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Do not Kill scenario
What If a scenario arises, where I have to;
Kill, to maintain the precept of not killing..
there could be a bunch, but, lets say.. I incite some psychopath to go shoot up a school (by accident.. but it has to end up my fault somehow)
and when I realize he's actually going through with it, I have just one chance to stop him, by killing him... lets say a 5 second chance..
is it then a duty....to KILL him, before he kills others?
Or lets say I inadvertently help an arms dealer to 3rd world country, rebels, and they are about to genocide a bunch of people...
you know...and so when it comes down to it, when there is NO other choice that's possible, we MUST kill them........ as Buddhists/human beings right?
I guess my question has another part,
"The few for the many?"
: let's say you have 2 utterly innocent, cute children who carry genes that can cure cancer completely in all its forms,
but you have to savagely murder/experiment on them like nazi's....
WOULD YOU? SHOULD YOU?
Kill, to maintain the precept of not killing..
there could be a bunch, but, lets say.. I incite some psychopath to go shoot up a school (by accident.. but it has to end up my fault somehow)
and when I realize he's actually going through with it, I have just one chance to stop him, by killing him... lets say a 5 second chance..
is it then a duty....to KILL him, before he kills others?
Or lets say I inadvertently help an arms dealer to 3rd world country, rebels, and they are about to genocide a bunch of people...
you know...and so when it comes down to it, when there is NO other choice that's possible, we MUST kill them........ as Buddhists/human beings right?
I guess my question has another part,
"The few for the many?"
: let's say you have 2 utterly innocent, cute children who carry genes that can cure cancer completely in all its forms,
but you have to savagely murder/experiment on them like nazi's....
WOULD YOU? SHOULD YOU?
0
Comments
Ask yourself this: why are you faced with these opportunities for killing, and I am not?
It would be justified. In fact, SWAT teams occasionally do so.
I don't quite follow this one.
No, it's an absolutely absurd proposition to begin with.
I'll skip your first two examples, as they are far too convoluted. If we try, we can always design a scenario where killing is the only remaining choice. There is no right or wrong to it. If my only means of preventing a person from inflicting destruction and suffering upon innocent lives is to kill him, that is what I will do. My action would arise from compassion for all involved parties, and I would fear no karma. As Prajnamind noted, however, such circumstances would be nearly inconceivable.
Perhaps it might be logical to kill a child to save a nation, but that doesn't mean it is the most compassionate choice. How would you feel if it was your life that might be saved by the murder of a child? Would you be in favor of letting the child die, or would you choose your own death? What if the child was your son or daughter?
Everybody dies. What right have we to extend our own lives at the cost of another? Have we become so cowardly that instead of facing our deaths, we steal life from others? Buddhism teaches us to let go of our attachments and release ourselves from suffering. Tranquility is never fearing death. Cancer is a terrible disease, but I would gladly accept it if it meant keeping an innocent child healthy and happy. I have found peace in my life. What need have I to cling to it so desperately?
Stop looking for "right" or "wrong" answers, and get serious about working out your own salvation. That means doing the work, studying the texts, meditating, abstaining from harmful things, and controlling your mind. All this talk about when it's "okay to kill" is sheer indulgence. If you want to know the truth, you're going to have to put in the time. Serious time.
~ AD
of what is right and wrong..
you know I ..
I knew what was right and wrong, when I was younger.. even lets say 1-2 years ago... (or so I thought)
not anymore...
I do very much appreciate a swat teams dilemma.
there are shades of gray in this world that really bother me, They - I might say are the most dangerous.
Lets say you could travel back in time and kill Hitler when he was a child. Now, it's possible that by doing this somebody worse could have taken his place. Maybe Germany would have been the first to develop the atomic bomb and hundreds of millions of more people might have died.
Even if you intended to save people, you could still end up doing far more harm.
1. I undertake to observe the precept to abstain from taking life.
2. I undertake to observe the precept to abstain from taking what is not given.
3. I undertake to observe the precept to abstain from sexual misconduct.
4. I undertake to observe the precept to abstain from false speech.
5. I undertake to observe the precept to abstain from using intoxicants.
These are the basic moral codes of Buddhism, guidelines for all Buddhists to follow. Note, if you practice the Eightfold Path earnestly, these precepts will come about naturally. In your case, however, I strongly urge you to adopt these precepts unwaveringly, until such time as you see clearly and absolutely the wisdom behind them.
~ AD
I would suggest furthermore that you go back further, and retrace your steps, right back to the beginning:
Life is Dukkha.
Dukkha is fed, nourished and stimulated by craving, grasping and unskillful desire.
There is a way of eliminating this craving, grasping and unskillful desire.
That way is to step onto the Eightfold Path, and be guided by the signposts of
Right View
Right Intention
Right Speech
Right Action
Right Livelihood
Right Effort
Right Mindfulness
Right Concentration
Then of course, as you study these previous 12, bear in mind that the 5 cited by Arietta, must also be loaded into your rucksack, and stay with you every step of the way....
That's 17 in all.
and 17, into One, will go.
Simplify.
here, grab this trekking stick, and just put one foot infront of the other.....
This is because these are relatively childish concepts for the most part. It's much easier to think about life in terms of balance and imbalance, stability and instability, peace and chaos.