in theravada buddhism, can you purify your karma?

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confusedsoso
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in theravada buddhism, can you purify your karma?

Post by confusedsoso »

In theravada buddhism, can you purify your karma? I heard in mahayana buddhism you can purify your karma while in theravada buddhism you have to pay up all your karma. Am I right in all of this??
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Re: in theravada buddhism, can you purify your karma?

Post by befriend »

Take care of mindfulness and mindfulness will take care of you.
SarathW
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Re: in theravada buddhism, can you purify your karma?

Post by SarathW »

The simple answer is NO.
However, vipaka (result) for your Kamma (action) is fruition in different ways.
It is a complex subject.
Even Devadatta who killed many thousands of people became an arahant.
“As the lamp consumes oil, the path realises Nibbana”
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Re: in theravada buddhism, can you purify your karma?

Post by Sam Vara »

SarathW wrote: Mon Jan 30, 2023 12:01 am The simple answer is NO.
However, vipaka (result) for your Kamma (action) is fruition in different ways.
It is a complex subject.
Even Devadatta who killed many thousands of people became an arahant.
Devadatta, or Angulimala?

Is there a story of Devadatta becoming an arahant?
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Re: in theravada buddhism, can you purify your karma?

Post by SarathW »

Sam Vara wrote: Mon Jan 30, 2023 12:21 am
SarathW wrote: Mon Jan 30, 2023 12:01 am The simple answer is NO.
However, vipaka (result) for your Kamma (action) is fruition in different ways.
It is a complex subject.
Even Devadatta who killed many thousands of people became an arahant.
Devadatta, or Angulimala?

Is there a story of Devadatta becoming an arahant?
Sorry I got my wires crossed.
Yes, I am talking about Angulimala.
By the way, can recall a story that Devadatta one day become a Pcceka Buddha or something like that.
“As the lamp consumes oil, the path realises Nibbana”
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Re: in theravada buddhism, can you purify your karma?

Post by Goofaholix »

confusedsoso wrote: Sun Jan 29, 2023 9:56 pm In theravada buddhism, can you purify your karma? I heard in mahayana buddhism you can purify your karma while in theravada buddhism you have to pay up all your karma. Am I right in all of this??
For that to make sense you'd have to assume all kamma is bad (Jainism?), which is not the case, what would be the point in purifying good kamma?
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― Ajahn Chah
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Re: in theravada buddhism, can you purify your karma?

Post by confusedsoso »

Goofaholix wrote: Mon Jan 30, 2023 1:40 am
confusedsoso wrote: Sun Jan 29, 2023 9:56 pm In theravada buddhism, can you purify your karma? I heard in mahayana buddhism you can purify your karma while in theravada buddhism you have to pay up all your karma. Am I right in all of this??
For that to make sense you'd have to assume all kamma is bad (Jainism?), which is not the case, what would be the point in purifying good kamma?
of course not the good karma silly :tongue:
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Goofaholix
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Re: in theravada buddhism, can you purify your karma?

Post by Goofaholix »

confusedsoso wrote: Sun Feb 05, 2023 7:36 pm of course not the good karma silly :tongue:
Yes it is silly. As kamma can be anything from good to bad you just want to go for the good and abstain from the bad.
Pronouns (no self / not self)
“Peace is within oneself to be found in the same place as agitation and suffering. It is not found in a forest or on a hilltop, nor is it given by a teacher. Where you experience suffering, you can also find freedom from suffering. Trying to run away from suffering is actually to run toward it.”
― Ajahn Chah
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Re: in theravada buddhism, can you purify your karma?

Post by Mahabrahma »

Rid yourself from the consiquences of action (karma), and act without a material reaction which is binding to the Saha World, be it good or be it bad, and act only in Spiritual Karuna (Transcendental Compassion) for other beings instead.
Last edited by Mahabrahma on Sun Feb 05, 2023 8:12 pm, edited 2 times in total.
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Re: in theravada buddhism, can you purify your karma?

