Theodicy Soteriology, Hermeneutics

SOTERIOLOGY : M. M. NINAN
a lustful horse.... These and other signs and births are seen to be the karma of the embodied, made by
themselves in this world. Thus the makers of bad karma, having experienced the tortures of hell, are
reborn with the residues of their sins, in these stated forms."
Garuda Purana 5
"Like the waves in great rivers, there is no turning back of that which has previously been done.... [The
soul is] like a lame man--bound with the fetters made of the fruit of good and evil.
Maitri Upanishad 4.2
Yantra of Yaga: Sacrificial altar where animal or vegetable sacrifices are made for sin.
Notice the eminence Cross and the David’s Star
Hence the Law of Manu prescribes prayachitta for sins committed thus:
"He who has committed a sin and has repented, is freed from that sin, but only resolving to cease purifies
him: "I will do so no more."...He who, having either unintentionally or intentionally committed a
reprehensible deed, desires to be freed from it, must not commit it a second time. If his mind be uneasy
with respect to any deed, let him repeat the penance prescribed for it until they fully satisfy his
conscience."
Laws of Manu 11.231-34
"If a man commits sinful acts which he does not expiate in this life, he must pay the penalty in the next
life; and great will be his suffering. Therefore, with a self-controlled mind, a man should expiate his sins
here on earth. Expiation and repentance, to a man who continues to commit sinful acts, knowing them to
be harmful, are of no avail. Futile is it to bathe an elephant if he is straightway to roll again in the mud. All
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