Over the past year or so, I've found myself quoting the 2nd Law of Karma very, very frequently - both as a reminder to myself, and to share the wisdom with others. Recently, though, I was asked "So what are these Laws of Karma? Are they well known?" - and I realized that perhaps they aren't... so - here they are, along with a brief explanation of each.
The 12 Laws of Karma
1. As you sow, so shall you reap.
In essence, this law means that you can't plant carrots and harvest zuccini. Planting carrots yields carrots. If you want zuccini to come out of your garden, you need to plant zuccini. Speaking in terms of our lives - this means that whatever energy we put out into the world is the same type of energy we will get back.
So - if we spend our time spilling out hatred, fear, anger and bile on the people around us - our world is likely to feel very hateful, scary, infuriating and poisonous.
At the same time, however - if we can set our intention toward that which we desire (for me this is affection, kindness, love, generosity, beauty and abundance, among others) - then all we must do to receive it by the 1st Law of Karma is to give that which we wish to receive, and like a seed - it will sprout into a beautiful harvest of the same for us to enjoy.
2. You attract what you are, not what you want.
The Law of Creation points to the concept that the things which are brought to us are reflections of ourselves - and therefore they only reflect our desires in as much as we, ourselves, reflect our own desires.
Think of this in terms of alignment. If you wish to experience love - are you being loving? If you wish to experience wealth - are you doing and thinking those things which you understand to lead to such wealth? If you wish to experience joy - are you spending your time in things which are joyful to you?
This Law points out that in order to receive something different - we must first change ourselves. All things are brought to us via our vibration - and thus, if we don't like what we have received, it is our vibration which must change.
3. What you resist, persists for you.
This is the Law that the Secret talks about so plainly when it describes the Universe as not understanding negatives. In other words - if you think "I don't want to gain weight, I don't want to gain weight, I don't want to gain weight" - you will, of course, inevitably gain weight.
We vibrate according to that which we give focus and emotional investment to - whether that focus and emotion is desirous or fearful is immaterial. When we spend our time focusing on that which we do not want - we receive it just as effortlessly as when we spend our time focusing on that which we do want. The key here is to stop resisting that which we are afraid of - and instead embrace that which we desire.
4. Wherever you go, there you are.
This Law points out that no matter where life takes us, we are present. We bring along with us our essence and our being into every situation, every location and every experience. We are the only common denominator in our own lives.
The importance of this lesson is that we can never truly run away from our problems. If there is an issue in our lives - it is there because of our vibration - and therefore, even if we extract ourselves from the situation, move to a new place, change our circle of friends, break up with the lover we are fighting with, etc. - we are still present, and we are still vibrating... and if we continue to vibrate the same way as we did previously - we will continue to attract repetitions of the same situations over and over again.
5. Whenever there is something wrong, there is something wrong in me.
Often referred to as the Law of Responsibility or the Law of Mirrors, this Law is often taken only in terms of the "wrongness" statement - but in truth, the opposing statement is just as true: "Whenever there is something right, there is something right in me."
This is both the most empowering and most vilifying Law - because it reminds us that our life is our own responsibility, and all that we experience is something which we have created. The idea that any pain or discomfort is a reflection of ourselves can feel somewhat damning - but at the same time - doesn't this also mean that any joy or happiness is a reflection as well?
With this realization we become free to recognize that there is no such thing as being a victim. Life is not happening to us - we are happening to life.
6. Whatever you do may feel insignificant, but it is still important that you do it.
This Law reminds us that each step of the journey is as important as the first step was and as important as the last step will be. Without every step in-between, we would never make progress.
Some days, the tasks which we find ourselves performing may seem inconsequential - but added together, all of the small activities which we take in progress toward our own growth and evolution become an incomprehensibly large thing. Each daily practice, each kind thought or word, each act of charity or compassion - raises our vibration just a bit.
The greatest example that I know for this is that of exercise. Any given morning, it is very easy to say "I don't feel like it... I'm going to sleep in." or "Missing one day won't kill me." or "I'm tired, I'm only going to do half of my daily regimen." All of these statements may be true - but consider for a moment what the repetition of these small actions every day for a month, a quarter or a year brings. Muscle tone fades, strength diminishes, endurance dissipates. Now consider the opposite...
"I'm going to just get up and do it today." or "I'm going to do 5 extra sit-ups today." or "I'm going to just run for 2 extra minutes today." - when compounded every day for a year - means that you've done 5 extra push-ups 365x - which is 1,825 extra push-ups. It takes every grain of sand to make a beach.
7. You can't think of two things at the same time.
Often referred to as the Law of Focus, this Law reminds us that scattered thoughts lead to scattered focus which leads to scattered results. We have all heard the adages "Anything worth doing is worth doing right." and "Measure twice, cut once." These are statements of focus - to give your full attention, your full mental capacity, your full energy to one task - infuses that task with your power of creation.
Dr. Steven Covey, author of the 7 Habits of Highly Effective People says that beyond the first goal a person sets for themself, every additional simultaneous goal reduces the person's chances of succeeding at any of their goals exponentially. If 1 goal has a nearly 100% chance of accomplishment, then 2 goals drops the chances of achieving either one to somewhere in the 90's. Three goals drops the chances of achieving any of the three down to 80% or so - and it gets more dramatic from there.
