Question 72: ACCORDING TO THE LAW OF KARMA, WHAT CAUSES WAR?

Answer: When a king of one country raises an army to attack another, several factors must come together:

• For some unknown reason, the king feels a strong urge to launch an attack and conquer the neighboring country, possibly to seize more territory. This desire is very powerful.
• The king has an army willing to follow his orders, even if it means risking their lives in battle.
• The king’s ministers and advisors are in agreement, and no one dares to oppose his decision.

What invisible force brings these supporting conditions together – the king’s desire, the obedient army, abundant resources, and the agreement of his ministers? 

That force is karma. It has come to a time when the people of the country must endure the suffering of war, and thus, all the conditions for war align perfectly.

What kind of past karma leads to the outbreak of war? 

It is often the karma of killing.

Living beings seek to sustain themselves by taking the lives of others, whether through hunting animals or consuming plants. Over a lifetime, people accumulate significant karma from killing. When this Karma ripens in a future life, war breaks out in a seemingly irrational and inexplicable way.

If we wish to have a peaceful world, everyone must find ways to minimize the Karma of killing. We should avoid excessively killing, even for food. Fortunately, scientists have successfully developed lab-grown meat, where cells are cultivated in laboratories to grow into edible, clean meat without the need for slaughter. In the future, humans (and perhaps even animals) will be able to consume meat without any killing involved, which marks the beginning of a truly peaceful world.