if u did something BAD as a "child"...how can you make up for it now? (Repent)

This is something i've always wondered. We all do things as kids that we later on in life regret. SOME WORST...some less...but non the less i think some of us at least have "some" sort of guilt from doing something as a kid. From picking on another kid, to BIGGER.
I have one thing that sticks out in my mind, that every time i think of it. I literally push it right out of my mind. Because i really cant bare to THINK of it. I've thought about it to an extent, to understand why i did it, what made me do it, and to THINK ABOUT IT.

But my question is...what can one do to i guess "MAKE UP" for it.
I remember in the movie Ghandi. A Hindu man crys to Ghandi and tells him that he killed a little boy. He killed him because he was Muslim, and that he was NOT going to go to heaven.
Ghandi tells him i know of a way, you will find a boy, whos parents were killed in this war. And you will raise him as your own. But the boy MUST be MUSLIM. and you MUST RAISE HIM as a muslim.

its just an example but, i guess what im trying to say is, i want to "repent" for this =/

I know I did some bad things growing up, and the whole "need to be guilty" thing that was always pushed on me by my religion at the time did NOTHING to help. The best solace I found is to realize that I was a kid, and part of life is making mistakes, even the big ones, and to learn from those mistakes so that they were not made in vain. Failing that, I think that the example you gave was an excellent one, and a good guide in this sort of situation. Since (maybe I should say "if" Lol) you can't go back in time, seek a balance. I hope this helped!!

The best way to "clean up your karma" from whatever age, is to choose from this point on, not to harm others. To make it a point, to never seriously hurt someone- emotionally, physically, or mentally. To ascend to that higher knowing of being a "good" person. Everyone makes mistakes, but having learned from them- it is what you do with the knowledge that you will be judged upon in the end.



[edit on 30-10-2009 by xynephadyn]

There is no need to repent for something you've done wrong.....especially as a child.

If you were to do something "wrong" as an adult, depending on what it was, then I believe you should make up for it. But, the most important thing is to learn from this. We ALL make mistakes, none of us are perfect. The best thing to do is just learn from your mistake and let it make you a stronger person.

I don't believe people are bad for becoming drug addicts, AS LONG as they realize what they did, and have allowed themselves to learn from that lesson. That goes with anything.

Never a need to repent. Learn from your lesson and become wiser. Doing bad things actually makes us who we are just as doing good things does.

reply to post by kaskade

I have one thing that sticks out in my mind, that every time i think of it. I literally push it right out of my mind. Because i really cant bare to THINK of it. I've thought about it to an extent, to understand why i did it, what made me do it, and to THINK ABOUT IT.

Here's an idea...


How 'bout you tell us what you did as a child, and we'll tell you how to make up for it..?





After all - you started this thread...

How does it go "Karma is a biotch!" It all comes back, or is this just the guilty mind waiting for it? Nah, Karma is a real biotch! Be good boys and girls.

reply to post by kaskade


Kids do bad things through ignorance - they just haven't been around long enough to know better.

As long as you didn't murder someone, I think you will be OK.

Children are cruel, that is a sad fact.

If i was born into your body with your experiances i would be you and do exactly as you have done. We are all victums of our ignorance, it is your intention towards life and what your have learned from your mistakes that count......

That would decide if you deserve futher punishment to understand the lesson.

Originally posted by J.Son79
There is no need to repent for something you've done wrong.....especially as a child.

If you were to do something "wrong" as an adult, depending on what it was, then I believe you should make up for it. But, the most important thing is to learn from this. We ALL make mistakes, none of us are perfect. The best thing to do is just learn from your mistake and let it make you a stronger person.

I don't believe people are bad for becoming drug addicts, AS LONG as they realize what they did, and have allowed themselves to learn from that lesson. That goes with anything.

Never a need to repent. Learn from your lesson and become wiser. Doing bad things actually makes us who we are just as doing good things does.

Absolutely agree. I like to point out the Gospel of St Thomas (no I am not catholic, but I still feel that Jesus (and there were many of them through history) was a real person).
In this Gospel it talks of Jesus as a child and how he was very mischievous and actually killed a number young fellows, now he of course immediately gave them life again, but, it still points out, even those of great spiritual knowledge from early on, still err, so to speak.
Rather interesting though, as, for myself, even though I know this, I still kick myself over a few things!

Don't worry, eventually something rotten will come your way

Although, if it bothers you enough, go see a Psychiatrist, you can't beat yourself up all the time over something.

By the way, your a completely different person now, allegedly none of your cells are the same as they were back then, and you as a person consciously wouldn't do a horrific thing now.

Either let it go, or seek some help.

tell em to jump off a bridge while you're at it...lol get the ruff drift, but some are more emotional than others.

Earlier it was stated that as long as you did not kill someone you ok. What about deceit, disloyalty, maiming, raping, etc.. My buddy stabbed a guy in the neck for cheating with his wife to be. Life over - got 16 years in prison. The other guy ...dead. The families..broken. Murder was the end result of the badness.

Lets come back from that with a shrink.

