For the past day or so I’ve been contemplating my death, or perhaps more accurately, my rebirth. There are a ninety of things that I have done in the past and which I fear may arise at the moment of death.
Whenever I had previously contemplated bowing practice as repentance I could never quite get it. Who was I offering repentance to? From whom was I asking forgiveness? I see now that it is a completely internal process. The act may be strong enough to leave an imprint on one’s own mind. So prostrations, joined with dana, fasting, chanting and meditation might just do the trick.
Clearly, there are repentance rituals in Chinese Buddhism as well as in Tibetan so I’ll explore those further as well. Sabbe satta pamuccantu.
Cattāri Brahmavihārā 
I’ve always thought repentance practice was about letting go of feelings of guilt while strengthening the resolve to do better. A trained mind definitely handles unskillful thoughts better than an untrained one.
By: Tam Hanh Hi on 05/29/2018
at 12:12 am
Yes in Chinese Buddhism there are a few popular one like Emperor Liang Confession Ritual, Maha Karuna Ritual, Samadhi Water Ritual. They involves sets of contemplation, bowing and Chantings.
These are considered as Repentance rituals with sign. City of Ten Thousand Buddhas in California may have English Translations. As for Tibetan the main one are Vajrasattva Practice and 35 Buddhas Confession Ritual n for sure they can be learnt from an authentic Lama.
By: Alan on 05/30/2018
at 3:50 pm
Thanks Alan. I will definitely be checking out CTTB’s site!
By: Upāsaka on 05/30/2018
at 4:00 pm