Question about the First Precept

gnu

One of the things I like about Buddhism is the common sense nature of its teachings and that it fits in with my morality and the way I want to live. For most of what I've read so far I find that I nod and agree and don't challenge it because it seems so logical and "normal". (I still haven't got to grips with the idea of rebirth but that's a whole other question!)

But I started thinking about not killing or harming beings. That sounds just fine. But what is a being and where do I draw the line? Are antibiotics wrong (for non life-threatening illnesses)? Now I know they're not to me. But who gets to decide the hierarchy of living things? Why should I or a cow matter more than a cabbage or an amoeba? It seems to me that it's not life that is sacred but conscious beings (ie ourselves or the beings most like us, animals). I've heard people claim that the whole universe is conscious down to the rocks (but I've never quite understood that one).

I know what I feel on this and I'm not going to sweat it but I'm just curious to know more of the basis for this precept.

bou

The short answer is I don't know and never heard anything very specific about it.
As I understand it, the Buddha gave a precept to monks not to kill animals or insects. Interestingly, they were allowed to accept meat offered to them where it had not been acquired specifically for them. It sounds though like the preferred option was vegetarian. Even when you eat vegetarian there are insects killed in the harvesting process so there's some unavoidable killing there too. There's no mention that one should not take medicines e.g. when there's intestinal parasites so keeping oneself healthy is not frowned upon.
I think that human life is regarded as particularly special in that we have the intellectual ability to hear, understand and put into practice the spiritual path of awakening. For that, it is very good to keep one's health and live a long life so therefore it is probably better to get rid of diseases. Also, if we have a disease it can spread to others which is not good.
I guess we will continue to commit negative actions, intentionally and unintentionally, until we attain some quite high level of realization. The thing is to avoid as much as possible intentional negative actions but at the same time we have to find a way to live, one that is the least harmful we can manage.

RossFixxxed

I always though it was more about deliberately killing something. Some zen masters eat fish but left the nets open at night so the insects could feed...(?) It's impossible to walk without killing some kind of tiny organisms, eat vegetables etc... It's common sense I guess (which is actually a thing in Buddhism. It's amazingly liberating). Don't stamp on spiders or kill anything deliberately. I've had to make the decision of reversing over a fox that had NO chance of surviving being hit by the car. It's a moral dilemma but you have to do what your heart says in that case.

R

gnu

I suppose my question was mainly about the theoretical aspect of it. I'll just keep doing the best I can not to harm anything. I'm not vegetarian yet but I'm eating a lot less meat than I used to, for lots of reasons other than Buddhism.

MeditationMom

When we logically follow this notion of not harming another being the first thing is that we realize that our life depends on the many lives of others. The animals we may still be eating, the medications we depend on that have taken many lives, the ants we step on, etc, etc.

The important thing is to grow one's awareness of how many beings must suffer for us to live, and then instead of feeling guilty to become deeply humble and grateful. The more our humility and gratitude grows, the less we will require, and the less harm we will cause. But it will never be zero.

As our awareness grows, even stones will reveal themselves to us as beings. And in the end - when the being-ness of all things is understood, as well as the interconnectedness and oneness of all things - who is there to be harmed?

gnu

Thanks for the valuable insights MeditationMom. In one of your other posts you mentioned humility and I've often wondered about it. What you said just now struck me as so true. How none of us could survive without other beings. I always believed that I want to be completely independent and what you said made me realise that it's neither possible nor desirable. I suppose we're all interconnected components of a whole and I hope I'll be more grateful and aware for all the beings that enable me to live.

MeditationMom

Thank you , gnu

by gnu - I always believed that I want to be completely independent

Me, too. Here is something to contemplate - how would we realize "complete independence" if we didn't realize "complete dependence" first? And, aren't the two exactly the same thing the deeper you look into the matter?