We are punished for our sins in two ways: Either human body gets the penalty, or the psyche gets damaged. Either way, the best recourse is to go to God
What are sinful actsIJ These are of many types, but the more serious ones are: Murder, rape, taking advantage of someone in the garb of spirituality, exploitation of innocent people, blatant misuse of power, cruelty, dishonesty, cheating, among others. Such acts can also be regarded as ghastly, heinous, sinister, etc.
Everyone must avoid these acts, otherwise punishment is bound to follow in due course. It comes in two ways: There is punishment to the body — like a serious disease or an accident. Then, there is damage to the psyche, which is much more debilitating. The bodily diseases/injuries may heal soon or go away with the death of a person, but the psyche takes a long time to heal. Sometimes the effect continues in the next life, if the Bhagavad Gita is to be believed.
Due to ignorance of the consequences or out of lust, people do commit sinful acts, but ignorance does not save one from horrible consequences. There is no escape; punishment is bound to follow. And God does not forgive ghastly acts.
What is damaged psycheIJ The word psyche is defined as the human soul, mind or spirit. A damaged psyche plays havoc with the thought process and reactions. Thinking becomes negative and may force one to think of the worst. Reactions are likely to be extreme. Such reactions cause a long-term damage. The usual manifestation of the damaged psyche is depression. Badly bruised psyche causes many mental diseases.
How does one heal a damaged psycheIJ The natural healing of the psyche is a slow, rather extremely slow, process. And if another severe punishment for a sinful act comes along, the psyche may take inordinately long to heal.
So, what should one do if one has a damaged psyche, as many have in various degreesIJ First, one must take an oath not to repeat another sinful act, at least knowingly. This is a good start but is not good enough. One can do many acts of repentance, which do help if they are appropriate and are done in a proper mood. However, the real cure rests in the hands of God; He alone can expedite the process. One must take shelter with God, because that is the real atonement for the sins committed in the past. Meanwhile, further sinful acts have to be shunned, otherwise even God will not intervene. And such improvement will depend on the intensity and genuineness of one’s devotional/spiritual practices.
The writer is a spiritual columnist