A supplication to all the people, born as brothers and sisters
30 August 2008
All the sentient beings in the six realms desire to live happily and there is no creature who does not desire
happiness. As we do not want suffering, likewise no creature wants suffering. If we take ourselves as example, we cannot bear the pain caused by a thorn piercing our foot. If our parents, children, spouse and relatives are sick, our hearts almost break in anguish. We would generously offer our wealth for their medical treatment, or even sacrifice parts of our organs to cure such patients if we have to. If they are beyond cure and their life ends, our faces are filled with tears, we lose our appetite and suffer from sleeplessness. Some people grieve to the extent of fainting and falling unconscious as they cannot bear the pain.
Some people die due to fighting and the other party is taken to the court, and harsh punishment is meted out for taking life. This kind of punishment is rendered for killing others. But how can we kill thousands of innocent creatures who have not committed any wrong-doing. Are these killers good or bad? If we consider them as good, who would be the bad ones?
The Buddha has said that all the sentient beings were once our parents during our many previous lives. For instance, if one of our parents die and they are born as a fowl, pig or fish, we cannot recognize them in this form as our parent, and we may kill and eat them. There is no difference then from killing and eating our parent.
Considering our interests, we aspire to live long without illness. There is nobody who wants a short and morbid life. Killing is the true cause of suffering that shortens out longevity and that inflicts various diseases in both present and future lives. The act of killing includes killing animals directly by oneself, encouraging others to kill, admiring acts of killing by others and assisting others with tools and machines of killing animals. Such sins of killing are utterly unacceptable and because of this reason, His Majesty the King abolished the system of capital punishment no matter how severe a crime.
Poultry, fishes and pigs are mostly killed for common consumption. As there are more consumers of meat, there is a corresponding increase in the number of killers.
Although that increases income, essentially, sufferings the killer has to experience in future rises like a mountain. Those who die are the consequences of their own karma. Those who have not been able to restrain their self-righteous human rights are the killers and consumers. Some are ignorant of karma. Others know karma but have no belief in it. Let those people who wish to live well and happily by understanding karma, and by understanding what is to be given up and what is to be cultivated, not get into contact
with meat while practicing white-dharma, funeral rituals, prayers for the living and services to the monk community.
Let me remind you of my gratitude if you could do so. May the merits of this act become a basis for the attainment of enlightenment for all the sentient beings.
Trulku Jigme Choedrak
70th Je Khenpo
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one of bhutan’s greatest social reformer, his holiness the 70th je khenpo
1- hh abolished system of having to pay huge financial and material presents to monks during cremation;
2- abolishing serving meat to monks during religious ceremony is another great reform to admire.
i am deeply inspired.
truly truth! Very true. Think and act, realistic act please!
Convenience is the make of the day and we all know very well who we are fooling …the paper grumbles every week….and man, it’s a downer!.…..perhaps, our Beloved monarchs would be happier if we fool ourselves less…..and direct some respect for ourselves and in our beliefs for a starter. His Holiness the Je Khenpo supplicating to the public in last week’s issue comes at an opportune time. It’s real and calls for action…perhaps some of our celebration mode could be diverted towards that aspect and woven into our daily lives…?
It is upto us now, as Buddhists, to prove that we are truly Buddhists at heart. It is like taking one of the eight precepts.
I have already cut down on meat consumption and determined to turn vegetarian very soon.
My advice would be, if not all the days, please do not consume meat on dhuezangs (auspicious days). That would go a long way in developing ourselves spiritually.
This is yet another noble reform of his holiness. I wonder how many of us, the so called Buddhist are truly Buddhist at heart. Arn’t we taking Buddhism for granted by being born in this Buddhist society.
Please minimise meat intake if at refraining it altogether is not possible at all. Another thing I would like our government to come up is on the issue of sreving meat in hotels during the auspicious months. Banning the sale of meat during the holy monts only encourages people to hasten buying and killing just before the ban with hoteliers maintaining huge stocks of meat to last the entire months. I think, if government ensures that meat is taken off the menu from hotel tables as well, the ban would indeed be effective and what’s more. Lives of harmless animals can be spared. So guys, what do you think? Lets make a difference and demonstrate that we are true Buddhist at heart.