Repentance and Clearing Karma

Question: I repent and make vows every morning and evening, and my body, speech, and mind have become much purer than before. However, on some occasions, I still unconsciously commit acts of greed and hatred. Does this mean my repentance has not penetrated the mental faculty, that it is improper and has not yet eliminated my karmic obstructions?

Answer: After repentance, it is not necessarily the case that all karmic obstructions are immediately and completely eradicated. There are certainly residual karmic effects that remain, along with afflictive hindrances, because not everyone repents thoroughly and adequately. Furthermore, repentance eliminates only a portion of the karmic afflictions arising from inherent defilements; it is highly unlikely to remove all inherent defilements. Moreover, there are karmic obstacles of transgression that cannot be eliminated, making the retribution for such transgressions unavoidable.

During the time of the Buddha, there was a layperson who slandered an Arhat (a fourth-stage enlightened one). That Arhat immediately ascended the hall, rang the bell to assemble the congregation, and said to the layperson: "I have attained the fruition of Arhatship. You must quickly repent for the karmic act of slander before the assembly; otherwise, you will suffer hellish retribution." The layperson immediately repented to the Arhat before the assembly. The Arhat said: "I forgive you. May your transgressions be eliminated." Nevertheless, upon death, that layperson still descended into hell to undergo retribution. This story does not mean that repentance is ineffective or incapable of eliminating karma. Rather, it shows that repentance can only eliminate the karmic transgressions related to one's mental nature. The karmic transgression manifested in action, having been committed and become an established fact, cannot be eliminated; only by undergoing retribution can it be resolved. After that layperson repented, the inherent defilements were gone, but the karmic obstacle of transgression remained. Therefore, he went to hell to undergo retribution. Had he not repented, the suffering endured in hell due to the combined karma of inherent defilements and transgression would have been even greater and harder to bear. Thus, we should all strive to be careful with our bodily, verbal, and mental actions, especially regarding the Three Jewels (Buddha, Dharma, Sangha). We must be even more cautious and avoid creating any karmic acts of slander.

If all afflictive karmic obstructions were completely purified, one would attain enlightenment or Buddhahood. In reality, it is not so easy to purify everything through repentance alone. Afflictive karmic obstructions diminish little by little. Though reduced, they may occasionally resurface; this is a normal phenomenon. After repentance penetrates the mental faculty, it still depends on the depth of penetration and the degree of transformation achieved. It certainly indicates that the degree is insufficient. If the degree were sufficient, all afflictions would be completely severed. Since the degree is insufficient, afflictive karmic obstructions will naturally still arise; this is normal. As long as you have made progress compared to before, and are making progress day by day, this is already a good sign.