irrevocably decreed in heaven.

Image here.

You know what they say about karma.

I've been thinking about karma a lot lately. What goes around comes around, and all that. The idea that we all reap what we sow.

This is what LDS.org has to say about the Latter-day Saint faith and the Hindu beliefs on karma (emphasis mine):

By 600 B.C. many Indian Hindu priests and philosophers believed in a doctrine labeled Karma-Samsara. Karma means action or acts, and refers to the accumulation of results a person reaps from his every act and thought, be it good or bad. There is a strong similarity between this and the “law, irrevocably decreed in heaven before the foundations of this world, upon which all blessings are predicated.” (D&C 130:20.) The difference is that Hindus believe that the law of karma is absolutely unalterable. Their belief in Samsara, the wheel of rebirth or reincarnation, states that every person will be reborn into a status (which could be human, animal, or inanimate) that is the inevitable result of his actions. Thus, Hindus believe that people who are born into a high caste deserve to be where they are, and so with all creatures. We Latter-day Saints also believe we are born where we should be, but that a just and loving Father in heaven has decided where we can best perform in this mortal sphere of activity. We believe we reap the rewards of our actions, but we also believe in the atonement of Jesus. Were it not for this merciful provision, we would be left with nearly the same doctrine as the Hindus. That is, we would be left to eternally pay the price of our sins.

Basically, where we differ in belief is:

I thought this was funny.
Image here.

- past life stuff

- reincarnation stuff

- that people have to pay the price of their own sins; no one can intervene

However, as a faith, we do belief in the concept of reaping what we sow, and that "There is a law, irrevocably decreed in heaven before the foundations of this world, upon which all blessings are predicated—And when we obtain any blessing from God, it is by obedience to that law upon which it is predicated" (D&C 130:20-21).

Those verses are so interesting to me. There is a law irrevocably decreed in heaven, upon which all blessings are predicated. 

All blessings? All of them? All of them have a law associated with them?

Here are some blessings that come to the top of my head: 

- happiness
- money
- temporal safety and security
- freedom
- happy family
- peace of mind 

That scripture would indicate that if we are not currently experiencing those blessings, it may be because we are in violation of the laws "irrevocably decreed in heaven." It's kind of similar to the idea of karma. 

So what are the terms to achieve those blessings, according to the law? I don't really have the answer to that. Something to pray about and ponder.

Image here.

In energy work you realize that agency and personal responsibility are at the heart of healing. So many physical ailments are caused by spiritual and emotional components, and cannot be healed until the person is willing to take responsibility for their own self. A lot of times, for example, physical ailments are caused by unforgiveness. You might not have a lot of say in what people do to you, but you always have a say in how you handle it. Being unwilling to let go and forgive can cause a lot of physical health problems. Until we use our agency and take personal responsibility for our own emotional, spiritual, physical health by exercising forgiveness, for example, we will suffer.

I have a lot of thoughts about this idea and I may write about it further. I've been thinking a lot recently about the Saturn Return as well, and how it relates to this concept, and to agency and personal responsibility and the laws decreed in heaven. But I'll have to save that for another day.