Disciple:
Master, a few people I know are very charitable, they donate to charities of various causes depending on their beliefs, however, some of them engage in unscrupulous acts either as part of their profession or out of their nature, these actions harm innocent people. Since they donate to charities, are they free from guilt of their actions?
Master:
They lack moral perspective. When someone commits an evil act and, without correcting its harmful effects, performs a charitable deed such as donating to a cause etc (it is a common tactic for evildoers to appear kind and charitable in public while deceiving themselves about their guilt).
This is because good deeds do not exonerate one from past misdeeds. A person cannot be both good and evil at the same time. Even if someone donates to hundred charities, they remain evil if they have knowingly harmed even a single innocent.
Continuing to do evil in one area while donating to charities in another does not make a difference to the victims; it is merely performative.
A person with true moral perspective corrects their wrongs rather than simply compensating by applying a superficial coat of paint to their broken conscience and alleviating their guilt, unless they remain consumed by ignorance and delusion still.
Its far more noble to not commit evil acts than to try to mask them with hollow good gestures.
Disciple:
Why do these evil people pretend to do good deeds or try to compensate? Why not just accept who they are instead of resorting to superficial acts?
Master:
Some people truly lack conscience, they do these solely for appearances. But many do have a conscience.
Evil deeds might bring short-term benefits, yet the ensuing regret and guilt will hit them like a thousand bricks on their hearts later.