TEXT 8
tasmat puraivasv iha papa-niskrtau
yateta mrtyor avipadyatatmana
dosasya drstva guru-laghavam yatha
bhisak cikitseta rujam nidanavit
SYNONYMS
tasmattherefore; purabefore; evaindeed; asuvery quickly; ihain this life; papa-niskrtauto become free from the reaction of sinful activities; yatetaone should endeavor; mrtyohdeath; avipadyatanot troubled by disease and old age; atmanawith a body; dosasyaof the sinful activities; drstvaestimating; guru-laghavamthe heaviness or lightness; yathajust like; bhisaka physician; cikitsetawould treat; rujamof disease; nidana-vitone who is expert in diagnosis.
TRANSLATION
Therefore, before ones next death comes, as long as ones body is strong enough, one should quickly adopt the process of atonement according to sastra; otherwise ones time will be lost, and the reactions of his sins will increase. As an expert physician diagnoses and treats a disease according to its gravity, one should undergo atonement according to the severity of ones sins.
PURPORT
The dharma-sastras like the Manu-samhita prescribe that a man who has committed murder should be hanged and his own life sacrificed in atonement. Previously this system was followed all over the world, but since people are becoming atheists, they are stopping capital punishment. This is not wise. Herein it is said that a physician who knows how to diagnose a disease prescribes medicine accordingly. If the disease is very serious, the medicine must be strong. The weight of a murderers sin is very great, and therefore according to Manu-samhita a murderer must be killed. By killing a murderer the government shows mercy to him because if a murderer is not killed in this life, he will be killed and forced to suffer many times in future lives. Since people do not know about the next life and the intricate workings of nature, they manufacture their own laws, but they should properly consult the established injunctions of the sastras and act accordingly. In India even today the Hindu community often takes advice from expert scholars regarding how to counteract sinful activities. In Christianity also there is a process of confession and atonement. Therefore atonement is required, and atonement must be undergone according to the gravity of ones sinful acts.

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