Everything that comes to you according to Buddhism is from your past Kamma, it's fruiting. If you get some beneficial things in your life, Buddhism says it's because of beneficial things you've done in the past. If you get some unbeneficial things in your life, Buddhism says it's because of unbeneficial things you've done in your past. Okay, that's fine in the sense that it's very clear.
But as to what we can do today with whatever comes to us, yeah, there are things we can do today. We don't always know why we get what we get, whether it's good or it's bad, we don't always know why. Most if us have no idea about past lives most of us, but whatever it was, it has already happened. However whatever comes to you in this moment, with this you can react differently, this is the key to the whole practice.
Reacting to severe illness, reacting to injury, reacting to loss of any type, you lost your job. Whatever happens to you that is unpleasant, you can react differently to it and that's what the whole practice is for. So we might not be able to stop illness coming, but we can stop the negative thoughts that surround the illness.
Tomorrow night I plan to teach the Unpleasant Physical Sensation technique, you've all heard it before, many have heard it many times. Do you actually use it? Do you actually use it on regular basis, are you able to sit more comfortably with a meditation pain? And not get angry, not get upset, not get worried? If you can do that with a Meditation pain, then you are also going to be able to do so in your normal life with your illnesses, with your injuries.
But you have to practice it, that is what we can do, this is the key to the whole practice, the reaction, the reaction, the reaction, reaction, reaction. If you can train your brain to think differently, the illness or injury will not be as bad.
Put it on your mirror. Reaction! That is your key. Put it on your refrigerator. Reaction! That is your key. Stuff comes to you, whether it's good or bad, no matter what, it really doesn't matter. Buddhism says, yes, we created everything that comes to us by the Law of Kamma. But can we react more wisely to whatever comes to us. That's the key.