Conclusion
It behooves everyone to learn about the Law of Kamma. Ignorance of this law is very dangerous. The knowledge of this law can at least help conduct one's life in a safe manner and to ensure a safe journey within the round of rebirth such that one will be reborn only in the Human Realm and the Celestial Realm so that one can continue to accumulate more and more merit. A true understanding of the Law of Kamma motivates one to make more merit than mistakes and any mistake made will be minor and infrequent. One will also be equipped to not only deal with one's death, but to also prepare for it in a knowledgeable manner and in accordance with the Lord Buddha's Teachings:
"When the mind is gloomy, the States of Unhappiness can be expected. When the mind is not gloomy, The States of Happiness can be expected."
In other words, one's hereafter is decided upon by the state of one's mind just before one's death. If one's mind is clear and bright, one will be reborn in the States of Happiness, but if one's mind is gloomy, one will be reborn in the States of Unhappiness. The mind is gloomy as a result of all the unwholesome deeds which one has committed. Therefore, it is important to know what is considered wholesome and unwholesome. In terms of what is wholesome, we must look at individuals who have been able to rid themselves of all defilements as our role models. We must learn from their examples and from their teachings. To put it in a nutshell, these holy individuals perform only wholesome deeds which give rise to merit. Once merit is made, unwholesome deeds can be abandoned altogether because merit can refine one's mind and make it clear and bright. Therefore, if we desire a particular effect we must start with the corresponding cause. In the hereafter, there is no such thing as earning a living. Life in the hereafter is conditioned by either merit or demerit and has nothing to do with who and what one used to be on earth.
