The word 愧疚 is formed by combining two characters, each conveying a profound aspect of remorse. The first character, 愧, fundamentally depicts the feeling of shame, often visualized as a "standing heart" beside a demon or ghost, suggesting a heart disturbed by a bad conscience. The second, 疚, represents a lingering sickness or chronic ailment, specifically of the heart or mind. Together, they fuse the acute, socially-facing emotion of shame (愧) with the deep, internalized, and persistent pain of self-reproach (疚), creating a single concept for a gnawing, sick-at-heart guilt that encompasses both the shame of the act and the enduring personal affliction it causes.