When something is important to us - it is worth giving our full and undivided attention to. It is worth investing our heart and soul in. It is worth investing expectation, love, desire and hope in. This is not a recipe for disappointment - it is the way in which we, as gods and goddesses, empower our desires to the universe and breathe life into their manifestation.
8. If you believe something to be true, then sometime in life you must demonstrate that truth.
Referred to as the Law of Willingness, this Law essentially calls us to demonstrate our beliefs through action. The biblical teaching of "faith without works is dead" speaks to this same truth - that true belief in something is measured in the demonstration of action which is in accordance with that belief. As we grow in our own spiritual path in life, there are often times when we come to a moment in which we have chosen to make a shift - and without fail, we will be given an opportunity of some kind - sometimes in that very moment - to demonstrate our commitment to our choice.
This fits in very closely with the 3rd Law - that which you resist persists. As we choose something new in any given situation, that newness comes with a releasing of the old. To truly release, however, we must demonstrate to ourselves and to the universe that the old no longer has hold over us - and that we are no longer resistant to the change we have committed to undertaking. If we choose a diet - we will inevitably be offered cake. If we choose to quit smoking - we will have cigarettes offered to us left and right. If we choose a new exercise regimen - we may experience scheduling conflicts, or a morning headache which tests our resolve to follow through.
This is just as true with major life decisions - like letting go of anger from childhood, choosing to no longer see ourselves as victims of terrible circumstance, releasing significant relationships which are detrimental or life-taking, or choosing to walk the path of the healer or the intuitive. The Law of Willingness is our reminder that this is all a natural part of the process of choice - and that if we are truly Willing - we need only demonstrate that willingness, and continue forward in faith.
9. You can't go home again, but you must try.
Our past is an important teacher from whom we can learn a great many things, but it is also gone. My favorite quote on this subject comes from Greg Cherry, who says "Dwelling on old dreams prevents us from having new ones."
Painful memories of the past, for many, stick around in the conscious mind for days, weeks, months, years or even decades after the event has long expired. Fond memories, as well, may lead us to wistful daydreams and the distraction of longing for what once was. However - this Law reminds us to return to the past to enhance our awareness, but also to recognize that we can not go back.
I think of this Law as a gentle nudge to treat my past as a rearview mirror. It is an extremely useful vantage point both to remember where I just was, to check in on what just happened, and to ensure that nothing ugly is following me - but only as a glance. If I spend my driving time gazing into my rearview mirror rather than looking out the windshield - I run a good chance of missing out on the spectacular view at best - and driving headlong into something unpleasant at worst. Our past is no different - a glance now and then can be very useful, but staring into it endlessly can be deadly.
10. The more things change, the more they stay the same.
The Law of Change speaks of the cyclical nature of all things. Just as each new wave that laps against the shoreline is unique and different from all of the other waves that have ever come, the highs and lows of the tide to which the waves belong are predictable, regular and cyclical.
So, too, are our lives, and is the collective life of our race and our world. Our world is in a period of unprecedented shifting and alteration and expansion right now, in technology, science, medicine, philosophy, information, communication and, I daresay, enlightenment. As we enter into the Age of Aquarius, the world may begin to shift even more rapidly - but even in the newness of it all, much will be the same.
This Law reminds us both of the undying nature of our being and of the shifts which that being undertakes as part of a great cycle. As we grow, develop and expand our consciousness through this life and many others, we will become new over and over, we will grow, we will adapt and we will learn - and we will still be us. Our spirit, its karma and its dharma remain steady and continual - the tidal force which drives each lifetime - and therefore this Law reminds us to be centered in that continual Oneness, even as we shift so radically time and time again.
11. When you focus on your life, good things happen.
The Law of Patience and Reward directs our attention to our own life essence, and the underlying karmic and dharmic truths and lessons of that life as our focus. Being focused in the physicality of our world as we so often are, we may find ourselves very driven by goals and priorities which we wish to reach. As eternal beings, however, the attainment of such physical goals can never be more than waypoints on a much more deep and meaningful journey - a journey with no end.
That which truly endures from lifetime to lifetime is the essence of our soul - our life, as the Law refers to it - in other words, that part of us which animates us. When we focus on this aspect of ourselves and truly honor it - nourish it - help it to grow, good things happen on all sides.
As we are called to remember our own divinity, in Oneness, we begin to see our bodies as temples housing our consciousness and soul - and in this place, as we edify ourselves as a whole and connected, unified being - the essence of "goodness" occurs: life and love grow within us, and thereby edify us all.
12. What you put in, you get back.
The Law of Value and Upliftment, also referred to as the Law of Significance and Inspiration reminds us to give as we wish to receive. While the 2nd Law, the Law of Creation, reminds us to be that which we desire, the 12th Law reminds us to do that which we would like to have done to or for us.
Going a step beyond the Golden Rule (do unto others as you would have them do unto you), this Law tells us that anything which we express into the universe will be expresed back to us. Thus, if we emit anger, violence and discontent into the universe, we may expect a life full of anger, violence and discontent being showered back upon us. Conversely, if we emit love, respect and honor into the universe, we may expect a life full of these qualities as well.
This is not to say that "bad things never happen to good people" - instead, it draws our attention to the fact that neither things nor people are either good or bad - they just are - and that which is planted will grow into the same kind of plant which the seed came from. Seeds of anger yield trees of anger, seeds of love yield trees of love.
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