The practice of atonement and acting to make amends are required to restore harmony with oneself and others. The atonement and repentance restore trust and hopefulness for the human spirit.
The practice of forgiveness and atonement requires change – a change of heart in spirit and deed.
Angeles Arrien cites a prayer of atonement from the Buddhist tradition, chapter forty of the Avatasaka Sutra: “For all the harmful things I’ve done, with my body, speech and mind, from beginningless greed, anger and stupidity, through lifetimes without number, to this very day; I now repent and I vow, to change entirely.”