<p>In the <a href="https://www.accesstoinsight.org/lib/authors/mendis/wheel322.html#cetasika" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Abhidhamma</a>, regret and remorse over the past is considered an unwholesome mental factor.</p>
<blockquote>
<p>Worry (<em>kukkucca</em>) is remorse, brooding, and repenting over evil acts
done in the past or good acts left undone.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>The following theme for reflection from <a href="https://suttacentral.net/an5.57/en/bodhi" rel="nofollow noreferrer">AN 5.57</a> (quoted below) can prevent the arising of unarisen unwholesome states. It encourages shame of evil (<em>hiri</em>) and fear of evil (<em>otappa</em>), which are mentioned as beautiful mental factors in the <a href="https://www.accesstoinsight.org/lib/authors/mendis/wheel322.html#cetasika" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Abhidhamma</a>.</p>
<p>So, remorse and regret over the past is unwholesome. But shame of evil and fear of evil, or basically moral shame (<em>hiri</em>) and fear of wrongdoing (<em>otappa</em>), for the future, is wholesome.</p>
<blockquote>
<p>“And for the sake of what benefit should a woman or a man, a
householder or one gone forth, often reflect thus: ‘I am the owner of
my kamma, the heir of my kamma; I have kamma as my origin, kamma as my
relative, kamma as my resort; I will be the heir of whatever kamma,
good or bad, that I do’? People engage in misconduct by body, speech,
and mind. <strong>But when one often reflects upon this theme, such misconduct
is either completely abandoned or diminished</strong>. It is for the sake of
this benefit that a woman or a man, a householder or one gone forth,
should often reflect thus: ‘I am the owner of my kamma, the heir of my
kamma; I have kamma as my origin, kamma as my relative, kamma as my
resort; I will be the heir of whatever kamma, good or bad, that I do.’</p>
</blockquote>
<p><em>Hiri</em> and <em>otappa</em> are explained below in Ven. Bodhi's &quot;<a href="https://www.accesstoinsight.org/lib/authors/bodhi/bps-essay_23.html" rel="nofollow noreferrer">The Guardians of the World</a>&quot; :</p>
<blockquote>
<p>The Buddha points to two mental qualities as the underlying safeguards
of morality, thus as the protectors of both the individual and society
as a whole. These two qualities are called in Pali <em>hiri</em> and <em>ottappa</em>.
<em>Hiri</em> is an innate sense of shame over moral transgression; <em>ottappa</em> is
moral dread, fear of the results of wrongdoing. The Buddha calls these
two states the bright guardians of the world (<em>sukka</em> <em>lokapala</em>). He
gives them this designation because as long as these two states
prevail in people's hearts the moral standards of the world remain
intact, while when their influence wanes the human world falls into
unabashed promiscuity and violence, becoming almost indistinguishable
from the animal realm (<a href="https://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/kn/iti/iti.2.042-049x.irel.html#iti-042" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Itiv. 42</a>).</p>
<p>While moral shame and fear of wrongdoing are united in the common task
of protecting the mind from moral defilement, they differ in their
individual characteristics and modes of operation. <em>Hiri</em>, the sense of
shame, has an internal reference; it is rooted in self-respect and
induces us to shrink from wrongdoing out of a feeling of personal
honor. <em>Ottappa</em>, fear of wrongdoing, has an external orientation. It is
the voice of conscience that warns us of the dire consequences of
moral transgression: blame and punishment by others, the painful
kammic results of evil deeds, the impediment to our desire for
liberation from suffering. Acariya Buddhaghosa illustrates the
difference between the two with the simile of an iron rod smeared with
excrement at one end and heated to a glow at the other end: <em>hiri</em> is
like one's disgust at grabbing the rod in the place where it is
smeared with excrement, <em>ottappa</em> is like one's fear of grabbing it in
the place where it is red hot.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>And from <a href="https://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/kn/iti/iti.2.042-049x.irel.html#iti-042" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Iti 42</a>:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>&quot;Bhikkhus, these two bright principles protect the world. What are the
two? Shame and fear of wrongdoing. If, bhikkhus, these two bright
principles did not protect the world, there would not be discerned
respect for mother or maternal aunt or maternal uncle's wife or a
teacher's wife or the wives of other honored persons, and the world
would have fallen into promiscuity, as with goats, sheep, chickens,
pigs, dogs, and jackals. But as these two bright principles protect
the world, there is discerned respect for mother... and the wives of
other honored persons.&quot;</p>
<p>Those in whom shame and fear of wrong<br />
Are not consistently found<br />
Have deviated from the bright root<br />
And are led back to birth and death.</p>
<p>But those in whom shame and fear of wrong<br />
Are consistently ever present,<br />
Peaceful, mature in the holy life,<br />
They put an end to renewal of being.</p>
</blockquote>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2021-07-03T21:10:06.220Z
@YesheTenley The idea is that brooding over the past is unskillful. Feeling ashamed to commit evil in the future is skillful.
ruben2020
CC BY-SA 4.0
2021-03-03T16:14:57.530Z
2021-03-03T16:21:32.913Z
2021-03-03T16:21:32.913Z
ruben2020
<p>Does regret / guilt help us to correct our faults? Doesn't the pain from our faults push us to the correct path?</p>

<reference-request><five-hindrances><guidance><guilt>
Does regret help us to correct our faults?
# Does regret help us to correct our faults?

