Considering Destructive Karmic Impulses

Any pathway for a destructive karmic impulse, whether through the gateway of body, speech or mind, must entail four factors in order for the action to be complete (yan-lag bzhi). There must be: 

• A basis (gzhi) or object at which or with which the action will be directed 
• A motivating mental framework (kun-slong)
• A method implemented for causing the action to take place (sbyor-ba) 
• A reaching of the completion of that act (mthar-thug).

Moreover, the motivating mental framework must entail: 

• A distinguishing (’du-shes, Skt. saṃjñā) of the basis for the action 
• An intention (‘dun-pa, Skt. chandas) – the wish to commit the action in order to attain a certain goal
• Some disturbing emotion or attitude. 

If any of these parts are missing, the destructive action will be incomplete (yongs-su mi-rdzogs-pa’i mi-dge-ba). Consequently, its negative karmic force, karmic seeds and results will not be as definite or strong.

According to Vasubandhu, A Treasure House of Special Topics of Knowledge, IV.10, two levels of motivating mental framework can be differentiated: 

• The “causal motivating mind” (rgyu’i kun-slong-gi blo) accompanies one of the three destructive actions of mind to think over and decide to commit one of the seven destructive actions of body or speech 
• The “contemporaneous motivating mind” (dus kun-slong-gi blo) accompanies the destructive action of body or speech decided upon by one of the three destructive actions of mind. 

Let us consider the pathway for the destructive karmic impulse to punch a certain person in the face. If we do not find that person we feel the mental urge to punch; or if we find him and then punch someone else by mistake; or if we punch the person we intended to, but do it unintentionally or by accident; or if for a good reason, not out of a disturbed state of mind; or if we do not actually punch him although we are upset and feel like doing so; or if we start to punch him and then hold back or do it so lightly it causes no pain – in all such cases our destructive action of punching this person in the face will not be complete. The negative karmic force we build up will be proportionate to the number of factors present.

Therefore, we should try to recognize all the factors involved in the following ten complete destructive actions. If we can do so, we can begin to lessen our build-up of negative karmic force, karmic seeds and subsequent experience of suffering and problems by not making such acts be complete when the mental urge arises to commit them.

The three destructive actions of body (lus-kyi mi-dge-ba gsum) are: 

1. Taking the life of someone (srog-gcod-pa, Skt. prāṇātighāta, killing) 
2. Taking what has not been given to us (ma-byin par-len-pa, Skt. adattā-dāna, stealing)
3. Engaging in inappropriate sexual behavior (log-par g.yem-pa, Skt. mithyā-cāra). 

Each can be analyzed by the above set of factors to describe the situations in which the destructive actions would be complete and the suffering consequences the most disastrous.

Taking the Life of Someone

When cutting off someone’s life, in other words killing, the basis for the act must be some specific living being other than ourselves, either human or non-human, whether already born or still in the womb. Although suicide (bdag-srog gcod-pa) is certainly a destructive action, it is not as severe, nor does it cause as many problems for ourselves as murdering someone else. This is because of a complication in terms of reaching the completion of the action. Since we will die upon the completion of our act, the karmic seeds and negative karmic force from killing will have to accrue on the mental continuum when it has already taken a future rebirth or gone into the bardo. While still alive, the only destructive action we will have completed will be that of stabbing ourselves, for instance, but not that of cutting off a life.

We must not be confused in recognizing whom it is we intend to kill. Taking the life of someone by mistake is less severe than doing so on purpose. Moreover, we must fully intend to terminate his or her existence. Killing someone by accident does not have the same consequences as pre-meditated murder. Thus, stepping accidentally on an ant is less severe than purposely swatting a fly or mosquito. We should not underestimate the destructiveness of killing insects. 

As His Holiness the Fourteenth Dalai Lama has said, “You may think it trivial to swat a fly. However, if each time something annoys you, you handle the situation by striking out and killing, this sets up a very dangerous habit of mind. Soon it will be difficult to draw the line of where you stop killing in order to solve your problems.”

Cutting off someone’s life must be motivated and accompanied by one of the three poisonous attitudes. Out of hostility, we might kill an enemy, an insect or a snake. Because of longing desire or attachment, we might kill a sheep for its meat or hunt or fish for fun and relaxation. Out of naivety, we might take the life of an animal or even of a human in the belief that we will benefit from offering a blood sacrifice to a local deity or divine being.

The action involved must be killing another being with any means such as poison, a weapon, our own hands, black magic spells and so forth. We do not actually have to execute the act ourselves. If we have somebody else commit a murder for us, we build up as strong a negative karmic force as the thug we hired. The same is true when ordering an animal, fowl, or fish to be slaughtered for our table or deploying troops in times of war. For instance, if a general sends 1,000 soldiers into battle and they kill 1,000 men, the general builds up the same negative karmic force as if he had killed the 1,000 men himself. 

As Vasubandhu has said in A Treasure House of Special Topics of Knowledge (IV.72b):

In war and so forth, the agent (instigating or directing it) will have the same (suffering consequences) as everyone (involved), because his purposes were the same.

The act of eating meat, in and of itself, is not the same as the act of killing the animal or directly asking someone to slaughter it for us. It can build up a negative karmic force for being a carnivorous animal, for instance, or for having our own flesh be eaten by others, but not one for being a killer or to be murdered ourselves.

An act of taking a life reaches its completion when the victim dies before we do. This may happen either directly when our murderous action is taken or some time later. If we die beforehand or at the same moment as our victim, then as was the case with suicide, the negative karmic force will not be as complete. This is because it will have to accrue on the mental continuum which has already taken a different rebirth.

An act of killing is always destructive, whether in self-defense or to protect the lives of others. Even if there are no disturbing emotions or attitudes involved in our action, we must be as brave as the Buddha was in a previous life when as a ship captain he killed the oarsman Minyag Dumdum who was endangering the life of 500 passengers. We must have great compassion as our motivation and be totally willing to take on ourselves the suffering consequences of our act, even if it lands us in one of the joyless realms.

Taking What Has Not Been Given to Us

For taking what has not been given to us, the basis for our act of theft must be some object of value that belongs to someone else. This could be anything that we have no right to take, use or keep as our own and includes objects that we have loaned and not given back, as well as taxes, fines, tolls, admission fees and travel fare we are obliged to pay. Even if we find something on the ground that someone has obviously lost, we make an effort to find the rightful owner and do not simply keep it for our own. If we had lost our wallet and someone found it and gave it back, wouldn’t we be relieved and feel happy? The same is true for anyone else who has lost something.

