Buddhism

Ethics
By Nadia Kaveh, Jacob
Anderson, & Sam Baeza

What is Buddhism?
Buddhism is a spiritual tradition
where the sole purpose is to reach
the state of nirvana by following
the teachings of the Buddha,
Siddhartha Gautama. There are
over 376 million followers of
Buddhism around the world.

Buddhism and Animals

Buddhists believe that no

harm should be done to ANY
animals.
They show love to all beings
and treat all beings with the
same respect.
Buddhists are taught to not be
involved with work that is
connected with the killing of
animals.
Buddhists believe that
animals are able to reach
nirvana--or enlightenment.

Buddhism and Animals

(Cont.)

Buddhists belief of karma

suggests that souls are reborn
into animals as a result of their
past life.
They believe that animals are a
spiritual set back.
Animals can only improve their
spiritual karma status with time.
Buddhism does not require one
to be vegetarian, however,
Mahayana tradition appears to
be more strict with
vegetarianism.

All living things fear being beaten with clubs.

All living things fear being put to death. Putting
oneself in the place of the other, let no one kill
nor cause another to kill.-Dhammapada 129

Buddhists and Organ Donation

Although there is no rule about

organ donation, Buddhists
believe the central of the
teachings is to relieve suffering.
The decision relies on an
individuals belief.
Some believe that the soul
remains in the body for some
time after death; therefore, the
body should be untouched
before the operation.

Buddhists and Capital Punishment also known as

The Death Penalty
An action, even if it brings benefit to oneself, cannot be considered a good
action if it causes physical and mental pain to another being - the Buddha,
himself.

Buddhism exists in many forms, and is followed by a wide

variety of people, and there is no distinct Buddhist
philosophy regarding the use of capital punishment.
Within Buddhist philosophy the tenets of self-improvement
and enlightenment are core values, however inhumane
punishment should never be considered first, for all life is
sacred and should be treated as such.
Hurting or causing others pain, often causes pain to the mind
of those doing the punishing.
Rehabilitation and the touch of a gentle and kindred spirit
should be used to fix those who commit heinous acts. Karma
shall be their punishment, not us, humans.
http://image.slidesharecdn.com/capitalpunishment-150818072231-lva1app6891/95/capital-punishment-3-638.jpg?cb=1439882740

Buddhist nations that still participate in

Capital Punishment
Until 1997,
smuggling or
killing pandas in
China, was
punishable by
death.

http://media-2.web.britannica.com/ebmedia/80/150980-004-EE46999B.jpg

Although Buddhist philosophy disdains Capital Punishment, it is not prohibited, and in fact it is used
extensively in many Buddhist nations.
There are no states that have Buddhism as its official state religion.
In Buddhism there is a common phenomenon, as seen with others religions such as Christianity that
those who follow, or say they follow the tenets of said religion, pick and choose which tenets they wish
to follow based on already determined personal morals or ideas.
Politicians and or the state often play a key role in supporting the death penalty whether through
propaganda or political ideology.
Economic turmoil or political unrest are often key factors in reinstituting the death penalty, often times
through the uprising of a new revolutionary group such as Iran(not Buddhist) or China (very Buddhist).

https://upload.wikimedia.
org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/83/2008_UN_death_penalty_moratorium_votes.svg/2000px-

http://articles.latimes.com/2010/aug/25/world/la-fg-china-deathpenalty-20100825

Contraception in Buddhism
One of the core tenets of Buddhism is that life is sacred, and that to end
a life is wrong in any situation.

