Five Cardinal Sins
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Five Cardinal Sins (five heinous crimes, five contrary acts, five boundless actions or five gravely wrong acts) are variously defined, but the most common is:
- (1) killing one’s father,
- (2) killing one’s mother,
- 3) killing an arhat,
- (4) shedding the blood of a buddha, and
- (5) causing a schism or destroying the harmony of the sangha.
They are sometimes also referred to as the five immediate misdeeds since they bring about almost immediate karmic retribution either in the same life or upon death.
See also “seven cardinal sins.”