When we intend to take some object that does not belong to us, we must not be mistaken about what we steal. We must fully intend to take this object, whether or not we plan to get rid of it immediately, and one of the three disturbing attitudes must be involved. With hostility, we might plunder the wealth of a hated enemy. With longing desire, we might steal some item we find irresistibly attractive. Out of naivety, we might claim that as a holy person we had the right to help ourselves to anything we wished or as a devoted disciple to go out and steal for our master; or we might simply think with stubborn and foolish defiance that there was nothing wrong in cheating the government or getting away with as much as we can.

We must actually take an action such as shoplifting, holding someone up, burglarizing a store or a house, or having someone else commit such a robbery for us, riding through a toll without paying, and so forth. Our act of theft reaches its completion when we develop the attitude that what we have taken is now ours.

Engaging in Inappropriate Sexual Behavior

Inappropriate sexual behavior can be of four varieties, involving either:

• Someone unwise to become involved with
• An unwise manner
• An unwise place
• An unwise time. 

Persons unwise to have sex with include anyone who is someone else’s partner or, if the person is single, someone unwilling or whose parents, guardians or so forth would not allow it and would be very upset if they knew, or anyone with vows of celibacy. To perform a sexual act that will cause problems in the future, whether it is with a child, someone of our own sex, ourselves, an animal and so forth, is self-destructive and therefore unwise. If we ourselves have a partner, it is unwise to have sex with anyone other than this person.

Unwise manners, place and time pertain even when with our own partner. The first of these include any fanciful methods, postures or devices motivated out of excessive desire and discontent or any violent methods that inflict pain. An unwise place is in a shrine room, prayer hall, next to a stupa, in front of our spiritual mentor, parents, a crowd of people or a statue or thangka of a Buddha. Also unwise is in a place that will cause ourselves or our partner sickness or pain, such as on a rock-covered piece of bare, wet ground. If we live in only one room, then as a sign of respect we put a curtain in front of our thangkas or a cloth over our statues before making love. This is similar to how, if we were sleeping in the same room as a high spiritual teacher, it would only be courteous and polite to place a curtain or divider between his bed and ours, especially if we were sleeping with someone.

Unwise times include when we or our partner have taken a vow of celibacy in connection with the one-day vows (bsnyen-gnas sdom-pa, Skt. upavāsa-saṃvara) or when either of us has an illness that will be aggravated by sexual contact or contagious to the other party.

It is also unwise to make love an excessive number of times in a row or shamelessly during the daytime when we could be spied or have someone inadvertently enter the room to everyone’s embarrassment. Also unwise are times when the woman involved is menstruating, in her final months of pregnancy or while she has a baby suckling at her breast.

As for the four factors, the basis for an act of inappropriate sexual behavior, for instance adultery, must be someone other than our own partner if we have one or someone else’s partner if we have none. At the time when the intention arises to engage ourselves in the sexual act, our recognition must be unmistaken. We must realize that this is not our partner. Likewise, we must fully intend to engage with this person in a sexual act. Although most sexual misconduct is motivated by infatuated attachment and longing desire, it can also be brought on by hostility, such as when raping the wives and daughters of the enemy, or by naivety, such as when thinking that sexual union is a high spiritual practice or that it is chic or perfectly harmless to have extramarital affairs.

If we are monastics and have accepted vows of celibacy, then any unchaste behavior (mi-tshangs-spyod, Skt. abrahmacarya) is unwise. Whether or not our recognition is mistaken concerning the person who serves as the basis for our sexual act, the negative karmic force built up is the same.

As for the action that must be involved for sexual misconduct, this would be the meeting of the two sexual organs. The act reaches completion when we experience the bliss of orgasm.

The four destructive actions of speech (ngag-gi-mi-dge-ba bzhi) are: 

1. Lying (rdzun-du smra-ba, Skt. mṛṣā-vāda)
2. Speaking divisively (phra-ma, Skt. paiśunya)
3. Speaking harshly (tshig-rtsub, Skt. pāruṣya)
4. Chattering meaninglessly (ngag-’khyal, Skt. saṃbhinna-pralāpa). 

For these four destructive actions of speech to have their most serious consequences, all the factors must be complete.

Lying

Lying can involve either denying something we have actually seen, heard, experienced with our other senses or known or claiming to have seen, heard, experienced or known something when we have not. It includes knowingly misleading others through false information, purposely giving bad advice or incorrect teachings, slandering others by denying their qualities or inventing faults and even telling small “white lies,” which we think do no apparent harm to anyone. Lies that slander Buddhas or that we tell our spiritual mentors or parents are especially serious. For those with robes, a major downfall is to lie about our own spiritual attainments.

The basis involved must be some person who is capable of understanding us when we lie. When the intention arises to speak or gesture, our recognition must be that what we are about to indicate does not accord with the truth. In other words, we must clearly recognize what was the fact and then purposely alter it. If we are unsure and say something incorrect, it is not complete for being a lie.

Our motivation must be the full intention to lie, and one of the three poisonous attitudes must be present. We might lie out of longing desire in order to acquire wealth, fame or power or out of hostility so as to deceive an enemy or ruin the reputation of someone we do not like. With naivety, we might lie because we think it is amusing or refuse to believe there is anything wrong with it. However, if we lie too much, soon our recognition of facts becomes unreliable, and we begin to believe our own fabrications.

The action involved must be expressing our lie either out loud, in writing or even non-verbally, by a gesture or nod of the head, or causing someone else to lie for us. If someone says to us, “You are so kind, you must be a saint,” and we simply smile and remain silent, this is a terrible lie. Or suppose we say, “I read in a scripture that if you can pass a night alone in the cremation grounds outside Bodh Gaya and survive unharmed, you must be an arhat. Well, I spent the night there and here I am!” This is a lie by implication since obviously we are not an arhat. Our act of lying reaches its completion when the other person understands and believes what we say, otherwise our words become mere idle chatter.

Although it is a negative action to lie, there are certain situations when necessity overrules the prohibition, such as when it involves saving a life. Suppose we see a deer running in terror, and then some minutes later a group of hunters chasing after it. If they ask us whether we saw the deer, it is not necessary to tell them the truth. We can say, “I just got here,” or “I’m just on my way to such and such a place.” We evade their question or even make up a long, crazy story to distract and delay them from their chase.

We must be diplomatic in what we say. If someone cooks us a terrible meal and asks how we like it, there is no need to tell the truth and hurt this person’s feelings. His or her intention was to make us happy. We can simply say, “I’m not very hungry,” or “I don’t care for this type of food,” or “This kind of food doesn’t agree with me,” or “I’m not feeling very well today,” and then not eat what we were served.

