AHINSA

  1. A group of friends are sitting in a circle. One of the friends places an iron-pot in the midst of the circle. The iron pot is very hot.

  2. He requests every one of his friends one by one to touch the pot. The friends accept the request and touch the pot one by one. Each one of them withdraws his hand promptly after touching the pot. Every one complains of his fingers being burnt.

    3. The friend who placed the pot states, "First by a touch for less than a second, all of you are greatly pained you are shaken by the touch. All of you are greatly afraid. In your fire and pain, you are equal.

    "The other human beings are all like you. They also get greatly afraid and like to run away from the pain. Therefore, I request you to refrain from conflicting pain on others."

  3. The friends listen to the request. They accept the fact that they have been pained by the touch of the pot. However, they do not appreciate the request for refreshing from inflicting pain on others.

  4. Bhagwan Mahavir preaches :-

    5. "Don't kill any one. Don't command any one. Don't impose slavery on any one. Don't give trouble to any one. Don't create fear in any one. Don't inflict mental torture on any one.

    "Don't beat any one. Don't hit any one.

    "When others bit you, when other hit you when others inflict mental torture on you, you, you are feeling intense pain. The same pain is caused to others by your beating them, by you hitting them and by your torturing them."

    "Treat others as your request. Feel yourself in others. The persons whom you regard as worthy of being killed and tortured is none other than your own self.

    "Earth is life. Water is life. Fire is life. Wind is life and vegetation is life."

    The worms have life. The insects have life. Birds and Beasts have life. Men have life.

    Don't kill any one of the above. Don't torture any one of the above.

    Don't inflict pain on any one o the above.

    "Don't cause them plain by your mind, by or words or by your action."

    "Don't inflict pain on others either through yourself or through others. Don't praise thou, we inflict pain on others."

    "Avoid killing and inflicting pain, slight or great, upon others."

    "Evil effects await those, who cause pain to others".

  5. Not only Bhagwan Mahavir has preached them, every Tirthankar has done the same.