Karma's a B**ch But I Like Her

Most of us see karma as a cosmic scoreboard, a kind of universal revenge for every bad thing we do or have had done to us. But the concept of karma isn't about punishment. The word comes from the Sanskrit, meaning action or deed. In Eastern philosophies, it's a profound law of cause and effect; the energy you put out into the world through your actions, your words, and even your thoughts, comes back to you. We're not victims of karma; we're the creators of it. For example, a person who consistently acts with kindness and generosity tends to find themselves surrounded by helpful, positive people. This isn't divine reward; it's a natural reaction to the energy they put out.

Mystical idea aside, it's a fundamental principle of how we're wired. Our subconscious mind operates on a principle called predictive coding. It’s constantly processing our past experiences and learned beliefs to build a predictive model of the world. This model determines how you react to things and the actions you take. If you were betrayed in a past relationship, your subconscious builds a model that says, "People are untrustworthy." Your mind then becomes hyper-vigilant to signs of dishonesty in every new person, creating a cycle of anxiety and distrust.

This process is actively managed by a part of your brainstem called the Reticular Activating System (RAS). The RAS acts as a filter, allowing in only the information that is relevant to the beliefs you hold and the goals you've set. If you believe you are unworthy, your RAS will filter out evidence of your worth and actively look for things that confirm your deepest fears, creating a negative feedback loop. E.g. If you believe the job market is impossible, your RAS will focus on the endless job postings with impossible requirements and the negative news stories about layoffs. You'll literally filter out the networking opportunities, internal openings, or friends who could help, confirming your belief and making your job search feel much harder.

While Eastern philosophy frames karma as a metaphysical law and Western religion sees it as divine will, hypnotherapy and neurolinguistic programming (NLP) give us the how. They are the practical, scientific tools we can use to bypass the conscious resistance and reprogram our beliefs. Hypnosis relaxes the mind, allowing direct communication with the subconscious to reset that predictive coding and tell the RAS to start filtering for evidence of what you want, not what you fear. E.g. Instead of trying to force yourself to be more confident through sheer willpower, hypnotherapy can go into the subconscious and update the core belief. This shifts your RAS from looking for evidence of your unworthiness to automatically noticing opportunities to show up confidently.

So, yes, karma's a bitch, but only if you're working against her. When you understand this law and start aligning your internal state with your external desires, she becomes your most powerful ally, ensuring the energy you put out is precisely the energy that finds its way back to you.