This section will explain about the Law of
Cause of Effect, which is the foundation of Buddhism.
Some think that the phenomena of this world
have little or no meaning. They are thought to merely occur by chance. It is
simply a matter of being in the "right place at the right time." On
the other hand, there are those who recognize that each phenomenon has a cause.
Thus a phenomenon is the effect of a cause. This is called the Law of Cause and
Effect. All phenomena occur due to their respective causes. Nothing happens by
chance. There is a cause for everything. Both science and Buddhism follow this
law.
The Law of Cause and Effect says that each
phenomenon has a cause. However, a cause alone is not sufficient to have an
effect. The condition must be right for a cause to result in an effect.
Therefore, an effect is the result of a cause given the proper conditions.
There is the adage, "seeds not planted
will never grow." However, a seed can't grow without the proper condition.
For example, a farmer sows wheat seeds hoping for a harvest. However, several
other factors such as soil, fertilizer, water, sun and air are also necessary.
Only when those factors are present will the farmer be able to harvest the
wheat. Those factors are the conditions. Therefore, the law of cause and effect
operates only when the essential conditions are met.
Following the law of cause and effect,
Buddhism teaches that something is brought into existence, and develops only
under the proper conditions. Nothing exists independently and nothing comes
into being by accident.
Some people say, "this happened by
accident," or "that was an unexpected event," as if something
can happen without a cause. The fact that they cannot find the cause does not mean
that there is no cause to be found. It simply means that they are unable to
determine what it is.
Buddhism is essentially rational and logical.
It strictly adheres to the law of cause and effect and is based on the
principle: one reaps what one sows. When a theory, philosophy or religion is
evaluated from the Buddhist point of view, the law of cause and effect is used
to assess it.
The relationship between cause and effect
is as follows: good deeds bring good results, bad deeds bring bad results and
one's deeds bring one's results. It means that if one does a bad deed, he will
surely get a bad result.
The following story illustrates this: A Japanese woman living abroad had
an affair with a Caucasian man while her husband was in Japan. She got
pregnant and gave birth to a girl. When her baby was born with Japanese
features she was greatly relieved and pretended nothing had happened.
She didn't believe anyone would learn the
truth as long as she kept the secret to herself. However, when her daughter was
19-year-old, she married a Japanese man, and gave birth to a child. The child
was Caucasian in every respect.
There is a proverb, which says, "The
effect of a deed practiced within four walls will be apparent one way or
another three months hence." The effect of an event made itself apparent
after 20 years. Given the right conditions, a planted seed never fails to grow
and he who sows the seeds will harvest the fruit.
Buddhism teaches that whatever happens to
us is the result of our own actions. Any misfortune we experience is the result
of our own deeds. This is known as karma. Everything that happens to us is a consequence
of our own deeds. Hence, we must take full responsibility for it.
The universal law of cause and effect was discovered by Sakyamuni Buddha,
not created by him. Similarly, Newton discovered the law of universal gravity
but he did not create it.
The Law of Cause and Effect is valid
everywhere and always. It is a universal law that has always existed; it has no
beginning and no end. It runs through the "three worlds" (past,
present and future) and the "ten directions" (the universe).
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