Prabuddha Bharata or Awakened India

The whole nation may suffer for the sins of the ruler and the ruler is supposed to take upon his shoulders the burden of the Sins of his subjects. [...] And what is this real nature of the self ? It is indicated by such words as : greater than the greatest; subtler than the subtlest; immanent and yet transcendent; immortal; beyond the reach of sense-perception; ever pure ; ever free; the seer the subject of all experience; of the nature of pure consciouness existence and bliss. [...] How can it be said that the wise man who knows the real nature of the Self is freed from all sin ? Sin implies a sense of resposibility as doer a sense of guilt of having done wrong things or failed to do the right ones and the innate belief that the doer will have to suffer the consequences of his deeds. [...] It may take the form of saying of players the giving of gifts to the church the temple or the mosque; it may be the paying of priests to do polo or to say mass on behalf of the sinner. [...] The maintenance of monks the feeding of Brahmins and sadhas ; fasting and abstinence from sexual satisfaction for a definite period; the reading of holy books like the Ramayana the Bhagavadgita the Bible or the Koran ; the telling of beads; pilgriages to holy places; the confession of sins openly or privately; the worship of saints living or dead; the financing of funds to covert the 'h