Over the past month, there has been some speculation among members of the global Tamil community on whether Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa visited Texas to obtain cancer treatment in secret. The story in itself is not particularly interesting, but it does have relevance for the post-conflict situation in Sri Lanka. Many reacted to the news not with sadness, but with a sense that cosmic justice was being meted out. Some argued that Rajapaksa, responsible for mass human rights violations during the final months of the Sri Lankan civil war, was now getting his just desserts. Although many nationalist Tamils profess to be atheist or secular, the reaction to the news was always framed in Hindu and Buddhist notions of karma, popularly defined in the West as "what goes around comes around."
For Sinhala soldiers as well, the notion of karma was ever-present throughout the war with the separatist Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), which came to a bloody conclusion in May 2009. As Daniel Kent's recent research makes clear, Buddhist monks blessed Sri Lankan soldiers before they went out for training, preached at their funerals, and counseled soldiers and their families about the conduct of war and its justification.
For many years, scholarship on Buddhism, and Eastern religious traditions generally, was often guided by a crude assumption that Western religions held a monopoly on violence, while the East was largely peaceable. Over the last several years, research into conflict in Buddhist societies has forced scholars to rethink our assumptions. According to Kent's research in Sri Lanka, for example, there is real debate within the Sri Lankan army about notions of karma and intention in the killing of enemy soldiers. While there are many different aspects to the discussion, I focus here on one important question: whether religion, particularly discussions of karma and intention, restrict genuine reconciliation between Sinhala and Tamil communities in post-conflict Sri Lanka. I rely heavily on Kent's research on the Sri Lankan army, but much of what follows can likely be applied to the Tamil community as well.
Karma may complicate moves toward reconciliation in Sri Lanka, firstly, by assigning causal explanations to events that are largely inexplicable. Kent recalls interviewing a Sri Lankan Corporal, named Specs, at Panagoda army camp near Colombo, who told the story of narrowly escaping a blast from an improvised explosive device. His friend, who was not so lucky, was blinded and had both of his hands blown off. For Specs, his survival is explained with reference to karma. "That sort of thing must occur as the result of merit," he says, "one becomes disabled like this because of some sort of negative karma, but one's life is saved because one has done some sort of merit. That is what we think. It must be that. It is the way of karma." Not only do karmic explanations bring a spiritual rationalization to bear on worldly events, but these justifications often tend to be self-serving. In other words: I survived because I am good.
Perhaps more important for our present purposes is the way in which karma is linked with intention. Kent interviewed one monk, the Venerable Pilassi Vimaladhajja, who pointed out that negative karma does not accrue when an enemy is killed. "Vimaladhajja is not giving soldiers a blank check to kill whomever they wish while fighting the enemy," writes Kent, "He stresses that if a soldier has the intention to kill, a negative karma occurs. If a soldier's intention is to fight the enemy in order to protect the country and religion, however, their actions do not produce negative consequences." As Kent observes, those who hold this belief look at killing as secondary with the primary intention being the protection of the country.
As with the example above, however, it is assumed that karma, as a cosmic force, is supremely capable of discovering one's underlying intentions. Depending on how the soldier's life subsequently turns out, his ideas of karma and intention may have to be re-evaluated. As one soldier told Kent: "Honestly it is possible to rape and pillage during war without being caught. However, if you do that, nothing will ever go right for you ... there was one incident when we were in Trinco ... the Tamils had cultivated a field and left it. Our guys went and harvested the rice. They harvested the rice, sold it and took the money ... there were 21 guys who did that. All 21 of them were killed on the same day at the same time."
Such faith that karma will mete out punishment with mathematical certainty may work against the potential for remorse, regret or reconciliation. The very fact that some soldiers are still alive and living a life of health, wealth and happiness, is, with profound circular logic, seen as evidence of just conduct during war. This, in essence, is the problem with karma.