(Asked by: username_0 on 2021-03-03)

Does regret / guilt help us to correct our faults? Doesn't the pain from our faults push us to the correct path?

**Tags:** reference-request, five-hindrances, guidance, guilt


---

## 1 answers

### Answer by username_1 on 2021-03-03. Score: 1

In the [Abhidhamma](https://www.accesstoinsight.org/lib/authors/mendis/wheel322.html#cetasika), regret and remorse over the past is considered an unwholesome mental factor.

> Worry (*kukkucca*) is remorse, brooding, and repenting over evil acts
> done in the past or good acts left undone.

The following theme for reflection from [AN 5.57](https://suttacentral.net/an5.57/en/bodhi) (quoted below) can prevent the arising of unarisen unwholesome states. It encourages shame of evil (*hiri*) and fear of evil (*otappa*), which are mentioned as beautiful mental factors in the [Abhidhamma](https://www.accesstoinsight.org/lib/authors/mendis/wheel322.html#cetasika).

So, remorse and regret over the past is unwholesome. But shame of evil and fear of evil, or basically moral shame (*hiri*) and fear of wrongdoing (*otappa*), for the future, is wholesome.

> “And for the sake of what benefit should a woman or a man, a
> householder or one gone forth, often reflect thus: ‘I am the owner of
> my kamma, the heir of my kamma; I have kamma as my origin, kamma as my
> relative, kamma as my resort; I will be the heir of whatever kamma,
> good or bad, that I do’? People engage in misconduct by body, speech,
> and mind. **But when one often reflects upon this theme, such misconduct
> is either completely abandoned or diminished**. It is for the sake of
> this benefit that a woman or a man, a householder or one gone forth,
> should often reflect thus: ‘I am the owner of my kamma, the heir of my
> kamma; I have kamma as my origin, kamma as my relative, kamma as my
> resort; I will be the heir of whatever kamma, good or bad, that I do.’

*Hiri* and *otappa* are explained below in Ven. Bodhi's "[The Guardians of the World](https://www.accesstoinsight.org/lib/authors/bodhi/bps-essay_23.html)" :

> The Buddha points to two mental qualities as the underlying safeguards
> of morality, thus as the protectors of both the individual and society
> as a whole. These two qualities are called in Pali *hiri* and *ottappa*.
> *Hiri* is an innate sense of shame over moral transgression; *ottappa* is
> moral dread, fear of the results of wrongdoing. The Buddha calls these
> two states the bright guardians of the world (*sukka* *lokapala*). He
> gives them this designation because as long as these two states
> prevail in people's hearts the moral standards of the world remain
> intact, while when their influence wanes the human world falls into
> unabashed promiscuity and violence, becoming almost indistinguishable
> from the animal realm ([Itiv. 42](https://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/kn/iti/iti.2.042-049x.irel.html#iti-042)).
>
> While moral shame and fear of wrongdoing are united in the common task
> of protecting the mind from moral defilement, they differ in their
> individual characteristics and modes of operation. *Hiri*, the sense of
> shame, has an internal reference; it is rooted in self-respect and
> induces us to shrink from wrongdoing out of a feeling of personal
> honor. *Ottappa*, fear of wrongdoing, has an external orientation. It is
> the voice of conscience that warns us of the dire consequences of
> moral transgression: blame and punishment by others, the painful
> kammic results of evil deeds, the impediment to our desire for
> liberation from suffering. Acariya Buddhaghosa illustrates the
> difference between the two with the simile of an iron rod smeared with
> excrement at one end and heated to a glow at the other end: *hiri* is
> like one's disgust at grabbing the rod in the place where it is
> smeared with excrement, *ottappa* is like one's fear of grabbing it in
> the place where it is red hot.

And from [Iti 42](https://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/kn/iti/iti.2.042-049x.irel.html#iti-042):

> "Bhikkhus, these two bright principles protect the world. What are the
> two? Shame and fear of wrongdoing. If, bhikkhus, these two bright
> principles did not protect the world, there would not be discerned
> respect for mother or maternal aunt or maternal uncle's wife or a
> teacher's wife or the wives of other honored persons, and the world
> would have fallen into promiscuity, as with goats, sheep, chickens,
> pigs, dogs, and jackals. But as these two bright principles protect
> the world, there is discerned respect for mother... and the wives of
> other honored persons."
>
> Those in whom shame and fear of wrong  
> Are not consistently found  
> Have deviated from the bright root  
> And are led back to birth and death.
>
> But those in whom shame and fear of wrong  
> Are consistently ever present,  
> Peaceful, mature in the holy life,  
> They put an end to renewal of being.

> **Comments:**
> **username_1**: @YesheTenley The idea is that brooding over the past is unskillful. Feeling ashamed to commit evil in the future is skillful.  

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