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SylviaRNexus
24 February 2013, 03:42 PM
Let's say someone has committed a sin such as stealing. Regretting it and wanting to make things right, said person returns what he has stolen and chants hare Krishna mantra once, never to repeat his sin again. Is that person forgiven for stealing?

Viraja
25 February 2013, 06:27 PM
In my humble opinion, that person will be forgiven for stealing (if the party he is returning the goods to admitting his sin are truly noble, they will be immensely pleased too), but as long as he retains his instinct to steal, he may have to undergo that many number of births irrespective of how many mantras he recites. ;)

yajvan
25 February 2013, 06:48 PM
 
hariḥ oṁ
~~~~~~
namasté


Let's say someone has committed a sin such as stealing. Regretting it and wanting to make things right, said person returns what he has stolen and chants hare Krishna mantra once, never to repeat his sin again. Is that person forgiven for stealing?


Please define sin for us, and who is doing the forgiving....

Also , it is our custom here on HDF to greet the reader . A 'hello' or namasté , or a saluation of greeting. And at the end a thank you, or praṇām , or dhanyavāda. Why do so? It sets the tone for the conversation.

We're simple people and these are our customs.

iti śivaṁ

Ramakrishna
25 February 2013, 07:10 PM
Namaste SylviaRNexus,

Stop worrying about such fruitless theoretical scenarios. Just do nama japa, live an ethical life, and be happy.

Jai Sri Ram

philosoraptor
25 February 2013, 08:17 PM
Let's say someone has committed a sin such as stealing. Regretting it and wanting to make things right, said person returns what he has stolen and chants hare Krishna mantra once, never to repeat his sin again. Is that person forgiven for stealing?

Pranams.

I don't think anyone here can tell you definitively that you have or have not been forgiven for the sin. What I think we can tell you, is that it is your duty to live a dharmic life, confessing your sins and feeling remorse and humbled by your sinful background. You have to worship unconditionally, not with expectation of forgiveness, but only with the wish that you always have the remembrance of the Lord always, even if in Hell.

When the Lord is pleased with you, He finds ways to grant you His mercy. Sometimes He grants you some material boon, if He feels it is in your best interest as in the case of Sudaama. Sometimes He takes away other sources of material attachment, as He did for nArada in his previous life. Sometimes He awards sovereignty over a planet as He did for Dhruva, and sometimes He awards liberation and His very self, when His attraction to you is at its zenith. Even in that state, He still feels He has not offered enough. There are no words to describe the mercy of such a Lord.

Eastern Mind
25 February 2013, 08:29 PM
Vannakkam: I don't understand what 'forgive' means either. The one who needs to do forgiving is yourself. God is just the watcher. I don't think I;ve ever approached God (and for stuff like this, that would read 'Ganesha' and asked for forgiveness. It's just such a given, since Ganesha is so full of love. I would think of him as a wise friend saying, "Yeah you were stupid, as we evolve, we all have moments of stupidity, so get on with life, and try not to do it again.

I have apologized to people of course.

Aum Namasivaya