Penance

"**Penance**" is anything you do when you are sorry, to ensure you are really forgiven by undoing what you did wrong. In the Rabydosverse, it is a punitive and corrective system used by various countries on the planet of Jerde, known as "**social penance**".

## Overview

In Christianity, the religion practiced by some Terran militants in Bujan, penance may involve prayers and fasting, such as on Lent or Advent, the days before Easter or Christmas. Protestant Christianity focuses more on making a person totally change their attitude, to avoid committing the offense ever again.

In the Rabydosverse, penance is more akin to parole or probation, with community service partly decided by the victim or judge. A person may not need to sit in jail, but live their life with some restrictions to remind them about their wrongdoing and make them hate the offense more.

The primary way to escape the "penance" is simply to apologise and satisfy the "victim" by compensating them, until the victim is satisfied and decides to forgive the offender. This may either shorten the penance time, or end it altogether - but it ultimately depends on whether the victim is merciful enough to decide to end the penance.

It may seen cruel due to the pain unleashed on the offender's mind and usage of force. But ultimately, it is more merciful than torture or death. The process of "penance" is rehabilitation, forcing an offender to confront their own sins and apologise to the people they hurt. This is because Bujanski believe that closure is a better solution than letting an enemy prosper and coexist with them.

The overblown Maeranoi practice of online mobbing and "cancel culture", especially towards people who committed mistakes and then got shunned, was one of the reasons why penance is practiced in modern Bujan. To ensure that people do not bitterly hate an offender who only got into trouble over their mistake, it will be the government and the victim who will decide the punishment for the offender, to satisfy the public and the victim by making the offender suffer and repay for their mistake.

Instead of sitting down, crying, thinking, and finding new friends (as the Maeranoi do), an offender might be allowed again into the group or even business they were banned from, ONLY by completing penance to pay for their offence. It was derived from the Bujanski attitude of refusing to leave people behind, out of defiance against the Maeranoi attitude of "moving on" and sadism.

### Election of the Way of Pain

If there are more than three victims, they may decide and vote which available punishment is better for the offender.

For example, X wants the offender who used a racist slur at him, to work as a builder and ban him from amusement parks. X and five other friends vote, and end up deciding the offender should be caned in public. The offender would be banned from cinemas and most restaurants in his town during penance, but his penance will be shortened to just one week.

After that, the victims may meet the offender and ask about his remorse, and only by apologising to the victims can his penance end!

## Exceptions

Some crimes have worse effects on society, such as murder, violation of the body, terrorism, fraud, and child abuse. Such crimes do not permit penance, and may lead to jail or a brutal execution.

In the case of a death penalty, sometimes a relative of the victim is even allowed to kill an offender who commits those crimes, and is praised as a hero.

In some executions, multiple people affected by the offender may decide the form of execution to kill and torture the offender.

## Ancient Resovjant

See also: Wonao mythology

The chaos of the Old Hiranol led Motakol and his supporters to create a number of laws to prevent vendettas from tearing the kingdom apart.

### Ancient Wonao penance and collective punishment

Since the days of Motakol, a system of forgiveness was implemented in Wonao culture. It involves forcing offenders to confess their crimes to their victims, if they were not sentenced to death. The victims or society will pose several conditions for an offender to stop being an outcast and a scapegoat, such as rebuilding, working in construction or menial labour, or being forced to pay a fee or work as a humiliated servant of the victim.

During that time, the offender would live in a prison cell, or (if the victim permits) a lowly room near the victim as the victim's servant. The offender was forced to wear a bronze gauntlet that may be occasionally heated to burn the offender's wrist, and publicly shamed and cursed by other people. However, as soon as other people could see the gauntlet of shame, they will not beat up or kill the offender so they would live in shame.

Although collective punishment was a standard practice in ancient Wonao culture, other people associated with the offender were subjected only to public shaming, bans from certain venues, people avoiding sitting near them, and prohibitions from owning certain objects (like luxury items and very colourful clothes). In some eras, they were ordered to wear white or grey rags, and only permitted to work in menial jobs or workplaces with small blue banners, where criminals undergoing probation also worked.

