When we look at these pictures, we think that these poor folks got targeted by the universe randomly. But is it possible they did something—either in this life or a past one—to deserve the cards they were dealt? If you're a believer in karma, you'd say "yes." But is karma actually real?
Karma is an ancient Indian belief that can be summarized with the saying: "You reap what you sow." However, Buddhists and Hindus have slightly different versions of karma. Hindus believe that karma is the relationship between our thoughts or actions and their consequences. In Buddhism, it's the principle of cause and effect.
Karma teaches us to act with intention. If we help someone in need, we leave an imprint of good in the world. Good deeds from others thus may come our way in return. The same goes for bad deeds. If we intentionally hurt someone or cause people harm in any way, problems will keep following us around
Karma isn't an exact science, but a guiding belief in morality. It can be hard to believe in karma when we see bad people in positions of power or little kids getting cancer. Some people believe it's because we only turn to karma when we're in a difficult spot: when our health is declining, or when we're unhappy or in trouble.
Most people only have an understanding of karma that's quite Westernized. For example, did you know that there are actually four different versions of karma? Sanchita karma is the karma we accumulate throughout all of our past lives. It's like a bank where we deposit our karmic points during each of our lifetimes. We don't use it all up during our present life and only with ordinary everyday actions.
Prarabdha karma is the opposite: it's the karma of this present life. Nevertheless, it's connected to Sanchita karma, as it is a portion of what we're given in this current lifetime. Prarabdha karma is closely linked to destiny: we cannot alter most of what we have been given, like our genetic inheritance. Those who believe in Prarabdha karma believe that we leave our physical bodies once our share of this life's Prarabdha karma is depleted.
Agami Karma is the karma we create in this present life only. All the karma we accumulate during this life then goes into our treasury of Sanchita karma. The difference between Prarabdha karma and Agami karma is that Prarabdha is the karmic heritage of this life. Agami karma, one the other hand, is how we act and react in our daily lives.
The last type of karma is Kriyamana karma, which is sometimes not even distinguished as a separate type from Agami karma. They're both about the karma we create in our present lives for the future. But Kriyamana karma refers to the act of generating karma in this present life.
