Constructs arise with our earliest memories, and we continue to replay, reinforce and collect them throughout our lives. Think of a silo, and each thought or action you have in your life is a kernel of corn.
These stored memories, thoughts and actions germinate, and become the ripening or results of our karma, our actions. None possess an inherent, inborn nature. Unhappiness can come when we hold too fast to some of these assignations, particularly ones that that are resentful or traumatic. Research on construct activation has shown that people can be primed to perceive things in a certain way.
In one seminal study, Edwards says, participants read a description of a man engaged in a number of ambiguous behaviors, like going to a store and asking for money back. The participants who were exposed to the idea of hostility prior to reading the paragraph were more likely to think of the man as aggressive instead of assertive. The effects of the prime were specific to hostility.
Other studies, according to Edwards, show that manipulating participants into behaving in ways that are linked to a concept such as hostility lead the person to perceive others in a way consistent with the concept.
Such findings give Buddhist philosophical tradition an empirical foundation on which to rest. And Buddhism offers a way forward. Western scientists, Edwards says, are often loathe to go beyond their findings, to make recommendations or predictions to help people change their lives for the better. Its goal is to help us to be happier, more enlightened people who are kind to others. This really humanizes the science in a sense. And researchers can test some of the hypotheses from karmic theory in our laboratory experiments.
Your email address will not be published. Unintentional actions do not have that much influence. Even performing a good deed that stems out of questionable intentions can bring you negative karma. Karmic theory also recognizes two forms of karma — the phalas and the samskaras.
Samskaras, on the other hand, are invisible effects, that are produced inside you, impacting your ability to be happy or unhappy. This extends both to this and future lives.
While the specifics of karma theory differ based on specific spiritual practice, one thing may be for certain — what goes around comes around.
Skip to content Credit: Pixabay Buddhist statues. Key Takeaways. Paul Ratner. In this article. Our social instincts can lead us to adopt models of desire that might not serve our interests. High Culture. Winner takes all, losers die, and participants have no choice but to play.
Our moral attitudes about sex and drugs share a genetic basis, suggests a recent study that examined the attitudes of more than 5, twins.
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