Animals and the Buddha
“All beings fear danger, life is dear to all. When a person considers this, he does not kill or cause to kill. ~ The Buddha
“Just like us, animals want to live their lives free of pain and suffering. It is up to each one of us to make choices that respect all animals on Earth.” ~ Moral principle of Buddhism
Animals and the Buddha examines the relationship between humans and animals in various Buddhist traditions. The film was made by Dharma Voices for Animals (DVA), that is trying to bring awareness to the suffering of animals by humans and the steps individuals can take to live a “cruelty-free” lifestyle. The film is composed of a series of short interviews with representatives from all three Dharma traditions who talk about Buddhist teachings and the precepts that are specific to animals and our responsibility to animals.
The film is divided into three parts: Part I looks at the teachings of Buddhism and the first precept of the Dharma, which is about causing no harm to any living being, and not causing animals to suffer for any reason. The first two precepts of the Buddhist Golden Rule that maintains a moral way of living, says:
1. To abstain from taking the lives of living beings.
2. To abstain from taking that which is not freely given.
The first precept, is based on compassion and prohibits killing, hurting or harming animals or another living being. The second precept forbids (direct) stealing, actions supporting stealing, and actions analogous to stealing, which can be related to animals in the stealing of their newborn babies, their milk that was meant for and destined to nurture their newborn offspring, and stealing their lives from them, by killing them.
Part II is about how our attitudes toward animals are influenced by our culture, and how our Western culture has conditioned and indoctrinated us to see things in a certain way, and has forced us to disconnect from our natural human compassion and wisdom and created a sense of “separateness” from animals. Dharma teaches that there’s only an “apparent” separation between the animals and humans, that it’s only in our mind not in reality or truth. In Buddhism, animals and humans are all considered to have the same nature, are sentient, feel pain and suffering, but we just have a different form. As humans don’t wish to suffer or feel pain, we are not to cause another’s suffering or harm, or to take the life of any living being, just as we would not want our life taken from us or be killed.
Part III asks us what can we individually to change the situation and how animals are treated? The most powerful way to break the chain of violence against animals is to go vegan, if even in small steps, but the sooner the better for the animals.
Film Launch: October 2017
Film Length: 50:06 Minutes
Quotes from the Film
“Animals are my friends, and I don’t eat my friends.”
“The food culture in the West centers around eating animals. Few people consider what this means.”
“Imagine a culture where animals are not harmed?”
“The first precept of the Dharma (Buddhism) is to cause no harm. It’s about non-harming any being.”
“In Buddhism, animals and humans are all considered to have the same nature. That’s why the first ethical precept in Buddhist teaching, is not to take the life of any living being and not causing any harm to another being.”
“The major factor of Buddhism is Ahimsa, which means non-harming. This is non-harming ourselves and animals and the environment. To live lightly on the land, including not taking or stealing the life or body of another.”
“Non-harming is about not causing an animal or a living being to suffer. It’s a sense of compassion.”
“The Buddhist tradition is about refraining from harming any living being. We must refrain from harming animals. Tibetan Buddhism is the same.”
“In the first precept, non-harming means not taking the life of another, from the smallest to the largest being.”
“To each being, their life is precious.”
“In the Mahayana scriptures, one is not to eat any meat. All beings should be loved. As long as meat is not eaten by any person, there will be no destroyer of life.”
“At the time of the Buddha, thousands of years ago, monks could eat meat because of having such limited food available.”
“By buying meat and fish products, we are participating in killing of the animal.”
“When you are in charge of what you can eat, and your choose meat or dairy, the very fact that you are buying it, you are subscribing to the whole culture that rears meat/dairy to be killed for your food. Then you are complicit in the killing and suffering of the animal.”
“Animals are smart, sensitive and social, with a unique personality, but despite being sensitive we often treat animals with terrible insensitivity and deep cruelty. But we are all the same sentient beings, even though we have different forms. We have the same desires and right to live in peace.”
“Dharma recognizes that animals have consciousness. They feel. They fear death and avoid suffering.”
“We need to treat the animal world with great respect and kindness, they deserve to be here just as much as we do.”
“Because food animals are hidden from sight, it’s easy to avoid the connection between the animal that she/he actually was.”
“Normally people have no idea what animals go through. It will only be realized when people actually see what happens in slaughterhouses. It’s really horrifying. These animals see their fellow animals being slaughtered in front of themselves. They watch it, hear it, feel it, see it, smell it – before their turn. And often they see many animals killed in front of them.”
“There’s only an “apparent” separation between the animals and humans, it’s only in our mind.”
“I don’t think any being wants to be killed, slaughtered and eaten. Especially the terror and trauma animals go through today in factory farms and slaughterhouses. How can we eat them? How can we contribute to this?”
“We can minimize the number of animals slaughtered by becoming vegetarian or vegan.”
A very important precept is – Not taking that is freely offered. Like dairy milk, the babies removed from the dairy cow, the taking of the dairy cow life – the cow and calf mourn and cry and grieve. We’re stealing the milk that should go to the baby. Then we steal the dairy cow who can’t even walk anymore from so many pregnancies.”
“Male chicks are ground up alive a day old. Then chickens are crammed into tiny cages where they live on top of each other to over-produce eggs, then they are gassed to death.”
“If you care about your own suffering and the suffering of others – then you want to know what that other beings experience is, and whether we are causing others’ suffering.”
“Dharma teaches you to turn toward suffering, not look away, then goes for any suffering we cause animals.”
“Just don’t have to look very hard to see the suffering caused to animals. Eat any food that causes pain to another being.”
“All the animals that are ever eaten was someone’s child.”
“We’re all raised in a society where we are forced to disconnect from our natural compassion and wisdom.”
“When we’re conditioned our entire lives to see things one way, it’s difficult to see another way. We know that desire is the cause of suffering, it’s through overcoming desire and our attachments, that we can put an end to our suffering.”
“If one has the deep quality of compassion, then one doesn’t want others to suffer, then one knows that ordering meat or consuming meat causes cruelty to animals and animal suffering.”
“When you value others, you are concerned about their suffering.”
“Not killing – means you don’t cause the killing of an animal for your food, clothing, or for any reason.”
What Can You Do
- Stop eating animals, or consuming their products – such as milk or eggs.
- Look for the words and buy products that are – Cruelty-free, Animal-free, Vegan, Not Tested on Animals, and have No Animal Ingredients.
- Talk with people about animals, ask and encourage people to consider cruelty-free daily living and a non-harming lifestyle.
- Consider not using any animal products in your life including for food, clothing, personal care, entertainment, any industry where animals are harmed for you.
- Read the book, “The Great Compassion” by Norm Phelps.
- Ask yourself, how can you cause the least amount of harm possible to animals?
More about Dharma Voices for Animals
Join at http://www.dharmavoicesforanimals.org
Donate at http://www.dharmavoicesforanimals.org
Film Credits
Directed By: David Blatte and Bob Isaacson
Produced By: Keegan Kuhn
Screenplay by: David Blatte and Nancy Brockington
Narrated by: Thomas Weitzel
This powerful and important film features interviews with world-renowned monastics and lay teachers including Ven. Bhikkhu Bodhi, Jetsuma (Ven. Master) Tenzin Palmo, Ven. Bhante Gunaratana (Bhante G), Christopher Titmuss, Ven. Geshe Phelgye, teachers from Spirit Rock Meditation Center and many others.
