Hinduism & Buddhism

1. Hinduism & Buddhism Jordan Breneisen

2. Animal Ethics (Hinduism) • There is no single accepted way to properly treat animals. • Most Hindus are vegetarian. • No Hindu will eat beef. • Butchery and related jobs are restricted to low caste people.

3. Animal Ethics (cont) • With the exception of cows, nonhuman animals are inferior to humans. • Cows are sacred and are allowed to wander where they wish. • It is a sin to kill a or eat a cow. • Animal sacrifices are permitted, as long as the animal isn’t a cow.

4. Animals/Karma (Buddhism) • Animals and humans are essentially equal. • When one dies, one is reborn as either a human or a non-human animal. • Animal cruelty will damage the perpetrator’s karma.

5. Animals (B cont) • When one performs serious misdeeds in one life, they are reborn as an animal. • Because animals can’t consciously improve themselves, they will continue to be reborn as animals until all their bad karma is exhausted.

6. Buddhist Vegetarian • Buddha has not issued a ban on eating meat. • Not all Buddhists are vegetarian. • Early monks could eat meat as long as the animal had not been killed specifically to feed them