During my evening run tonight, a mosquito (at least I hope it was that small) flew down my throat--that reminded me of seeing an image similar to this in a yoga book.
Indian Jain nuns, New Delhi wearing traditional face masks to prevent the killing of any life - even the accidental inhalation of an insect. via poculum
Ahimsa means kindness and non-violence towards all living things including non-human animals; it respects living beings as a unity, the belief that all living things are connected. Indian leader Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi strongly believed in this principle. Avoidance of verbal and physical violence is also a part of this principle, although ahimsa recognizes self-defense when necessary, as a sign of a strong spirit. It is closely connected with the notion that all kinds of violence entail negative karmic consequences.-sorry for the little wikipedia blurb-- I do believe in doing as little harm as possible to anything living and will go out of my way to avoid an insect, especially one in my face!
I love Gandhi's work, and would like to see more areas of the globe governed by such peaceful, praiseworthy effort. He is a hero of mine. I keep a quote of his by me when I work:
ReplyDelete"First they ignore you; then they laugh at you; then they fight you; then you win."
His espousal of Thoreau's teaching of Civil Disobedience stays with me.
Have a peaceful good evening
Rose
Gandhi was courageous and amazing. I wasn't familiar with that particular quote--it's very encouraging.
ReplyDeleteMy favorite Gandhi quote is "The greatness of a nation can be judged by the way its animals are treated."
Happy Labor Day weekend!
Gandhi is one of my heroes along with Martin Luther King.. for the non-violence beliefs.. your post is in the same sort of vein as my Zen post.. revere all life.
ReplyDeleteI enjoy your Zen posts...a lot!
ReplyDeleteI love all animals but I do remember bad-mouthing about someone when I choked a fly. I guess that insects will sacrifice themselves to teach others lessons.
ReplyDeleteNot a good feeling, for the insect or the human!
ReplyDeleteHow marvellous, I had never seen anything like this before, not an extreme measure to take to not harm another life, but unusual. A few years ago, I was at a picnic and took a bite out of a sandwich which, unbeknownst to me, has a wasp on the end. It stung my tongue which started to swell like an inflated tyre. I killed the sucker, and enjoyed it! Am I bad?
ReplyDeleteDi :-)
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I might have done the same! (sshhh)
ReplyDelete