The period of penance, by law, was mandated to last for up to eight months in maximum. In some eras, some penances lasted for up to three or nine years, with one notorious case leading to a penance of twenty-one years without any extension. After that, the offender was forced to kneel and bow to the victim as the victim declares the offender forgiven.

### Painlings

"Painlings" or "children of pain" were people who were subjected to collective punishments.

They were also anyone who was punished under the modern Bujanski penance system.

### Influence

The modern Bujanski system of penance was also influenced by a belief where people must abandon their grudges in order to avoid being cursed after death.

This was also why online blocks are strictly regulated in modern Bujan, to forcibly stop it from becoming a habit (by restricting it only to serious offenders), and because online blocks were seen as starting a grudge. It also led to Terran people being punished simply for blocking people without a valid reason, along with any Bujanski who did the same.

## Denlotia

During Denlotian times, it was called "integration", "rite of purification", or "purification".

It originated during the days when the Denlotia was a charity group, turned into fanatical punishers of every single grudge in Palguenia. Any "subject" of a grudge who would have been hunted down by the Denlotians would have to surrender and undergo penance - apologising to the people they hurt, and then doing some menial work - in order to be spared from a brutal death. The Day of Resolution was the eventual fate of many who refused to surrender, to be subjected to the rage and hate of the triumphant Denlotians. The Denlotian army grew stronger, both by seeking revenge against the oppressive corporations and Terrans, fear of the purges, and finding out that the Denlotia provided amenities that the corporations never allowed.

Terrans who surrendered, fled, or defected to the Denlotia must dwell in walled settlements, where they learned the basics of law, ethics, social norms, and any job they chose to earn a living. Those who completed their integration were given money and a key to a home of their choice.

Those Terrans who did so and won acceptance by Denlotian society were known as "un-Terrans". Instead of being doomed as demons in human flesh, their rejection of evil had brought them into the love of the Denlotia's people and gods.

## Bujan

The concept of "penance" was a collective punishment on any Terran who was allowed to live on Bujan, during the purges of July 1892. It was a mixture of Denlotian law with ancient Wonao traditions.

It does not involve wearing sackcloth, self-whipping, prayers, or fasting, as the Terrans expected. Instead, in Bujan, penance is simply deradicalisation and rehabilitation. It was an alternative to prison or execution, to allow them to erase their own wrongdoing and reconcile with society.

The direct precedent to the penance system in Bujan was the Great Boycott. Not only this was held in places controlled by the rebellion, but in territories occupied by the colonials and Wannaenids, the locals began to ostracise Internet blockers. People who were accused of blocking users online without a valid reason were shunned and shamed, denied from various services and forced to live as outcasts. The blockers were ordered to seek the forgiveness of the people whom they harmed, *and* unblock them, in order to end the restrictions imposed on them. It was considered a fitting punishment for the suffering a blocker would inflict on a person over a simple error or a misunderstanding.

Therefore, the penance system of modern Bujan is also the Great Boycott, continued and enshrined as part of the kingdom's constitution.

### Bujanski social penance customs

Terrans began their penance when they surrender to the authorities or seek forgiveness for historical crimes. More likely, they do this to become citizens and avoid being killed off by fanatics. The penance begins when a judge reads Manusmriti 11:227-233, in the Sanskrit language.

Those who undergo penance take yellow and green flags with them. The yellow flags on their houses represent penance, telling others that they are doing work to apologise for their crimes. When Terrans finish their penance after a few months or years, they can replace their yellow flags with green flags.

Penance in Bujan mostly involves:

* working in a job of one's choice
* construction or repair work
* paying an extra fee from income to rebuild Bujan
* public, televised apologies
* ordered to meet the people they offended to seek their forgiveness and explain about their own offenses.

In short, it is to make the Terrans rebuild Bujan and change their own attitudes, to remove hateful attitudes from their minds.

It is similar to social punishments for people who committed certain crimes. For example, a poor pickpocket would be provided a job, but he must pay a fee to his victim out of his own income, until the amount of money stolen was paid back.

### Penance for younger offenders

Younger offenders are those who are under the age of 18. Although teenagers were hated in parts of Bujan for their association with Terran criminals, they receive lighter sentences due to their weaker physiology.

Instead of their victims, teenagers who undergo penance in Bujan have their own parents or guardians as their overseers. They still must report to their victims about the progress of their penance.