Speaking Divisively

Speaking divisively is to say something that will either cause a harmonious party to split up or those who are at odds to hate each other even more. In general, it is to cause disunity and unfriendly feelings. The basis for such a destructive action, then, must be a group of two or more people who are either close or hostile toward each other. Causing division between a disciple and his or her spiritual mentor, or a split within the Sangha, has especially dire results.

When the mental urge arises to utter our divisive words, our recognition of the parties involved and their feelings toward one another must not be mistaken. Our motivation must be the full intention to stir up trouble and cause disunity and discord. One of the three poisonous attitudes must also be present. Out of longing desire, we might try to cause a rift between a husband and wife in order to obtain one of them for ourselves. With hostility, we might try to cause discord among our enemy such as when pursuing activities of espionage with a policy of divide and conquer. We might also attempt with naivety to cause disunity among followers of a certain religion in order to convert them to our own limited view of what is best for them.

The action involved must be undertaken either to cause disunity among friends or prevent reconciliation among enemies by interfering and saying something either true or false. The action is equally negative if we make someone else do this for us. We must be very careful about what we say. Even if something is true, it is not necessary to say it if we see that it will cause someone to have bad feelings about someone else. Our act of using divisive language reaches its completion when the other parties understand and believe what we say and, as a consequence, become hostile toward each other.

Suppose there is a group of people who are plotting some harmful, antisocial deed, and we cause disunity among them out of pure compassion to prevent others from becoming hurt. Although our act of using divisive language is still destructive and can only result in suffering, still the effect will be ameliorated since the intention that arose before committing it was not accompanied by a disturbing emotion or a negative motivation.

Speaking Harshly

Using harsh and abusive language includes all forms of sarcasm, insult, ridicule and swearing. In other words, it is to say anything or make a gesture or facial expression that will hurt someone else’s feelings. What we say may be either true or false, it does not matter. If we call a cripple a cripple or a person a pig, in both cases the person will feel bad. Even if we say such things with a pleasant tone of voice, it still hurts. This is a major destructive action because it makes both us and the other person unhappy. It is especially serious if our harsh and abusive language is directed at our spiritual mentor or our parents.

The basis for this action must be someone whose feelings could become hurt by what we say. When the wish arises to say something cruel, our recognition of the person whom we wish to hurt must not be mistaken. Our motivation must be the full intention to speak such words, and one of the three poisonous attitudes must be present. Out of longing desire, we might use harsh and abusive language in order to be accepted by a gang of ruffians. With hostility, we might use it to rouse an enemy or our own troops to fight. With naivety, we might affect such language because we think it is fashionable and clever and that it does not matter if we hurt others’ feelings.

The action involved must be actually speaking such words which harp on others’ faults or weak points, whether or not they are true. Also included is causing someone else to say such caustic words for us. The action reaches its completion when the other person understands what we say, believes that we mean it and becomes hurt. If we abuse some inanimate object, the results will not be as severe since no one’s feelings were hurt.

Chattering Meaninglessly 

There are three varieties of chattering meaninglessly: 

• That which is perverse, such as incanting black magic spells or diabolically praying for terrible things to happen
• That which is about mundane matters, such as repeating meaningless talk about things that are none of our business or of no concern to us
• That which is true, such as explaining the Buddhist teachings to those who are improper vessels for receiving them, for instance people with no respect or interest. 

The worst form of this negative action and the one with the direst consequences is to interrupt a meditator or someone praying with our meaningless talk or singing.

The basis for meaningless chatter must be something trivial, insignificant or pointless that we treat as if it were meaningful, significant or important. Unlike the former three destructive actions of speech, it is not necessary that there be anyone to whom we express or who understands what we rave on about. When the wish arises to talk, our recognition must be the feeling that whatever we wish to say is meaningful, significant or important. Our motivation must be the full intention to express such words, and one of the three poisonous attitudes must be present. Out of attachment, we might indulge in idle chatter with someone because we wish to spend time with them; or out of hostility, in order to disturb someone whom we wish to prevent from accomplishing something positive. Most often, however, we chatter and gossip with naivety because we do not feel there is anything wrong with it. The action involved must be unnecessarily undertaking to speak idle words or causing someone else to do this for us. Our action is completed when we actually express them out loud.

Seven types of idle chatter can be further distinguished from the point of view of the basis of what we say: 

• Bickering, speaking behind someone else’s back, being argumentative and speaking provocatively
• Reciting or chanting liturgies of other religions for no constructive reason and repeating political or commercial slogans and jingles
• Complaining, moaning and grumbling
• Joking, being silly, fooling around, singing, humming and whistling for no particular positive reason
• Telling stories and gossiping about government leaders, celebrities, political affairs, wars, crimes and so forth, when there is no way that we can affect or improve the situation and we are just being a “busybody”
• Speaking like a drunk or mad person, talking nonsense and speaking stupidly
• Talking in connection with the five wrong livelihoods, such as flattering, pressuring, bullying, threatening, bribing, boasting, bragging, speaking pretentiously or hypocritically and so forth. 

Buddhas have outgrown and rid themselves of all idle, meaningless chatter and unnecessary words. Therefore, if someone is arguing with us and will not listen to anything we say, we simply go, “Uh-huh,” to whatever outrageous things he or she might claim. To argue back is a waste of words and idle chatter. We should not feel self-righteous that we must make our point.

Telling jokes or stories can sometimes be purposeful and have a meaning if it helps relax someone who is on edge or upset or illustrates a point we are trying to explain concerning the Dharma. Otherwise, it is complete idle chatter to tell off-color jokes, for example, simply to gain attention or impress others at how clever we are. The same is true with singing or making music. If we do so in order to help someone overcome his or her depression or to uplift our own spirits, it may be of benefit. Otherwise, simply to attract others around us or to pass the time because we feel we have nothing better to do or we wish to avoid doing something more constructive is a waste of our precious human rebirths.

All these forms of meaningless chatter may seem quite innocent. However, because they waste our time, they are quite destructive and lead to many faults. We may tell stories about someone who, without our knowing, is the other person’s friend, someone very influential or even a bodhisattva. As a result, we will be in a lot of trouble. 

As Sakya Pandita (Sa-skya Pandita Kun-dga’ rgyal-mtshan) has said in A Precious Treasury of Elegant Sayings (Legs-bshad rin-po-che’i gter), VI.36:

Speaking a lot is a cause that invites (many) shortcomings, while not saying (anything) is the foundation for getting rid of faults. Because a parrot talks, it is shut in a cage, whereas dumb birds fly around at their pleasure.

