Karma & Retribution: are they the cause and effect of our past? Or are they simply manifested by our guilt ridden consciousness?

I've come across people that keep telling me that they have done something 'bad' to others and now they are feeling the effect of the 'bad' behaviour. Some call it 'Karma', some say that it's 'Retribution'. 

The current situation and/or experience causes them to recall their past behaviours towards others. And most of them couldn't let go of the fact that they have been 'bad' towards others and are now feeling the effect.

Someone I met recently went through a bad breakup. He was totally heartbroken, dazed, and couldn't pull himself together, even took his annual leave just to languish at home. We had a conversation which led to this case file.

He told me the reason he was feeling so bad about the breakup was that he remembered that he did the same thing to someone else 20 years ago. And now karma or retribution has caught up and bit him in the ass.

"Guilt, one of the more powerful emotions that a person has been experiencing throughout life. Some even get addicted to the feeling and keep wanting more of it - and therefore the Karma, the Retribution, the repeated Cycle."

And throughout the conversation, he mentioned how guilty he felt andwhat is happening to him now was exactly what he did to the other party 20 years ago. He just kept repeating his guilty story over and over again... to the point that I have to stop him and say, "Now come back to this moment. Look at me, and breathe." He snapped out of it, and for a moment he seemed to realize that he was rambling about his past.

I told him to just look at me for a moment, and put both his hands on the table where we were sitting. He sat there for a while, and when he wanted to continue to speak again, I interpreted him and said, "Let's try something fun." I asked him to close his eyes and focused on my voice and his breathing. 

After the breathing exercise, I asked him what he was thinking for the past few minutes to which he said nothing; he was just listening to my voice and breathing. "See! You did it! You are not thinking of the past anymore." He suddenly realized and started smiling, and soon let out a slight laughter. I reminded him that if he is going to think about his past again, just do what we did a few minutes ago.

To my surprise, he messaged me in the morning, that he had deleted all the photos of him with his ex the previous night and now he is moving on with his life.

"Sometimes in life, we just have to realize that the past has no effect on us in the present moment. And with gratitude and forgiveness we move on with our lives feeling grateful for all the lessons and experiences we encountered, thanking each and every individual that makes us realize that we are more than who we are."

CASE FILE CLOSED - 29th July 2015