What greater misfortune can there be

Than the failure of Bharatiyas

To understand the true greatness

Of their ancient and sacred culture?

To cavil at others’ faults

And to be blind to one’s own;,

To jeer at others’ looks,

Not noticing one’s own ugliness;

To make fun of others

And not see one’s own follies;

To have such qualities from birth

Can there be a greater sin than this?

(SSS Vol.23, p. 1)

If one commits a wrong unwittingly, he is guilty of committing a mistake. But if he commits it deliberately he is committing a sin. This is the difference between a mistake and a sin. (SSS Vol.25)

One must not commit sin, when one is aware that it is a sin. This was the fatal flaw of Ravana; he committed sin, with the full knowledge of it. Action, if performed innocently, is not a sin. (SSB 1996, pp. 82-83)

Sin is not external to you. It comes from the work you do....Goodness is easily achieved through harmony in thought, word and deed and through Satsanga (good company). (DBG, p. 13)

Be always on the alert against the following four sins, which the tongue is prone to commit:

1. Speaking falsehood
2. speaking ill of others
3. Back biting
4. Talking too much. (FDD, pp. B-2)

Recognising the importance of truth, righteousness and morality and not being able to put them into practice is the greatest sin. (SSB 1974, p. 72)

Once, Adi Sankaracharya went to Benares and prayed there to Lord Viswanath specifically for three of his sins to be pardoned. The disciples who followed Sankaracharya were surprised and were wondering what those three sins were for which he was seeking pardon. Sankaracharya then explained that the first sin was that knowing fully well that the Lord is omnipresent and all powerful, he had undertaken the journey all the way to Benares to have darshan of the Lord as if He was present only in Benares. This, according to him, was the first sin. The significance of this is that his practice was contrary to what he already knew.

His second sin was that after recognising the Lord as one whose glory cannot be described, or as one whose infinite nature cannot be described in mere words, he had attempted to describe him in a string of words and thus had ignored what he already knew about the Lord.

His third sin was that having recognised that the human body itself is the temple of the Lord and having recognised that it is made of five perishable elements, he had not put this knowledge into practice. The jiva, that lives in the body, is indestructible and if studied carefully, we come to the conclusion that the one who resides in the body has no birth and death and neither attachment nor detachment. He realised that the almighty is residing in him as the Atma and yet he undertook the long journey to get the darshan of the almighty in a place outside to his body. This was his third sin. Knowing that the Lord is in him, he has committed the sin of undertaking the journey to see the Lord.

If we examine the matter in this way, we will realise what actually sin is. When we think of what sin is, we ask the Lord, “I have not killed anyone. I have not hurt anyone and yet why do I get this punishment.” Sin does not consist of these things only. Sin is not a separate entity. All the sins and all the good deeds are contained in your own actions and in what you do and are not external to you. (SSB 1974, p. 73)

Whatever work is prescribed in the Vedas is desirable and one should accept it as worth performing. Whatever is not prescribed in the Vedas is forbidden. One who forgets to differentiate between work that should be done and work that should not be done is a sinner. (SSB 1974, p. 162)

Man indulges in sinful acts with considerable amount of readiness, but when it comes to reaping the results of such sinful acts he shows much hesitation. On the other hand, he will give up doing work knowingly and with considerable ease. He is always ready to give up doing good deeds. (SSB 1974, p. 190)

Vishwamitra established the truth contained in the statement that sin is not something distinct and unconnected with one’s actions. Sin arises only from the kind of work and action that you do. God is not found elsewhere. God can be found only by the good deeds and good actions that you do. When we talk of Rakshasas and wicked people, they are not to be found elsewhere, as separate entities; they are living in our own hearts and arise from our own action. (SSB 1977, pp. 147-148)

There is no sin when the act is done for the promotion of Dharma and the removal of Adharma. Dharmo Rakshati Rakshitah: Dharma saves those who save it. (RKRV, p. 65)

The Dhyani must control the ten-fold sins for carrying out the aim of Atmic Bliss. The ten-fold sins are: the three physical, the four verbal and the three mental. The physical tendencies are: injury to life, adulterous desire and theft. The verbal sins are: false alarms, cruel speech, jealous talk and lies. The mental attitudes are: greed, envy, and the denial of God. The Dhyani must take every care that these enemies do not approach him. (DhyV, p. 19)

Generally sins are committed through the body, prompting comes from the mind, and the senses execute them. There is really no connection between the senses, the mind, the body on the one side and the Atma on the other. (TMM, p. 177)

‘Speak the truth. Follow Dharma. Treat thy mother as God. Treat thy father as God. Treat thy teacher as God. Treat thy guest as God’. These were the duties marked out for the pupils. The baby is borne and bred by the mother, the child is fostered and fed by the father, the boy directed and divinised by the Guru, and the adult is afforded the chance to serve and sacrifice for the guest. Man is moulded and made to shine and spread light, by these four-mother, father, teacher and guest. Student might fail to revere the guest or adore the teacher as God. But it will be a great pity if they fall into the sin of dishonouring their parents. (BA, p. 20)

Try and prevent the five sins that the body commits: Killing, Adultery, Theft, Drinking intoxicants and the Eating of flesh. It is great help for the highest life, if these are kept, as far away as possible. (SSS Vol.27, p. 72)

Birds and beasts do not commit sin; they have no need to be specially careful to avoid it. For, they are free from unrestrained imagination, of cleverness in manipulation or desire to accumulate and possess. Man alone has these qualifications and the duty to use them for his own good and the good of others. Man alone is equipped with a conscience and the faculty of reasoning which can present before him the pros and cons of every step in thought, speech and action. When his reason tells him that a certain thought or speech of action is wrong and he sets aside the judgement, preferring the evil, the wrong and the low, he sins. When an insane person commits evil, no court of justice punishes him; it is only when a person, capable of distinguishing good from bad, deliberately chooses the bad, that his act is pronounced a sin. Man has to be ever alert to avoid sin. (SSS Vol.16, p. 110)

There is an age-old practice among Christians to pray to God for forgiving their sins. In the churches, it is the practice for devotees to confess their sins, make cash offerings and obtain a solution from the pontiff or the priest. The belief in redemption through repentance and offerings to the Divine is prevalent in India also. These practices are based on misconceptions about the Divine. There should be an earnest enquiry into the nature of the Divine and people should try to get rid of superstitious beliefs, which have no basis in Truth.

It should be noted that the spirit of enquiry was prevalent among the ancient Greeks, centuries before Christ. Socrates was a great teacher who promoted the spirit of enquiry among the youth of Athens. Socrates was so much wedded to the pursuit of truth that he preferred death in his home city to making good his escape with the help of his disciples. He set no value on life, property or possessions. (SSS Vol.20, pp. 260-262)