Attitude
Dear friends,
Interesting thoughts I found on Facebook I would like to share here. Do take a pleasant read and contemplate what is being said. Think deeply and let it change something within us.
Tsem Rinpoche
The Buddhist Attitude to Animal Life
If we believe that animals were created by someone for men, it would follow that men were also created for animals since s…ome animals do eat human flesh.
Animals are said to be conscious only of the present. They live with no concern for the past or future. Likewise, little children seem to have no notion of the future. They also live in the present until their faculties of memory and imagination are developed.
Men possesses the faculty of reasoning. The gap between man and animal widens only to the extent that man develops his reasoning faculty and acts accordingly. Buddhists accept that animals not only possesses instinctive power but also, to a lesser degree, thinking power.
In some respects, animals are superior to men. Dogs have a keener sense of hearing; insects have a keener sense of smell; hawks are speedier; eagles can see a greater distance. Undoubtedly, men are wiser; but men have so much to learn from the ants and bees. Much of the animal is still in us. But we also have much more: we have the potential of spiritual development.
Buddhism cannot accept that animals were created by someone for men; if animals were created for men then it could follow that men were also created for animals since there are some animals which eat human flesh.
Buddhists are encouraged to love all living beings and not to restrict their love only to human beings. They should practise loving kindness towards every living being. The Buddha’s advice is that is not right for us to take away the life of any living being since every living being has a right to exist. Animals also have fear and pain as do human beings. It is wrong to take away their lives. We should not misuse our intelligence and strength to destroy animals even though they may sometimes be a nuisance to us. Animals need our sympathy. Destroying them is not the only method to get rid of them. Every living being is contributing something to maintain this world. It is unfair for us to deprive their living rights.
In his Handbook of reason, D. Runes says:
‘We can hardly speak of morals in relation to creatures we systematically devour, mostly singed but sometimes raw. There are men and women who practise horse love, dog love, cat love. But these very same people would take a deer or a calf by its neck, slit its throat, drink the blood straight away or in a pudding, and bite off the flesh. And who is to say that a horse they cherish is nobler than a deer they feed on? Indeed, there are people who eat cats, dogs and horses but would use a cow only as a work animal.’
Some cry over a little bird or goldfish that expired; others travel long distances to catch fish on a nasty hook for food or mere pleasure or shooting birds for fun. Some go into deep jungle for hunting animals as a game while others spend a lot to keep the same animals at home as their pets.
Some keep frogs to foretell the weather; others cut off their legs and fry them. Some tenderly tend birds in gilded cages; others serve them for breakfast. It is all quite confusing. One thought stands out in a world where man clubs man for gain or sheer gore, there is hardly time to ponder over his morals in relation to animals.
Every religion advises us to love our fellow humans. Some even teach us to love them more if they belong to the same religion. But Buddhism is supreme in that it teaches us to show equal care and compassion for each and every creature in the universe. The destruction of any creature represents a disturbance of the Universal Order.
The Buddha was very clear in His teachings against any form of cruelty to any living being. One day the Buddha saw a man preparing to make a animal sacrifice. On being asked why he was going to kill innocent animals, the man replied that it was because it would please the gods. The Buddha then offered Himself as the sacrifice, saying that if the life of an animal would please the gods then the life of a human being, more valuable, would please the gods even more.
Man’s cruelty towards animals is another expression of his uncontrolled greed. Today we destroy animals and deprive them of their natural rights so that we can expend our environments for our convenience. But we are already beginning to pay the price for this selfish and cruel act. Our environment is threatened and if we do not take stern measures for the survival of other creatures, our own existence on this earth may not be guaranteed. It is true that the existence of certain creatures is a threat to human existence. But we never consider that human are the greatest threat to every living being on this earth and in the air whereas the existence of other creatures is a threat only to certain living beings.
Since every creature contributes something for the maintenance of the planet and atmosphere, destroying them is not the solution to overcome our disturbances. We should take other measures to maintain the balance of nature.
Source: https://www.facebook.com/venbadulle.sangarathana
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Thank you Rinpoche for sharing this beautiful thoughts from Face Book. Some thoughts which we have to think about it deeply. I do agree from these article…..Man’s cruelty towards animals is another expression of his uncontrolled greed.Human attitudes towards animals are becoming of increasing importance in the areas of conservation and welfare. Destroying animals for their convenience,selfish act and greed is like destroying nature.
All animal deserved to live and free from sufferings and pain.
