Avoid Taking the Life of Beings
Nearly every morality system in the world has some denouncement of murder. For Wiccans, it is “harm none.” For Hindus, it is ahimsa or “non-injury.” For Christians, it is “thou shalt not eliminate.” For Buddhists, it is the first precept, “avoid taking the life of beings.” While Christians, Jews and Muslims typically think about a proscription against eliminating as directed exclusively at the murder of fellow human beings, Buddhists, Jains and some Hindus and Pagans take the refusal to take life even further. These individuals decline to take lives other than simply human life. They are often vegetarians in order to prevent eliminating animals. Some Jains are known for taking the proscription against eliminating to amazing levels and use veils to prevent breathing in bugs. Some stop consuming completely to prevent eliminating plants.
The merits of vegetarianism are a separate argument, however this Buddhist require compassion can be extended previous merely declining to commit murder. To practice this, stop eliminating unnecessarily. Squashing the brown recluse spider that got into a toddler’s room is reasonable. The spider might do major harm to the kid and even to the adult. Stepping on the wolf spider that was sitting on a garden rock, however, is unneeded. It is not a hazardous creature, and it remained in its natural environment. Put this precept into practice by thinking about if killing even the smallest creature is truly essential or if there is a much better path.
