you will be negative and do negative things. If you are a good person, you will attract good people and good things. This isn't to say that those bad people aren't going to invade the space of those good folks, though. Like Earl says, you gotta believe in Karma -- long term. You can't just give up on it. Even if times seem tough.
We all have bad days. GFD - yours did not start off well, today. It ended kind of sucky, too. When people steal from us, our perspective suddenly comes into full view and we begin to take a magnifying glass to who we are and why this happened to us.
I think we've all been victims of some sort of crime - some sort of violation - that makes us doubt our own goodness and positive motivation. It makes us wonder, is it worth all our effort? Should I just keep being who I am - doing things for people, trying to make life happier and sillier and more enjoyable for myself and others?
And obviously, the answer is no. It isn't. Give up now. Join the bad guys.
JK - of course. It's YES!!!!!!!!!!
Because those of us out here who are in that same boat and who are definitely benefiting from your positive influence appreciate you!
The perpetrators, the people who violate, will eventually pay the price -- or perhaps they already do. This goes back to those icky people, remember?
Anyway, I digress. Back to Karma and all it's glory. Whether this force has human qualities or not, it definitely has a way of repaying us for our deeds - good, bad or stupid.
Thich Nhat Hanh believes in facing hate or anger with love, but not in a literal sense because that seems kind of ridiculous. But more like every time some kind of negative thought comes to mind - or something bad has happened and you're feeling down or sad about it - intentionally bring a positive or happy thought to mind. If you allow those negative "thoughts" hang out too long, they become a part of us. On the other hand, if we continually address each piece of negativity with positive thoughts it will become second nature.
Then, we'll all be identified as complete LUNATICS with giant blank smiles and a total indifference to the DARK side. OK, it probably won't go that far.
Again, those damn overly-happy Buddhist monks prevail with their "be nice even when it hurts" philosophy. I think that it is NOT important to ask, is it worth it to be myself and be my good self. A better question would be, is it worth it to sacrafice who I am to stoop to the level of those who have hurt us?
I mean, really, did you see how UGLY those Sith Lords are? No amount of Retin A will smooth out those wrinkles and who wants to resort to having to wear a mask. Bad is ugly - ugly on the inside and it seeps to the outside.
Stay your awesome, Fabulous selves -- and let Karma get those other folks. . .cuz it will. One way or another. It's gonna find them. It's gonna get em get em get em get em. One day, maybe next week. It's gonna. . .:-)
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7 comments:
Okay, I first need to say..Wow. we were blogging at the same time. How freaky is that?
Second-did you just watch Star Wars tonight or were you channeling your inner dorkness?
Read my blog. I agree. I just get slapped in the face by situations or even days like today- I get over them. I am not a monk, I cannot be blissful without facing ugly reality sometimes. I got upset a few years ago about always being the ringleader without much reciprocation. But, someone, I think it was my hubby told me I should just embrace what I do. Do I plan things and do things to impress people, no way. I do what I do because I like it. I am likem my mom and her mom. We like fun. Life is too short to be an icky person. Life is too short to do ugly things. Life is too short not to have fun each day in one way or another. So I will let Karma hopefully bite someone in the butt and face a new day with encouragement.
Ps Karma Karma Karma Chameleon was one of my favorite Boy George songs. He was soooooooooo cool.
I'm the one who told you to embrace it. How soon one forgets inspiring words. I'm going to go comment on your other blog now.
And, no. I'm just plain dorky - I could've done a harry potter reference, but you haven't read those and it would have been lost.
Did I mention that I have a theory that Bin Laden and Lord Voldemort have a lot in common? a philosophy for another day. . .
I've resisted blogging a response because I just love hanging with you 2 and don't want to spoil the fun. But then I decided that we're all big enough to respect each other even if we don't agree on everything.
So with that being said....
I think this Karma stuff is all bull shit! (How's that for being tactful?)
I looked up karma in the ditionary and it referred to buddism, reincarnation, energy, blah, blah, blah.
Sure, I think good/nice people often have good/nice things in their lives because they are probably loved and respected and people want to recipricate.
But that is not a "for sure, always" sitation.
Just look at a child with cancer or a parent that has to bury their child and it's obvious that we all know bad things happen to good people too without any justification at all.
