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Originally Posted by mixedmedia
The real interpretation of karma, in my understanding, is much more complicated than the context we usually use it in. And most often is meant in the context of good and bad deeds done over the course of multiple lifetimes.
Baraka could probably elucidate on that more with more detail, though.
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Well, I'm not an expert by any means, but my mother is a Theravada Buddhist (Thai) and I've seen it throughout her family... their constant desire to be born into a higher form in their next life, and to avoid being born into something that is a lower class (e.g. closer to the ground... a snake would be their worst nightmare).
Much of their religion and culture centers around that kind of karma, going so far as to give alms to the Buddhist monks every morning and doing as many good deeds as possible, to make sure they are making up for any "sins" they may have accrued in this life. Mothers hope that their sons will enter the monkhood, at least for a short time, to accrue more merit (which adds to their mothers' karma, since women are seen as somehow more sinful than men, yay)... everything is about "making merit."
Now, I am not saying this is a good way of living, not is it even based on pure Buddhist doctrine (quite distant from it, in fact). But my mother's family (and many Thais) believe in it to the utmost... and they structure much of their morality around the idea of not wanting to incur bad karma and be born as a snake the next time around! Fair 'nuff, I guess.