The Religion and Philosophy of the Veda and Upanishads v1.c24.21

v1.c24.21

There is clear proof that the feeling of sin in many cases did not exist: the poets freely confess to lies, to failure to keep promises, to treachery, to other forms of sin, and by magic means or by prayers to the gods, mingled with magic, seek to divest themselves of the sin, just as they seek in the same way to rid themselves of a disease:¹⁰ the sense of guilt is still external, and suggests that we must connect it in thought with such things as the blood of the clansman in murder: it is in such instances that we may see the growth of the conception of the substance which as sin clings to a man, an idea which must have been aided by the conception that a disease is some such substance. The intervention of a god like Agni in such a case is merely to be compared with his intervention in the case of a disease: a deadly substance affects the man, and must be removed from him: it is not a case of searching of heart and forgiveness accorded to the contrite soul by heaven.