Materialism asserts that life exists only in this one lifetime, and this worldview has deeply permeated the world we live in. Such a mindset is extremely alarming, as it is the root cause of many disasters.
Materialists inevitably hold a nihilistic view of life, yet even among Buddhists, this latent belief often remains deeply ingrained, to the very marrow. Conceptually, they may believe in rebirth, and may also be quite interested in supernatural matters, such as ghosts and celestial beings. However, their understanding of karma and reincarnation must never be involved in their immediate interests. Once that happens, they will immediately forget about karma, retribution, and the afterlife, and will instead consider and act solely according to principles of self-interest. This reveals a fundamentally deep-seated disbelief in karma at their very core.
Even if they can speak eloquently about karma, and even shed tears when discussing bodhicitta or the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas, once they return to daily life and their interests are at stake, they may instantly turn ferocious, speaking and behaving aggressively or erratically — even towards fellow practitioners, companions, or family members. The shadow and influence of materialistic thinking then immediately become apparent.
This is highly problematic. Why is this the case? Deep within, we do not truly accept that the law governing this world is karmic cause and effect, rather than materialism.
All of our internal thoughts and bodily external actions — body, speech, and mind—affect our future and bring about corresponding results. If asked whether we truly believe in this, we would, of course, say yes. That’s easy to do, because such belief costs us nothing; it involves no material interests, nor any tangible gains or losses. Naturally, we often discuss it verbally; no matter who asks, we can answer effortlessly. Other fellow practitioners hear this and will readily agree: “Belief in karma is good; our worldview is correct!” From this, we can gain a sense of security through the approval of others. At the same time, we also comfort ourselves with unexamined self-deception: “I believe in karma, so I won’t suffer its punishments.”
As a result, we fail to seriously reflect on whether we ourselves are violating the law of karma. As soon as we notice someone else's mistake, we immediately reproach them: “Aren't you afraid of karma?” Without worrying and realizing that such casual and hasty criticism may itself incur negative karmic consequences. And when we act against karma, we forget to turn inward and reflect on our own faults. Let alone when personal interests are involved — then the law of cause and effect can be entirely forgotten in an instant. It is as if the law of cause and effect applies only to others, and not to ourselves..
The underlying cause of these phenomena lies in not genuinely believing in the law of karma. They also stem largely from ignorance and a deficiency in introspection. Yet such people are often far from unintelligent — they may be quite astute in worldly matters, even able to recite many teachings and stories about karma with ease. But they simply never apply these teachings to their own minds. If one cannot even pass this stage, yet believes they have achieved spiritual attainment or even full realization, that is nothing but a joke.
