Karma has been a pop culture term for ages. But really, what the heck is it?<br /><br />Karma is not an inviolate engine of cosmic punishment. Rather, it is a neutral sequence of acts, results, and consequences.<br /><br />Receiving misfortune does not necessarily indicate that one has committed evil. But it is a sufficient indicator of something else.<br /><br />And that something else can be anything, as long as it is a logical consequence of what has come before.<br /><br />Consider: if you fall into a well, you are not a bad person who deserves to suffer—you are merely someone who took a wrong step. Or someone who had one drink too many. Or got a head rush due to poor circulation. Or forgot to wear your glasses. Or—<br /><br />The reasons are plentiful, and all plausible. But the chain of cause and effect goes way, way back into the deepest hoariest recesses of your personal past.<br /><br />So never rule out retribution. But never expect it.