When we are trying to do something positive, we find we become quickly exhausted and cannot stay up late. However, if we are gossiping with a friend, we become livelier and more awake the later it grows. Therefore, Kyabje Trijang Rinpoche has given us a very practical guideline instruction. If sometimes we do not feel like doing anything positive or constructive, and we are in a cranky mood or just having the doldrums, we should not go and talk with someone simply to pass the time and change our mood. It is better to go to sleep or take a short nap. We may not build up any positive habits by so doing, but at least we will not build up any negative ones either. The indifferent state of sleep is far better for relaxing than idle gossip with friends, and when we wake up, we will feel refreshed and ready to begin something positive.

It is important with all of this not to be a fanatic or go to extremes when we are beginning to try to alter and improve our behavioral habits. If we become completely grim and serious all the time, never laughing or relaxing, we will cause ourselves a lot of trouble. We will probably revolt against it later and go to an opposite extreme. Perfecting all the fine points about our behavior comes much later on the spiritual path. At the beginning, we keep watch over our grossest types of action and try to lead a happy life and be pleasant, not aloof from others or so intense and holy that people are put off. 

When we are like Milarepa or Tsongkhapa and are ready to engage in intensive practice, then we can worry about eliminating completely all our mindless singing and talking throughout the day. The main point is to enjoy life with a knowledge of behavioral cause and effect and with a deep and sincere consideration for others. 

If we are really lazy, it will be too much effort to go out and commit destructive actions of body and speech. However, no matter how lethargic we are, it is easy to think in a negative manner. The main thing to work on when we try to practice the Dharma is our minds. We must reshape our attitudes and try to have a warmer and kinder heart. Whether or not someone is a good person depends on his or her outlook on life, not his or her figure or looks. Our actions of body and speech are the expressions of our inner attitudes and thoughts. 

Therefore, as Atisha has said in A Bodhisattva’s Garland of Gems (Byang-chub sems-dpa’i nor-bu’i phreng-ba, Skt. Bodhisattvamaṇyāvalī), 28:

When in the midst of many, let me keep a check on my speech; when remaining alone, let me keep a check on my mind.

Negative thinking can occur any time, and, unless we are with a clairvoyant, only we are aware of when it happens. 

The three main destructive actions of mind (yid-kyi mi-dge-ba gsum) to guard against are: 

1. Thinking covetously (brnab-sems, Skt. abhidhyāyā)
2. Thinking with malice (gnod-sems, Skt. vyāpāda, ill-will)
3. Thinking distortedly with antagonism (log-lta, Skt. mithyā-dṛṣṭi, wrong view). 

Specifically, hey are thinking over and deciding to commit one of the destructive actions of body or speech. For these destructive actions of the mind to be complete and lead to their fullest unhappy consequences, the same factors as before must all be present.

Thinking Covetously

Covetousness is a strong and selfish desire to make something our own, to possess it as “mine.” The basis for such thinking must be some external object or internal quality that belongs to someone else, such as someone’s wealth or fame. It can be something we see in a store or even a quality of a Buddha that we want for our own in order to have power, fame and so on. Sometimes, it can even be something that is already promised to be ours, but which we are covetous to have before it is our due, such as an inheritance or our turn in line. 

Our recognition must be unmistaken that what we covet is this very object. It must be specific. Our motivation must be the attitude of wishing that the object become ours, and one of the three disturbing attitudes must be present. With attachment, we might covet a whole variety of useless products we think that we need or that will make us happy. Out of hostility, we might wish to buy something quickly before someone we dislike has the chance so that we can deprive him or her of the pleasure of the object; or we might want to remove a book from the library that our rival needs for his or her studies. Out of naivety, we might feel that it is good to want to possess many products, it is healthy for the economy.

The action involved must be having our wish to possess the object grow so strong that we think over actually make the object our own. This negative action of mind reaches its completion when our obsession becomes so strong that we actually decide to try to procure the object. The motivation, action and completion of this mental act, then, must all occur in one sequence of thought. In other words, we wish to have some object be our own, then think to make it so and subsequently decide to find a method to bring this about. Full covetousness, then, is not merely wishing to possess something, but goes beyond to firmly deciding to do something about it and actually try to get what we want. This decision need not necessarily be expressed or implemented in action. What we are concerned with here is the negative state of mind and train of thinking that is generated.

Furthermore, the following five disturbing attitudes must also be present with our motivation for our covetous thinking to be complete and have its most serious consequences: 

• An exceptional attachment to the objects we use and enjoy 
• The greediness (btkam-chags), with which we wish to accumulate more 
• The nosiness (’chums-pa), with which we feel compelled to check out thoroughly anything of good quality, such as someone else’s valuables, and sample or try it out or on for ourselves
• A competitive attitude of vying with someone (’khu-ba’i sems), such that we feel we simply must own or have whatever this other person does
• A headstrong attitude of wanting to get the better of someone (zil-gyis non-pa’i sems), without feeling the least bit of shame about being covetous, nor having the slightest recognition that this is a fault or that we should determine to be rid of it. 

Thus, it is not complete covetousness simply to daydream, “Oh wouldn’t it be nice to have my boss be my slave at my beck and call, and to have all his wealth and power,” or “Oh wouldn’t it be nice if others knew what a good practitioner and how learned and generous I am, or how hard I am working for their sake,” or “Oh wouldn’t it be nice if I were respected by everyone in the world.” We must have a full-blown attitude of being very attached to objects, greedy, nosy, vying and wanting to get the better of others and then, with strong desire and the full intention to do something about achieving our aim, think very consciously, “I want to have the wealth and power of the divine being,” or “I want to have all the money in the world.” If any of these five disturbing attitudes are missing, our covetousness is not complete.

Thinking with Malice

Malice is the wish to harm or hurt some person or creature by killing it, punching it, swatting it or causing anything unpleasant to happen to it. Thus, the object of such negative thinking, as was the case with speaking harshly, must be some living being who would become hurt if we enacted our wish. Malice, like hostility, is aimed at something living, whereas anger and hatred can be directed at anything either animate or inanimate, for instance our malfunctioning stove or car.

