The Concept of Forgiveness in Different Religions

Forgiveness has not been mentioned in our study of Vedic religion. However, there can be many ways of forgiveness that are interpreted in the Vedic religions. Compassion has been mentioned in the religion of Buddhism. A Buddha can appear to be narcissistic and self-righteous, but a Buddha is actually very compassionate. The Buddha’s compassion is based upon its deeds it has provided for others. It could be perceived that compassion is inclusive of forgiveness in an indirect way. It may also be that in Buddhism one may not be expected to forgive someone who has done something terrible to them.

A large part of forgiveness means letting go of hurtful or resentful feelings. Based upon Buddhism it is taught that one must learn to let go of negative situations, negative feelings, and hurtful situations. Some people have suffered from holding onto things, that later lead to depression and feelings of anger. This can be changed by letting go of the things one has been holding onto. This in itself, could be considered a form of forgiveness in Buddhism. Additionally, Buddhists also use meditation to rid themselves from selfishness, anger and the bad things they perceive they’ve done. I believe that they may use this as a type of forgiveness rather than forgiving a person for what they have wrongfully done. The people who had done something wrong may use meditation to cleanse themselves of the wrongful and hateful things they had done. As I have learned in the study of Hinduism, it seems that they focus on karma rather than forgiveness.

Hindus believe karma is an effect on something that has already happened. It is basically a cause and effect reaction. For instance, every action a person make has a reaction in the future. This can contribute to the life cycle which affect the events in another. Karma can have both a good or bad reaction. I believe that Hindus use karma rather than forgiving each other for the things they have done. Another addition to which Hindus have not mentioned about forgiveness, is two concepts known as dharma and moksha. Dharma is known as one’s duty in Hinduism. It guides a person throughout their life. In addition to dharma, moksha is the spiritual liberation. It brings freedom from the cycle of birth and rebirth. Perhaps Dharma may include some type of forgiveness, as it may be part of one’s duty to their religion.