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Summary of Question:	Human Error And Mistake
Category:	Other
Date Posted:	Tuesday, 4/04/2000 11:35 AM MDT

Sat Sri Akal,

If someone commit a error unintentionally and upset someone then if he is going to be paid for it. And if he is ready to repent and ask for apology what are his chances to rebulid himself and start working again. IF he is a sinner?

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REPLY
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Sat Siri Akaal Ji--
The keyword in any error is INTENT. What was the person's INTENT in the action taken, even if a mistake occurred? While on this side, one may experience an unhappy effect of an unintentional error (For example, such as another person misunderstanding you and holding it against you), it is not considered something that you will have to pay for in the court of Dharam Raj, so to speak. The law of karma (cause & effect) works at many levels, some of which we cannot know. If your intent is sincere, then the sincerity is what counts, not the mistake that happened anyway.

The second keyword is FORGIVENESS, the most healing thing you can do in such situations. If a person is sincere about wanting to move on/put the past behind/make amends, then he/she asks forgiveness of the one(s) who were hurt, and in his/her heart forgives them back for any perceived transgressions. The person does not always have to forgive in person; sometimes sincere forgiveness done in the heart does the job, but many situations do indeed call for face-to-face apologies and requests for forgiveness. The forgiveness, if sincere, will free the person from the deeper karma of the action (meaning the levels of karma we don't know or understand), and when the forgiveness is reciprocated, the other one(s) are freed as well. This forgiveness makes it psychically possible to move on and rebuild one's life or recover from the mistake. Understand that Waheguru is all forgiving. This never-ending compassion and mercy of the Lord is mentioned time & again in Siri Guru Granth Sahib. The Lord will write off your accou
nt if you ask Him to forgive your mistakes. So in this sense, rebuilding is always possible, and there is always hope for the 'sinner' as you call it.

Sadly, sometimes the one(s) who were hurt may hold grudges and this can make moving on difficult. In extreme situations, the one who made the mistake may have to end all interaction with the one(s) he/she hurt if they others won't accept an apology. But most people have hearts big enough to forgive, forget and move on. Each situation is different. HOWEVER, do not take back your apology, so to speak, if the others involved are unwilling to accept it. Understand that they are in pain and sometimes in it too deep to forgive.
As painful as it is, keep your heart open to them with the sincerity of your apology, and move on anyway,knowing that your karma in the situation is clear.

God bless you,
-DKK