Our recognition of the person or creature whom we wish to hurt must not be mistaken. Our motivation must be the wish to kill him, punch him in the face and so forth or such thoughts as, “Wouldn’t it be great if I or somebody else could all of a sudden deprive him of everything he owns!” One of the three poisonous attitudes must be present. Out of longing desire, we might wish to kill our father in order to receive the money we know he has left us in his will. Out of hostility, we might wish to smash a fly that is annoying us, or with naivety hurt someone because we think violence is good or that what we do to others does not matter.

The action involved must be thinking to act out our wish, while our negative mental act reaches its completion when we actually decide definitely to hurt the person or creature. Thus, fully thinking with malice is not merely having ill-will or wishing someone harm. It goes beyond to firmly deciding to cause that harm.

Here, as with covetousness, there must also be five disturbing attitudes present with our motivation for our destructive mental act to be one of complete malice: 

• Hostility, from grasping tightly to a token that symbolizes our reason for wanting to hurt someone
• An attitude of being unable to stand it (mi bzod-pa’i sems), because we cannot bear it any longer without inflicting some harm
• An attitude of holding a grudge (’khon-du ’dzin-pa, Skt. upānaha), from dwelling over and again, with incorrect consideration (tshul-min yid-bcas), on our reasons for being angry and annoyed
• A competitive attitude of vying with someone, with which we feel, “Wouldn’t it be great if I could punch or kill my rival”
• A headstrong attitude of wanting to get the better of someone, without feeling the least bit of shame about wishing to hurt this person in order to do so, nor having the slightest recognition that this is a fault or that we should determine to be rid of it.

“Mere malice” (gnod-sems tsam-du ’gyur-ba) would be simply hoping that some harm befalls someone who has hurt us or praying that someone loses everything he has or goes to hell. Thinking with complete malice, on the other hand, is having hostility, being unable to stand it, holding a spiteful grudge, vying and wanting to get the better of someone and then wishing very strongly to wring the other person’s neck and actually planning to do it.

Thinking with malice is extremely destructive to any spiritual development. Being the wish to cause others suffering, malice is the exact opposite of great compassion, with which we wish everyone to be free from problems and that we ourselves could bring this about. Therefore, if we feel a mental urge toward this type of negative thinking, we must try to stop it before our train of thought is complete. From beginningless rebirths, we have been accustomed to such pernicious mental patterns. It is not surprising, then, when we find ourselves thinking with malice. Let it pass quickly, however, and be rid of it by applying opponent forces such as thinking with love and compassion. 

As Nagarjuna has said in A Letter to a Friend (17):

Know that thoughts may be like figures drawn on water, on earth, or on stone. Among them, it’s best for those with disturbing emotions to (make them) be like the first; while those with wishes for the Dharma (it’s best) to (make them) be (like) the last. 

Thinking Distortedly with Antagonism

Distorted antagonistic thinking is a close-minded ignorant state of affairs in which we stubbornly think to repudiate (skur-’debs, Skt. abhyākhyāna) or deny something. Its object must be some phenomenon that exists or is the case, such as a fact of life, someone’s qualities, a situation and so forth. The recognition must be that our denial of this phenomenon is correct, like when a criminal feels what he has done was right and wants to fight it in court. The motivation must be the wish to repudiate something that exists. One of the three disturbing attitudes must be present. Out of attachment, we might think in a distorted antagonistic manner because we have a powerful friend who feels this way, and if we agree with him we will gain his favor. With hostility, we might dislike someone who holds a correct point of view, and because we cannot bear to agree with him, we assert the opposite at any cost. Such types of cantankerous people are very childish. One person had a hated enemy who rode his horse while facing its head. Just to be different, this person rode in his saddle facing the tail! Most often, however, we engage in distorted antagonistic thinking out of naivety, such as when we are wrong about something and feel nobody can tell us what is correct.

The action involved must be the thought to undertake the repudiation such as by spreading false propaganda or telling others about what we think. The action reaches its completion when we decide for sure to repudiate the object. Thus, distorted antagonistic thinking is not simply disbelieving some fact, such as the existence of rebirth, but goes beyond to firmly deciding actively to deny or refute it.

Our action of thinking to repudiate something can be to deny a cause, an effect, a functioning or an existent phenomenon. An example of the first is to deny there is any such thing as good or bad actions, that some things are proper to do while others have faults. To repudiate effects is cynically to deny that such types of actions have any results. When we deny the functioning of something, we repudiate, in effect, that the planting and caring for seeds functions to produce a result. An example would be thinking that things happen to us for no reason at all, which amounts to believing children come without any parents. Therefore, we would deny the value of doing anything constructive in order to reap beneficial results. Or we deny the functioning of coming and going, such as denying past and future rebirths by insisting that our mental continuums, which continue each moment of our life, come from nowhere and just end abruptly when we die. Or we deny the functioning of certain things coming into existence, such as beings in the bardo or trapped beings in joyless realms and divine beings, all of whom arise in a moment as the emanation of karmic impulses present at the previous moment of their mental continuum. When we deny that there can be an arhat, someone who has removed all his or her emotional obscurations, we repudiate an existent phenomenon.

Furthermore, for our distorted antagonistic thinking to be complete, our motivation must include the following five disturbing attitudes:

• Blindness (zhva-ba), from not knowing how some knowable phenomenon exists or is the case
• Contentiousness (drag-shul-gyi sems), from a perverse sense of enjoying being negative
• An attitude of being thoroughly imbued in our distortion (log-par rgyun-du zhugs-pa’i sems), from having decisively analyzed some phenomenon with incorrect consideration
• Complete meanness (rab-tu nyams-pa’i sems), from repudiating the value of charity, philanthropy, good actions, spiritual practices and so forth
• A headstrong attitude of wanting to get the better of someone, without feeling the least bit of shame about being antagonistic and repudiating others’ beliefs, nor having the slightest recognition that this is a fault or that we should determine to be rid of it.

Although there are many levels of distorted antagonistic thinking, it is only when we are blind about something, contentious about it, thoroughly imbued in our distortion, completely mean and wishing to get the better of someone, and then decide fully to repudiate this person’s correct assertion that we have the complete destructive action of distorted antagonistic thinking. This is the most severe type of distorted thinking, since doing so in this strongly negative manner cuts off the possibility for any of our positive karmic force to act as a root for spiritual progress and happiness. Thus, we must safeguard ourselves well from ever having such a self-destructive attitude.

In summary, although each of the ten destructive actions may be initiated with any of the three poisonous attitudes, taking someone’s life, speaking harshly and thinking with malice reach their completion accompanied exclusively with hostility; taking what is not given, engaging in inappropriate sexual behavior and thinking covetously with longing desire or attachment; while thinking distortedly with antagonism is completed only with naivety. Lying, speaking divisively and chattering meaninglessly, however, may reach their completion accompanied with any of the three. 

