Fruits picked from trees where no pesticides have been used, and also wild mushrooms, have a reasonable chance that there will be fly eggs, or hatched larvae, inside of them. It is often not easy to tell if a fly has laid it’s eggs inside of them either.
Would consuming foraged mushrooms or eating apples from the tree create negative kamma if one knows that they may very well have living beings inside of them?
This is my first post here, apologies if I have posted in the wrong category or made some other mistake.
Perhaps the pivotal word in your question is “may.” If we inspect a food item and actually see a living being, then gently removing them would be best, i.e. least harmful.
The key is our intention: “Cetanā ahaṁ bhikkhave kammaṁ vadāmi”, “It is volition or intention, monks, that I call kamma,” (AN 6.63).
We don’t always know, and unintentionally killing appears to be a different matter. Do we walk on the grass? If so, we’ve probably inadvertently stepped on small bugs and other animals – I know of no serious, or perhaps any, kammic consequences for this.
Same with driving in a car. Unfortunately, it’s not unusual for bugs to hit the windshield. Did we intend for this to happen? No, so there doesn’t appear to be serious, if any, kammic consequences.
Although not an expert on the pātimokkha I don’t believe bhikkhus and bhikkhunis are forbidden to walk on the grass or to drive in cars.
Also, what about taking antibiotics? Should we die of pneumonia when treatment is available? If we do, zillions of microscopic beings will die. We took the medicine intentionally, so I suppose there are consequences to this – but the same as deliberately killing zillions of people? The challenges of samsāra…
So, intentionally killing a being and/or killing due to uncaring inattentiveness when attentiveness could prevent harm, create negative kammic effects. Samsāra being what it is, there are always going to be challenges and some inadvertent killing of beings.
But if our heart is free of harmful intention and we’re cultivating wholesomeness, kindness, and wisdom then we’re not loading up on dark kamma.
Anyway, those are my reflections.
Hope they’re of some help!
What about if I scratch my face and kill some Demodex folliculorum? I know they are there, mating on my face, so, do I not scratch in fear that I may generate bad kamma?
If one consumes apple cider vinegar, and thus particulates of the “mother,” are ingested, does one generate bad kamma? Bacteria is alive after all.
If eating honey is considered exploitative by some vegans … and one is vegan … but vegan one drinks almond milk … are they not still generating bad kamma since almond milk production kills a ton of bees?
The list of similar questions is essentially infinite, and quite possibly not the best use of one’s time. But, as usual, I could be wrong.
Well, if you take this line of reasoning far enough, you can use it to generate saṃvega — the sincere wish to escape from saṃsāra for the benefit and safety of other beings. Then such reflection wouldn’t be a waste of time at all!
