How is the law of karma valid when so many people from wealthy houses are unethical but to be born in those houses requires good karma?

Karma Effects: The Worldly View V/s The Gnani’s View
The world believes that whatever has to be suffered has to be suffered here in this life itself. But there’s something more to it! It is worth understanding the whole science of karma because science is based on principles and it is irrefutable. So, today, let’s touch upon a certain aspect of this science that can help answer the given question, and try to understand the facts with Gnani’s vision!

The fact is that whatever wealth and prosperity a person enjoys today, is a result of his past karma. And whatever bad or good deeds he does in this life, he will suffer its consequences in his next life.

Generally, it makes a man, who is suffering from hunger and thirst and living in a hut alongside someone who lives in a palace, very angry when he sees the person in the palace living a life of corruption; while he, being an honest and decent man, cannot even feed his children adequately. It creates a lot of puzzles in his mind and there arises a doubt within whether the law of karma is really just!

However, this reaction is because he is seeing from a worldly viewpoint. When the same thing is seen from Gnani’s view, the misery that the man living in hut is experiencing presently, is a result of the ‘test’ (cause) taken in the past life. The other person had also taken the ‘test’ which he passed, and now he is receiving the good result. Yet, in this life, the rich man’s karmas of being unethical are such that he is going to fail the test; but the result of it will come only in the next life. On the other hand, the poor man, owing to his honest intentions, will pass the test in this life; but he too will enjoy its effects only in his next life!

The poor man must know that the poverty he is experiencing in this life is the result of his own karma; or else he will bind more bad karma by envying the rich man. Param Pujya Dadashri says, “If you don’t cause hurt to others, you will come back to the human level, into a wealthy family with all the material comforts.”

Moreover, Dadashri cautions, “what is the point of criticizing those who cheat, lie, and exploit others when they have already got their passage to the animal kingdom booked and confirmed?” Yes, the inner intent of stealing from others, cheating others and the negative decisions of hurting and depriving others takes one to the lower life forms. People who harness such unethical intentions of cheating and stealing become worthy of a bestial life form or even a life in hell. And those whose karmas give happiness to others, they return to human life or go to the celestial level. Thus one’s life level (life-form) depends on the type of karma bound. Once the level is decided, one has to go through that level and experience the effects.

Furthermore, Nature helps the heavy karmas become heavier and the light karmas become lighter. The lighter ones rise to a higher life form and the heavier ones sink to the lower life forms - such is the law of Nature! Therefore, the one who has never stolen before gets caught as soon as he steals for the first time, as a result of which, his coming life changes for the good before he gets onto the wrong path; whereas the hardcore criminal never gets caught as his karmas are heavy.
If we were to plant the seed of a mango, we would get a mango tree and if we were to plant the seed of a cactus, we would get a thorny cactus tree! The rules of karma are such that when you create karma, the result will come naturally and automatically. When the time is up for maturation of karma, it automatically comes into effect; just like these mangoes that ripen automatically.

When good karmas come into effect, we feel good and the atmosphere is peaceful. And when the bad karmas come into effect, we feel uneasy and uncomfortable. This is the thermometer for recognizing the good karma and the bad karma.

Look for the Path of Liberation from Karma
Param Pujya Dadashri advises, “Do good karma. Otherwise, look for liberation. Take one of the paths. Either find a way out of this world or do good karmas forever. But one cannot do good karmas forever (some or the other bad seed of karma may happen knowingly or unknowingly).” Also, after a while, the wealthy are bound to become tired of luxuries and they want to revert to simplicity.

This is because whatever comforts they experience are not real; they are not the bliss of the Self. Rather, it is all imaginary and temporary happiness. One never gets tired nor becomes dissatisfied with the permanent bliss of the Pure Soul! This Pure Soul is our real Self; but since we have not realized the Self, we are unable to experience this eternal bliss of the Self.

After You Attain Self-Realization, You Cease To Bind New Karmas
Once we become aware of ‘who am I’ and ‘what makes all of this happen in the world’, we stop binding karma altogether and get onto the path of liberation.

Until new karmas are created, we will have to experience their consequences in next life; there is no go and that is why they are obstructive. However, the past life’s karma come, bear the fruit and then leave forever; and when all the fruits of karma exhaust, the Soul is then liberated!

New karmas are not created if one remains the Knower and Observer of the karma that is unfolding. When people taste and become engrossed in the fruit of karma, they become the doers or sufferers of the karma, owing to their wrong belief of “I am the doer, I am the sufferer”; and hence they bind new karma.

Only when our karmas cease to bind, does it bring an end to all our sufferings, forever!
It is only after we attain Self-Realization, that new karmas cease to bind!!
And it is only with the grace of the Living Gnani that we can attain Self-Realization!!!
Therefore, rather than worrying about others’ karma, our best interest is in how soon we are able to obtain this grace from Gnani!!!