[As cited by Vasubandhu in “A Treasure House of Special Topics of Knowledge,” IV.68–71; and by Asanga in “An Anthology of Special Topics of Knowledge,” 257-2-3 to 6.]

Of the seven destructive actions of body and speech, all except engaging in inappropriate sexual behavior build up the same negative karmic force on our mental continuums whether we commit the act ourselves or have someone else do it for us. With engaging in inappropriate sexual behavior, however, we ourselves must commit the act since no one can experience the bliss of orgasm for us [as cited by Vasubandhu in “A Treasure House of Special Topics of Knowledge,” IV.67].

For further details about how many destructive actions can be committed at the same time, which ones are possible in the various planes of existence and so forth, we study Vasubandhu’s “Treasure House of Special Topics of Knowledge” and Asanga’s “Anthology of Special Topics of Knowledge.” We must learn to discern these various fine points so that we can become more aware of our behavior. With discriminating awareness, we can begin to restrain ourselves from destructive actions and lessen the negative karmic forces we mindlessly build up each day.

There are six factors that affect the heaviness of the results that come from our destructive actions (lci-yang-gi khyad-par drug):

1. The nature of the action
2. The mental urge
3. The actual action
4. The basis involved
5. The frequency (dus rtag-pa, lan-mang)
6. An absence of opponent forces (gnyen-po med-pa). 

[1] Of the seven destructive actions of body and speech, taking the life of another being has by nature the heaviest consequences. Thereafter, the seriousness of each such action decreases down to the seventh, chattering meaninglessly, the least heavy by nature, but the greatest waster of time. The reason for this decreasing heaviness is that each subsequent action causes less suffering to the other being involved. Since every living creature cherishes its life more that its possessions, killing, by nature, is more serious than stealing.

Of the three destructive actions of the mind, thinking covetously has the lightest consequences, while thinking distortedly with antagonism is the heaviest by nature of all the ten such actions. This is because it severely damages the ability of all our positive karmic force to produce its result, which even taking someone’s life does not do [as cited by Vasubandhu in “A Treasure House of Special Topics of Knowledge,” IV.79].

[2] The stronger the specific disturbing emotion or attitude is that accompanies the wish to commit a destructive action, the heavier are the consequences. Although, intrinsically, thinking with hostility is a more severe disturbing attitude than attachment or naivety – since it brings harm and suffering to both the person who becomes hostile and the other party at whom it is aimed – no differentiation is made here according to the nature of the specific mental disturbance involved. The only difference is according to the degree and amount of the specific disturbing emotion motivating the negative action. Calling someone a bastard as an offhand manner of talking, although harsh and abusive, is fairly light. However, to use the same word with deep hostility and shout it in a rage at someone becomes very heavy.

[3] The suffering consequences of a destructive action increase in heaviness in proportion with the amount of suffering we inflict. This is true in terms of killing, stealing, raping, committing adultery, lying, abusing and so forth. Let us consider taking the life of some creature.

When we step on an insect, it dies quickly with relatively little suffering. However, when we kill a larger animal by pelting it with rocks, for instance, death is less swift. As its body size is much larger and the suffering it experiences much greater and over a longer period of time, the resulting consequences that we will have to suffer will be much more severe. We will experience pain in proportion to the amount that we create. Even if the insect we kill is small, the consequences are much worse if we pull its wings and legs off first and then throw it in a fire than if we simply swatted it quickly. Imagine some giant pulling off our legs and throwing us in a flame! 

Tormenting and slowly torturing a victim before killing them is extremely heavy. Aside from the physical horrors we commit, if in addition we cause terrible mental suffering as well, it becomes even worse. This would be like before executing someone, depriving them of all human dignity, making them terrified, starving them, making them grovel and scream out for mercy and so on. Moreover, if on top of this we take sadistic pleasure and rejoice while we commit our action of torture and murder, boast about it, show it off to others, make blood-curdling screams while we do it and so on, the consequences become incredibly heavy. We may not be a criminally insane murderer like this scenario from a concentration camp, but we should check carefully the attitudes that arise while we hunt down and kill mosquitoes, fleas, bedbugs, cockroaches, vermin attacking our crops and so forth. We might be horrified at what we see in ourselves.

[4] The heaviness of the consequences of a negative action increases according to the amount of benefit and help either we or others have in the past, are presently or may in the future be able to receive from the basis at whom or at which the action is directed. Thus, even giving a dirty look to our spiritual mentor, teacher, a member of the bodhisattva Sangha, our parents and so forth can have heavy results.

For killing, the heaviness increases from the basis of our murder being an insect to a small animal, a large one, a fetus, a human, a close friend, a sibling, a parent, a spiritual master, a bodhisattva, an arhat, a Buddha. 

Stealing becomes heavier when the basis is a large quantity of objects or of excellent quality, or if they are the possessions of a poor and destitute person, or educational material, prayer books, Dharma texts, or the possessions of a spiritual master, an arhat, the Sangha, a stupa and so on. 

Inappropriate sexual behavior becomes heavier if the one we are involved with is our parent, someone in robes with a vow of celibacy or a close friend’s partner; if the manner entails degrading our gateway for speech as a sexual orifice or device; if the place involved is in front of a stupa or in a monastery’s grounds; or if the time of the act is when we or our partner have taken one-day vows of celibacy, are sick or the woman is in the advanced stages of pregnancy.

The consequences of lying become heavy when we deliberately give a wrong answer to deceive someone who has asked a sincere question, or when we lie about a great many meaningful things, and also, similar to the three destructive actions of body, when the person to or about whom we lie is our parent, spiritual mentor, a member of the Sangha, a Buddha and so forth. The heaviest lies are ones intended to cause a schism in the Sangha. 

Speaking divisively becomes particularly heavy when the parties involved have been close friends for a long time or are family relations, particularly a child and its parents, or a spiritual mentor and disciple, or a group within the Sangha. We must be very careful, then, never to say to a spiritual master anything bad about their disciples. This is very negative.

Speaking harshly becomes heavy when it is directed at our parents, spiritual mentor and so forth, when it is used purposely to hurt someone or to scold or threaten someone, or when it involves harsh words of lies about proper, respectable objects or matters. 

Chattering meaninglessly has heavy consequences when it takes the form of bickering, speaking behind someone’s back, being argumentative, speaking provocatively or reciting out of disturbing attachment the liturgies and texts of other religions, or when in the form of being sarcastic, rude or insulting, or speaking about improper subjects or sheer nonsense either to or about our parents, spiritual mentors and so forth.