Teenagers who undergo penance also have their duration of penance and costs halved. However, such social exclusion would become a painful milestone that fills them with shame.

## Restrictions during penance

Terrans who undergo social penance in Bujan cannot do or use certain things. It is to remind them that they must undo their crimes before they can be accepted by society.

* They cannot use some train or bus routes.
* Some provinces and towns banned Terrans from owning a television screen or a computer, forcing them to use cyber offices to communicate with their workplaces.
	+ They were also closely watched for any sign of anger or hate, with those caught posting anti-Bujanski comments punished or even killed by angry mobs.
	+ Terrans who did not complete their penance were not allowed to use social media. In spite of this, many Terrans stole computers and hacked to set up or regain their accounts, leading to them being the majority of victims murdered on July 1892 for offensive comments and death threats.
* In many venues, Terrans would be ordered to have their Internet history checked. During July 1892, all Bujanski citizens' devices were tracked with microchips, yet this was easily bypassed with "incognito" mode. The possible reason for allowing incognito mode, later confirmed by the Royal Police, was to let the Terrans prove their innocence or crimes by their actions in public.
* Some jobs refused to hire Terrans, leaving them only with service or basic jobs who were required by law to treat them fairly.
	+ If they worked in another business, Terrans were not allowed to be promoted to higher-ranking positions.
* All social media accounts owned by the Terran will be suspended immediately, only restored when the victims decide to forgive the Terran.

The criminal record for the offence that led to penance only lasts for the duration of the penance, from a month to a year. When the penance is finished, the crime record for that specific offence is immediately expunged.

When the penance is finished, the offender must attend a meeting with the people they hurt, and apologise to them again. They must also show proof that they have really changed and will no longer commit the offense ever again.

Penance may also apply to anyone who commits the same offences in Bujan, instead of or after prison.

### No entry

* During penance, the offender may be banned from public venues. They are still allowed to work in their existing job or go to school, but may risk being shamed or avoided by their peers.
* Infamously, many shops and restaurants in Bujan put up signs like "No Terrans [or Salvationists or Churchbearers]" or "Are you at war with Bujan and its people?"
	+ Later, they require all Terrans to take a simple test or show their ID cards. Those who passed the tests or completed their penance were allowed into those places.
	+ In many venues, Terrans would be ordered to have their Internet history checked, although this is easily skipped by having the same history and activity recorded into every user's ID card, no matter how many accounts they can make. During July 1892, all Bujanski citizens' ID cards were tracked with microchips, yet this was easily bypassed with "incognito" mode. The possible reason for allowing incognito mode, later confirmed by the Royal Police, was to let the Terrans prove their innocence or crimes by their actions in public.

### Punishment for artists

Any art created by a wrongful blocker, before their penance, is banned from public display until the end of penance. However, in practice, people who were affected by the blocks must decide whether to unban the works banned in penance time, and only then can they be allowed back into the public.

So a ban on a blocker's art may actually last longer than the penance itself, especially by blocked people who wanted to punish the blocker.

* Just as they wrongly blocked an innocent person, so will their art be blocked from society.
* Display of blockers' drawings, music, movies, and novels are banned from the public. They are also hidden in all Bujanski websites.
	+ One infamous example was in 1921 AT, when an award-winning director was arrested for blocking an annoying fan and losing a case with a moderator. As a result, his movies were banned from cinemas, and his novels kept in storage and removed from shelves.
* The only ones who can end the ban are the "victims" of the block, if they vote "yes". They also decide how long can the ban last.
	+ They are sometimes known as "keyholders", "wardens", "watchers".
	+ However, if someone was caught trying to provoke someone into wrongfully blocking them, and landing the blocker into jail just to seize control of their banned art, they will be blocked and banned, while the artist would be released and compensated as an apology.

### Exceptions for banned art from blockers

Although they are officially known as "loopholes", in practice they are legally-permitted exceptions that are explained to the blockers undergoing penance.

* One exception is that the artist under penance can create new works, which are allowed. But they cannot redraw an old work again, only make new art out of a work of theirs that is banned.
* Another exception is that people are allowed to make fanart of a penance-banned work, but they are not allowed to sell any fanworks of the banned work.

