Evening Talks with Sri Aurobindo

13th January, 1939

The Mother was present when X put the following question to her.

Disciple : Mother, is it a sin to kill bugs, mosquitoes, scorpions etc.?

"Ask Sri Aurobindo"; The Mother replied smiling. "When I came here I used to drive them away by yogic force. Sri Aurobindo did not approve of it."

Sri Aurobindo : Because one is making friendship with them in that way. What is the sin? If you don't kill them they will go and bite some other people and won't it be a sin to you?

Disciple : But they have life, Sir?

Sri Aurobindo : Yes, they have.

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Disciple : And, if one kills them?

Sri Aurobindo : Well, what happens?

Disciple : He will be liable to sin of course. I don't mean we don't kill at all, for instance, we are breathing microbes.

Mother : The doctors don't kill?

Disciple : Yes Mother. But I mean their killing is not intentional.

Disciple : It is said that the Jains hire people to feed bugs!

Disciple : No. That is only a story.

Sri Aurobindo : At any rate, I know of a story in history. When Mahmed of Gazni invaded (West) India he defeated a Jain king through the help of his brother. The dethroned king was left in charge of his brother, who was now the king. He did not know what to do with his brother; so, he dug a pit below his throne and threw him in it and closed it up. As a result he died : so that his brother did not kill him! (laughter)

Mother : Then, in order to be a true Jain, one must be a yogi and then with yogic power he can deal with these animals and insects?

Disciple : Is one justified in killing snakes and scorpions?

Sri Aurobindo : Why not? One must kill in self-defense. I don't mean that you must hunt out the snakes and kill them. But when you see that they are endangering your or other lives, then you have every right to kill them.

Mother : The plants have also life. So, you mean to say

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that mosquito is more precious then rose? You don't know perhaps how the plants feel.

Disciple : There are people who say that killing a dog or a cat is not so sinful as killing a man.

Sri Aurobindo : Life is life–whether in a cat, or dog or man. There is no difference in that between cat or man. The idea of difference is a human conception for man's own advantage perhaps.

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