Should we kill the creature to commemorate the death of a loved one?VIETNAMESE TRANSLATE ENGLISH BY=VIETNAMESE BUDDHIST NUN=THICH CHAN TANH.

We can see that the law of cause and effect follows us like a shadow, and the karma of killing is very heavy. Not to mention the other negative karma that we have been creating, the karma piles up on karma, knowing when it will pay off.

Organizing the death anniversary to commemorate ancestors and deceased relatives is a fine custom in the spiritual cultural tradition of our nation. This custom not only demonstrates the principle of "drinking water and remembering the source" that reminds children to be grateful to the parents but also shows the deep filial piety, educating parents and grandparents. for future generations.

Currently, the general situation at the death anniversary is the gathering of relatives, relatives, friends to organize the great feast, and especially to kill a lot to cater for that need. Should this be good? The Buddha's teaching on this is expressed in the following story:

One day, when the Buddha was staying at Ky Vien Vihara, some monks asked him:

- Lord Buddha, is there any benefit to killing goats, sheep, and other creatures to commemorate the death of loved ones?

Buddha answered:

-The Bhikkhus! Is not! Certainly, it is not good to kill living creatures, even for the purpose of making sacrifices for the death of the dead.

Then the Buddha told the story of the past:

In the very distant past, when King Brahmadatta reigned in Baranasi, a Brahmin decided to worship the death anniversary of the dead and buy a goat to kill. He said to his disciples, "Take this goat into the river, wash, scrub, put a garland around his neck, and take the grains for him to eat, and bring him here." "Yes, sir," answered the disciples, taking the goat to the river.

While they were washing and scrubbing the goat, the goat laughed out loud, laughter roaring like the pot being smashed. Then, strangely, it burst into tears again.

The young disciples were surprised at this behavior, they asked the goat: "Why do you sometimes laugh," and "why are you crying now and crying out loud?"

"Let's go to see the teacher he, then he repeated the question, "the goat answered.

The disciples hurriedly took the goat to see him and told him what happened at the river. After listening to the story, the teacher asked the goat why sometimes it smiles, sometimes it cries.

The goat started to say, "Behold, Brahmin, in my previous life, I was a Brahman who taught Vedas just like you. I also killed a goat to make a death anniversary of the dead. For killing one goat, my head was cut off 499 times, I laugh because I know this is the last rebirth to make the animal killed by this person today I will be liberated from suffering But I cry because I know that, when he killed me, he also resigned to beheading 500 times. Because of sympathy, I cried for him. "

The Brahmin said, "Goat, now I understand, I will not kill you."

The goat cried out, "Mr. and Mrs. Brahmin, whether you kill or spare, I will not escape today."

Brahmin reassured the goat: "Don't worry, I will protect you."

Goat said to the Brahman: "You do not understand, your protection is weak, while the karma generated by evil deeds I do is very strong."

The Brahmin untied the goats and told his disciples, "Do not let anyone harm this goat." They obeyed and followed the goat to protect it.

After the goat was released, it started grazing. He tried to extend his neck, to nibble on the leaves on a bush, growing near the top of a large rock. At that moment, a bolt of lightning struck the rock, breaking a sharp stone like a knife, flying out, neatly slicing off the goat's head. The crowd gathered around the dead goat, and gossip about this amazing accident.

A tree god watched everything that happened, from the time he bought the goat, until the goat died, the story looked like a tragedy, and he took a lesson from the story. Behold, to remind and counsel the crowd: "Everyone knows that the consequence of doing evil, in the afterlife, will suffer, so we must stop killing the creature immediately. terror is waiting for those who do so. " 

After the tree spirit explained the cause-and-effect law, he made the listener feel shuddered in fear and pain for those who have fallen to hell. So frightened, everyone decided to give up killing the creature to commemorate the death. Then the tree spirit also taught people, learned more about the Precepts, and encouraged people to do good deeds.

Some time later, the tree god died. Because he had done many good deeds, the tree god enjoyed good results, so when he died, he followed his good karma, which means to return to the good realm. Then after many generations, people continued to practice the Precepts, and they spent a lot of time doing charity work and other good works, so many people were reborn into the realms. God.

Buddha finished his lecture, and then he let everyone know: "In that life, I was the tree god."

Through the story, we can see the law of cause and effect that follows us like shadows in the picture, and karma of killing is very heavy. Not to mention the other negative karma that we have been creating, the karma piles up on karma, knowing when it will pay off.

In the Ksitigarbha Sutta Bodhisattva's Prayer, The Seventh Virtue of the Noble Enlightenment, the Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva Venerable Bodhisattva advised us,

"Beings in the Jambodhi realm, the death of their loved ones must be careful not to kill and not create bad karma, nor sacrifice the Devil, God, pray for ghosts. Why is that? Because of the killing up until that sacrifice, there is not a single thing to benefit the dead, only to add to his predestination make it even worse.

Suppose that dead person, either the previous or the present life, has witnessed that the Holy fruit will be born in heaven, the human realm, but because at the death of relatives, the causes of bad karma are created. for that dead person to get involved in the conflict, slow birth to a good place. What is the case that the other person died, when the money was never made a little blessing, all according to their evil karma caused to create that must fall into the evil path. What kind of familiar goods make that person's poorness worse! ”

The death anniversary has a great influence on the spirits of the deceased. On this day, we will have a grand celebration, killing people to save lives will create more sins for that spirit. In the crime of killing, the Buddhist scriptures teach: killing for yourself, because of you, animals dying, seeing people killing and you rejoice are all related to this crime. Choosing the anniversary of death but killing the animals, the spirit is also involved in the crime.

People who die at birth prefers to kill animals to eat. This is because of greed that creates evil karma. Because of the crime of killing they are suffering. When they were in distress, they were earnestly pleading silently for their children and grandchildren to find ways to save them from suffering. The deceased were clumsy, did not understand the way that the retribution was too miserable, because of killing animals, they suffered all the terrible tortures of the three evil monks to repay the karma, their descendants did not seek to rescue them. , what days of committing heart would bring blood and sacrifices to make them more convicted of killing. 

Therefore, as people who study Buddhism and understand the Way, on the anniversary of our death, we should do a pure vegetarian chanting of reciting the Buddha's Names, releasing, releasing the Sutras, doing good deeds, ... to dedicate merit to them, help they soon gave birth to the Pure Land. Should reduce the forms of meat food drunk and absolutely not killing creatures. Do not make a grand party to repay the worldly meaning, there is no use for the lost. If you love them, you should remember one thing not to kill for death anniversary.

Although the Blessed One entered Nirvana more than 2,500 years ago, the good teachings He has transmitted to us remain intact. As Buddhists, learning and assimilating his Dharma, we should be able to distinguish between what is Right View and what is wrong, what to do and what not to do, in order to apply it in real life and bring benefits. for ourselves and for sentient beings.END=NAM MO SHAKYAMUNI BUDDHA.( 3 TIMES ).GOLDEN AMITABHA MONASTERY=VIETNAMESE BUDDHIST NUN=THICH CHAN TANH.AUSTRALIA,SYDNEY.30/6/2020.