Nations and their karma: Why world needs to fight Islamist terrorism

Let us talk about karma and terrorism. The two words seem to be contradictory, yet they have very deep and far-reaching links. Do you know what karma is? It has nothing to do with sin, in the Christian sense. Karma means any action that has a consequence—in this life, in the next one, or in the next to that. Of course, you have to believe in reincarnation, like Buddhists or Hindus. Christians actually used to, until about the 4th century, when Roman Emperor Constantine banned this belief. But it was a significant development because it stopped one from believing in another life: after death, you go to paradise, purgatory, or hell, depending on your actions. In the Buddhist tradition, you’re reborn again and again, perfecting yourself during every life. This is the great message of the Bhagavad Gita, which should become the Bible of future humanity. Now there is also collective karma, the karma of a nation. The Dalai Lama himself has said many times that Tibet today is living a ‘black karma’, at the hands of the Chinese. As you may know, about one million Tibetans have died violently, either directly or indirectly, since 1959. And it’s a lot because Tibet is a very small nation of 6 million souls—many are also living in exile in India now. The Dalai Lama had said, “We, the Tibetans, are living a black karma today because of feudalism in Tibet till the 20th century.” So it’s important to understand that a nation has karma. If you look at Europe, for instance, most European nations colonised Africa and other countries; for example, my country, France, colonised most of North Africa, Morocco, Tunisia, Algeria, etc, often in a very violent manner: they exploited the people, they killed them, they hanged them. And in the 1950s and ’60s, we imported cheap Arab labour because the French didn’t want to pick up trash or be coolies. And these labourers were looked down upon when I was a kid and made fun of. So if today I am a great grandson of one of these Arabs, or a great-great grandson of one of the colonised North Africans, I have an anger towards the White French, an anger that often leads to violence and rioting. I’m not saying the violence is justified, but it is ‘karmic’ violence. So, France today is paying the karma of this colonisation, of this exploitation of Arabs. But then, the Arabs, the Muslims, who turn violently against France, in their turn, create black karma for themselves as a collective body. And one day they will have to pay that karma. So, this is very important to understand that each nation has karma, and this karma is paid in this life or the next. His Holiness the Dalai Lama again says that people of a particular nation, or even a religion, are reborn mostly in the same nation or religion. If you’re a Tibetan today, there’s a good chance that when you die, you will be reborn as a Tibetan. If you’re a Muslim, there’s a fair chance that you will be reborn as a Muslim. So that karma is lived from life to life. Now, as far as Israel is concerned, the Israeli people have suffered terribly. Not only today, with what the Hamas did on 7 October 2023, but they have also suffered throughout the ages. From the 6th century or 7th century onwards, when they were scattered over the world. They were victims of pogroms all over the world. And of course, during the Second World War, Hitler killed 6 million Jews, one of the goriest Holocausts after that of the Hindus in the history of humanity. Here, I want to add that the only country in the world where Jews were never persecuted in India. Jews came to India in the 6th or 7th century; they settled mostly in Mumbai and in Cochin, Kerala. And there, they lived peacefully. They were able to practice their religion freely. And most of them went back to Israel in 1948. What I’m saying is that Israel has suffered terrible karma. For what reason? I have no idea. There have been many speculations about it. I do not want to speculate on these speculations. Let people make their own opinions. But the Dalai Lama also says that when you suffer, you’re burning the karma, so then the karma disappears. Thus, in the Buddhist and Hindu sense, there is no absolute injustice: people you see today suffering immensely are most probably paying for past karma. Nevertheless, the greatest danger we face today is Islamist terrorism. Islamist terrorism, in the name of religion, wants to take over the world in the most brutal manner. It is waging a war against the entire civilised world, from China to France, from Chechnya to Palestine. Thus, we need to fight Islamist terrorism, karma or no karma. It is the duty of everyone and every nation. The author is a French journalist and author of ‘A History of India as It Happened’ (Garudabooks.com). He is also building a museum of true Indian history in Pune. Views expressed in the above piece are personal and solely that of the author. They do not necessarily reflect Firstpost’s views. Read all the  Latest News ,  Trending News ,  Cricket News ,  Bollywood News , India News  and  Entertainment News  here. Follow us on  Facebook,  Twitter and  Instagram.