Thank you Rinpoche for sharing this article. As a Buddhist practitioner, it is best for us to be vegetarian or vegan. Although it is a bit hard for someone to be completely switching from eating meat to eating only vegetable, we can also do it slowly and eventually we will give up eating meat.
With folded palms,
Vivian
看了这编文章後, 非常的赞成仁波切的说法 !
任何动物和人类一样, 都会痛,会有感觉,投身于被宠爱的动物还好,但是投身于被宰杀的动物, 那是多么的心痛 ! 有一句话说得非常的赞成, 就是对任何的动物或宠物, 就是 [ 如果不爱它们, 不要紧, 但至少不要伤害它们 ] ! 它们也一样有妈妈, 有感情,有感觉,只是人类看不明白,听不明白它们的语言而已!
文章里说道 : Man’s cruelty towards animals is another expression of his uncontrolled greed. 我是非常赞成这说法, 就是现在的人类欲望和贪念不断的增加,造成人类严重杀害无辜, 无情的得到他们所要得到的。
希望人类可以对动物拥有一个爱心和怜悯之心, 好好的爱护它们 !
持素~~也是其中一个最好的方法爱护动物 !
以下是持素的好处, 请继续游览 :
https://www.tsemrinpoche.com/tsem-tulku-rinpoche/current-affairs/vegetarianism-a-diet-of-loving-kindness.html
感恩合十
YEO KWAI GIN
Human is the cruelest creature on the planet. We are selfish and greedy. We destroy animals and deprive them of their natural rights so that we can expend our environments for our convenience. I was one of them. Thank you Rinpoche for all the posts. They helps me to realize that animals have the right to live and they can feel pain as well. I think I have started to appreciate them and have more care and love for them. Thank you for the sharing.
Dear Rinpoche, I don’t agree that animals are made for humans to consume nor sacrificing animals will please the gods and praying to gods is not the correct thing to do too. Because gods are not enlightened beings so they will get angry when people break their promises but enlightened beings won’t. They no longer have any feelings anymore. All they want to do and will do is to help all beings to become enlighten too. But they will grant the things that people asks for based on their merits to receive and what will they do once their dreams have been granted. I don’t care what anyone thinks of me, I just want to say that I believe that no animal should be killed, slaughtered or sacrificed. We should just let them live by their own. Start loving and taking care of animals instead of taking advantages on them.
I definitely do agree that our attitude is very important, it defines us and eventually contributes to actions performed by us. I also believe that every living being exists for a reason, they help to balance our nature.
We do hear and speak many arguments about the way we treat animals, however, this sentence “Man’s cruelty towards animals is another expression of his uncontrolled greed”, speaks well about the act behind.
Not to ill treat or love creatures that cannot speak or say thank you is really a good measurement to our kindness or “level”.
I appreciate also the line saying: “…In some respects, animals are superior to men. Dogs have a keener sense of hearing; insects have a keener sense of smell; hawks are speedier; eagles can see a greater distance…’. It reminds me, as human we are not superior at all sense.
Yes, the Buddha expounded this in one of his key teachings and more than that, every single greedy or selfish action we perpetrate on weak animals would return to us in equal or bigger repercussions. In fact, we are truly fortunate if it does return within this lifetime because many of the actions will only return to us in future lifetimes or worse still, we would take rebirth as one of these animals that is destined to perpetuate more negative karma by being an animal that kills to eat or one that suffers a whole lifetime in fear of pain and utter sufferings. The Lamrim covers this and definitely one of the methods to avoid such a fate would be to avoid harming animals in any way or form.
其实，根据佛的教义，众生平等，不能因为说:人是万物之零，所以就能为所欲为。学佛的目的，就是希望自己能够变成更好的人，能修身养性，让自己的态度能变得更好，所以说把自己的态度调整成和佛一样的境界，自然也就能活的自在了。
Thank you for the sharing Rinpoche. The person who wrote this ,have give some deep thoughts and analysis into human behaviors in reality.
We claim to be the most developed beings on earth with the gift of intellect and consciousness.But our mind is often clouded by wrong views which derived from selfishness and uncontrolled pleasure of for the senses.
If the true Buddhist,actually practice the Dharma that was thought by the Buddha. Then we should respect the cycle of existence.Compassion should be our way of life.Mutual respect between human and the animal realm would bring harmony to our existence.
Even in this century there are still many people who go animal hunting just for pleasure, a term that is labeled as sport. In this so called sport hundreds of thousands of animals had been tracked, hunted and killed.