Sounds like you already know. Do something similar to what Gandhi recommended. If possible, make amends with the person you hurt. If that's not possible, then do something to help someone who is similar to the one you hurt.

Of course, you'd also need to ensure that you've given up the activity that did the harm.

Some people say one should always try to make ameds UNLESS IT WILL HURT ANOTHER PERSON SOMEHOW. That is, if dredging up the past or contact from you would be more uncomfortable or difficult for the other person (or, somehow, a third party) than the act of making ammends itself, you shouldn't do it. This can be a difficult thing to gauge.

Something that happened so long ago may be meaningless or even forgotten by the other parties...you may be torturing yourself over guilt unnecessarily. Or maybe not. It's hard to know without knowing the "something bad" that you did, and the context, and the age, and so on. (and no, you don't have to tell us about it.) Its a decision you must make for yourself.

When I was younger, I got a terrible case of "the guilties" over some bad things I had done. Although it was very difficult and embarrasing for me, I forced myself to "make ammends" and come clean about some lies to a number of people. The act was incredibly cathartic and helpful for me...everyone I spoke to was more or less sympathetic or at least willing to receive my apologies.

But looking back on it many years later, I now feel I blew the whole thing out of proportion in my mind and "went overboard" with my apoligies a bit. At the time it seemed so important...now it seems much less so. What seems soul-wrenching and laden with significance at one stage of life may seem hardly meaningful at all at another stage. So my feeling is, it is not a bad thing that I wnet on an "apology streak," but it wasn't strictly necessary, either.

What I really needed to do was FORGIVE MYSELF and MOVE ON in a stronger, more moral direction. At that stage in my life, the only way I could do this in a meaningful way was through making apologies to others. Now, older and wiser, I think there are other ways I could have done it. But maybe it was what needed to be done at the time.

One final thing...keep in mind, also, that the world can be a cruel place and others can be cruel, too. If you open yourself in the wrong way to others, you may end up more damaged yourself than the others are actually helped.

Nobody can decide this but you. Weigh all this in your mind, listen to your heart carefully, and have the courage to do what you feel is the correct, moral thing. You might be right, you might be wrong..."Morality is as slippery as a broken-backed snake" -Old Chinese saying. Take your time pondering it, but don't procrastinate. Make up your mind to the best of your ability, and act decisively.

Good luck, and be good...to yourself, as well as to others.

.. you had the guilt, opened up about it, and probably got a "ok dude, no worries" unless you are talking about scalping someone. That is the bottomline don't seek a human approval - all u get is self served tolerance, or abuse, why because we are human and no matter how hard we try we can pretend to give a crap or lend an ear, but bottomline we have our own secrets with guilt that we should confess to the confessee. The saying" first take the board out of thine own eye before removing the splinter from another makes sense. You're never confessing to man or woman with results but god or self.

keep it real and watch football go Lions!

[edit on 30-10-2009 by vincere1]

reply to post by kaskade


I believe just by being genuinely ashamed, or just wanting to repent is enough

ask forgiveness to Jesus Christ, he will forgive you.
As for total ease of mind, your guilt will not go away, no matter what you do. Its a reminder to never do whatever you did again. But when it comes up in your mind again; you will find solace in the knowledge that Jezus forgives you.


i too have a guilty conscience in doing something that i always thought i'd never do. I was consumed by self-hatred and guilt i thought about it non-stop, but since learning to know Jezus and asking forgiveness to him i'm no longer consumed by guilt every day. but from time to time; whenever i'm on the verge of doing the same sin that led me to my crime in the first place. i'm reminded of it.

[edit on 30-10-2009 by omarsharif]

The actions of children are innocent and part of the process of learning to become adults.
That being stated, whatever it is that is causing your guilt,first off..you cannot change the fact that it happened.
Some believe in karma..some do not..so you shall have to chose what fits your own belief system.
The question I have for you is, did you hurt someone? What amends did you make at the time of the wrongdoing? Is the event in question a secret that only you know?
You can try to balance the bad deed with good deeds, and that may help to a point, but..you need to forgive yourself, and you must do whatever you feel you need to, to make that happen.

reply to post by kaskade

Kascade, if you recognise your error, are truly sorry, and deep in your heart, try to do much better, that is all you possibly can do.

God forgives, but you must also forgive and show justice and mercy to others, especially to those lesser, or less fortunate than yourself.

Children are just children, and cannot be expected to have the wisdom of life that only comes with time and life experience.

Put your errors behind you and look to the future, do not dwell on the the past.

I'm just wondering, why does it have to be a child?
Us adults do wrong big time.
Sometimes it's not even conscious but you realise later, you were misguided, selfish.... A lot of us have some guilt somewhere. You can choose to suffer endlessly or you can begin to attone by living your life in a better way. It's called learning from your mistakes. Then you can move on.
Carrying your guilt around like a stone doesn't help you, or the people around you, or people you wronged. It's quite selfish actually.

[edit on 30-10-2009 by unicorn1]

Easiest way is to not do anything bad full stop, then your concious is clear.

If you do something, you just have to live with it. Hardly anyone knows right from wrong and thats a fact, i do not care about what scholars say.