Thinking covetously becomes heavy when the desired objects are the belongings or offerings made to the Sangha, our spiritual mentor or a stupa, or when, out of arrogant obsession and vanity, we long to have the respect and advantages of experience enjoyed by a king or a learned person of impeccable ethics. 

Thinking with malice is especially heavy when directed at our parents, relatives, spiritual mentors, those who are faultless, the poor, the downtrodden, the miserable, the pitiable and those who have sincerely apologized and repented for wrongs they have done. 

Thinking distortedly with antagonism becomes extremely heavy when we actively think to repudiate that there could ever be any such thing as a Buddha, liberation from all problems and suffering or the operation of the laws of behavioral cause and effect. Such thinking is much heavier than cynically thinking to deny simply the presence today in the modern world of an arhat or anything good or of value.

[5] The more frequently we commit a destructive action, the heavier the consequences will be. This is because we build up an increasingly more compelling habit to repeat the action. Therefore, even chattering meaninglessly, if done constantly and continually, will have heavy consequences, whereas a negative action done only once is less severe.

[6] Finally, if we commit many destructive actions without doing anything constructive to counterbalance and act as an opponent to their consequences, these negative actions become heavier. 

In contrast with these six factors as presented in Pabongka’s Liberation in the Palm of Your Hand, there are five given in Tsongkhapa’s Grand Presentation:

• The intention 
• The action involved
• The absence of opponent forces 
• The distorted compelling drive (log-par mngon-par zhen-pa) 
• The basis.

The factor of frequency is included in that of the action involved, while the nature of the action is not discussed in these five. The distorted compelling drive refers to whether or not there is a distorted view as the force behind the action, such as when killing an animal if it is done as a blood sacrifice based on a distorted view about behavioral cause and effect.

Tsongkhapa goes on to give another list of six factors as found in Asanga’s All-Inclusive Text for the Actual Foundation (Sa’i dngos-gzhi, Skt. Vastusaṃgraha):

• The nature 
• Affecting prior force (mngon-par ’du-byed-pa, Skt. abhisaṃskāra)
• Habitude
• Basis
• Definite presence of disharmonious factors (mi-mthun-pa’i phyogs gcig-tu nges-pa)
• Eradication of disharmonious factors (mi-mthun-phyog sel-ba). 

The affecting prior force is explained in the same way as is the intention in Pabongka’s and Tsongkhapa’s lists. Habitude is similar to frequency, while the definite presence or eradication of disharmonious factors amounts to much the same as the absence of opponent forces.

In Vasubandhu’s Treasure House of Special Topics of Knowledge, yet another list of six factors is presented to distinguish the heaviness of the results of an action: 

• The conclusion or follow-up
• The field
• The basis
• The action involved
• The intention with which the action is completed
• The intention with which it was motivated (bsam-pa). 

The conclusion refers to whether or not we repeat the action in the future. The field refers to what is called the basis in Asanga’s, Tsongkhapa’s and Pabongka’s lists, while the basis here refers to what the others call the nature of the act. [As cited by the First Dalai Lama (rGyal-ba dGe-’dun grub) in “Clarifying the Path” (mDzod-tik thar-lam gsal-byed), 275.]

If we have to commit a negative action, we try not to have all these factors for heaviness be complete. For instance, if we simply must fumigate for bedbugs, we try to do the action with as little a disturbing emotion or attitude as possible, causing the minimal amount of suffering, as infrequently as possible and countered with such positive actions as openly admitting that what we are doing is wrong, immediately invoking the opponent forces of regret and so forth. We try not to be like the classic example of someone who has all six factors complete: a professional slaughterer who is always negative and never does anything positive, who kills his parents out of great anger by means of the nine most awful kinds of torture.

Best of all, of course, is never to allow ourselves to become stained by negative karmic forces. While disdaining those who commit destructive acts with heavy consequences, we should not think it all right for us to continue being negative so long as we make our actions light.

As Aryadeva has said in his Four Hundred Verse Treatise (bZhi-brgya-pa, Skt. Catuḥśataka), III.22: 

If (some of them) had leprosy, all people covered with urine would not be alike. Just as those (non-lepers) covered with urine (would hold their noses) at the lepers, likewise they themselves would be avoided by everybody else.

In other words, if there were a group of people all covered with urine and some of them in addition were lepers, those without leprosy might hold their nose in disdain at those with this terrible disease. However, as they themselves still stank with urine, everyone else would hold their nose at them. Likewise, if we have acted destructively in a light manner but hold our nose at someone who has acted worse, we will still have others hold their nose at us for what we have done. We must keep in mind that even slightly destructive actions will result in suffering. 

Every destructive action bears three types of results: 

1. A ripened result
2. A result that corresponds to its cause (rgyu-mthun-gyi ’bras-bu, Skt. niṣyanda-phalam)
3. A dominating result (bdag-’bras, Skt. adhipati-phalam).

[1] In general, ripened results are unspecified phenomena (lung ma-bstan, Skt. vyākṛta, neutral) conjoined with the mental continuum of a limited being (rnam-shes-kyis zin-pa) and which come from either negative phenomena or tainted positive ones as their ripening cause. In other words, in this context they are the aggregate factors of experience – the body, mind, sense apparatus and so forth – of a next rebirth state, which ripen as a result of karmic forces built up by previous compulsive behavior. Although such aggregate factors may be involved in either constructive or destructive actions, in and of themselves they are unobstructive unspecified by the Buddha to be either of the two; they are neutral.

The ripened results of a major destructive action are the mind consciousness being propelled at conception to the aggregate factors that a trapped being in a joyless realm experiences: its body, the horrifying things it sees and senses happening to it, its feelings of pain, fear and so on. Those of a medium level destructive action are being propelled to the factors experienced by a clutching ghost, while the ripened effects of a minor such action are being propelled to those experienced by a creeping creature. What determines whether a destructive action is of major, medium or minor severity is either the degree of intensity of the disturbing emotions or attitudes with which it was motivated, carried out and concluded, or how complete the action was with all its parts, or how heavy it was with all the factors that can make it so. Any negative action, then, can ripen into being propelled at death to a joyless-realm rebirth if it is complete, heavy enough and committed with a totally disturbed state of mind.

