What does remorse feel like? It is a feeling of sadness because one has done something wrong. It is described as self-reproach and guilt.

How often do we have a sense of remorse?
Does our conscience work for us?
Remorse has been described as being very serious and how does one address it?

Are we aware of collective remorse? Do we look around and see our environment being destroyed by our careless and thoughtless behavior. Just to give an example.

See how seriously remorse is treated?

Remorse is worse than a beating. – Greek Proverb

After a foolish deed comes remorse. – Kenyan Proverb

The first half of life is spent in longing for the second; the second half in regretting the first. – French Proverb

Remorse sleeps during prosperity but awakes bitter consciousness during adversity. – Jean Jacques Rousseau

Remorse is the poison of life. – Charlotte Bronte

We have to deal both with personal remorse and collective remorse. Personal remorse means identifying one’s feelings and then accepting responsibility for one’s actions. We have to make amends. Collective remorse means that we have to accept responsibility, start making amends and move forward constructively. It is a shared emotional response where we refer to US and not I, and accept the collective blame for the injustice.

Swami Satyananda Saraswati viewed remorse not as a perpetual state of guilt but as a potential stepping stone for positive change, emphasizing that dwelling on past mistakes is counterproductive. His point of view is that when genuine remorse is experienced then it should lead to desire for correction, which then frees the individual from that mistake.

Aim Hrim Klim

Photo by K. Mitch Hodge on Unsplash