### Extensions

In some cases, like people supporting a wrongful ban, anyone caught being supporters of the ban would end up undergoing the same jail sentence and penance as the offender.

Groups that a person was wrongly banned from may also be shut down by the website as a punishment. These may range from online servers, fan clubs, and real-life clubs. Every member in that group would be given a notice informing the dissolution of the group, whether by text or private message.

## Punishments during penance

### Treatment of repentants

In Bujanski society, people undergoing penance are discriminated, hated as carriers of historical crimes. People tend to shun them for what they have done, and threaten not to hire them.

Terran penitents would be called slurs and curses, shamed for the crime they committed that led them to penance.

On the other hand, some Bujanski set up associations to support people who undergo penance.

### Gates of Life

Every day, Bujanski who undergo social penance may be asked several questions. The "correct" answers are in brackets.

* Do you hate Bujan? (No)
* Do you want to kill Bujanski people? (No)
* Do you want to block someone? (No) If so, why? (After reason stated, the asker may explain a better solution)
* Do you feel sorry for what you have done? (Yes)

The questions are called "the Gate of Life" and the correct answers are known as the "Keys of Life". Answering them correctly meant safety and survival for the Terran: but hatred and arrogance may lead to doom.

During the first years of independence, anyone who answered that they hated Bujan was simply killed, as a potential terrorist.

Later, they were just jailed, driven to throw a tantrum in a televised recording, and forced to apologise: to live, they were shamed in front of everyone for attempting any plot to destroy the country.

### Blocktowns

A rather unusual and bizarre form of penance was the blocktown, a prison where Internet troublemakers were detained. Modern Bujanski law, as it was during Zvesta before Wannaenid rule, restricts blocking to dangerous people, spammers, and extremists. Therefore, if the reason for the block is considered "invalid" and the person being blocked is innocent, the blocker's account is temporarily suspended, and the blocker themselves is punished and sent to prison.

It was named for the earliest inmates or most prisoners being held there for recklessly blocking people who were innocent online. Usually, they tend to either have psychological problems or were fanatical extremists who wanted to wage war on Bujan. Such offenders were known as "bloka", shamed for how they treated their friends over simple errors, misunderstandings, or petty rage and spite, and ostracised as cheaters and traitors.

However, the blocktowns were reserved for blokas who had complaints from *thirty* different people or more. Those with twenty-nine people or less who complained over being blocked were not sent to the blocktowns, but those with thirty and above dreaded what happened after they had to apologise to those they hurt.

Their punishments were near-total isolation and projected visions of their own offenses repeatedly shown to them. Their lack of social interaction nearly drove them mad from desperation, to force them to be sorry for their offenses.

But there were two things that may have shortened such horrors in the mind. Firstly, if the inmate has really suffered from emotional or mental distress, a doctor or psychiatrist may project a hologram to speak with the inmate, which can share everything to the hologram. The hologram may consist of someone the inmate loves, hates, or fears. Secondly, only the people whom an inmate had hurt may also project more holograms to speak to the inmate, so they can understand each other better. Having the people project visions to share each other's pain is the best way to shorten the punishment, as it may show proof that the inmate has repented of their crime.

After several months, the inmates were brought to sit with the people they blocked online. Although the blocks were removed when Bujan became independent, the former blockers were driven by fear and desperation to apologise and explain their actions.

Then, the blockers began the usual penance in order to win the trust of society. Construction, shop assistance, repairing, mechanics: the choices to redemption are many and practical.

Again, it was not just Terrans who were sentenced to the blocktowns. Bujanski and other locals who committed the same crimes were also sent there, to be forced to see their own sins projected back at them.

Similar punishments to Bujanski blocktowns also exist in various countries of the Free World, mostly to stop violent criminals or extremists. They are locked in a comfortable cell with its own bathroom and toilet. Inmates are subjected to various holograms, either of their own dreams destroyed by continually committing their offense, or their own crimes done to themselves.

However, their imprisonment is shorter than in Bujan, and they are allowed to use scrapbooks and pencils to pass the time in prison.

### Salvationists

A Salvationist in modern Bujan is either a surviving member of the banned Salvation Party, or anyone related to them. They were a separate group from the Terrans, yet they were given the same punishments as Terrans for waging war against Bujan.

