What I sow, I reap

Simply noticing my emotional state won’t make the emotion go away. Recognizing that I feel bad and actually feeling bad are two different things. I've always encouraged people to examine their emotions through meditation. There are times when I feel angry and distressed. Yet, I can't control myself. Even when I reflect on the emotions arising within me, feeling bad is still feeling bad.

The cause of the emotions I experience now has been accumulating since past lives. This is called karma, karmic imprints, or accumulated karma. When I react to the manifestations of past karma that appear now, my reaction leads to the next karmic result. Ultimately, it continues in an endless loop where cause becomes result, and result becomes cause. This is the law of cause and effect spanning the past, present, and future.

From birth, humans are taught to live ethically and morally. Some ethics and morals are legally enforced, while others are socially agreed upon. Yet, people still break these rules. Random acts of violence are common. However, everything happens for a reason. A perpetrator of a random act of violence didn't just fall from the sky one day. It arises from a continuous chain of causes and conditions.

Sometimes, there is a cause, and it appears to have no obvious connection to me, yet I am still affected by its result. In such cases, who should be held responsible? Sometimes we blame society, and other times we demand accountability from the state. Perhaps it should fall on parents, children, or teachers. Who should be held responsible? It may seem complicated, but if you've listened to this lecture, you’ll know the answer.

A closer inspection of each person's life reveals that in life, one reaps what one sows. This is the nature of all phenomena in the world of suffering. All phenomena simply arise and cease to arise accordingly. When seen through enlightened eyes, this is indeed a wondrous function. As the saying goes, one reaps what one sows—we receive 

what we have created.

Cause and effect are inevitable. This is true for our emotions as well. When there are pleasant feelings, unpleasant ones follow. The sum total of pleasant feelings always equals the sum total of unpleasant feelings. As I've said before, the only difference is in the timing of their manifestation.