When the burden of sins becomes unbearable

In life, we often make mistakes. Sometimes, these mistakes happen knowingly, and other times, they occur unknowingly. But when we feel the fear of God or hear a voice from within, we ask for forgiveness. But what does true remorse really mean? Do we never repeat those mistakes again? This is a question everyone should ask themselves. After making the same mistake again and again, we go back to asking for forgiveness. God, sitting inside us, repeatedly warns us that this is wrong, this should not be done, but still, we continue to make mistakes. The mistakes that we keep repeating no longer remain just mistakes; they turn into sins. To be forgiven for a sin, true repentance from the heart is necessary. Without that, the process doesn't work. When we think about those sins, our soul should tremble. We should sincerely ask for forgiveness from God and make a promise not to repeat the same mistake again. Then, God forgives.

Even people who pray daily, do seva (selfless service), and stay connected with God sometimes make mistakes. When they repeatedly commit the same sin, the reward of their prayers diminishes, and their devotion to God goes in vain. Even if we remember God every day, our mind should not harbor bad thoughts, nor should we see, hear, or speak anything evil. Our mind needs to stay clean.

How can the mind stay clean?

The easiest way to cleanse the mind is by meditating on God's name. To start, first pray, “O God, may my mind remain focused during my recitation of the prayer. May it not wander with worldly thoughts. Let me become connected to You, so my devotion is successful and my sins are forgiven.” While reciting, it is important to speak aloud and listen with your ears. Your head should not be too bent; it should be slightly raised because when the head is lowered too much, distractions arise. If, even for a moment, you focus your attention and sincerely feel regret for the sins you have committed, and then ask for forgiveness, God will forgive. He is very merciful, and can erase millions of sins in a moment. The whole process depends on focus and true repentance.

When God forgives our sins, He does not remember the sins we committed. He erases our past sins as if we had never committed them, and always gives us another chance. The forgiveness that God offers completely removes our burdens.

Once, a father told his son to keep a bag with him, and whenever he makes a mistake, he should put a stone in it. He was to carry the bag wherever he went. The son did this for many days and finally went to his father, saying that the bag was full of stones, and now he could not carry any more. The father explained that the bag was a symbol of the burden of sins. Just as the bag got filled with stones, our life gets burdened with sins, making it difficult to carry them. Eventually, the burden becomes unbearable. You may have experienced that when we sincerely ask for forgiveness from God, we feel lighter. We make mistakes knowingly and unknowingly every day. That's why, by asking for forgiveness and reciting God's name, we can gradually lighten the weight of our sins.

Another thing is that we shouldn't hold onto our sins. Sometimes, the mistakes we make leave us with regret. We think, "Why did I do that?" and we can't forget that sin. When we are engaged in devotional prayers, those mistakes come to mind. We feel the weight of those wrongs. But we should not hold onto our sins. After asking for forgiveness, we should move forward. If God forgives us and erases our sins, why can't we forgive ourselves? Why should we waste our present time by constantly thinking about past mistakes? Life is about moving forward. Let's pray to God, asking, "O God, hold our hand, grant us wisdom, and whenever the thought of committing a sin arises, guide us to walk away from it."