Monday, August 31, 2009
Do We Live in a Moral Universe?
Sooner or later, I had to get around to this one. All religions claim that they have a moral core. The Christians and Jews share the ten commandments. Similar ideas are found in most religions. I like the metaphor that the Egyptians used. The god Ptah measured your heart in a scale at the time of death. It had to weigh more than a feather. I know a few people that would not pass that test. Of course, there is civil law. Kill somebody and you may have to go to jail; it depends on whether you meet certain legal tests or not. An accident and you will probably not go to jail, and a deliberate killing, if they catch you, you surely will unless you are acting in self defense. But what about the so-called sins that we commit here on earth while we are living? The Christians have a place called Hell waiting for you. Be good or you'll go there, they say. The gnostic does not believe that the universe has a problem with morality. The law of Karma was designed to deal with this problem and it does it well without disturbing the hot places in the center of the earth. If you hurt somebody, physically or emotionally, you will get the same thing back. This is a law and not an option. Act at your own risk. Recently, a driver ran over a homeless man in a wheel chair and then drove on without rendering aid. The dog that watched over the homeless man was devastated. Would karma act for the dog? I not only believe that it does, but I personally think that the driver should come back as a dog and go through the same process. Will that happen? I wouldn't want to be in the shoes of that driver and find out. Having all of this in mind, the universe is moral, but not in a religious way. Karma is like a traffic light. You may speed around several drivers who you think are going too slow, but when you get to the red light look in your rear view mirror. They will all come up to the light and join you. All that gas that you used to pass them? You might call it your contribution to karma. Will you always get the red light? Probably not, but don't count on avoiding it forever. It just won't happen. That's the way karma works. Just when you think that you've made it into the clear, you get zapped. Think back on your life, and you will recall moments just like that. How do you get around karma? That's an easy answer. Just live your life by the golden rule. You might even find that you enjoy it more that way.
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