As we have just seen, Buddha's advice for spiritual growth is:
"These qualities are unskillful;
these qualities are blameworthy;
these qualities are criticized by the wise;
these qualities, when adopted and carried out,
lead to harm and to suffering"
— then you should abandon them.
➔
"These qualities are skillful;
these qualities are blameless;
these qualities are praised by the wise;
these qualities, when adopted and carried out,
lead to welfare and to happiness"
— then you should enter and remain in them.
Kalama Sutta: To the Kalamas (AN 3.66), Translated from the Pali by Thanissaro Bhikkhu.
but be transformed by the renewing of the minds,
so that you may discern what is the will of God
-- what is good and acceptable and perfect.
- Romans 12:2
TO BE UPDATED
This saying of the Buddha points to the incomprehensibility of the full workings of karma, especially when considered over multiple lifetimes and the intricacies of rebirth. This statement acknowledges the limit of human understanding and warns against the futility and mental unrest that comes from trying to decipher the complexities of karmic retribution in its entirety.
However, within the context of a single lifetime, it is possible to develop a comprehensive model of the cycle of karmic cause and effect by linking the second law of karma with the concept of the skandhas - the five "aggregates" that compose an individual's personality: form, sensation, perception, mental formations, and consciousness.
Here’s how the skandhas function as a signal processing chain under the influence of memory, habit, and instinct, closing the cycle of karmic cause and effect:
- Form (Rupa) : This is the physical aspect, the "hardware" of the mental biocomputer.
- Mental Formations (Saṅkhāra)
: This is the substrate or "operating system" of the mental
biocomputer, including memory, habitual behaviors, and instinct or
reflexive functioning. This is where the decision-making process is
influenced by past experiences:
- Sensation (Vedanā) : This occurs when contact is made with a stimulus. The sensation is the initial, raw sensory data, such as sight, smell, taste, sound, or touch, which may be experienced as pleasure, pain, or neutrality before it is processed by the mind.
- Perception (Samjna) : Following sensation, perception involves recognizing and labeling the experience. Memory and habit influence this stage, as past experiences shape how one perceives the present.
- Consciousness (Vijñāna) : This processes the perceived signal, which has been conditioned by past experiences and emotions, into a coherent stream of awareness, and may develop an intention to act.
The Action (response) taken, which may be based on conscious intention or on functioning of unconscious mental formations such as instinct, reflex or habit, has an Individual Effect on oneself or others, which is not isolated: it impacts and is influenced by the broader Environmental Effect, encompassing social, political, economic, and natural aspects.
- Jeremiah 31:33b