Line #37 Main/Karma


1	->''The mills of the gods grind slowly, but they grind exceedingly fine.''
2	--> -- '''Hafiz Shirazi'''
3
4	This trope covers incidents where:
5	# The word ''karma'' is used more or less "correctly" per its original meaning.
6	# A concept is introduced into a story or a story element that is essentially identical to karma, even though it's not called that.
7
8	For cases where the term karma is ''not'' used "properly", see CallItKarma. Frequently paired with the spiritual concept of {{Reincarnation}}.
9
10	This page originally read "Describe Karma here." Yikes! Of course that's also the whole point. Karma is a complex spiritual concept whose [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Karma disambiguation]] is perhaps best left not to Website/TVTropes or Website/{{Wikipedia}}, but to actual religious study.
11
12	Originally, the term ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Karma Karma]]'' was a [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sanskrit Sanskrit]] word for a rather specific spiritual concept, but over the centuries the word has been borrowed by countless languages, cultures, subcultures, religions, works of fiction, and even video games. Over time the word has [[{{flanderized}} evolved]] to such an extent that many who consider it to be part of their everyday vocabulary are unfamiliar with its original definition.
13
14	While explaining the original meaning of Karma in a single paragraph is almost certainly oversimplifying it, the principle goes something like this:
15	# Actions have consequences.
16	# Divisibility is an illusion. All things are one. It is more true that we are a piece of the universe than we are individuals.
17	# Acting out of love makes the universe a better place, while malign motives degrade it.
18	# When you hurt someone else, you're actually hurting the universe at large, of which you are a part.
19
20	Therefore, when you commit an evil act, you are in a sense harming yourself and not just others.
21
22	Its most common and simplest definition (perhaps ''too'' simple) is "If you do something bad, it'll come back to bite you in the ass."
23
24	Karma has also been equated to EquivalentExchange and Newton's Third Law of Motion: "For every action, there is an equal but opposite reaction."
25
26	Note that UsefulNotes/{{Hinduism}}, Jainism, and UsefulNotes/{{Buddhism}} have different views on karma. In Hinduism, there is "good" and "bad" karma; in Jainism there are also two types of karma, with the goal to remove all the "bad" karma ''then'' the "good" karma to achieve perfection (becoming a "siddha"); while in Buddhism ''all karma is bad'' and the goal is to achieve enlightenment (becoming a "buddha") and thus escape from its bonds.
27	----
28	!!Tropes:
29	[[index]]
30	* AdaptationalKarma: When a KarmaHoudini is punished in an adaptation of the original story.
31	* CallItKarma: When it's not exactly karma but the term fits.
32	* CartesianKarma: When penance must be paid for your evil deeds whilst brainwashed.
33	* CheaterGetsCheatedOn: Cheating on someone leads to getting cheated on in return.
34	* {{Hellistics}}: Unrelated events turn out to be connected with each other just to screw over the character(s).
35	* KarmaHoudini: A character who doesn't face punishment for any of their wrongdoings.
36	* KarmaHoudiniWarranty: A KarmaHoudini eventually does receive punishment for their actions.
37	* KarmaMeter: An easy-to-read guide to your [=Karma=] levels.
38	* KarmicButtMonkey: A person whose suffering is used as punishment for their own jerkish actions.
39	* KarmicDeath: A death was deserved and a fitting punishment for the misdeeds of the person who died.
40	* KarmicInjury: A character is injured in a manner identical or similar to injuries they have inflicted on someone else.
41	* KarmicJackpot: A character does something good, and gets a suitably great reward in return.
42	* KarmicMisfire: An innocent character is wrongly punished instead of a guilty character.
43	* KarmicNod: A character accepts that his/her karmic punishment was deserved.
44	* KarmicOverkill: A person's karma goes beyond what is truly deserved.
45	* KarmicProtection: A fair punishment, don't be too evil.
46	* KarmicRape: When LaserGuidedKarma hits a very sensitive spot.
47	* KarmicShunning: A character's misdeeds lead to them being cut off by their former loved ones.
48	* KarmicSTD: A character gets a sexually transmitted disease for their misdeeds.
49	* KarmicThief: A thief only targets those who deserve it.
50	* KarmicTransformation: When you become the thing you hate.
51	* KarmicTrickster: Balancing the world's karma (or at least that's the excuse).
52	* KarmicTwistEnding: Making sure that Aesop sticks.
53	* LaserGuidedKarma: Karma with ridiculously good timing.
54	* OffscreenKarma: When punishment is unseen or will happen.
55	* ThePunishmentIsTheCrime: The punishment for committing an evil deed is having to live with the knowledge that you did it.
56	* SexualKarma: For giving good sex, you get good sex, and for giving bad sex, you get bad sex.
57	* UnintentionallyKarmic: A character whose well-meaning actions and attempts end in karmic misfortune for the bad guy instead.
58	[[/index]]

Context Main / Karma