Understanding cause and effect

By Lekan Adams

It is so simple, indeed so elementary that we pay scant attention to it. Yet it is everything there is to life.
Every cause produces an effect!

A deeper examination of this statement will reveal that it is not necessary to see something before we are able to determine its existence, for through observation of the effect we are able to reach the knowledge of the cause. For example, if a projectile fatally wounds a bird in flight, we normally deduce that a sharpshooter must have hit it. We do not need to see the shooter.

Another principle, also elementary and yet also so true is that the nature of the effect corresponds to the nature of the cause. For example, an intelligent effect must have been produced by an intelligent cause. Thus the ingenuity of a mechanism must be attributed to the intelligence and wisdom of its constructor. It is inconceivable that anyone would think that his mobile phone was invented by an unintelligent person.

Some call this phenomenon, the Law of Cause and Effect, others, the Law of Sowing and Reaping. Isaac Newton put it in a scientific format in his Laws of Motion.

Born on Christmas day, 1642, the celebrated physicist, was the one who “discovered” the three laws of motion and thereby completely revolutionised the thinking in the scientific circles at that time. For those who are not familiar with these scientific laws, let us state them very briefly.

Newton’s First Law of Motion:
Every object in a state of rest or uniform motion will remain in that state unless acted upon by a force.

Newton’s Second Law of Motion:
The rate of change of the velocity of the object is proportional to the force applied to it.

Newton’s Third Law of Motion:
Every action calls forth a reaction that is equal and opposite.

A closer look at this triad of laws will reveal that, in truth, it is only one law, separated into three different parts to make for easier understanding and scientific application. What Newton did was simply to describe the process an object goes through once it is put in motion.

The first law clearly shows that activity is required to alter the state of any object, i.e., no activity, no result; the second states that the result of that activity is proportional to the effort we put in while the third demonstrates that that result is in an opposite direction to the effort we put in.

Now, the generally held conception of opposite in our languages is a word that expresses a contradiction of the other one, i.e., love is the opposite of hate as death is the opposite of life. But that was not the concept of the opposite as envisaged by Newton, or indeed used by scientists.

Opposite in this regard is a vector expression, an indication of direction. Thus the opposite of “go” is “come” only because the two activities are the same, the difference being that one takes the reverse direction of the other. It is for this reason that, in this context, “hate” is not the opposite of “love.” The true opposite of love is, indeed, love returned, reciprocated love!

We can summarise these explanations by stating that our activities will give back to us, results of the same type and in proportion to the effort we put in.

But is this really different from what was stated by that Great Sage, a little over a thousand and a half years before Newton was born? The Son of God, in a more embracing, yet simpler and more natural manner, stated categorically then: “Whatever a man sows, that shall he reap many times over!”

If we equate sowing with activity, we see clearly that the expression of the Lord Jesus and the postulations of Newton are essentially the same.

With this as background, let us look more closely at the Law of Sowing and Reaping and some of its inherent implications.

1. What we sow is what we shall reap. Not may, could, might …. reap, but SHALL reap. This is an indication that the law is immutable, as man, since the earliest beginnings, has been able to prove over and over again. For no one, absolutely no one has been able to harvest mango where he sowed pawpaw. The law is so much a part of us that even in this country of intense belief in miracles and vociferous prayers, no one has ever prayed to reap yam where he sowed cassava. Thus we will never be able to reap kindness where we sowed hatred, nor joy from a seed of envy, for each kind of expression and attitude can only bring forth something similar, i.e., every action produces only its own kind!

2. He who does not sow WILL not reap. Finding depends only on seeking i.e. if we want something we must first sow it. Even if the land has always belonged to one’s family since the Stone Age, “there is no food for the lazy man.” To get “something” out of Nature, we must first give it “something.” It is this giving (the sowing) i.e., giving of the right kind alone that can give us what we desire, irrespective of how much and how loud we pray. A weightlifter, for instance, does not add strength to his arms by tying them up for months in order to conserve the little strength he has in them. If he did this he would only atrophy his muscles. To gain the strength he must exercise those arms. He must first give out what he has. Thus if we want love, we must first give it; if we want kindness, we must first give it, etc.

