· Ahimsa:
o Non harm.
· Different beings have different karmic worths. Human > Plant/mouse.
o Jerryson:
§ "The killing of a depraved bandit retains the lowest karmic reliability."
Moral codes:
· 3 merits
· Dana, Bhavana and Sila.
· Sila:
o Right speech, action and livelihood.
· 5 precepts:
o No harm.
o No taking what is not given.
o No sexual misconduct.
o No false speech.
o No intoxicants.
§ These will basically result in being removed from the Monastic order.
· Kusala:
o Skilful.
· Akusla:
o Unskilful.
§ Decided by the motivation and the action.
o Dalai Lama:
§ "Any action, whether violence or non-violence, is ultimately dependent on motivation."
Karma:
· Built up by Kusala actions
· Nibbedhika sutta:
o "Intention is karma."
· Harvey:
o "It is the psychological impact behind an action that is karma."
· Mahayana ethics:
o Karuna, prajna, upaya and metta.
o Metta:
§ Keown:
· "An even-minded serenity towards beings."
Vegetarianism:
· For:
o 1st precept:
§ Protection from harm.
o Metta:
§ Loving kindness.
o Jatakas:
§ Tigress story: the Buddha offers up his own body to be eaten.
o Jivaka Sutta:
§ "Meat should not be eaten in 3 circumstances; when it has been seen or heard or suspected that a living being has been purposefully killed for the eater."
o Bodhisattva Bhumi:
§ Bodhisattva's compassion should not allow animals to be harmed.
o Palmo:
§ "Should not eat our friends."
o Ashoka was vegitarian.
· Against:
o Jataka:
§ "Animals are better to eat than humans."
o Dalai Lama:
§ "we must absolutely promote vegetarianism."
"I'm a Tibetan monk, not a vegetarian."
§ Eats meat for medicinal purposes
o Buddha:
§ Died eating 'Pig mild.'
· Meat or truffles??
o Punna:
§ Monks eat what they are given.
o Harvey:
§ "Preferable to eat the meat of an animal which is less intelligent."
Right livelihood:
· Tipitaka:
o Anything that is ethical and contributes to society.
o Wrong livelihood:
§ Trading in weapons, meat, intoxicants and poison.
· Goenka:
o "if the intention is to play a useful role in society in order to support oneself and help others, then the work one does is right livelihood."
· Buddha banned slavery.
Violence:
· Remorseful king:
o Theravada story of a King who must kill his enemies, although he is remorseful to do so this is his duty and so he must.
· Buddha:
o "A mind of violence will result in suffering in purgatory."
o " Live with care, kindness and compassion."
· Rahula:
o "Sangha is ready to lay down their lives."
· Dhammananda:
o Self defence;
§ "The Buddha did not teach his followers to surrender to any form of evil power."
· Mahavamsa:
o "Killing of non-Buddhists is equivalent to the killing of cattle."
· Vietnam:
o 40k Thai volunteers for defence of the faith.
· Bartholomeuz (Theraveda):
o "For defensive measures, war can be justified."
· Dhammapada:
o "You will be punished by your anger."
· Dalai Lama:
o "love is the very basis of our survival."
· Pali Canon:
o On military:
§ Seen as a natural part of society.
§ Violence seen as a necessary tool.
o Upaya:
§ Compassionate violence may reduce negative karma.
§ Can justify anything provided karma and the spread of Buddhism are the end goal.
· Lotus Sutra:
o Upaya:
§ "Peace by peaceful means."
§ Forgiveness is skilful as it avoids the 3 poisons and negative karma.
o Dependent origination:
§ In a meaningless world ethics are without foundation so violence doesn't matter.
§ However...
· All are interlinked.
o Hanh:
§ "To harm others is to harm oneself."
o Zen:
§ Soldiers should become "completely at one with his work"
Ahimsa- 14th Dalai Lama and T Bartholomeusz
· Dalai Lama on violence = ‘any action, whether violence or non-violence, is ultimately dependent on motivation’
· Dalai Lama on meat consumption = ‘we must promote vegetarianism’ and ‘man can live without meat’ but ‘I am a Tibetan monk, not a vegetarian’
· Dalai Lama on Ahimsa = ‘non-violence is the reflection of inner peace’ and ‘we can never obtain peace in the outer world before we make peace within ourselves’
· Bartholomeusz validating Theravada just war thinking = ‘for defensive measures, war can be justified’ and self -defence ‘would have minimal negative Karmic repercussions’
· Bartholomeusz invalidating Theravada just war thinking = ‘non-violdence is an overriding theme within the Pali Canon’ and ‘the early texts do not contain just-war ideology’