What Determines the Karmic Retribution for Theft?

Question: When I was in school and just started working, I once had my wallet and phone stolen while riding the bus. At the time, I felt very resentful, but now I've long forgotten it. If the manas (mind faculty) truly no longer cares, does that mean the thief's karmic offense is also eliminated?

Answer: The thief's karmic offense of theft will not be absolved from bearing retribution simply because you forgive him. As long as a karmic offense is committed, there must be corresponding retribution. The karmic retribution for theft manifests as high-multiple debt repayment and poverty, and one will similarly be stolen from in the future. Therefore, even if your manas no longer cares, his karmic offense remains a fact. In the future, his ālayavijñāna (storehouse consciousness) will still bring about the retribution for the theft. As for you no longer seeking repayment, that is your matter; perhaps in the future, he won't have to repay you. Although you have forgotten, the thief's mind has not changed. His karmic retribution depends on his own mind. If he repents and makes amends, the karmic offense can be mitigated. Although you forgive him, his ālayavijñāna remembers this event, and in the future, it will bring about retribution according to the original nature of the event and his mental disposition.

Does the Buddha forgive everyone, hold no grudges against anyone, and thus lessen everyone's karmic offenses? Those who directly fall into hell in the presence of the Buddha have no relation to whether the Buddha forgives them or not; it relates to whether the offender's manas can truly repent. Even after repentance, the karmic retribution must still be endured, only it will be lighter. Those who slandered Arhats sincerely repented right before the Arhats at the time, yet still ended up in hell. The reason was that the karmic offense was too heavy. However, without repentance, the hell-bound karma would be even heavier, and the duration of suffering the evil retribution would be longer.

Repentance can only mitigate karmic offenses; completely eliminating them is very difficult and depends on the intensity and earnestness of the repentance, as well as the severity of the karmic offense. If one wishes to completely avoid evil retribution, the only way is to attain the fruit (of enlightenment) and eliminate the karma for the three evil destinies (hell, hungry ghosts, animals). Even after attaining the fruit, one must still endure retribution; it's just that the evil retribution is endured within the human realm, not in the three evil destinies. Those who do not attain the fruit will, for the most part, endure retribution in the three evil destinies. No matter how severe the evil retribution endured in the human realm is, it is still smaller than retribution endured in the three evil destinies. No matter how minor the evil retribution in the three evil destinies is, it is still greater than any evil retribution in the human realm. Therefore, no matter what kind of suffering one faces, one should still persevere in living, endure the suffering completely within the human realm, and not leave the suffering to be endured in the three evil destinies. The kind of suffering in the three evil destinies is beyond description.