Then there are animals who were and still are hunted for their skin and pelts just so humans can feel the softness of their fur on our body.
And the list goes on…..until demands are stopped then the killing will too.
Human race has already ventured into most of the animals living quarters. We should rebuild the animals living areas to maintain the equilibrium of our world. Animals rights must be equally on the same level with human or higher and they should deserve more rights than human. Respect animals rights is also a form of teaching to our own inner self. Thank you Rinpoche for sharing a valuable teaching on this blog.
Buddha really show in action how he treat all the creature in universe is equal. He willing to sacrifice himself to save the animal . i agree that sometime man treat animals cruely when man want to get the things from animals.we have to take other measures to maintain the balance.
Thanks Rinpoche for this sharing…
According Buddhist teaching, every sentient being maybe is countless past life mothers so we should see them equally…
So we should generate more and more compassion to them to treat them equally…
I really like the deeper thought in this topic, we all have some what of an animalistic behaviour in ourselves, where sometimes “instincts” kick in. But only difference is we have the capability and brain power to make that compassion decision to not kill another living being. It is a fact that some deadly animals have displayed compassionate acts that is abnormal to their behaviour. We can’t be the ones who think we are more superior than other living beings, we should see all living beings as equal. We feel pain, suffering, discomfort and fear, but animals do too. They breed younglings just as we do, they survive just like we do, only difference is we have a higher level of brain power and thinking capabilities to make a much more conscious decision in life. It is true human beings is the world’s biggest disease to the environment, everyday destruction caused by man kind deteriorates the land, water and animals. Our constant search for development only expands our destructive force throughout the environment, eventually we’d all destroy our homes. We need to change our attitudes to treat all living beings as equal. I have took the step of becoming a vegetarian and hopefully eventually be a vegan, but right now I still commit the act of swatting a fly or spraying a cockroach. I still need to change my attitude in that respect. Thank you for sharing this very interesting read Rinpoche. I have shared it on my facebook and hope people would be aware of their own actions and learn to be more compassionate towards animals.
Humans are selfish pure and simple. Or at least the pressures of society “makes us” into a selfish creature. The “rat-race”, the “keeping up with the Joneses” are some of the idioms that highlights this negative nature that surfaces when we humans compete. There is healthy competition but then there is the need and want to just win at ALL COST!
Therein lies the problem. We humans fail to see beyond ourselves and the fragility of of our own lives. We take and take and take just for ourselves not thinking of others or to the worse extent, ourselves!
Why is global warming rampant and already a part of our daily lives whereby weather is unpredictable and violent. We brought it upon ourselves. Yes WE! Why because if we did nothing to try to stop it, we are a part of it. We cannot be on the fence and say I did not do this. We have all contributed and are continuing to contribute, so what needs to change is our attitude, our attitude towards others and our “self”.
Can can change this attitude in an instant and if together we change, so will everything around us!
I really like what what was said above. It is very true! No one has the right to take the life of another being especially those who only want to fill their stomach with corpses. How can one think that the animals are put there for us to kill and eat? I like the way that he put it into words, It was logical and easy to relate to. We should all coexist with each other and not deprive them their rights to live!
And the best part was this one ‘There are men and women who practise horse love, dog love, cat love. But these very same people would take a deer or a calf by its neck, slit its throat, drink the blood straight away or in a pudding, and bite off the flesh. And who is to say that a horse they cherish is nobler than a deer they feed on? Indeed, there are people who eat cats, dogs and horses but would use a cow only as a work animal.’ I seriously dont understand too..
It started in the ancient times that the cow was thought to be more advantageous to be kept alive then to be killed for food.
The cow was possibly revered because people relied heavily on it for dairy products and for tilling the fields, and on cow dung as a source of fuel and fertilizer. Thus, the cow’s status as a ‘caretaker’. Hence the animal do have a role to play in this world. Each animal in its own way.
But clearly that has all changed today. Possibly due to greed more then any other reasons. This greed has certainly extended further then just cows or animals. It has extended to ALL OF NATURE. And we are starting to experience the destruction we have created by NOT respecting the nature and the lives of others.
Hence,learning and re-learning the Buddhist’s attitude on animals and nature will be a great way to reduce the destructions and to ensure we have a better future life for all sentient beings.
