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stipendi SPIRITUAL LIGHT. etc. Hunting, shooting, fishing, vivisection, wars, etc., are strictly prohibited as they involve the loss of life.
Notwithstanding every one is allowed to do his duty; so a king may carry on war in self-defence. A householder may prevent a thief from taking away his property, or can defend himself against those who assault or by beating or killing a ferocious animal if he is in imminent danger of his life. A householder must always take precautions to avoid emergency. He should always use corn, wood, clarified butter, &c., after clearing them of life-forms lying invisible within the article. He should use filtered water. He should be very careful in the treatment of animals used for drive &c., by refraining from beating them cruelly, tying them with strong ropes, piercing their ears &c., heavily loading them and starving them. There are many other ways in which a Jain householder is required to abstain from doing injury to animal life.
Every living being desires freedom from pain and happiness so any act tending to bring pain to the body as well as mind is Himsā. There are many anecdotes of ravenous beasts and ferocious animals having stood calm and quiet before Lord Mahāvira and other high personalities who had rightly followed the practice of Ahimsā—“ Panacea for all evils, mundane and extra-mundane.” So the practice of Ahimsā never destroys the spirit of dignified manliness, heroism and other higher virtues as is alleged by some without properly understanding it. The practice of Ahimsa
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