KARMA

Do you believe in "fate"? Is there a plan for our lives? Or are our lives governed by our individual "KARMA"? Without getting too deeply into religion, I believe that we are all given a free will to chose what happens and so each of us is personally responsible for what happens in our lives. Both good and bad. I do believe in "cause and affect", that is to say our choices and the actions we take causes reactions and affects, either in others or in circumstances that surround us now and in the future. My father, for example was born in a Monks town in England and died in a Monks town in Germany. Coincidence or his Karma?

Past events have a bearing on our now. If WW II had not happened I would not exist for example. (see About Me for why.) I believe also that certain events and circumstances in families repeat themselves. My great great grandfather was illegitimate, so was I; I had to quickly get married too, to prevent a recurrence of this "karma"!

My German grandmother had a great influence on my early life. She was proud to have been born in Hamburg, a city she loved. She would tell me stories of Hamburg, "the gateway to the world" as it is still known, because of its deep water port. Small boys love pirate stories and she told me of the infamous German pirate Klaus Störtebeker. When I was about 10 or 11 she gave me a navy Captain's hat with gold braid on its visor. I lived in this hat and could be found playing sailor  with a hula hoop with old fashioned pegs on it which represented the wheel of my clipper ship. When she saw me thus, and asked what I was doing, I replied that, "I was sailing around the world, from Hamburg the gateway to the world!" My own "Karma" was perhaps decided  that day.

37 years later I found a run down 16 1/2 ton steel ketch in Finkenwerder, Hamburg named KARMA.

Yacht KARMA 1995 in Kiel Fjord

Me and KARMA off the Coral Coast of Australia 2000




I bought it and eventually did sail it around the world from Hamburg. You will find a German version about the adventures I had on this 4  and a half year epic at http://www.karmasailing.de/Weltumseglung%20Teil%201.htm


If there is sufficient interest in the English speaking world I'll  post an English version as extra pages to this Blog. Just let me know.

So I'd say I fulfilled my own "karma". I'd be interested to hear of the "karma" in your life, or your thoughts on this aspect of life.