Karmic Debt

There are things that can block our access to the abundance of the world around us. One of them is an unkept promise. Your word is your bond, as the saying goes. When you enter into an agreement with someone and you fail to keep your word with that person, it inhibits your ability to receive the things you ask for.

Asking the simulation for the things you need (or perhaps want) means entering into an agreement with it. The agreement is simply that if you have the faith to ask for something, the universe will work to get it to you. There’s always a cost. Sometimes the cost is simply believing that you will receive the thing you desire. Sometimes the cost is sacrificing something tangible in order to get your desire. Sometimes it’s being willing to accept an alternative solution that doesn’t look like what you envisioned your fulfilled desire to be.

However, in order for this agreement to be honored, you must also be honoring the agreements that you have entered into. I’m not talking about legal agreements; I mean the things you agree to with the people in your life that you care about. What obligations have you willingly entered into? Are you fulfilling the terms of the bargain?

The further we are out of alignment with the obligations in our life, the more difficult it is to have the simulation honor its obligations to you.

What are some areas where we can get out of balance?

Emotional Support: If a friend is going through a rough time and you promise to be there for them, and then decide you’d rather do something else when they ask for assistance, that’s incurring a debt. You let your friend down.

Don’t get it twisted. I’m not talking about small things like life genuinely getting busy and you literally do not have time to reach out to a friend. That’s a different thing entirely. It’s about intent. Recognizing your obligation and then deciding not to honor it is what incurs the penalty.

Social Responsibilities: We live in a society, and along with the benefits from society come the obligations to it. The obligation to keep it healthy, for instance, by voting for competent leaders and ousting corrupt ones. The obligation to ensure that the society you live in is equitable and fair for all and that you take action to make society better for others on a macro as well as a micro level.

Again, these are things that involve you being aware of the right thing and then choosing not to do that right thing. A Black person in the American South, for example, who has their name struck from the voter roles due to white supremacist voting laws and doesn’t realize that this has happened and is then unable to vote doesn’t incur any kind of debt. It’s not their fault they couldn’t participate. In fact, the politicians that disenfranchised them incurred a debt.

Are you getting the picture? Intent matters.

Workplace Commitments: Again, not contractual obligations, but include informal agreements like offering to mentoring a colleague and then choosing not to follow through…or volunteering to contribute to a team project and then intentionally not carrying your weight. That lack of integrity is the source of your problem. This doesn’t apply to people who are overwhelmed and simply aren’t capable. Our simulation is fair; you’re not going to become unlucky because you were struggling to keep up and couldn’t honor an obligation.

Environmental Pledges: We are products of our environment. The Earth is a place of abundance and we owe a debt to it to keep it healthy. This imbalance in our ecosystem has been driven by a comparative handful of humans, but it’s been happening for so long that the biosphere is in danger of collapse if things don’t change.

The further we are out of alignment with the obligations in our life, the more difficult it is to have the simulation honor its obligation to you. Each intentionally unfulfilled promise can act as a barrier to receiving of the abundance that is our birthright.

All About Karma

The concept of karmic debt is particularly relevant here. In many spiritual traditions, karma is understood as the law of cause and effect, where our actions and intentions ripple through the universe, influencing our future experiences. When we receive benefits from others and fail to assist them in return, we’re not just neglecting a social or emotional obligation; we’re incurring a debt on a spiritual level. That karmic debt eventually comes back to bite us if it remains unpaid. It shows up as all sorts of snags and roadblocks in our daily life, making it harder to grab hold of the good stuff that might be waiting down the line.

Reciprocity transcends being a mere social courtesy; it keeps our whole society from falling apart. When we give back the kindness and support we’ve received, we’re doing more than just being nice. We’re helping everyone, including ourselves, to grow and get better. It creates a positive feedback loop and the world around us collectively improves.

This whole give-and-take thing does more than just build strong friendships or communities. It keeps everything in balance and prevents your karmic debt from going through the roof. When we help out those who’ve helped us, we’re not just settling a score. We’re actually creating good karma, which offsets the bad. However, all the good karma in the world isn’t going to help if you’re intentionally refusing to fulfill an obligation.

In the end, it’s not complicated. Actively fulfilling our commitments and reciprocating kindness creates a positive impact, fostering a cycle of goodwill and harmony.