user24530: If I'm understanding correctly, kukkucca refers to the lack of guilt in the face of wrongdoing and ahirika translates to remorse or guilt. If that is the case, when someone does something bad he's trapped in defilement, either by feeling or by not feeling remorse. Am I missing something in translation?

user23952: According to the Buddha, shame is one of the seven treasures. A shameless person is without a method of escape from their defilement. Having a healthy sense of shame provides an escape; therefore, shame is a treasure to guard (and develop).
See: Treasure - Dhana Sutta  (AN 7:6) and AN 7:7

user43: Ahirika is shamelessness, it's when you don't feel guilty about doing something morally wrong because in your mind your action is either not harmful or justified.
Uddhacca-kukkucca is anxiety one gets from overthinking and  trying to be 100% perfect. You are trying to be perfect but you are caught in between several factors and constraints, and no matter what you do, it seems like you will be at fault.
Ahirika is a "beginner's" defilement, characteristic of persons with little to no shila training (either the worldly training given by parents and school teachers, or religious ethics, or the Buddhist training). As person is trained by one of these, he or she develops a sense of Hiri-Otappa at some point, which is a kind of moral compass that guides one towards the good and away from the bad.
Uddhacca-kukkucca is an "advanced" fetter, characteristic of students taking their shila training very seriously and seeing faults even in the tiniest offenses. Developing u-k is generally good news, because it means the person will finally not turn the blind eye to many of the more subtle of their habitual issues, so there's finally a chance of making significant progress. However, the flip side of this perfectionistic approach to training is the uncomfortable state of worry and anxiety, a self-cultivated inner fear of doing something in a less than perfect way. That's uddhacca-kukkucca. In the Buddhist model of fetters it remains active all the way until the arahantship.
If you think about it, this fetter, along with the other advanced fetters like "immaterial rebirth desire" is what drives one onward through the progression of jhanas towards more and more refined states. So in a way it is helpful, it plays its role.

24530: <p>If I'm understanding correctly, <code>kukkucca</code> refers to the lack of guilt in the face of wrongdoing and <code>ahirika</code> translates to remorse or guilt. If that is the case, when someone does something bad he's trapped in defilement, either by feeling or by not feeling remorse. Am I missing something in translation?</p>
 23952: <p>According to the Buddha, shame is one of the seven treasures. A shameless person is without a method of escape from their defilement. Having a healthy sense of shame provides an escape; therefore, shame is a treasure to guard (and develop).</p>
<p>See: <a href="https://www.dhammatalks.org/suttas/AN/AN7_6.html" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Treasure - Dhana Sutta  (AN 7:6)</a> and <a href="https://www.dhammatalks.org/suttas/AN/AN7_7.html" rel="nofollow noreferrer">AN 7:7</a></p>
 43: <p>Ahirika is shamelessness, it's when you don't feel guilty about doing something morally wrong because in your mind your action is either not harmful or justified.</p>
<p>Uddhacca-kukkucca is anxiety one gets from overthinking and  trying to be 100% perfect. You are trying to be perfect but you are caught in between several factors and constraints, and no matter what you do, it seems like you will be at fault.</p>
<p>Ahirika is a &quot;beginner's&quot; defilement, characteristic of persons with little to no shila training (either the worldly training given by parents and school teachers, or religious ethics, or the Buddhist training). As person is trained by one of these, he or she develops a sense of Hiri-Otappa at some point, which is a kind of moral compass that guides one towards the good and away from the bad.</p>
<p>Uddhacca-kukkucca is an &quot;advanced&quot; fetter, characteristic of students taking their shila training very seriously and seeing faults even in the tiniest offenses. Developing u-k is generally good news, because it means the person will finally not turn the blind eye to many of the more subtle of their habitual issues, so there's finally a chance of making significant progress. However, the flip side of this perfectionistic approach to training is the uncomfortable state of worry and anxiety, a self-cultivated inner fear of doing something in a less than perfect way. That's uddhacca-kukkucca. In the Buddhist model of fetters it remains active all the way until the arahantship.</p>
<p>If you think about it, this fetter, along with the other advanced fetters like &quot;immaterial rebirth desire&quot; is what drives one onward through the progression of jhanas towards more and more refined states. So in a way it is helpful, it plays its role.</p>
