Ahimsa and application

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Ahimsa and application
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Activities to Support Vows
Non-stealing
Truthfulness
Non-Violence
Non-Possessiveness
Celibacy
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• Dual nature of Vows
• Detached Inhibits Inflow Of Karmas (Samvar)
• Attached Generates Beneficial Karmas
  (Punya)
• Detached Not To Be Violent
• Attached To Be Compassionate

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Ahimsa --Sthul Pränätipät Viraman-vrata
Nonviolence

• Sthul Prän Atipät Virman
• Sthul Gross
• Pränätipät means ill treatment of the Pränas
  (life forces)
• Viraman means stopping.
• What is Präna (Life Forces)?
• How many different types of Präna?

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• Types of Prän
• Drvaya
• Bhäv

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Life Forces

• Drvya Prän (Vitality)
• Sparsh-Indriya Touch
• Ras-Indriya Taste
• Ghrän-lndriya Smell
• Chakshu-lndriya Vision
• Shrotra-Indriya Hearing
• Mano-bal Mind
• Vachan-bal Speech
• Käy-bal Body
• Shväsoshväs Respiration
• Äyushya Longevity

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• Bhäv Prän
• Jnan
• Darshan
• Charitra
• Virya

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What is Himsä?

• "Pramattayogät Präna-vyaparopanam Himsä"
• The destruction of life forces due to an act
  involving negligence (Pramäda) is violence".
• What is Pramäda?
• Any injury whatsoever to the material or
  conscious vitalities caused through passionate
  activity of mind, body or speech.
• Any activity which delays our spiritual journey
  towards liberation.
• Injuring one self to behavior that inhibits the
  souls ability to attain Moksha
• Defiling innate attributes of soul

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• Pramäda
• Mental state of attachment and aversion
• Negligence
• Unawareness
• Lack of faith
• Disrespect
• Attachment
• Aversion

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• Himsä Dravya And Bhäv
• Physical And Spiritual
• Dravya Himsä The actual hurt or injury
• Bhäv Himsä, The intention to hurt or injure to
  the Präna (vitality)
• Himsä Bähya And Antargata
• External And Internal
• Bähya External aspects
• Antargata Internal aspects

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• Swaroop Hinsä Incidental Hinsä
• Hetu Hinsä Hinsä because of Carelessness
• Anubandha Hinsä Intention of Hinsä

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• Classification Of Himsä (Violence)
• Ärambhaja or Ärambhi Himsä, Occupational
  injury
• Anärambhaja or Anärambhi Non
  occupation Intentional injury
• Ärambhi Himsä
• Udyami Himsä Industrial injury
• Grihärambhi Himsä Domestic injury
• Virodhi Himsä Defensive injury

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Different Ways We Commit Himsä

• Mind, Body and Speech
• Doing act, Encouraging and appreciating
• Past, Present and Future
• Five One Sense Being, And Four Other Types
• 3x3x3x9

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• Himsä can be committed by three kinds of Karana
  (action)
• Krita, by doing it oneself
• Karita, by getting it done through
  others
• Anumodana by giving consent to others
  doing it

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Avoidable
Avoidable
Avoidable
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• Observance of Non-Violence by Householders
• He/She will avoid intentional injury and will
  reduce violence as much as possible for
  industrial, domestic, and defensive purposes.
• He/She will avoid major violence and reduce minor
  violence as much as possible.
• He/She will reduce/avoid both the intentions of
  violence and the acts of violence.

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Reasons for Ahimsa

• Rational consciousness
• Emotional compassionOther oriented consciousness
  
• Individual responsibility---Self oriented
  consciousness
• Social fellow-feeling
• Refraining from violence
• Deep reverence for all life..
• Anekäntaväda
• Not imposing own thoughts on others or
  manipulating others for self benefit

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Ahimsä

• The Jain concept of respect for the life of
  others led to the principle of respect for the
  views of others, which formed the basis of
  Anekänta" or non-one-sided doctrine.
• Non-violence (Ahimsä) strengthens the autonomy
  of life everywhere

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Support for Ahimsä

• Supporting Factors
• Control of Speech and Mind, Control of Movement,
  Examinations of food and drink before consuming,
  Handling waste, Handling household objects
• Cultivating Factors
• Friendship, Appreciation, compassion and
  equanimity

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• Mother always wishes and worries about well-being
  of her child
• Mother is always pleased with childs progress
  and success
• Mother always feels pain for childs sorrow
• Mother always ignores childs faults