3. What we are reaping right now is what we had sown previously. Even if we do not know or remember what we sowed, we obtain the knowledge of it as the seed germinates and grows. Certainly, at the time of harvest, the last doubts are removed. You may well imagine what the attitude of a farmer would be if he found out that mango had been growing where he planted yam.

But it is especially this aspect of the law of sowing and reaping, which we readily accept in regards to farming, that we refuse almost blatantly to accept in our everyday life! We almost always insist on seeing the cause before we can believe that it produced the unpleasant effect we are experiencing at a particular time! We instead, prefer to attribute our bad fortunes to demons, evil friends etc., but the good ones to prayers and loyal payment of tithes!

4. To reap a different fruit, we must first sow a different seed.

This is not always very obvious to us in real life. If we do not like some unpleasant situation in which we find ourselves, the solution cannot lie in trying stubbornly to alter such situations thus battling only with the effects. We must seek the cause and thus plant differently. There are many people who, on resolving after the morning devotion not to talk harshly to their neighbours discover, to their chagrin, that by evening their defences had not only broken down but their less pleasant nature had come out more strongly. Repression has the same effect as does a pressure cooker. It would only end up aggravating the situation. So what should we do? Let us take an example. When electric power suddenly goes off in a room we are in, plunging us into total darkness, what do we do? Bring out a shovel to laboriously scoop out the darkness? No, sir! We need only light a candle and the darkness will disappear. To change the fruit we must change the seed!

Many already know through the studies of acoustics that a sound is a form of motion. But so also are our thoughts and deeds which like all motions in Nature, describe elliptical orbits. So, thoughts of a kind emanating from man will also prescribe this pattern and so will return to us one day, but with this difference: through the Law of attraction of similar types, sometimes referred to in the popular adage as “Birds of the same feather always flock together,” the thoughts now return to us heavily laden, having attracted similar thoughts on its circular journey before coming back to us. This then is the time of harvesting. Some call this Karma. It is, however, the same Law of Cause and Effect. It is absolutely immaterial whom the thought was sent to, it will come back to the originator. The sower must reap. The person targeted only incurs karma if he himself chooses to return evil for evil, for he thereby sows evil, which he will have to reap one day. Thus we see that the Lord, in His infinite Wisdom and Love, does not judge us by what others do to us but solely by what we do to others!

Now if there is so much confusion, famine, brutal killings, wars, catastrophes, disasters etc. everywhere, we must be bold enough to accept that we have brought these upon ourselves and that our thoughts and actions have not been noble enough. This is also the reason why evil has been going back and forth among mankind, getting stronger each time, in fulfilment of the law. No wonder then that the air is literally charged with envy, hatred, unhappiness, conflicts etc., for these are what we have been sowing for thousands of years.

This law of Cause and Effect is immutable, and adamantine. No one can evade it. Every effect implies a previous cause even if we do not remember it. The type of effect we experience or see tells us clearly that we ourselves must have brought it about through a homologous cause. The Supreme Being, being supremely good is so just that He will not give to us what does not belong to us!

“If He is so loving, why then does He permit so much natural catastrophe, so much suffering?” ask many people.

The Creator has placed man in the Universe and endowed him with all that he needs for his sustenance. If we reflect deeply enough on it, we will recognize that our earth is like a spaceship floating, as it were, in space. Everything we need is on this spaceship. The more we recognize the Wisdom of the Creator and adapt to it, the more we can benefit from this spaceship. Everything we need is there. We only need to sow and we shall reap. However, the choice of what we sow depends entirely on us. Thus the laws governing the production of electricity, or nuclear energy, for instance, can be found and used by us. The same goes with the computer and the various uses we can put it to for our benefit. We can even use the knowledge of rocket propulsion to take us to distant planets. All of these are available to us because we have been given custody of these things. And if we use them aright they bring immense benefit to us and improve our wellbeing. Just think of what life would be like, for instance, if the Creator did not make provision for the laws of electricity. But should we disobey the laws of electricity or misapply the laws of nuclear energy, we certainly must be ready for the consequences. It cannot possibly be otherwise. We will have to reap what we have sown.

This is the essence of what is generally referred to as Free Will. Yes, we can will freely, but we are bound to the consequences of the choices we make. This so-called free will was given to man not to be used to cultivate evil but to create beauty in this universe. Each one of us was meant to devise his way to this beauty by bringing to bear on his environment his unique inner qualities. It is thus that the beauty of the fauna and flora and their various sub-species lie in their abundant varieties. A garden of flowers radiates splendor when it contains many flowers of different shapes, sizes, colors and hues. Can you imagine what it would be like if there was only one flower type, one animal type and one racial type in the whole world?.

