A Sudden Slip on an Icy Rock

And a quick face-plant in the snow. The cause wasn't treacherous terrain. Although terrain was a factor, the cause was in my thought at that moment as I was dwelling on somebody else's slanderous words, making them my own. Wonderful instant karma!
In almost all cases there is a time gap between one's actions and the karmic result, which hides the connection between cause and effect. It takes deep meditation to get at the root cause of karmic retribution. So when something unpleasant happens, it is much easier to blame the immediate cause rather than to ask, "What in my past karma led to this situation?"
That is why it is always an amazing experience to see instantaneous karmic retribution: I said or did or thought something regrettable and immediately received the result. The workings of karma were clearly revealed.
In today's example the cause was minor and the effect was minor, but for one who invokes Fudo Myo-o as his tutelary deity, heavier cases of instantaneous karmic purification are not uncommon. If you take Fudo as your protector, you will be humbled in ways you never would have guessed. The rope and sword which Fudo wields are not to bind your enemy and cut off his head as a kind of jihad for Buddhism. Rather the rope represents concentration of one's own mind while the sword cuts the very roots of greed, anger and ignorance. If I make a serious karmic blunder, I can expect Fudo right in my face with his angry expression.
The slip on the ice brought to mind a Dharma saying based on the "four foundations of mindfulness:"

THE BODY IS UNRELIABLE

NEGATIVE EMOTIONS ARE THE ENEMY

THE MIND IS EVER CHANGING

AND ALL DHARMAS ARE EMPTY