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Actions Have Consequences
In ancient India, and in some cases modern day India, the people believed in a concept known as Karma. This concept was introduced by Buddhism and essentially means that ones actions correlate with their status in their next life or even their present life. In other words, it is the result of our own past actions and our own present doings. If you have bad karma in your present life, then it will negatively affect you for eternity or until you reach moksha. This ancient concept of karma, and more specifically, bad karma, introduced and taught by the Buddha himself is very similar to modern day criminal records, not just in the United States but in most organized communities, states or countries. If you do something illegal in this modern day, that crime can be recorded and placed on what is called a criminal record. This document can be retrieved at any time by anybody making a financial or official deal with you, such as a job or a loan. Bad karma and living with a criminal record can harm you and potentially ruin your life or next life (Buddhism).
Of course, like with most things, there are consequences for doing the wrong thing. In this aspect, bad karma and possessing a criminal record are very similar. If you do not follow your dharma during your life, you will be reborn as a lesser being. This could mean being born into a lower class or even being born as a non-human animal. However there are also ways for bad karma to affect you in your present life. If the crime that you have committed it so severe, you could possibly be exiled from your community or even given the short way to samsara, the death penalty. Similar consequences apply to criminal record-holders. If you have committed a (usually major) crime in your life, it can restrict access to everything from jobs to insurance, loans and travel. Even though you are allowed equal rights after you have served your punishment, business owners or higher ranking officials will take that into consideration and most likely deny your request for work, loans, insurance and many other things. In some cases, having a criminal record for certain things can be a complete bar for exchanging business, such as applying for a job, adopting a child, or even working with adults or children in general. Having a criminal record generally only affects your present life (Unless of course your religion has rules against it) but there is a big similarity connection between the two subjects.
These consequences may seem dire to you at the time, but think in the long run how it may affect your family. If you have bad karma in your lifetime and don't fulfill your dharma, in the lower classes, nobody would have given you a job which would greatly affect your ability to raise a family. If you have no job, you cannot buy for for your family or pay taxes which would get you into even more trouble, but in this case it would be with the government which could eventually get you killed. Obviously it does not affect your family in your next lifetime, but if you serve the death penalty or even go to prison, you are leaving them alone to fend for themselves. With a criminal record, the result for your family is the same, they have nobody to support them if you cannot find a job and your backup money slowly fades away until suddenly, you are in debt. Also, your social aspect would certainly be crushed in both situations, if businesses reject your offer, then acquaintances would certainly not be there to take your back.
Dharma is a concept that Buddhists must follow in order to have good karma and move up in the caste system, if not then their will be consequences.this idea of bad karma very similarly relates to possessing a criminal record in this modern day. Karma can have consequences in your present life as well as your next life, compared to possessing a criminal record which greatly affects you in your present life, but not your afterlife (unless you are a Buddhist of course). Having bad karma or having a criminal record can also have a great affect on your family and your social life, and may even ruin them. Just remember, your actions have consequences.
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