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concept
Sanskrit

Karma

lit. โ€œaction, deedโ€

The principle that your actions return to you โ€” for better or worse.

Origin

A central concept in Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, and Sikhism. Strictly, karma is the moral weight of action, accumulated across a life (or across many lives) and shaping rebirth. The Western pop version flattens this into a cosmic accounting system that pays out within one lifetime.

Modern usage

Wildly common in casual speech โ€” 'instant karma', 'karma's a beautiful thing' โ€” usually meaning a satisfying comeuppance. Far from the technical religious sense.

In the wild

He cut everyone off in traffic and got pulled over a mile later โ€” pure karma.โ€” common usage

Tags

consequence
morality