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Questions :
What one must have to be considered normal in Buddhism?
The Five Precepts. The word precept in Pali is "Sila," which means normality. In other words, if you break these five precepts you are considered to be abnormal in Buddhism. Five precepts are Buddhists' living guidance or our code of conducts.
Another very important thing to note in Buddhism is that intention is key. If you have done something that appears to have broken the Sila, but you were not intentional in doing so, you may have not broken the five Silas even if you have done it. That's one thing to note because in Buddhism, it's your mind that matters.
The ultimate goal of the Five Precepts is to bring about the peace of mind for people who follow and to bring about peaceful co-living for people in this world.
Now what are the five precepts?
First, to abstain from killing or in simple word, not to kill. That includes human and all creatures.
What if I kill the plants? Have I broken the Five Precepts?
The answer is no. According to the Tripitaka or the Buddhist Bible, you are not to kill any living creatures with soul. Plants do not have soul. But for animals, even the smallest ones, if they have soul and we kill them, then we have broken this first precept which is to abstain from killing
We love our lives, as do the animals, be it birds, or pigs, or animals as small as ants. All humans and animals love their lives. Recognizing this fact is how the First Precept originated. Nobody should take life away from another creature, not even from animals.
The second precept is to abstain from stealing or in simple word, not to steal. The reasoning is straightforward. Everyone loves their possessions. So, to be considered normal is to not cross others' boundaries and disturb their peace of mind because no one wants their possessions or the things to be stolen.
In Buddhist terminology, the most basic possessions are called the Four Basic Necessities, which every human being needs. They are:
1. Clothing. 2. Food. 3. Shelter. 4. Medicine.
If somebody takes these things away from us, can we survive with peace of mind? No, we can’t. They don’t have to kill us but if they steal or take these things away from us, then our peace of mind is taken away too. That is how the Second Precept makes sense. By not stealing, we are ensuring peaceful co-living among us all. To conclude, the second precepts is not to steal whatever is not yours.
The third precept is to abstain from sexual misconduct.
According to this precept, we are not to have any sexual activity with anyone who is not your spouse.Humans with consciousness should be able to control ourselves and our desires.
We should not take other lives and other people's possessions. Also, we must not take away someone who belongs to other people. This is the idea behind the Third Precept, that no one should take away a loved one from somebody else, and therefore one shall abstain from sexual misconduct.
The fourth precept is to abstain from false speech in simple terms, to avoid lies and vulgarities. Once you lie to somebody or bad-mouth about someone, they will feel less love for you each time. No one likes dishonesty, so you should not lie to anyone. Lies, big or small, are still lies and can cause harm. Speech abuse can be as bad as physical ones. Therefore, be mindful with what you say; abstain from false speech.
The fifth precept is to abstain from intaking intoxicants or not to intake any alcohol or even the tobacco.
As mentioned earlier, quality of mind is the most important thing in Buddhism. Everyone should have a clear and conscious mind all the time.
Since the intoxicants can wreck our conscience and lead us to commit sin, we need the Fifth Precept to keep our conscience and our dedication to keep the other Four Precepts intact.
Quick Recap:
1: Why we should not kill : because everybody loves his life.
2:Why we should not steal : because everybody needs their possessions to have peace of mind. If certain things were taken away from us, we will not be able to survive. Even if we survive, our lives will be full of hardship.
3: Why we should not commit sexual misconduct : because everybody loves their family and friends.
4: Why we should not lie : because everybody loves honesty and truthfulness
5: Why we should not intake intoxicants : because it will destroy our conscience. Without our conscience, we would be capable of infringing all the other Four Precepts.
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