The importance of remorse

[Nitiananda]

So, if you enter the path of spiritual practice and begin to engage in Repentance, then karma will begin to return to you much more quickly. Because of this, you will be able to follow the operation of the Law of Karma on your own experience and gradually overcome your karma. After the faster the return of karma, the faster it will be cleared.
Another thing is that until now you have not really thought about what kind of karma to accumulate, and mainly accumulated a bad one. And when such karma starts to come back to you, you, perhaps, will begin to regret that you have decided to practice spiritual practice. After all, there are people who do not observe any commandments, kill, steal, slander ... And their karma does not return to them. This is indeed so. But the ability to create large karmic debts does not indicate a great potential, but a lack of merit. The return of bad karma is much more pleasant to experience in the World of Men than to wait for the agonizing destruction of the physical body and the subsequent reincarnation in the bad worlds because of the dominant karma of Hell, World of Pretots or Animal World. In addition, the practice of Repentance and the creation of good karma allow you to experience the return of bad karma in parts or in a lighter form. This does not mean that bad and good karma thereby mutually destroy. Both of them will necessarily appear, but if the good is much greater, a person can, firstly, not even be upset about the return of a bad one, and, secondly, to experience her return not here, but in the Astral World. He is an order of magnitude closer to the essence of the soul than the World of Phenomena, therefore you will experience pain and death, perhaps even brighter than if it had happened in this world. Pleasure, as they say, is guaranteed. But this allows you not to lose your physical body and little by little to eliminate the causes of suffering.

[inavalan]

In my view, and experience, negative emotions are an indication of lack of harmony between your thought and your inner self's purpose.

I don't believe that "repentance" gets you further toward your life's purpose. Joyful thoughts, and wishes that yield joyful thoughts, will make for a more purposeful life.

[excusemydust]

What qualifies as "remorse?" Is it enough to simply reflect on our past actions, or is repentance a formal process of spiritual self-flagellation, and if so, to what end?

[Rah nam]

balancing karma is actually very simple, let go and forgive, yourself and others. That's all.

[Nitiananda]

Originally Posted by inavalan

In my view, and experience, negative emotions are an indication of lack of harmony between your thought and your inner self's purpose.

I don't believe that "repentance" gets you further toward your life's purpose. Joyful thoughts, and wishes that yield joyful thoughts, will make for a more purposeful life.

From the worldly point of view, you may be right, but if you continue this way all your life, then the person's soul becomes selfish and indifferent to other people. The suffering from the return of bad karma is actually good for the soul of the person. People become softer to others, you did not notice it?
And what is your goal? You know that the energy of merit is being spent for fulfilling the desires of a person (the spiritual potential of a person, his inner light) Because freebies do not really exist .. Never .... When this light is used up, people become selfish, greedy, evil and ignorant, and in their life comes a black streak. For example, they are ruined and become homeless .. And after death, they fall into their own worlds (hell, animal world and the world of spirits) The practice of the right religion is aimed at something to prevent it from working out to satisfy useless the whole spiritual potential of man, and leave this good life for the next life in heaven

[inavalan]

Seth-Roberts:

"There should never be a word in any language that means repentance. There should only be a word that
means, I bless; for when you bless, you do not need to repent. For when you accept a blessing, there is
nothing to repent. Love of All That Is requires simply that you become open as air, for when you are open
as air then joy of all that is flows through you indiscriminately, and there is nothing to repent. You only
need repentance when you do not know joy. For within joy and within all that is there is only glory,
consciousness and song. There is only blessedness.

"When you berate yourself for your sins, then you do not realize what joy is. Do you berate a flower that
has one crooked stem? So in yourselves, know spontaneity and in spontaneity you will find joy.
Spontaneity has its own discipline. You do not need to enforce discipline upon it."

[Shivani Devi]

Remorse often carries with it personal feelings and associations of guilt and it's just a stone's throw away from regret and all those the perpetual 'if only's'.

Repentance is a different matter entirely as it helps to foster humility (which is sorely lacking in most people).

It is being able to accept the fact that one isn't 'perfect' and still has failings and flaws, despite being 'awakened' or 'enlightened' or whatever the term may be and surrender that to a 'higher aspect' of oneself.

Spiritual arrogance is like a disease, which goes from 'belief' to 'conviction' to 'certainty' to 'feeling like they need to preach the word' to 'intolerance' and then to 'judgment'.

Sometimes, one just has to take a step back and surrender their notions of what is 'right' and try to make amends to all they have hurt and start each day anew.

It's difficult for one who has a strong personality to be humble and I personally struggle with this, simply because I won't allow myself to be treated like a human 'door mat' and I just don't tolerate playing 'mind games' I know I can 'win'...it bores me quite frankly because I seek more of a challenge than most people can dish out...but that only makes me turn within more...which is probably a good thing.

Still, others say to me "you are proud, arrogant, vain, stubborn, inflexible...you are...you are...you are" and I realise the reason why they say "you are" is because they are totally deflecting from the "I am".

[lemex]

Originally Posted by excusemydust

What qualifies as "remorse?" Is it enough to simply reflect on our past actions, or is repentance a formal process of spiritual self-flagellation, and if so, to what end?

The best repentance, do the opposite and we do find it's all about ego. This is the persons perception of that idea you speak of. Was thinking there is no such thing as the past, there is only now.

[lemex]

Originally Posted by Shivani Devi

Still, others say to me "you are proud, arrogant, vain, stubborn, inflexible...you are...you are...you are" and I realise the reason why they say "you are" is because they are totally deflecting from the "I am".

Me, I tend to listen to what other's see and then decide and say they are wrong..lol. Don't all do this. Self evaluation is always important I think because there are always 2 views, not just 1. This might be what one is suppose to hear.

[Jyotir]

The evolution of consciousness is a fundamental attribute of our universe. Therefore, karma is alterable by the intervention of Divine Grace.

Remorse means conscious recognition of error and falsehood.
This means the light of higher truth, which is that same Grace, entering conscious awareness and casting a shadow that reveals ignorance by contrast.

Asking forgiveness sincerely from the view of emergent truth-consciousness, the Highest within us, creates receptivity (iow, good karma) for the further transformation of ignorance and imperfection, which is joyfully progressive.

Otherwise remorse persisting indefinitely as a focus in-and-of-itself becomes morbid and regressive.

~ J