As a student of sociology I read Max Weber ,s theory that Hinduism is not conducive to economic growth .He has given a lot of explainations and reasons for coming to such a conclusion .The main reason in a nut shell according to him is the theory of Karma .This made Hindus so much fatalistic that it curbed the spirit of enterprise and people left everything to their fate . .As a ninteen year old I heartily disagreed with this theory .Iwrote a term paper defending Hinduism .My explaination was that people resorted to blaming their Karma only when they faced failure .In no way did it stop them from working hard and trying their best .I cited the examples of many successful Hindu industrialists . My paper had some logical arguments and I suspect some emotional out burst at the criticism of Hinduism .I do not remember all the arguments I gave in support but I do remember that I did get an A+ so they must have been plausible .
But now as I have seen life I wonder if the belief in theory of Karma is such a bad thing that it needs justification .Sometimes when all the doors are closed and one has tried all the options the belief in Karma is a safety valve .Instead of blaming self and others misfortunes can be blamed to Karma and than one can move forward .Now also I do not believe that Hinduism is not conducive to economic growth but now I am not defensive about the theory of karma .In fact it provides a safety guard against depression and self blame .It teaches you acceptance of the circumstances you can not change .In a way it makes it easier to move forward and try new options .