The physical form and its effect on karma

[Robert_Grosch]

Dear all,

I just thought a bit more about

@Robert_Grosch

I do not agree, that only conscious decisions cause kamma,

and I still think this is right.

What does it mean to do a conscious act? A conscious act means for example that one has a certain view or doctrine and acts accordingly and is aware of this, while carrying out the act. I can have the view, that helping others is good and act accordingly, which results in white kamma. I can have the view that I am a superior being or that the lifes of other beings are not worth anything and administer a well planned genocide. This will obviously lead to very black kamma.

However, if you do a kind act, just because it feels good, not expecting anything in return, this results, according to how I understood the teachings of Bhante @Brahmali from his talks, also in very pure and white kamma. The kamma would be even purer, than the kamma you would get, if you consciously plan to help someone and consciously carry out the helpful act, because you want a favor in return. However, if I help someone because it feels right and also have the right view that this is wholesome and rejoice in it (just with mettā in the heart without any clinging and without expecting good vipāka from this), then you create good kamma for…
(1) … helping someone,
(2) … consciously recognizing what is wholsome as wholesome, and for
(3) … rejoicing in following the right path.
Hence, this is the best result.
(The same can be played out with unwholesome acts in the opposite direction.)

Hence, here we find again, that the state of mind from which an act or thought originates is the primary factor determining the “colour” of the kamma and not so much how conscious the thought process around it is. Animals can act from kindness. Many owners of animals (and pets) know that for example dogs and cats or horses can feel the owners emotional state and often try to comfort the owner if he/she is in a sad or depressed mood. They are acting here from kindness and compassion because they feel the other ones pain. I never had the feeling my dog did comfort me, calculating that I would give him a treat for cheering me up. He was just happy when I was happy. In my opinion that results in good kamma in any being and it does not matter if the being knows this consciously or not.

With much mettā,
Robert

[LXNDR]

what you described, Robert, is exactly intention, a deliberate choice

animals lack the ability to deliberately produce good kamma and choose what kamma they want to produce, therefore the concept of kamma doesn’t do much justice in their respect

and again, what about carnivores? with their lifestyle they’re fated to lower planes of existence, and this is just because killing for food is in their genes they cannot change. i don’t think this is kammically fair

then there’re progressively less psychologically sophisticated species, a biorobots in a sense, do they produce any kamma?

[Russell]

Dear Robert,

“Cittalamkaram cittaparikkharattham danam deti” (This is a support for the mind, an adornment for the mind). That is what the Buddha said when it comes to doing wholesome and skillful acts. Also in the suttas, there it says that a person should rouse good and wholesome thoughts to diminish unwholesome and unskillful thoughts, which @Brahmali also teaches

with anjali and metta,
russ

[Timothy]

- YouTube

With metta!