सर्वे भवन्तु सुखिन: सर्वे सन्तु निरामया:। सर्वे भद्राणि पश्यन्तु। मा कश्चित् दु:खभाग भवेत् ।। |
Happiness be unto all. Perfect health be unto all. May all see what is good. May all be free from suffering. |
i. Non-violence, Non-injury, Harmlessness; |
Ahimsa is not merely non-killing, in its truest form it is to abstain from even the slightest harm to any living creature. Whether through deed, mentally, or verbally. Practice this by seeing Atman or God in everything. By injuring others you injure your own self and/or Gods creation. Ahimsa can only be practiced by a strong person, it is a wonderful quality of the heart! How to practice Ahimsa: One who has Patience, Forgiveness, and Self-Control can practice Ahimsa with ease. In practicing Ahimsa one should put up with insults, rebukes, and verbal assaults. Never retaliate or wish ill or harm to anyone Not to kill or hurt any being or wound its feelings is known as Ahimsa or non-violence. In Yajnavalkya Samhita it is mentioned that not to hurt any living being in any way, by mind, speech and action, is known as Ahimsa or non-violence. Then, what to say of killing a human being?. The sphere of non-violence is, therefore, very vast and its practice very difficult. The great commentator Vyasa says : "Without violence one can neither obtain any object of enjoyment in this world nor can one perform any physical act.", Let us consider Ahimsa now in detail:- Intellectual Non-violence (Baudhika Ahimsa) The main source of non-violence is the intellect. It is the intellect that ascertains good or evil and engages the mind in speech or in action. Hence complete renunciation of violence in thought, speech and body is perfect non-violence. One does not develop the feeling of revenge or hatred even towards the person who has been unjust or hostile. Now it is clear that there is no possibility of any thought of stealing other's wealth or avenging oneself upon others by insulting or harming them, in the heart of one who is observing non-violence. Non-violence of Speech (Vachika Ahimsa) Violence of Speech is practised in various ways, by insulting somebody by bad abusive words, by speaking angrily, permitting injury to someone and advising somebody to harm another. The methods of getting rid of such habits of violence are to speak sweetly and softly without hypocrisy or deceit and to observe silence according to one's circumstances and capacity. Now we will illustrate it by examples. It is a familiar experience to all that everyone is hurt by harsh words. A wound caused by a weapon can heal in course of time, but one caused by bitter words lasts till death. There are many cases of young men and women committing suicide because of insult by violent words. The soul is the same in all living beings. This soul is neither small in a germ or a poor beggar, nor is it big in an elephant or a wealthy person. It is necessary to develop the feeling of self in all and everywhere, in equal measure. Then, and then alone, Ahimsa or Non-violence can be practised as a great universal vow. Therefore, if one speaks while observing non-violence, we should speak gently, lovingly and softly, or we should remain quiet. Silence fulfils all purposes.' Silence prevents violence caused by speech. Physical Non-violence (Sharirika Ahimsa) By intellectual and vocal non-violence, we mean not killing or separating the life of a being from its body. A living being is killed because we are selfish. For instance, one may kill an animal to satisfy one's hunger, or one may kill another to defend oneself, or one may kill animals just to satisfy one's palate, or for the sake of wealth, etc. Here is the instruction of the great sage Manu : "One who for the sake of selfish pleasure kills creatures which are not violent, does not find happiness in life here or hereafter." To kill an animal for its hide or for satisfying the craving of the palate, or for satisfaction of lust, is not an ordinary but a great sin. When a nail or a thorn enters into the human body one trembles with pain. You can, therefore, imagine how much pain an animal must be suffering at the time it is being killed! By killing dacoits, enemies, birds, insects or animals harmful to his subjects, a king commits the lesser sin and acquires greater virtue. Thus, in every field one should take into account gain and loss. This is the way for the people of the world. Keeping this fact in view, great sages have detailed in the Smritis the duties of individuals and classes of people. For example, it is said: "Kill the aggressor coming to you.'" violence is of three kinds :- i) To kill a being oneself, ii) To have it killed by others, or iii) To praise a person who kills it. The Yajurveda says: "When a Yogi, devoted to non-violence, has cultivated the feeling of Self towards all beings, he does nothing which may bring him grief or attachment." It should be the aim of every individual to reach this height. |
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