They all are dependently originated phenomena.
Think about what is Jewes doing to Muslims in Israel.
Genghis Khan went back after chasing the Europeans all the way back to Europe. He was trying to protect his homeland.
Even in Sri Lanka Tamil Terrorism is a reaction to the ill-treatment by majority Sinhalese. ( I am a Sinhalese by the way)
Its important to get the role of these practices clear in oneâs head. On the one hand are you trying to save the world or trying to attain nibbana? Trying to bake a cake or trying to be vegan, etc (assuming there isnt vegan cakes, but now come to âŚ)? You understand what Iâm trying to say. Lets hope no one is caught trying to do both simultaneously. Even the Buddha didnât try to set societyâs ills straight- his number one priority was teaching everybody the dhamma!
Breaking the precepts is wrong, end of story. However, the precepts are not commandments from the Almighty God, so you can break them, even though you should be aware of the fact that it is wrong. You can do what whatever you want, literally whatever, but you should be aware of the fact that you will have to pay a price for your actions.
Besides, I think it is possible to come with a situation when breaking the precepts would make our region of Samsara a better place to live in. Imagine people trying to rape someone and you seeing this. You may try to protect the victim whatever the cost, or you may go down the non-violence patrh. Imagine a starving child and a super-rich neighbour who just doesnât care. Imagine a huge village of astrology-loving Upulvan-worshipping people. If you are a monk, your own salvation and the integirity of the Sangha take the upper hand, of course. If you are a lay person, it is wholly up to you what you are willing to put at a karmic stake. Sometimes, in the Samsara there is only wrong and wronger.
Sure, which is why I personally choose to drink but not discuss religion when drunk. Other people may choose to not drink at all. Other people yet may choose to drink and talk about religion when drunk. There is the right course of action, but it is up to you to decide which one you follow, it s not a black-and-white picture.
Because I am a week and faulty person, and I am not a likely Arahant material, not im my circumstances. Why do people break any other Buddhist precepts? For the exact same reason why people choose to cross the road at red light.
The question I your opinion is the only way to make a better world by breaking the precepts?*
Huh? You cannot think of anyway to improve society without breaking precepts?
What about generosity? What about kindness? What about Compassion? What about Mudita? What about equanimity?
If we look at the suttas DN27 talks about a king who thought it wasnât necessary to practice these things. It lead to all the precepts not being kept.
And yet it is undeniable that if everyone were to observe the first precept, there would be no war. And why is war hell, apart from the fact that people involved in it are breaking the precepts on a grand scale?
Then Yodhajiva the headman went to the Blessed One and, on arrival, having bowed down to him, sat to one side. As he was sitting there he said to the Blessed One: âLord, I have heard that it has been passed down by the ancient teaching lineage of warriors that âWhen a warrior strives & exerts himself in battle, if others then strike him down & slay him while he is striving & exerting himself in battle, then with the breakup of the body, after death, he is reborn in the company of devas slain in battle.â What does the Blessed One have to say about that?â
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âEnough, headman, put that aside. Donât ask me that.â
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A second time⌠A third time Yodhajiva the headman said: âLord, I have heard that it has been passed down by the ancient teaching lineage of warriors that âWhen a warrior strives & exerts himself in battle, if others then strike him down & slay him while he is striving & exerting himself in battle, then with the breakup of the body, after death, he is reborn in the company of devas slain in battle.â What does the Blessed One have to say about that?â
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âApparently, headman, I havenât been able to get past you by saying, âEnough, headman, put that aside. Donât ask me that.â So I will simply answer you. When a warrior strives & exerts himself in battle, his mind is already seized, debased, & misdirected by the thought: âMay these beings be struck down or slaughtered or annihilated or destroyed. May they not exist.â If others then strike him down & slay him while he is thus striving & exerting himself in battle, then with the breakup of the body, after death, he is reborn in the hell called the realm of those slain in battle. But if he holds such a view as this: âWhen a warrior strives & exerts himself in battle, if others then strike him down & slay him while he is striving & exerting himself in battle, then with the breakup of the body, after death, he is reborn in the company of devas slain in battle,â that is his wrong view. Now, there are two destinations for a person with wrong view, I tell you: either hell or the animal womb.â
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When this was said, Yodhajiva the headman sobbed & burst into tears. [The Blessed One said:] âThat is what I couldnât get past you by saying, âEnough, headman, put that aside. Donât ask me that.ââ
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"Iâm not crying, lord, because of what the Blessed One said to me, but simply because I have been deceived, cheated, & fooled for a long time by that ancient teaching lineage of warriors who said: âWhen a warrior strives & exerts himself in battle, if others then strike him down & slay him while he is striving & exerting himself in battle, then with the breakup of the body, after death, he is reborn in the company of devas slain in battle.â
â SN 42.3