Repentance

An oath is a promise that you will do something without fail, while a vow is an aspiration to do something. A vow is a driving force that helps us work toward our goal. In contrast, a malicious oath is a foolish and sinful act that harms oneself and others, but it can be remedied if we repent and reform. We should emulate the Buddha or the bodhisattvas in making vows to deliver all sentient beings, cut off all afflictions, learn all the Buddhist teachings, and ultimately attain Buddhahood.

Chan practice is not merely about sitting in meditation. Buddhist practitioners should also seek conceptual guidance and establish the correct mindset. Otherwise, practicing meditation only benefits one's body as qigong does and cannot really change one's character, mentality, and view of life. A true Buddhist constantly reminds himself to know contentment, shame, and repentance. Only when we repent can we feel joy, because we have a clear conscience and feel at ease.

To encourage people to own up to their own mistakes, we must accept responsibility for our mistakes and also accept other people's admission of their mistakes. By bravely owning up when we make a mistake, we will be more able to avoid repeating the same mistake, which is the true meaning of repentance.

To repent, either to our own conscience, to the person we have done a disservice, or in public, is to express responsibilities for ourselves. By repenting on a daily basis we can gradually purify our body and mind, and therefore eliminate our karmic obstacles.

Shame and repentance go together and complement each other. With a sense of shame, we are able to admit our faulty behaviors. Repentance means taking responsibility for our faults. By having the sense of shame and repenting, we show our willingness to shoulder responsibility and are determined not t

Repentance is about resolving to take responsibility for our misdeeds, improving ourselves and making redress. It enables us to accept our difficulties with inner peace rather than blame others.

  Yes, Buddhists definitely believe in the effectiveness of repentance. While completed acts of killing, stealing, sexual misconduct, and major deception (falsely claiming that one is a noble one) will definitely bring about retribution for the perpetrator, other misdeeds, such as attempted offences, unintentional breaking of the precepts, and failures to follow the rules of dignified conduct [for monastics] can all be repented with all retribution dissolved in accordance with the methods prescribed by the Buddha.     The function of repentance is to initiate a relentless process of self-reflection and self-discipline, to develop vigilance based on self-awareness, and to purify one's mind with self-respect, so as to prevent the occurrence of the same mistake. As long as one has the determination to start afresh, and realizes that the past is gone and there is no point in dwelling on it, one's mind will be relieved from the feeling of guilt and will regain serenity. This is the function of repentance. The wrongdoing has to be honestly revealed (to the community, or to several persons, or to one person, or to one's own conscience, in accordance with the category and degree of wrongdoing, followed by genuine regret and a resolution not to repeat it). Otherwise the shadow of the misdeed will be hidden permanently in the mind, and will develop into karmic seeds that invite retribution later. Repentance immediately dissolves from one's consciousness the seeds produced by the misdeed.  However, the purpose of repentance is to cleanse one's mind to prevent reoccurrence of wrongdoing. If one repeatedly misbehaves, repents, and then misbehaves again, then the efficacy of repentance will be lost. Moreover, the repentance of Buddhists is quite different from that of Christians, who pray to God for absolution. Buddhists do not believe any god has the power to absolve sin. To Buddhists, the real meaning of repentanc