Bujanski and other Jerdiskar who committed various crimes associated with Terran people were also considered as Salvationists, barred and shunned from society until they completed their penance to satisfy the people they hurt.

## End of penance

On the final day of penance, the offender and victim must attend a courthouse, preferrably the one where they were sentenced by a judge. The same judge would examine the offender's progress and improvement. The victim may explain and confirm the offender's remorse and compensation, and declare the offender forgiven of their crime as a "repentant".

They shake hands and apologise again. By law, the repentant must bow their head while the judge clears their criminal record, and recites the verses of the Manusmriti again. After that, with a book sealed shut, the judge declares "justice", and both parties may leave the court.

With the victim satisfied and in good terms, the repentant has been cleansed, and the penance officially ends. Usually, the culprit's loved ones may throw a party to celebrate the repentant's release and reconciliation, inviting the other party too.

Some people in Bujan still do not forgive, especially if the person undergoing penance is a Terran, forever associating such people with whatever they (or their group) did wrong. Luckily, many people in Bujan are willing to listen to the one undergoing penance, so if they noticed the punished one being truly sorry for their actions, they would apply for ending the penance sooner. This is the best hope any penitent can have, along with reconciliation.

### Gate fever

One popular custom was to forgive people under penance, cutting their punishments short on certain holidays such as April 16 (Jarilo's Day), June 29 (Amnesty Day), the first days of July (to mark mourning for the July massacres), October 4 (Forgiveness Day, the end of the July massacres), and Kali Puja.

Many people undergoing penance became happier when seeing festive decorations and people attending ceremonial prayers, because it meant that they would have a chance to be freed.

The slang for the joy and excitement anyone going through penance feels when they see or hear anything festive is called "[prison] gate fever", "songbirdness", "singing like a cricket", and "songbird moment".

### "No freedom from consequences"

The Maeranoi whose actions influenced the Bujanski practice of social penance were also subjected to contempt, even after they were forgiven by their victims, cleared of their crimes, and freed from their own penance. In the past, they mocked Bujanski and made them suffer as "consequences" for their own amusement; and in independent Bujan, their own "consequences" forced them to feel sorry for whatever they did wrong.

Some Terrans, who were known for blocking people over trivial matters, or any manner of bullying and abuse, were shunned by some people. They were still allowed to buy goods, board the trains and buses that banned them earlier, or have their social media accounts back. But they would still be banned from some shops, some businesses would refuse to hire them over workers' complaints, and people might sit away from them and mute (but not block) them.

Those Terrans, known back then as "bloka", were avoided because they were seen as cheaters who might throw their friends aside over mistakes. Eventually, they might end up becoming more trusted by society again, either by an improving public reputation, or by the Bujanski custom to abandon grudges after a few years.

Some claimed that the Terran "blokas" would be luckier than their historical victims, because while the victims had to endure no closure under discrimination, the Bujanski culture of justice and avoidance of grudges ensured that the Terrans would eventually make peace with their victims.

This was applying the Terran phrase, "no freedom from consequences", in *every* aspect of daily life, used back at the Terrans who used it to attack the natives. It was more effective, not only in forcing them to think, but to do something to "reverse" their own actions and regain the trust of their victims, if they had not committed worse crimes.

## Other countries

When the Terrans in Bujan fled to other nations, all the countries they fled to were members of the Zvestarid Coalition, so they were investigated and subjected to penance. They were granted homes, a starting amount of money (like every citizen when their countries were freed from Wannaenid rule), and the jobs of their choice, but they may not be allowed in many shops and public venues to remind them of their own crimes.

The killings at Bujan and Irajon frightened the Terran refugees, who were later subjected to an integration programme. By then, the Terrans did not want another punishment or fight against the locals, so they were more willing to explain to interested locals about themselves, to get to know them better.

Penance in other nations was much more successful and safer than in Bujan, because all it took was the trust of the community in order for them to have their own rights restored. And it was shorter than in Bujan, as within weeks or up to October, they were allowed to become citizens, as more and more people trusted them as fellows.

## Notable penitents

The penitents of 1892 were imprisoned on the same day: June 28, 1892, the exact day Bujan became independent.