We have to much pride to think that we are equal towards other creatures. Like Rinpoche said, we have some qualities that other creatures don’t have and they have other qualities which we don’t have. Why do we treat some animals this way? and why do we treat some other animals that way? This I guess has all to do with the way we think, it’s I think like a habit? Sometimes I think that we have very weird answers to the actions we do.
EVERYONE, PLEASE TAKE IT FURTHER
The main issue here is about humans taking life.
There are two ways we take away life – the obvious by way of MURDER and the subtle by an INDIRECT route.
Besides the food we eat (think meat and seafood) or the flies that we swat, the second most obvious murder we can commit is by using animal skin and fur.
The next most obvious is by using animal oils and fats. Do you know that McDonald’s used to deep fry their french fries in beef fat? Tallow they call it. Only when the issue about saturated fats came to light did they switch to vegetable oils.
Which comes to one of the most serious ways that we assist in murder. How? Vegetable oils. Every square meter of forest that gets replaced by oil palm displaces and kills hundreds of life. Some scientist catalog six hundred lives in one square meter of forest. Lesser for soybean plantations for soybean oil but still INDIRECT MURDER.
Then there is also a long list of products which use vegetable oil derivatives – plastics, soap, shampoo, margarine, perfumes, chocolate drinks and snacks, cookies, etc. The list is long. So please, if you do not want to commit MASS MURDER, check the ingredients list and also avoid deep fried foods. Steamed, baked, poached, grilled, or best raw is GOOD.
The last way to avoid MURDER is to be frugal. Use one and only one ballpoint pen. You will be amazed at how long it lasts. Recycle, be a minimalist (less is more), and live like the Scandinavians. Sorry, no more eight course dinners. Salad, rojak, ulam, kapi, or sandwich will do. 🙂
The relationship between humans and animals has been a complicated one since the beginning of time. As the blog says – humans are actually not very talented when compared to a lot of animals. We are physically weaker than many animals, and our strength is in our ability to think, with our greatest good fortune being the propensity for spiritual growth. Yet how many of us take the opportunity to develop ourselves spiritually, regardless of religion.
“But we never consider that human are the greatest threat to every living being on this earth and in the air whereas the existence of other creatures is a threat only to certain living beings.” Is very sad but true.
When we learn about spirituality, especially the Dharma, we will learn to respect and care for all sentient beings and stop the vicious cycle of destruction which in the end, is actually the destruction of ourselves.
I like this picture of a young boy playing violin serenading the birds in the woods instead of shooting them down liked what the hunters did.
Buddhism teaches us to show equal care and compassion to each and every living being in this planet, buddhists are encouraged to practise loving kindness towards every living being,Buddha’s advice is that it is not right for us to take away the life of any living being, they have the right to exist. They also have the potential of attaining enlightenment because all living beings have buddha’s nature too.
Humans think they are more superior than animals but the way humans behaved is worse than animals. Due to greed and attachment, humans caused much sufferings to the animals whom we think are less superior thus it is alright to harm them for our own selfish needs.
Animals have feelings and emotions, they have their family and loved ones. Treat them with respect and with compassion. All we need is to change our choice of food and many lives will be saved.
It is believed that animals are created for human beings – But, it also follows that humans were also created for animals too! Both for each others flesh. Buddhists are encouraged to love all living beings as per Buddha’s advice – not right to take away life of any living beings, which has the right to exist. Man’s today cruelty, “Due to uncontrolled greed” to expand man’s environment for convenience. We destroyed animals and deprived them of their natural rights – “But”, if we do not take such stern-measures, it is said that our threatened environment on this earth may not be guaranteed; so is our human’s existence on Earth. Nevertheless, each and every living being must contribute something on a “live and let live basis” for the planet earth and its atmosphere. The balance of nature should be made just as suitable and comfortable for all beings, including animals. If so much of violence is produced by the killing of animals, it will come back to us. As the sayings go,”Violence breeds violence. As the Nation sows, so shall it reap.” This is believed to be a reaction of nature, if you do not wish to call it Karma, for the immensed cruelty produced by humankind. It is one of those things we need to consider seriously if we feel to have the serious need to improve the World of Today!
This is so true, I couldn’t help but agree more. It spreads out the awareness of animal cruelty very strongly. Animals aren’t created to serve/please us and we do not have the rights to take away their lives. They are living beings just like us, they have feelings too. I believe that there is Karma, if we keep hurting them, Karma will get back to us one day.
Thank You for sharing Rinpoche.
I find this post very interesting. The only reason that prevented us from destroying our forest resources were initially the wildlife kept there. Now, humans would jsut deforest regardless of life. The world will continually worsen from that stage.