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• Maitri----- Friendship
• Desire to do good to others
• Pramod---- Appreciation
• To be pleased seeing others happy
• Karunä----Compassion
• To feel pain for others misery
• Mädhyastha----- Equanimity
• To overlook others faults calmly

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• What is your response when you see a little
  child stepping on a insect?
• Example of Social Non-violence
• Example of Economic Non-violence
• Example of Political Non-violence

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• Example of Social Non-violence
• Example of Economic Non-violence
• Example of Political Non-violence

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• Circle of Non-Violence
• Self
• Family
• Friends
• Society
• Enemies
• Environment

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• The Six Steps of Non-Violence
• Avoid harm By Actions
• Avoid harm By Speech
• Avoid harm By Thoughts
• Love With thoughts
• Love With Speech
• Love With Actions

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Non-violence and Compassion

• Jainism recognizes sanctity in all life forms.
• Ahimsä is disciplined behavior towards every
  living being - Dashvaikalika Sutra (6/9)
• Absence of violence of any sort towards all
  beings at all times is Ahimsä. - Yogasutra
• In its absolute definition
• Ahimsä is the absence of destructive thoughts,
  feelings or attitude

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A profound truth for all times

• One who neglects or disregards the existence of
  earth, air, fire, water and vegetation,
  disregards his own existence which is entwined
  with them
• - Lord Mahavir (599-527 BC)

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The ancient Jain scriptural aphorism

• Parasparopgraho Jivänäm
• Tattvärtha Sutra (2000 year old Scripture)
• All life is bound together by mutual support
  and interdependence
• Environment is imbued in every living beings
• If we harm ONE we harm ALL living beings
• Refreshingly contemporary in its premise and in
  its promise.
• Forms the basis of the modern day science of
  ecology.

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• The major lapses and violations of the vow of
  non-violence
• Not considering Ahimsa as the key element in the
  whole scheme of the ethical discipline of the
  Shravak and the monk.
• Being violent towards others and toward own-self
  because of passions or carelessness
• Encouraging or appreciating violence caused by
  others

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• Unnecessarily wasting earth, water, fire, air,
  and vegetations
• Not giving protection or expressing compassion
  towards mobile living beings
• Consuming or using harmful and illicit
  substances. (e.g. drugs, liquor, or food obtained
  thru gross violence)
• Exposing mind to violence by watching violent
  movies, reading books depicting violence, or
  associating with violent people

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• Imposing own thoughts on others or manipulating
  others for self benefit
• Needlessly confining animals and birds
• Using animal drawn carriages or needless riding
  on animals
• Making animals carry heavy loads
• Depriving animals and birds of shelter
• Using dairy products obtained from animals that
  have not been properly cared for.

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Ahimsä and other Vrats

• Ahimsä and Achaurya (Non-stealing)
• Ahmisä and Satya ( Truth)
• Ahimsä and Aparigrha (Non-possessiveness)
• Comfort comes as a guest lingers to become the
  host, and stays to enslave us.

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The Inconvenient Truth

• Organic not necessarily means Vegetarian or Vegan
• Production of Honey involves violence
• Red dye from Crushed Cochineal Insects
• One single Edition of NY Newspaper uses 6800
  trees
• Most Cheese - Rennet Enzyme - Animal product
• WHEY -- A by-product of cheese making
• Wine making requires clarifying agent like
  gelatin, eggs, blood from mammals
• One silk sari 2000-2500 silk worms
• Mercedes-s car with leather seats requires seven
  cow skin
• Bone china is made of calcined ox bone, bone ash.

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• Vegetarianism (Rejection of Eating Animal Food
• Rejection of Drinking Liquor
• Abandonment of Honey
• Dress and Decoration
• Basic Positive Aspects of Ahimsa

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What does Jainism teach about ecology?

• Non-Possessiveness / Self-restraint is the second
  most important Jain principle
• Minimizing consumption provides respect for
  others life and Environment
• Reduce needs and wants as far as possible.
• Reuse / Recycle Products - Not to waste the gifts
  of nature
• Share resources
• Nature provides enough for our NEED not enough
  for our GREED

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• Non-violence (Ahimsä) strengthens the autonomy
  of life everywhere
• Non-absolutism (Anekäntaväda) strengthens
  autonomy of thoughts speech (Syädväda)
• Non-possessiveness (Aparigraha) strengthens
  autonomy of interdependence

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Always put yourself in others' shoes. If you
feel that it hurts you, it probably hurts the
other, too.