* "Bridge Backers" (June 28, 1892 - July 10, 1892) - hundreds of Terrans in Olan Province who were lucky after giving some Wannaenid wreckage to the government. Surprised by their loyalty to Bujan, the government rewarded all those present with lots of money: the presence of government officials caused the resentful locals to tolerate them more, even exempt them from bans in some stores.
	+ In turn, the Terrans spent their excessive rewards on various useful things. Firstly, they paid to all of their victims, whom they were supposed to report for ending their penance, resulting in the rebuilding of several towns. Then, they funded several groups who aided poorer people and protected other Terrans from the mobs. Finally, whatever that was left was spent for the government of Arienai to rebuild one of the undersea train tunnels to Bujan.
	+ Touched by their good deeds, the victims declared all of them, and their whole families, "forgiven", courtrooms all over southern Olan were packed to the brim, as judges read the Manusmriti to end their penance.
	+ The Bridge Backers were seen as more loyal to Bujan, along with any Terran under their protection, resulting in several towns becoming "orange" to ensure their safety. In fact, even the government of Arienai offered them with citizenship!
	+ All of them survived Black July.
* Sophie Goodwill (October 28, 1892 - November 28, 1892) - Ljudmila's grandmother, a militant notorious for blocking Bujanski people. For that, she was thrown into a blocktown, where she was forced to see her own crimes done to herself repeatedly. Her nightmares forced her to apologise and reconcile with the people she blocked.
	+ She also wrote about life under penance.
	+ Her "songbird moment" was seeing Kolieda decorations: bells, tinsel, lights, lanterns, snow, fairies, and stars, and the welcoming presence of the winter god Ded Moroz. In one moment of panic, she was hugging an imaginary being who resembled Ded Moroz, weeping tears of joy and crying out, "Save me! Save me!"
* Alexander Leon (September 28, 1892 - November 28, 1892) - a fanboy, who used to block a lot of people over the most trivial mistakes. Arrested and jailed for two months.
* Karoline Maria Irovin (February 2, 1893 - November 1, 1893) - Aged 24 during independence, known as "Bloka Number 9638".
	+ Detained in a block-town prison in Koscheigrad.
	+ An infamous fan artist who left behind tons of hateful comments about the Bujanski natives, and dozens of death threats and degrading insults comparing Bujanski and Wonao people to pigs. Was also notorious for using communist symbols to express her hatred.
	+ Convicted of:
		- "57 counts of wrongful blocks (as in "57 people complained about her")"

&\*\* "harrassment of other users"

* + - "whataboutism"
		- "glorification of colonial oppressors"
		- and "anti-Bujan hatred" and "treason".
	+ Notorious for her scowling mugshot shown in schools all over the kingdom.
	+ Karoline spent seven months in jail, being released on February 1893. During the blocktown, she started to wonder whether was her hate useful in life. Her penance was spent alone, making bricks to rebuild ruined neighbourhoods as a prisoner of war, until she was forgiven on November 1893, nine months later.
* Irapati (April 9, 1954 - June 30, 1954, cut short by forgiveness) - was Paxoti's rival who hated her and even went as far as block her online. Thrown into jail for violating Bujanski law, later reconciled with her and her family.
	+ On the day she went to prison, someone drew a red X on her house, and a note warning others to stay away from Irapati's family until the end of penance. Paxoti herself thought that this was no longer practiced, yet a friend who found out explained that she thought that Irapati wanted to become more "Terran".
	+ Her songbird moment was Independence Day, because Paxoti visited her in prison several times out of pity before the New Year. Irapati thought that Paxoti was not so bad, but she was rather cool and talented. Because she wanted to be friends with Paxoti, she agreed to forgive her and end her penance: which happened to be two days later, at the end of June.
* Takasoka (July - October 1945) - mocked Radumo for her girly attitude and not focusing on science, shamed for making fun of her suffering from her parents.
	+ In a fit of anger she blocked Radumo on social media and banned her from her fashion group, leading to her arrest as her block and ban did not have a valid reason.
	+ Her parents were ordered to go outside and stand in shame, as someone angrily smeared a big red X on their mansion's walls. It shows that one of the residents is a "blocker", seen as unworthy of trust, and possibly shaming the whole family as also "blockers".
	+ Radumo once visited her in prison by projecting a hologram of a fairy, wanting to know about her background and motives. With her release and penance, she reconciled with Radumo and apologised to her; and finally Radumo forgave her.
	+ Her songbird moment was seeing the white lanterns of Kali Puja, and worshippers praying at temples of Kali Ma. Driven by her own guilt, she asked Radumo to bring her to a temple, so she can pray together. In the temple, Takasoka prostrated, weeping and sobbing, pleading for Kali Ma to forgive her sins and thanking Her for Her guidance.

