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Food For Thought -hate The Sin And Not The Sinner.

Discussion in 'Snippets of Life (Non-Fiction)' started by HariLakhera, Aug 14, 2022.

  1. HariLakhera

    HariLakhera Platinum IL'ite

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    FOOD FOR THOUGHT

    "Man and his deed are two distinct things. Whereas a good deed should call forth approbation and a wicked deed disapprobation, the doer of the deed, whether, good or wicked, always deserves respect or pity as the case may be.

    'Hate the sin and not the sinner' is a precept which, though easy enough to understand, is rarely practiced, and that is why the poison of hatred spreads in the world.

    This ahimsa is the basis of the search for truth. I am realizing every day that the search is in vain unless it is founded on ahimsa as the basis. It is quite proper to resist and attack a system, but to resist and attack its author is tantamount to resisting and attacking oneself. For we are all tarred with the same brush and are children of one and the same Creator, and as such the divine powers within us are infinite. To slight a single human being is to slight those divine powers, and thus to harm not only that being but with him the whole world".


    M. K. Gandhi -Autobiography.
     
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  2. shyamala1234

    shyamala1234 Platinum IL'ite

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    Dear Hariji,
    Easy to preach than doing. Hate the sin and not the person is not always possible. In some circumstances may be we can follow it. Murder, rapes, corruption etc. can we hate only the sin and not the sinner!!!!!
    Syamala
     
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  3. SGBV

    SGBV IL Hall of Fame

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    Hate the sin and not the person is possible when you have unconditional love for the person.
    I've experienced that personally, because hating a person you love is the toughest thing to do. Rather, it is easy to hate the sin, and begin afresh with hope. After all, love is based on hope :)

    But, when it comes to others, with whom you don't share any love, hate is inevitable when they are sinned against you.
    It also depends on the type of sin, and type of persons involved in the process!.

    For me, the sinner should apologize from the heart, and repent for what he/she has done in order to be forgiven & stop hating the act or the person. As long as there is no apology, and no improvement in behavior, I can't stop hating them.

    Ex: I hate former president of Sri Lanka Mahinda Rajapaksa for what he has done to the people, especially the minorities in the country. I just can't hate the act (war crime) and not hate the person.
     
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  4. HariLakhera

    HariLakhera Platinum IL'ite

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    Symalaji,
    It needs a lot of self-restraint to follow what Gandhi Ji said, but it is possible. What he says is do not commit sin (hate the sin) but at the same time do not hate the sinner (because we do not know under what circumstances the sin was committed.
     
  5. HariLakhera

    HariLakhera Platinum IL'ite

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    I think we can always pardon the person we love for any sin committed. The real test will be when we pardon the person not known to us. I think the journey should begin with not committing a similar sin ourselves. Hatred is like acid that burns the pot it is stored in.
    As for the former president of Sri Lanka, I can only comment on what I know from news reports. I will blame the majority community who placed him in the highest office in the first place just because he represented them. I was really surprised when I came to know that he was running the government as a family farmhouse.
     
  6. Viswamitra

    Viswamitra IL Hall of Fame

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    Dear Hari Sir,

    Thank you for sharing Gandhi's insight about the sin and the sinner. It is a cardinal principle for right living in Sanatana Dharma especially advaita. If all lives are created from a single source, hating one is equal to hating ourselves. Ahimsa closely ties with Sathya, Dharma, Shanti and Prema. Without these values, the life ceases to exist. We are born in love, sustained in love and eventually get integrated in love with the Creator. The life is about constantly pursuing truth and practising righteousness. We are here to find a way to achieve peace. All of it can happen only when we become one with our consciousness and eventually integrate with one without the second.
     
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  7. HariLakhera

    HariLakhera Platinum IL'ite

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    Thanks. The beauty of what Gandhi said, was practiced by him in his personal life. It is not that he did not flinch but he made good of that in time.
    It is however a tough job for most of us. Sometimes I wonder thousands of cases lying in the courts for years can easily be settled if both sides sit and talk and be ready for give and take.
    A good part of our happiness turns into unhappiness because we raise our index finger at others without realising the other three are pointing towards us.
     
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