Introduction - What Some Believe

At some point, everyone is affected by tragedy-perhaps an illness, an accident, a natural disaster, or an act of violence.

People search for answers.

* Some attribute suffering to fate or in some other way feel that we have little control over what happens to us.

*Others believe in karma.   They say that we suffer because of something bad that we did earlier in life or a past life.

Tragedy often leaves people with questions than answers. 

Hindus

view suffering as a consequence of a person's actions, committed in either this life or a past one. A person can reach  moksha-a release from the cycle of rebirths-through achieving a state of mind that is detached from temporal things.

Muslims

view suffering as both a punishment for sin and a test of faith.  Tragedies are a reminder "to remain grateful to God for all our blessings and cognizant that we must support those in need," says Dr. Sayuyid Syeed, president of the Islamic Society of North America. 

 Jewish tradition

hold that suffering results from one's own actions.  Some Jews say that there will be  a resurrection, after which Jesus will rendered the innocent who suffered. Kabbalistic (mystical)  Judaism teaches reincarnation, which gives a person repeated opportunities to atone for his errors.

Next time: Introduction - Conclusion of What Some Believe

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