GLD did absolutely nothing bad to warrent the theivery. The person who stole the stuff (just like whoever stole from the 4th of July party) were acting on selfish, greedy, inconsiderate motives and that is that.
I don't think every negative sitution should be responded to with love/kindess/save the whales mentality. That is not realistic, it is not authentic, and it's not appropriate.
You have the right to feel pissed-off, wronged, cheated. Those are real feelings from a real person. Should you dwell on this for days and harbor the negative emotions indefinately? Of course not... but allow yourself to feel the way you really feel.
Will something bad happen to that person? Maybe. Maybe they'll be caught and punished, but that is not a sure thing. They do, though, have to deal with their dishonesty anytime they eat an "airhead" or rub pumpkin/bee butter all over their significant other's privates. Yuck...gross.
They may not feel any remorse at this time- but the bottom line is they still know it was wrong.
TWICE -not once- but TWICE- I had leather coats stolen from me at church. I was so disappointed! And then someone said to me, "Look at it this way, whoever stole the coat must have needed it a lot more than you." BULLSHIT! No, I didn't NEED the coat, but if someone did NEED a coat there were so many opportunities for them to get one without having to steal it. Stealing is just wrong-(of course there are exceptions; stealing basic neccesaties in the matter of life or death yadda yadda yadda)
Will something now bad happen to me because my Karma is sending out negative vibes? Possibly- but that is because this is life with all the good and evil that comes with it.
I hope you now don't "really want to hurt me." Maybe I just come from the "church of the posion mind." Remember, I'll always "tumble for ya" and please don't be offended because then I'd "miss you blind."- Oliver
Hey Oliver - I'm writing from my sick bed! I totally respect your opinion and I think we're actually on the same page here. . .hear me out. . .I totally agree that bad things happen to good people and if we didn't rage inside, we wouldn't be human.
I just think that it's unhealthy to HOLD ON to that rage because it can poison the mind and heart. If we focus on the bad things that happen to us, well, there's no room for good.
Conversely, good things happen to "bad" people. Go figure. What the H E double hockey sticks is that? I have no answer, to anything, and I do think that the monks and brother (Roman?) Tick live in an unrealistic world of simplicity and beauty. So, be pissed off - disappointed, whatever -- but my theory is then, to let it go. :-)
I just think that Karma is something that just happens - and that you can't strive for it - it isn't an award to work towards because most often, Karma is just the warm fuzzy feeling you get when you do something nice. And that, for the most part, good energy draws good energy.
Oh, and one more thing -- there is this totally evil person named Betty who is a totally totally totally f'n evil person. She is sooooooooo mean and irrational and evil. (I'm getting creative with the adjectives now - please forgive me, it's the fever talking) that I'd love to just kick her everywhere and then, when she's down, kick her some more because she's so evil and mean.
However, it would be to no avail. Regardless of how I respond (pleasantly, ignore her or swear at her) to her evil comments that are directly MEAN to me, she remains the same, irrational holy bitch (and I don't mean holy ghost). So, in a case like that, I agree. Love just doesn't work.
But love doesn't work on people who have no soul.
I'm not all kooky - thinking that people steal becuase they need it more than me either. I completely agree that it is complete bullshit. I mean, really, has anyone looked at my bank account lately?
OK, I'm kidding - I definitely have more than I need, but I'm pretty DANG sure that the person who stole your leather jacketS didn't need them either.
I wish I was witty enough at this point to add some fun 80's lyrics to rival your quotes, but alas, my 103 fever is kicking my ass.
Therefore, over and out, my friend.
Wow!That is all I could think after reading the response to this blog...The one thing I just need to know Oliver, is...now this is in all seriousness, if you are going to use these words and all....Do you own all those Boy George albums or did you Google for the titles? Seriously impressed. Wow...still all I can say.
As for all the heavy weight shyte. I am glad that we can all be friends and speak our minds. I think the GFL's intention about Karma was not to say that one should deny their feelings and get all sappy and hug a tree like towards bad guys, I am pretty sure she didn't mean that. What I think she meant was-that Karma will (hopefully) come full circle to those who are naughty and that we shouldn't dwell. I like to take the philosophy of "what goes around comes around" and saying that Karma is bullshit is mighty fine. But in defense of being me, I must throw out there that the other "way" is total bullshit to me. Organized religion and believing that everything happens because an unproven, mythological fictional character says it is so, seems pretty far fetched. Now we can happily get into a religious debate, which I am all for, but like school, maybe we should not mix church and blogging, or church and friends. Then again, we force our students each day to pledging a country under God. Once again, total bullshit.