https://static-secure.guim.co.uk/sysimages/Guardian/Pix/pictures/2014/10/2/1412266691
849/3fa03966-b995-4ecd-acc1-a7e8af2512d2bestSizeAvailable.png

http://marketingtochina.com/wpcontent/uploads/2012/06/buddha-tourism590x418.jpg

Most Buddhist texts and philosophers indicate that contraception is morally ok, if it prevents fertilization.
Therefore; condoms, birth control pills, and other forms of preventative fertilization methods are perfectly
ethical.
The concept of consciousness is the determining factor of life, and what makes a living organism living,
therefore some Buddhists believe that fertilization is the beginning of life, while others believe life isn't
achieved until much later, as consciousness has yet to be achieved.
Unlike many religions, Buddhisms ethical system is fairly flexible, in the sense that Buddhism does not
have a standard set of ethics, that everyone MUST follow. Most Buddhists believe that it is the duty of
oneself, to be happy and content, and to achieve contentedness one must accept themselves and their
ideas, not force others to believe in those ideas.
Buddhism is not family-orientated, in the sense that it is by no means required to have children, but nonreproductive sexual activity should not be the primary goal of ones life, however, it is the choice of the
individual to do what they want and believe is best for themselves.

Buddhism and War

"Avoid killing, or harming any living thing."
-The first of five precepts that Buddhists are advised to follow

Buddhism is a very peaceful religion

One of Buddha's sermons stresses the need to love your enemy no matter how cruelly he
treats you:
Even if thieves carve you limb from limb with a double-handed saw,
if you make your mind hostile you are not following my teaching.
- the Buddha

The code that governs the lives of Buddhist monks permits them to defend themselves, but
forbids them to kill under any circumstance.
However, this peaceful approach provides Buddhist countries with a difficult dilemma as to how to protect the lives and rights
of their citizens without breaking the important principle of nonviolence.
Although nonviolence is one of Buddhisms most crucial ethics, various forms of martial arts have been developed and taught
widely among Buddhists.

There are very strict rules about how violence can be used with Buddhist martial arts.

Forbids the monk from ever being the aggressor.

Instructs him to use only the minimum necessary defensive force.

Most martial arts traditions have strong spiritual and philosophical elements, so they retain a nonviolent attitude.

Buddhism and War (cont.)

Buddhism, in western culture, is often revered as peaceful and pacifistic compared to

The monotheistic-Abrahamic religions of the Middle East and Europe.
Buddhism, like all religions, does not always follow its principles to the word.
There are many instances of Buddhists fighting in wars, both against others
and against each other.
This raises the question: Is there such thing as a just war in Buddhism?
In the 14th century, Buddhist fighters led an uprising that resulted in the
eviction of the Mongols from China.
In Japan, Buddhist monks trained Samurai warriors in meditation that made them better fighters.
In Sri Lanka, the civil war between the Buddhist Sinhalese majority
and the Hindu Tamil minority cost over 50,000 lives.
Buddhist scholars claim that there is no justification for war or
violence in any circumstance when it comes to Buddhist teaching,
and that war is akusala - evil and immoral.
In a modern sense, over 3,000 Buddhists are currently serving in the
U.S. armed forces, including Buddhist chaplains.

Buddhism, Euthanasia, and Suicide

Most commonly believed that voluntary euthanasia is wrong

It demonstrates the evil state of ones mind and that one has allowed physical
suffering to cause mental suffering.
It is believed that meditation and pain killers allow a person to attain a stable
and healthy mental state of mind

Buddhists see death as a transition, rather than an end. When a person dies, they are reborn into a new life, the
quality of which is a result of their karma.
If ones next life is worse than their current one, it would be wrong and unethical to permit euthanasia.
Shortening ones life also interferes with ones karmic balance

The Buddha himself displayed tolerance towards the suicides of monks on two occasions.
During the Vietnam War, suicide was used as a political weapon by Buddhist monks.

Taking all of these facts into account, it can be said that both suicide and euthanasia are
allowed for those who have achieved enlightenment, such as monks, and the rest of us
should avoid it entirely.

Buddhism and Abortion

Like many of the other ethics of Buddhism, there is not a

single view of abortion.
Buddhists however do believe that life should not be
destroyed.
Since Buddhists believe life starts at conception, it is
considered a destroyment of life.
Modern day Buddhists are divided on the idea of the
morally correctness of abortion.
It is believed that Buddhists are responsible for their
actions and the effects of them; therefore, the decision of
abortion is a highly personal one.
The ethical and karma consequences of the action depend
on the motive for the decision.
Some Buddhists believe that abortion is a violation Buddha
s condition of no harm towards animals.

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