We must be compassionate towards every life form.
Thank you Rinpoche for sharing.
It’s very well said that we should treat every living beings equally. I still remember and thanks to Rinpoche for giving me a DVD called “Earthlings”. The movies is talking about every living beings on this earth is earthling, there’s no different of what kind of species of living beings.
The movie also shows that how human thought they are the something more than other earthlings and did (and still doing) horrible things to other earthlings. This is totally wrong and how can human claim ourselves we can do such thing just because we are “stronger” and “smarter”?
I like the story mentioned in the post about Buddha asked the man to offer him instead to the God to please the God. A real God never need to be pleased by hurting lives.
I don’t think we only can survive by hurting others, we can live harmoniously with everything as we are all earthlings, and yes, every beings contributes something for the maintenance of the planet, in a way that you can see, and cannot see.
Please do not harm animals. It’s just a choice of food.
This comes down to the self-centric attitude that the humans beings have, coming from ignorance. Just because the animals are a different outlook being from us, we have regarded the animals less superior. It is not only the animals that we treat differently, it goes the same with our own kind, where there is a always a differential of races, religion which is created by us…it is labelling. It is the equanimity thought that we have not realize. We are the same, and interconnected with all beings. From the Lamrim text, we could be the next animal that is being tortured, kill and eaten.
This is so true and send such a strong message. I think that humans in the past did not destroy the forest as fast as they could was because there was animals in the forest. But now people don’t care and they have giant killing machines to do the job. Thank you for sharing this with us Rinpoche.
Shelly tai on 28 July 2013 at 9pm
As a human being we should not take advantage of the weak one like animals because animals also like us they will feel pain and fear like us. We as a human also do not want pain why want to give pain to others especially animals who are not strong as human. Thank you Rinpoche for sharing this blog pist with us.
We must have a new spirit of compassion for any form of life that is weak,helpless or hurt.Since animals are considered to be travelling towards Enlightenment just like man is,neither are they to be harmed,discouraged or hampered in their progress.
Thank you Rinpoche for sharing this post.
It amazes me that I always had, naturally, quite the same consideration for them, without in this incarnation, being a buddhist from birth, and coming to know my first Lama with more than 40 years of age. I’m very radical in this point. I refuse even to consider that animals are members of a lower realm, than the human realm. I don’t care for proofs of this. All life explodes in front of me as sacred, animal life, plant life, subtle life. Its dangerous, I can/could loose days and nights enslaved by them, attending their needs, caring for their sorrows – even things they don’t have and that I imagine or project they do / not standing for a minute, their suffering. Now I live with many dogs, but have project to have chickens, goats, horses, cows – again. Saw on TV that theres a trend in America do criminalize this behaviour as animal hoarders. People in most american states are allowed only certain amount of dogs, in Miami 4 dogs. Saw people on TV shows shown as hoarders because they had two horses, some cats, dogs, ducks and lived in a ranch. I refuse the label animal hoarder.
Today I live only with dogs, but i’m getting ready for goats, possibly also a horse, soon. My soul so to speak, always communicated with that life and all life, everyday I learn a bit more about them, and about me, just by living together and observing one another. This takes time, a horse lives 25 years, i wont see many generations of them anymore. The same for a tree to grow big.
So like reincarnation, no one had to tell me anything about it for me to know, I always had this
innate understanding, this most clear and definite understanding of its truth. Now I’m dreaming that before this incarnation, (I was born 12/12/1959) I could have been a tibetan Lama, that died under the strife between China and Tibet since 1950 – because also had (in my youth) an innate terrible fear ‘of communism’. How to know? One day i’ll know, or i’ll re-member.
In a recent video you mentioned that it is out of respect for the animals that you have killed to eat, that you give your body back to the animals by cutting up your dead and now useless flesh and cook it and feed it back to the animals. I am confused. Are you not doing an injustice to the Buddhist principles by doing this then?
This is very true. The only reasons why humans didn’t plunder the forest resources as fast as he could is because there are wild animals. Now he has man-made killer weapons put to merciless use to destroy any living beings. Therefore we can see that the natural forest environment are being destroyed so much faster than the old days. We can feel the climate is changing for the worst now.
Humans are more precious than other beings. Is it therefore we are allowed to take away other lives? Buddha is logically when he said that since sacrificing animals would please the gods therefore sacrificing himself will even please the gods even more.