I could go on and on...but I don't want to. I can be friends with anyone as long as they separate their beliefs, don't try to "save" me and are not hypocrites. Most religious people I know are HUGE hypocrites. Look at the people who stole Oliver's jackets-twice. I beleive there is a freakin' commandment against that. And how about the one about :thou shall not covet thy neighbors wife? Huh, Has Th****od Subdivision or any of the big ass, wife swapping, key party, neighborhoods heard of that one? Give me a break.
Karma to me is an attitude. It is a moment where you stop and think of your actions before you take them. Think of the outcome. Asking is it worth it, or will I regret it. The regret alone may be the bad karma you get back.
Do bad things happen to good people of course. But why? Who has the answer, not I. How can people believe in any one thing that would allow children to get cancer? Or have two parents die and leave children orphans, or the death and hunger around the globe while rich asses throw thier money around on drugs and hookers? I would like to meet this "god" and it needs to have a damn good explanation for what is going on.
So instead of beliving in what is the unknown-I am going to believe in what I know is real. ME. I am real. I am here. I am responsible for my actions. I have the power to make people feel good, or bad. I have the power to feel good or regretful. I have to answer to only one person. Me.
So that is that. Karma is me. I am going to continue down my path. I am going to live my life hopefully with little regret, a lot of fun, family and friends around and love. All I know and all I have is here right now. That is where my energy is going to stay focused. That is where my Karma is going to come into play.
OK, where to begin???
Yes, I am so sorry to disappoint you, but I did Google the song titles because my tired brain just wasn't up to remembering them all. It was fun, though, and brought back some great big hair 80s memories. I loved the 80s!
Now for the more serious stuff:
There is A LOT of proof for the truth of Jesus- the Bible has been the most researched, scrutinized, examined, debated book in history.
I love being your friend, but you can't seperate my religious beliefs from the person that I am because then you really don't know who I am.
I think people often confuse hyprocrites with people that make mistakes. I definatley know people of all walks of life that don't walk thier talk. And I am one of those people. I goof up all the time and make wrong bad decisions. But I hope people don't confuse mistakes with hypocracy.
I think people that often profess their religous beliefs are held to a different higher standard- which is understandable. But then people forget that the bottom line is that they are just people- people with faults, errors, poor judgement, and have a lot of learning left to do.
I think the difference, once again, boils down to intention.
As far as trying to figure out why all these terrible things happen on Earth, one has to take into consideration that there just isn't one force in the world (God) but there is also Satan- and he is very real, very powerful, and very active.
In regards to "saving" people, again think about intentions. I don't want to damage our friendship by being overbearing. On the other hand, I do consider you my friend. I do care about you. I do love you and that is why I am willing to put myself out on the line to share any infomation that I have or have access too. In my mind, if I didn't want to do this, I wouldn't be a very good friend.
I think it's wonderful that you take full responsibility for your actions and choices and that you want to live life in the fullest. I think that is why you are so fun to be around. Your positive attitude is refreshing and contagious.
So should we seperate blogging and religion? I don't think so. I think that would be like ignoring the big elephant in the room. But I think it is also something that we know we have very different opions about. I hope we can always keep the dialogue open otherwise I don't think our friendships can really get beyound a surface level. So when it's appropriate, I'm always open to talk or listen or both.
I want candy. I really do want candy, but for trivia sake, name the 80s band that sang that one!- Oliver
Easy...Bow Wow Wow....
I respect who you are, as I believe you do me. I do think we can have a meaningful friendship beyond religion. I can be friends with Jewish people or Muslims also-but someone's religion is not my focus. I don't really care what people do behind closed doors as long as they are good humans. We are good humans. We should be happy that we are...and live with that for now. I can't write much more now I am being called.
And I am not in a witty mood to even think of one song, except Come on Eileen and that has no bearing here what so ever....
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