Virtual Dhamma-Vinaya Vihara
Vihara => Open Vihara - [Offenes Vihara] => Topic started by: Dhammañāṇa on May 27, 2018, 07:50:40 AM
-
Dhamma and Abortion
My person likes to take leave to speak clear in this matter.
The Buddha and his Dhamma is very clear in regard of what is skillful and what is unskillful and even more clear in regard of training precepts. There are no "but"s and "if"s. Taking, destroying life, killing, intentionaly, by will or acceptence, causing the end of a beings life, either by one self, or in giving signs, verbalisations of order and approve to end a life, is breaking the precept.
As for kamma, the course of such, even it does not appear as physical action later on it, the thought of approve of destruction of live, is likewise kamma, and in approving one mentally kills and causes unskillful kamma.
To vote for approve of abortion would be already even a break of the Sila, as soon anybody acts on a law allowing such, created on approve by election.
In this case, if killing, or helping and assisting to kill a human being, one does good to be clear that such is not a light offense, a light case of kamma.
In regard of monks, it is therefore no wonder, that such an action, either by own act, or speech, by assisting and taking part is an immediately reason to be no more afflicted to the order of monks, since having transgressed one of the four grave precepts, parajika (http://zugangzureinsicht.org/html/lib/authors/thanissaro/bmc1/bmc1.ch04_en.html).
There are many people around, yet appearing as popular monks, who actually aren't monks any more. Having even engaged in political undertakings for approve by speech.
Aslo in the time of the Buddha, there have been many monks acting and engaging in killing humans, even for winning favor and for livelihood. There are many cases of such counted in the Vinaya and it's probably the most clear treated issue.
It's also good to be aware that killing of humans is not that far as most think and it's also good to consider, that the chance that a human being get killed by mother or father is more then a hundered to a thousand times higher than to be killed by someone else.
That should be also seen as a clear reason why you owe that much to your parents, since it is not so not so usually that someone takes on to take care and give in such a huge amount.
As for association with people of wrong view, it's not a protection and no blessing to be in association with people holding such as approving killing. If there is a chance to avoid such, one does a good step toward protection and getting blessed.
As for the cases where someone might reasonable not be aware of killing a living being, and that does not include mental reasoning of justification afterwards and requires honesty of course, there is no transgression. A case of doubt or fear of such would.
Virtue and goodwill is not just a hypocritical tool for gaining freedom from remorse and the possibility for gaining right concentration, path and fruits, liberation up to the highes amount.
In cases you had acted wrong, it's very needed to confess it and to promise to abstain from such in future, which would lift you out of the hole you have falken into to progress on the path.
And not even self-defense is a reasoning for taking live, not to speak of the many other deluded reasoning.
Happy, at rest,
may all beings be happy at heart.
Whatever beings there may be,
weak or strong, without exception,
long, large,
middling, short,
subtle, blatant,
seen & unseen,
near & far,
born & seeking birth:
Let no one deceive another
or despise anyone anywhere,
or through anger or irritation
wish for another to suffer.
And what is birth? Whatever birth, taking birth, descent, coming-to-be, coming-forth, appearance of aggregates, & acquisition of [sense] spheres of the various beings in this or that group of beings, that is called birth.
...
“And what is death? Whatever deceasing, passing away, breaking up, disappearance, dying, death, completion of time, break up of the aggregates, casting off of the body, interruption in the life faculty of the various beings in this or that group of beings, that is called death.
If also Nyom {removed name} , out of compassion, or seeing the duty in regard of his relation, likes to share it, seeing the danger of an Element as well that bound being together for a unfortunate result, he may do such with joy of doing a good deed, even in such an environment (https://dhammawheel.com/viewtopic.php?f=13&t=30243&p=473573#p473573). Duty releases while wise compassioned actions increase merits for such, giving protection of danger from an Element, dwelling in the middle of wrong views.
Anumodana!