[2] After we have completed, as the ripened result of some destructive action, our experience of the aggregate factors in one of the worse rebirth states, there are still further repercussions (las-mtha’, Skt. karmānta) to come our way as the result of the karmic force built up by this previous action. When once more we attain another human form as the ripened result of some positive karmic forces built up in former lives, we will experience these repercussions in the form of results that correspond to their cause. These will correspond in terms of both our experience (myong-ba rgyu-mthun-gyi ’bras-bu) and also our behavior (byed-pa rgyu-mthun-gyi ’bras-bu) during that lifetime.

If we have committed a murder, the initial result that ripens is rebirth, for instance, in one of the joyless realms. When eventually the karmic force for that hellish life is exhausted and we gain another human birth, then corresponding to the fact that we had shortened someone’s lifespan and robbed this person of their physical glory, we ourselves will experience a short life filled with much sickness and personal misfortune. In addition, also corresponding to what we had done in the past, we will instinctively delight in torturing animals, killing insects and so forth even as a small child and be led by our compelling karmic impulses eventually to commit murder once more. 

If we have thieved during a former lifetime, our human rebirth will be filled with poverty, we will be subject to robberies ourselves, whatever objects we obtain we will be forced either to give up or to share in common with many people, while even from childhood we will automatically steal. 

If we have committed adultery, we will have a bad relationship with our spouse, they will be unfaithful, our marital relations and intimate friendships will never last, while we ourselves will be strongly attracted to extramarital affairs. 

From lying, we will have no influence on anyone, no one will trust what we say, others will abuse and spread false stories about us behind our back, while we ourselves will be unable to say anything without exaggeration or distortion. 

From speaking divisively, our friends will be few, and they will leave or desert us, we will be parted from our spiritual mentors and loved ones, while we ourselves will incessantly cause trouble and be a nuisance for others by tattling, giving our unsought opinion and causing misunderstanding.

From speaking harshly, we will always be criticized, have to hear everyone’s unpleasant news and live with ear-shattering noise all around us, while we ourselves will habitually speak coarsely and swear.

From chattering meaninglessly, we will be unable to keep the confidence of others, everyone will laugh at us, no one will take us seriously, while we ourselves will be unable to stop talking and interrupting others. Even if someone is meditating deeply, we will feel compelled to speak and will even poke the person in the ribs to catch their attention.

From thinking covetously, we will never be able to complete any project, we will start a million things and then want to do something else as soon as we begin any of them, while we ourselves will have to touch everything we see, know how much everything costs, and when we hear that someone has bought a new item, we will have to go see it and try it out or on.

From thinking with malice, we will always feel guilty, suspicious and paranoid of others, while we ourselves will take pleasure in sadistically hurting people and animals and causing mischief. We will put rocks in the road to damage vehicles or a mouse in someone’s kitchen, or whenever we see a dog we will feel compelled to tease and torment it.

From thinking distortedly with antagonism, we will always feel dull, as if a pot were over our heads when trying to practice the Dharma, but light as a feather when engaged in deluded, mundane activities, while we ourselves will constantly criticize others, find fault with everything, think whatever anyone else does is wrong or no good, and we will totally misunderstand the Dharma. The effect of a negative action is in this way always in accordance with its cause.

The fruit that corresponds to its cause in our instinctive behavior is the most bitter fruit of all. Being born instinctively to continue committing the same destructive actions as in the past generates a vicious circle of uncontrollably recurring problems and existence, samsara, which can only be broken by adopting the Dharma measures.

[3] The previous types of results of negative actions affect our rebirth status, social situation and the compelling karmic impulses that arise to shape our behavior. The dominating result, on the other hand, ripens in the form of our environment, possessions and how we relate to them once we have been reborn as a human. It may also affect many beings collectively and is sometimes referred to as the “commanding result” (dbang-gi ’bras-bu).

From killing, we will be born in an ignoble place without any glories and in a very low caste, there will be very poor medical facilities, the food and medicine available in the land will be weak and of poor quality. Even if we obtain the diet and medications that theoretically should help us, our food will provide us with little nourishment and medicines will prove ineffective in treating our illness. 

From stealing, whatever we plant will not grow or will give only a very small yield. Someone sells us a cow, and it gives less milk than before. Our homeland will often be subject to floods, draughts and hail. 

From engaging in inappropriate sexual behavior, where we live will be dirty, muddy, inconvenient, smell of latrines and be totally unpleasant.

From lying, we will be born in a place where everyone is corrupt and dishonest, our business ventures will fail, we will lose our capital, our employees will steal from us, and everyone will cheat and take advantage of us. 

From speaking divisively, where we live will be rocky and uncomfortable, with sharp rises and falls in the land, as we have destroyed the evenness of others’ minds. 

From speaking harshly, there will be many thorns, sharp rocks and much broken glass where we live, and the landscape will be harsh, dry and arid, with no bodies of water, many scorpions, snakes and large salt wastes. 

From chattering meaninglessly, our fruit trees will give no yield at the proper seasons, but will start to grow at the wrong time of year, their roots will be unstable, they will not endure but will easily fall down or be chopped, while the parks, forests and lakes around us will become overcrowded and spoiled.

From thinking covetously, our property, house and belongings will quickly deteriorate, become worn and broken. Whenever we move into a new room, the furniture falls apart, the paint starts to peel and within a very short time it looks a shambles. We buy a new shirt, and the first time we wear it, it always rips or develops a hole. 

From thinking with malice, we will continually be caught in wars, calamities and epidemics, where we live will be infested with poisonous insects and snakes, dangerous wild animals and haunted with terrifying spirits and ghosts. 

From thinking distortedly with antagonism, the natural resources around us will become exhausted, springs will go dry, the environment will become polluted, all law and order will disappear, there will be no protection, and nothing will be held sacred. 

[As cited by Nagarjuna in “A Precious Garland” (Rin-chen ’phreng-ba, Skt. Ratnāvalī), 14–18; and by Dharmarakshita in “The Wheel of Sharp Weapons,” 10–45.]

We should not think that all these occurrences happen for no reason. Our rebirth, experiences, instinctive behavior and environment are all the result of karmic forces built up from our previous behavior. We might think that these various things are the results of actions we have done in this life, but this is quite rare. If it were always the case, we would wonder about kind people who continually have misfortunate things happen to them. Most of what we experience in this life is the result of our actions in previous ones, while what we do now will mostly affect our future rebirths. 

As Dharmarakshita has said in “The Wheel of Sharp Weapons,” 46:

In short, the strikings, like lightning on our heads, of (disasters) never wished for are the sharp weapons of negative karma circling back on us, like the murder of a sword smith by his own (fashioned) sword. Now, let’s take care about our negative deeds.