Your Karma = Dogma!

I do not personally believe in the concept of a threefold law, or the NeoWiccan version of Karma.

In the 20-plus years that I have been a practitioner of the Occult I have never personally seen any evidence that there is any form of cosmic system in place that deals out punishments and rewards based on another person's actions.

Nor do I believe in a universal concept of good and evil.

Considering the fact that many of our morals and laws are based on our own desire for mortal self-preservation, I do not believe that most of the things that we, as humans, consider to be "good" or "bad" would be seen in the same light by a higher power.

A glance at the mythologies of any culture would show that the Gods themselves often embrace their own pettiness and cruelties, so why would they place judgment on us for doing likewise?

Now, I do believe that every action causes a reaction, but does that mean that if I hex someone that I'm going to be punished in return? No. In fact, the reaction caused by a negative action on my part could very well be positive.

Even if you look at energy manipulation in the same light as tossing a stone in a pond, and the reaction to your spell the ripples that stone causes, it is easy enough to avoid any form of backlash from your casting with simple shielding or making sure to get the wording of your spell right.

I do tend to look at all of my potential spells as I would a monkey's paw. The old "careful what you wish for". It is also why I never outsource any of my work to another entity, because while most of them are not nearly as dumb as they pretend to be, they will muck things up if you leave any leeway in your wording. Plus there's the whole fact that they always seem to want some sort of payment for their services and too many of them have a nasty sense of humor for me to want to meddle in their affairs.

Overall, while I do recognize that some recoil can result from spell casting, I personally do not believe that it is the result from some cosmic nanny that spanks us when we are bad. No, it is much more simple that than, usually the result of poor wording, dealings with entities that enjoy causing mischief, or even a witch's own paranoia and belief in Karma, which is what I attribute the majority of these "threefold" instances to.

Basically if you believe that you are going to be punished, then you are pretty much giving yourself the evil eye. Kinda the same as believing that breaking a mirror will bring you bad luck.

A person's own personal belief and superstition is usually their greatest enemy.

As to why anyone would want to believe in something that's so obviously detrimental to their own craft? Well, I personally believe that this mentality is the result of either residual fear left over from an early childhood monotheistic belief system, or a need on the practitioner’s part for society to accept their spiritual choices. They achieve this by convincing others that they are more harmless and enlightened than their religious counterparts.

It’s a fear of being judged, by either the God they were raised with, or the society they live in, as well as a social animal’s craving for acceptance from the rest of the herd. It’s easier to convince others that you do not fit the stereotypical misconceptions of an “Evil Witch” if you are constantly sprouting off about how not causing harms to others is one of the core tenets of your belief system.

It’s also why those types tend to become hysterically vocal against any Occultist who doesn’t follow their guidelines. They don’t want anyone drawing attention towards the more mischievous practices of the Craft, as the resulting negative perceptions could very easily shine the light right back on them.

What makes Karma such a prominent figurehead for such persons is the helpless desperation they feel when anyone harms them or the people they care about. They are unable to overcome their fears of persecution in order to take matters into their own hands, so they attempt to soothe their impotence with some mystical boogey man who will step up and spank their enemies for them. The irony is that they create this dogma in order to avoid crossing that fine “harm none” line and yet, by voicing their convictions in Karmic retribution, they are in fact subconsciously sending out baneful energies towards others with the intent to cause a specific degree of harm against them.

In a way, Karma is not very much different than giving another the Evil Eye. It just negates the need for personal responsibility so far as the practitioner themselves are concerned. In their minds they are still good little girls and boys who only dabble in white magic and never harm others. This type of deluded mindset makes it easier for them to sleep at night so of course they wholeheartedly embrace it with relish and ketchup.

That’s not to say that I have any real issue, besides a healthy lack of respect, for those who do choose to believe in Karma or follow the Threefold law, it is just that neither have anything to do with my personal path, no more than a Sceintologist’s belief in Xenu, or a Christian's belief in eternal damnation, has anything to do with me.