Within the compass of what accords with the Will of the Creator, men were supposed to bring forth their individual beauty through the various expressions of their different attributes, adapted to the soil and climate in which they find themselves. However, the decision to go the way of evil, also made possible by the free will of man, is solely his own!

Therefore, if we pollute the environment we must face the consequences, for the Law of Sowing and Reaping, the law of Give and Take is also the Law of Balance, the same law that ensures that the planets and stars maintain their courses. Newton was permitted also to discover the physical aspect of this law.

Thus man can avoid all evils and their consequences if he observes the Divine Laws. The Creator established Laws that are full of Wisdom, whose finality is nothing but the good of men. Around man and deep within his soul are to be found all that he needs in order to follow these Laws. Wise Providence has ensured this.

In addition to this, the Creator sent His prophets to remind men of the Good Path and eventually, His Son also came. If in spite of all these, the man refuses to follow the good path thus indicated, as a result of the exercise of his free will, he will have to suffer the consequences. This is the situation with all evil. Man can avoid them if he observes the Divine Laws. The limits of satisfaction of human necessities, for instance, are clearly defined. Man knows when he is satiated. If he goes beyond this limit, he does so voluntarily. Ill- health, diseases and death are then the possible consequences of his obduracy.

Thus we see that the mechanism of the Universe, the Work of the Creator stands before us as a great help. The Creator, therefore, does not need to show Himself physically. He affirms Himself through His Perfect Work!

To strive to understand ARIGHT this Work, this wonderful Mechanism, through a conscientious study of its Laws, is to understand the Language of the Lord. This, indeed, is the sacred duty of every child of God. Should he fail to do this, he would be condemned to the misery, suffering and damnation of he who does not “speak” the Language of the Father.

And so, the one who sows must reap!

Adams, an architect is a guest contributor and he wrote from Lagos.

Primaries blues
WE can now heave a sigh of relief with the primaries of the major political parties in the country being over. It has been months of anxiety triggered by the accustomed intrigues, blackmail, mud throwing, stabbing in the back and rancour in political contestation. These have become the characteristics of politics. These must be scary even to the brave how much less to the faint-hearted and more so to those who worry about relationships and decency. And everywhere these are considered not just the new normal, but part and parcel of the whole business. Politics is dirty, it is said. The tussle in the APC over who flies the Presidential flag was befuddled by all manner of calculations. Politics is said to be about interests; these can be narrow, and they could be noble.

We have the 13 out of the 14 Northern governors on the platform of APC to thank immeasurably for their firm stance over the consensus candidate imbroglio. The Kwara State Governor, AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq who was unavoidably absent was later to give his endorsement to the position taken by his colleagues. They said the Presidential slot had been zoned to the South of the country and no decision to the contrary was known to them. Their stance followed a unilateral decision by the party’s national chairman, Senator Abdullahi Adamu, to foist his choice candidate, in the person of Senate President Ahmad Lawan who would appear to be a late comer in the race, on the party. The National Working Committee, (NWC), of the party, disowned the action. Most reassuring was the unequivocal pronouncement of Muhammadu Buhari, the President, that he had not crowned anyone as a consensus candidate. He wanted a level-playing ground for all the contestants. Adamu in his unthinking did not consider the implications of barefaced disqualification of 22 out of 23 aspirants in the country.

The idea of rotation of the Presidency between the North and the South was borne out of wisdom as an instrument to engender a sense of belonging in a complex country and diverse society. It is a tool to build trust, promote love and a sense of justice among one another, cultivate friendship, promote togetherness and forge a nation in the furnace of disparate peoples, indeed dissimilar people. It is recognition that we are not yet there, that is at the point when a president can come from anywhere. As developed as Switzerland is it is a rotational presidency that they have in its political structure and run.

How can any alert and well-meaning leader not see rotating the office of the President as an imperative in Nigeria today with all the fissiparous tendencies in the land arising from a feeling of alienation?

With the primaries concluded the whistle is now blown for untrammelled politics, campaigns and noise-making, the season nothing is usually considered dishonourable to say anymore.