“I say that intention is kamma.” - Buddha

 https://puredhamma.net/key-dhamma-concepts/sankhara-kamma-kamma-vipaka/

Kamma (Actions to Prolong Sansāra)

"Kammic energy is generated when one turns saṅkhāra to abhisaṅkhāra by the “wheeling process”; see above. For example, when one sees an object that is just saṅkhāra due to a kamma vipāka. However, if one then starts thinking about how good it is, or thinks about how to acquire it, then it becomes abhisaṅkhāra; here, one now has INTENTIONS about that object, one is hoping to get something.

That is why the Buddha said, “cētana ham Bhikkhave kammaṃ vadami,” i.e., “I say that intention is kamma.”

So it is important to remember that kamma is the intention, and even though it can be done by the mind, speech, or the body, all those have their root in mind. We cannot say or do anything without a thought to do so (see the Abhidhamma section for details).

For example, the intention to go for a walk is a kamma that does not have any power to generate a good or bad vipāka in the future. That kamma will only get that task done.

Kamma Bīja (Kamma Seeds) or Kamma Bhava

When a kamma (abhisaṅkhāra) is committed, the kammic potential of that kamma is deposited in a kamma bīja (kamma seed); kamma seed is NOT a physical entity; it is an “energy” or “potential” to bring about an effect in the future. It can also be called a “kamma bhava.”

A kamma seed can be compared to a regular seed, for example, a seed of an apple tree. The potential to bring about a fully grown apple tree is in the apple seed. However, if the seed is kept in a dry place with no contact with soil, it does not get to germinate. It will germinate if placed under the soil and fed with water and nutrients. Then it can grow into an apple tree, yielding a thousand more seeds.

Similarly, a kamma seed has the POTENTIAL to germinate or come to fruition if suitable conditions appear; but a  kamma seed is an energy lying below the suddhashtaka stage. It can then yield results with an impact corresponding to the original deed (this holds for both good and bad.) Results are the kamma vipāka; see, “What is Kamma? – Does Kamma determine Everything?“.

It is also possible to remove many of one’s bad kamma seeds. When we acquire a “bad kamma seed,” we get indebted to another being. Just like one can be debt-free by paying off existing loans, one can “payback” old debts that have been accumulated in the cycle of rebirths by “transferring merits” when one does good deeds and also by doing the Ariya Metta Bhavana; see, “Transfer of Merits (Pattidāna)- How Does that Happen?” and “5. Ariya Metta Bhavana (Loving Kindness Meditation)“."