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Another paragraph "Such faith that karma will mete out punishment with mathematical certainty may work against the potential for remorse, regret or reconciliation. The very fact that some soldiers are still alive and living a life of health, wealth and happiness, is, with profound circular logic, seen as evidence of just conduct during war. This, in essence, is the problem with karma."
attracted my attention. Firstly according to Hindu scripture it is Ishvara who grants the fruits of Karma. So the good health of a soldier does not necessarily prove his good conduct in the war. It may be a sign of good past karma (i.e. karma before the war) and the karma of any bad activity during the war may show up in the future whether in this or in a future life. There is thus no problem with karma.
As man the ghosts reincarnates until all earthen karma will balance in the life it metamorphosis into Brahman. As Brahman it continue balancing earthen and sows spiritual karma which continues throughout eternity. Karma is living to learn by experiencing all emotions, including giving and receiving what one inflicts upon all others, until the whole of existence has been experienced and understood by each ghost.
The scenarios explained in the article are based on the limited view of karma but biblically it's "whatsoever a man sow so shall he also reap" and includes every act on all life types from microbes to man. We are destined to perform the acts we do and can't change any unless it's destiny. Nor can it be explained without explaining evolution of the ghosts through every life on earth. Therefore, it's not a problem with karma except with those who don't understand it fully.
I think, in general, it is dangerous for "ordinary beings" (non-enlightened) like ourselves to speculate on the subtle workings of karma. Until we have the clairvoyance to directly "see" the relationships between cause and effect, it would be wise to avoid personal conjectures.
To give one a sense of karma's complexity, I provide this link:
http://www.buddhanet.net/e-learning/karma.htm
There once was a pundit or actually a propagandist who wrote panegyric accolades for the revolution truly believing in its just cause, breathing it, living each day for it. He thought that history has made its final turn, its denouement. He found himself before an old wooden bureau with a single bulb hanging above his head writing his confession of guilt in sabotaging that selfsame revolution. As he signed his name to that document an officer in blue came behind him and shot him. He was astounded as his upper torso fell limply and without feeling upon that bureau.
A little boy was born onto a family traumatized with war. He knew fear and distrust and grew up into a fearful human being uncertain of his way through life and profoundly distrustful of people. He harbored self doubt and tormented himself bearing guilt for all the wrongs put upon him by others. He did not see the root origin of his fears and vexations and suffered throughout his life.
Also interestingly, aside from it's biblical presence (5410 times), It is a kind of declaration in words, the closest that words can point to awakening or enlightenment. Many Vedanta writings (India) have this, particularly Advaita Vedanta. Also, in English, the one statement 'I Am' or 'I exist' that can't be negated by argument. For if I say, "no YOU are not, or YOU don't exist", I just validated you be trying to negate you.
I see karma as an extention the law of cause and effect-practice right action with right intention and there will be a positive effect. Of course, we sometimes think we have the right action when we don't really have it, and sometimes stumble on to the right action despite wrong intentions. We also frequently make unwarranted assumptions about what causes resulted in what effects. What happens to us is not determined solely by us, and we should work to avoid our anger at our situation from keeping us from right actions and intentions. Karma is best used to determine proper action, not to explain one's status in life.
Leela
Buddhism was able to bring most of the people in south in Sri Lanka together but unfortunately Srilankan Tamil (Extremist) continue to resist due to their own political goals influenced by Tamil Nadu. But I honestly believe that the concept of Karma in this religion is not very much different from Karma mention in Hinduism. Any reconciliation to happen between different ethnic groups, we need to find something common with these groups. So I believe, if used properly, the concept of Karma can be used to bring these people together.
I think author should understand what happened in Sri Lanka is that Rulers used the concept of Karma also as a motivational force for soldiers to fight against misguided youths to avoid continuous blood bath in Sri Lanka and I believe it has shown good results to both Sinhalese and Tamils . So It is up to the remaining people to find how it can be used to bring more reconciliation among people now. It is definitely not an evil force against any reconciliation among these ethnic groups.