Post by dharmacorps »

There is a sutta where the Buddha sees a recluse ritually bathing himself in the ganges. When asked by the Buddha why he is doing so, the recluse said he bathed in the holy river to "purify bad karma".

The Buddha asked him if this could be done, wouldn't it wash away his good karma as well?

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Re: in theravada buddhism, can you purify your karma?

Post by DNS »

dharmacorps wrote: Sun Feb 05, 2023 8:54 pm There is a sutta where the Buddha sees a recluse ritually bathing himself in the ganges. When asked by the Buddha why he is doing so, the recluse said he bathed in the holy river to "purify bad karma".

The Buddha asked him if this could be done, wouldn't it wash away his good karma as well?
I don't remember reading that one. But I do remember one where someone was doing ritual water purification and a bhikkhuni remarked, "if water purifies beings, the fish and the sea turtles must be very holy by now." :D
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Re: in theravada buddhism, can you purify your karma?

Post by TRobinson465 »

confusedsoso wrote: Sun Jan 29, 2023 9:56 pm In theravada buddhism, can you purify your karma? I heard in mahayana buddhism you can purify your karma while in theravada buddhism you have to pay up all your karma. Am I right in all of this??
You do not have to pay up all your kamma. if you enlighten you will simply pass into nibbana and your remaining kamma will become ahosikamma, or kamma that ceases. however, as long as you are in samsara you have to "pay up" all your kamma if you dont reach nibbana soon, you cannot purify it, you can only dilute it as shown in the salt crystal sutta posted earlier or enlighten and basically "escape" it.
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Re: in theravada buddhism, can you purify your karma?

Post by asahi »

There is a possibility to purify the karma . For example , ajahn keng khemako in one of his talk told he had a kind of very painful skin disease uncurable either by western medicine , eastern medicine or other traditional methods for more than 20 years if not mistaken . But since he could perceive the karmic creditor actually is a king cobra which he has killed when he was a soldier , he heard from Mahayana monk that if he release king cobra and dedicates the merits to the king cobra , he would get recover . So , he ask one devotee to purchase a king cobra that suppose to be killed , he somehow recover a little bit immediately after that . Then he again asked the devotee to release more , in which finally he got totally cure from the skin disease .
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Re: in theravada buddhism, can you purify your karma?

Post by User13866 »

SarathW wrote: Mon Jan 30, 2023 1:37 am
Sam Vara wrote: Mon Jan 30, 2023 12:21 am
SarathW wrote: Mon Jan 30, 2023 12:01 am The simple answer is NO.
However, vipaka (result) for your Kamma (action) is fruition in different ways.
It is a complex subject.
Even Devadatta who killed many thousands of people became an arahant.
Devadatta, or Angulimala?

Is there a story of Devadatta becoming an arahant?
Sorry I got my wires crossed.
Yes, I am talking about Angulimala.
By the way, can recall a story that Devadatta one day become a Pcceka Buddha or something like that.
It's in the Questions of King Milinda.
And Devadatta's sorrow, O king, was mitigated. For Devadatta at the moment of his death took refuge in Him for the rest of his existences when he said:

"In him, who of the best is far the best 1,
The god of gods, the guide of gods and men,
Who see'th all, and bears the hundred marks
Of goodness,--'tis in him I refuge take
Through all the lives that I may have to live."

 2'If you divide this Kalpa, O king, into six parts, it was at the end of the first part that Devadatta created schism in the Order. After he has suffered the other five in purgatory he will be released, and will become a Pakkeka-Buddha 3 under the name of Atthissara.'

https://www.sacred-texts.com/bud/sbe35/sbe3512.htm
This is a Sarvastivadin text tho, not universally accepted as canonical by Theravada
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Re: in theravada buddhism, can you purify your karma?

Post by Bundokji »

https://www.tipitaka.net/tipitaka/dhp/v ... ?verse=173

The story of Thera Angulimala as other discussants mentioned.
And the Blessed One addressed the bhikkhus, saying: "Behold now, bhikkhus, I exhort you: All compounded things are subject to vanish. Strive with earnestness!"

This was the last word of the Tathagata.
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