Karma

By Victor M Fontane

Karma is a Sanskrit spiritual concept that means action or act, and refers to the transcendent energy that is generated from the thoughts, words and actions of a person. This energy, according to various religions, influences the destiny of the individual, causing proportional consequences to their actions. The three most commonly mentioned types of karma are the Sanchita Karma (accumulated karma of past lives), the Prarabdha Karma (the karma that is experienced in this life) and the Kriyamana or Agami Karma (the karma that is being created now and that will impact the future). Hinduism and Buddhism offer these classifications, although they can vary slightly, and it is considered that actions in this life can be of merit, demerit or neutral, influencing the cycle of births and reincarnations. The term comes from the Sanskrit Karman, which means action, and is used mainly in Hindu, Buddhist and Jainist religions, although it has also been adopted by spiritual currents such as spiritualism. Broadly speaking, Karma teaches that each action generates a reaction, which can manifest in this life or in future lives. Depending on the belief system, the consequences can be immediate or accumulate throughout the reincarnations cycle.

Although some popular interpretations compare karma with Newton's third law ("a reaction corresponds to every action"), this is a symbolic analogy. Actually, Karma is not a physical law, but a spiritual or moral law according to these religious traditions.

Karma has two main qualities:

Uni-directional - the consequence or reaction is of the same magnitude as the action. If you cheat someone now, you will be cheated in the future or in future incarnations.

Multi-directional - A single action can affect more than one person and therefore you will receive consequences of more than one person.

Karma types in Hinduism and Buddhism: The most common classifications of Karma, especially on Hinduism and Buddhism, focus on time and the way in which actions (karma) manifest: 

1. Sanchita Karma (accumulated karma):-What is: it is the total sum of all the actions that a person has done in previous lives.

-Caracteristic: an accumulation of karmic impressions and seeds is considered. It can be positive, negative or mixed.2. Prabdha Karma (inevitable karma):-What is: it is the part of the Sanchita Karma that has matured and is destined to be experienced in this current life.-Caracteristics: it is considered inescapable, the result of past actions that we must face. For example, the current circumstances of a person's life are partly his Parabdha Karma.

3. Kriyamana Karma or Agami Karma (present and future karma):-What is: they are the actions, thoughts and words that we create in the present. 

-Caracteristics: This type of karma is under our control and determines future experiences.

Kriyamana: Sometimes it is used as a synonym for Agami, referring to the karma we are creating now. Agami: It refers specifically to the karma that we are creating in the present, whose consequences will manifest in the future. Other classifications:  In addition to this temporal division, karma can also be classified according to its nature:  Merit karma: positive actions that generate beneficial results.  Karma of demerit: negative actions that generate suffering and unfavorable results.

* Neutral karma: actions that do not have a particular orientation and whose results are neutral.