## In other languages:

* Late Palguenian:
	+ skaurhoima - "the new road of shame, repenance"
* Late Ardeschen:
	+ naarautar - "shamefulness"
	+ legiaxara - "smelting [a person's attitude]"
* Ēosomê:
	+ kahānuran - "shamefulness" (hānura - shame)
	+ kanihezan - "shunning, banishment" (nihez - "one with a burned face, an outlaw")
* Bujanski:
	+ sælgrunna (slæpitǐ + grustǐ) - "building in sorrow", repentance
* Bujanski:
	+ slošatǐ Manusmriti - "to listen to the Manusmriti, to begin or end penance"

## Trivia

* A person who undergoes penance is a "penitent" or a "repentant". They are also variously known as "offender", "criminal", "culprit".
* Many Bujanski novels are about someone who loses a friend over a big mistake and a misunderstanding. In that genre, "mending or folding" (referring to reconciling or abandoning), the imprisonment and penance are not supposed to be shown as a rule, because they were meant to help people handle losing a friend, or coping with being expelled from their favourite venue.

### Influences

* The Bujanski belief in penance to purify a person's attitude, rather than just appease the offended or simply to suffer, was based on the Hindu practice of prayaschitta (प्रायश्चित्त). It involves restrictions and vows, prayers and offerings, confessions and apologies: all to remind the repentant person never to commit the offense again.
	+ The pain a devotee endures during the penance is to remind them about the harm their offense could do to their victim(s).
	+ An example of how prayaschitta works is in Manusmriti 11:227-233.
	+ In Bujanski law, criminals who undergo social penance would have these verses read to them by a judge, at the start and end of the penance in court. The verses remind the criminal that the only way out of penance is totally rejecting their crime - and to complete their penance, fix whatever they damaged and earn the forgiveness of their victims.
* The author also remembered that the attitude of "to be truly forgiven, you must undo your crime, repair what you have damaged, and [if possible] earn the forgiveness of the people you hurt", might had existed in Zoroastrianism, Asatru, Hinduism, Judaism, and Islam.
	+ It itself is acting on the belief of "No justice, no peace", extending it all the way to everyday life and actions. This is to minimise suffering for the victim, but force the offender to repay any damages until the victim decides it is done, because many offenses cannot be fixed by a simple apology.
	+ There *will* eventually be people who will never forgive you, but you must continue to be better, to never repeat your offence ever again. Most of the time, those people will *NOT* plot anything to kill you, so do not be afraid of them.
* Another possible influence for Denlotian and Bujanski legal punishments would be the movie "Drag Me To Hell".
	+ Like the main character in the movie, most offenders who committed certain crimes were punished, to force them to apologise to their victims. They were given little to no pity until their penance was finished, and their victims were satisfied.
* In Bujanski culture and law, it is considered extremely offensive to tell someone who mourns a loss anything about "growth, growing up, learning and growing, move on, get over it, let it go, new opportunities, new doors are opening". Saying these is considered a "Terran crime", associating the speaker with Terran beliefs, such as betrayal, self-harm, selfishness, and pettiness.
	+ To truly reassure a person who is sad, a Bujanski must instead suggest the mourner to do something useful, assure that it will pass, or perhaps to curse the one who causes the loss.
	+ Things considered as losses in Bujanski culture include: a broken friendship over a mistake, a ban from a group or venue, a closed shop or venue, not getting hired in your favourite job, or the end of a media franchise.
	+ Losing a match or game, being refused by a lover, and a divorce are not considered as losses, so while it may be legal to use those terms, it is very advisable to avoid them too.
	+ Even if a penitent also cries, it is strongly advisable NEVER to use those terms if you want to comfort the penitent.

## See also

* Denlotian laws
* Bujanski taboos

## External links

* Hindu ethics: one, two
* Rodnover ethics (related to the Bujanski religion)