To Err Is Human, To Forgive Is Divine

When God created this earth, creating the heavens first and gradually moving on to human beings, He realized it would be far too tiresome to take care of each of His children on earth. So that humans could act for themselves, he rendered each with a capacity of his own - that of ‘thinking’. This process could be carried out with a special device called the ‘brain’ which God developed far more in His ‘special animals’ than other living beings. The brain not only directs the thoughts, but also executes them into actions. This reveals the fact that our actions are directed by our thoughts. Conversely, our actions are a result of our thoughts.

Our thoughts reflect the kind of persons we are. ‘Thought’ and ‘thinking’ are forms and processes that allow humans to deal with the world according to their objective. One such thought process is ‘Forgiveness’.

In the 4600 million old history of the earth, human beings developed almost 6 million years ago, pushing their ape-like ancestors into extinction and carving for themselves the topmost place on the ladder of life forms on earth. Human beings have been endowed with the science of many complex emotions amongst which, ‘forgiveness’ stands out the strongest. Not to forget our thoughts guide our actions and ‘to forget’ or ‘to not forget’ is all part of the same.

A search engine on the internet conveys that forgiveness may be considered simply in terms of the person who forgives including forgiving himself. In some contexts, forgiveness may be granted with a promise of restorative justice. Moreover, the guilty should also be able to forgive oneself for one’s ill-deed.

Most world religions have laid down scriptures on the nature of forgiveness. The Parable of Prodigal Son is a well known instance of such teachings. Some religious doctrines place greater emphasis on the on the need of humans to find forgiveness for their own shortcomings. Others talk of practicing forgiveness on fellow human beings.
Christian churches teach that God’s forgiveness is received through personal repentance. Buddhism recognizes that feelings of ill-will and hatred have a lasting effect on our mind. When resentments have already risen, the Buddhist view is to calmly proceed to release them by going back to their roots.

There are imperfections in all beings and nobody is a blend of the refined best. We should try to see the shortcomings of others with a sight of forgiveness.
Teachings aside, how much do we care to live with this thought of ‘forgiveness’? How often do we ignore other people’s faults? How often do we keep from lashing anger out through our tongues?

Forgiveness is a rare emotion that strengthens the soul; for not everyone has the heart to forgive others. When you begin to forgive others, you’ll realize you have more faith in yourself than ever. You will have conquered the game of emotions where lust, anger and greed will never strike you. Let your inner strength develop and bloom, for those with hardy souls fear none but the Lord.

Learn to forgive and forget. Clean your mind of all thoughts that cause you anger. Christ walked the path laid down with these two words. He ultimately stood out different- the Healer, the Listener, the Savior, the only one- God. This, however, doesn’t mean that everyone can be God, but can always be closer to God. You don’t have to stab everyone who hurts your sentiments- God never did that! Simply forgive and forget all about it.

Never bottle up your emotions- let them out through forgiveness. It is definitely hard to keep one from reacting, but we should feel as if the person doesn’t matter to us and we’re only giving him importance by retaliating. Keeping mum does not imply being weak. It rather shows we’re strong enough for we have our emotions under control. Forgiveness has nothing to do with tagging others’ sins with “righteousness”. The wrongs of the offender will never be justified by granting forgiveness. However, if none of this helps still, try to divert your problems unto God. Just as you offer Him love and prayers, so devote to Him your problems. If someone breaks our trust or harms us in some way, who are we but mere human beings to punish him! Always remember that the task of ‘punishing’ others or ‘serving them right’ is not assigned to us. Practice forgiveness and let go.
Let our thoughts flow through a kind tongue and noble deeds. Let us all act in accordance with His will and learn to be forgiving.