Nurturing compassion - Releasing and saving lives

Actually, you are the Buddha. Not such an effective Buddha, perhaps, but... a Buddha, a small Buddha... We need to nurture our inner Buddha, our child Buddha.” 

Nurturing Compassion Book - His Holiness The 17th Karmapa, Ogyen Trinley Dorje

It is said that in the past in India, there lived a king named Trichen, who enjoyed eating meat so fresh that the blood was still warm, and he has killed ten thousand animals for his craved.  Through the karmic ripening of these actions, the king Trichen was reborn in Vajra Hell, one of the eighteen hell realms, where the extent of his sufferings such that the King died a hundred times and each time he fell back into hell as he revived.

The venerable Ananda saw the sufferings of him and asked the Buddha about it. The Buddha replied, This is the karmic ripening of a man who enjoyed killing and eating fresh meat and who enjoyed killing animals. Ananda asked the Buddha Shakyamuni , is there any way to liberate the "king" ? Buddha replied, "if you want to liberate this man from hell, save the lives  of animals in the worldly realms and he will be freed, so, Ananda saved many lives for the king's benefit, and the king was liberated from Vajra Hell. 

What is lives releasing ?
Generally, there is no difference in the size or species of any animals to be saved. However, buying and liberating animals that were certainly destined to be killed by butchers in a slaughterhouse naturally brings the greatest benefits.

Life release is a Buddhist tradition of saving lives of animals that are destined to be killed. Although every life is precious, the fact of being alive inevitably causes taking lives of other beings. We cannot completely prevent this situation because as long as we walk, breath, eat, and so forth, we cause the deaths of many creatures. However,  we can cultivate mindfulness, and try to reduce taking lives to the best of our ability. We can also offer a gift of life and protection through the practice of life release.

No matter what our lifestyle, we can do this practice. It benefits those who offer the gift of life as well as those who receive it. Regardless of what religion, we practice, its result will be strengthened if the practice is concluded with an aspiration that all beings without exception enjoy happiness and a life free from any harm.

If we are Buddhists, we dedicate the merit from the practice of life release for the benefit of all beings, to the long life of Buddhist teachers and to His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama and His Holiness 17th Gyalwa Karmapa, Ogyen Trinley Dorje in particular, we dedicate the practice to His Holiness long life, and to the flourishing of his activity in the world.

His Holiness the 17th Gyalwa Karmapa, Ogyen Trinley Dorje said that the meaning of life release is broad, that the practice can be done in a variety of ways, and that we should use our intelligence in deciding what way is most suitable in our particular circumstance. His Holiness has also encouraged His students to engage in saving lives through abstaining (at least periodically) from eating meat and in his address about protecting the environment, His Holiness the 17th Gyalwa Karmapa encouraged the Sangha to engage in planting trees as a form of activity that accords with the spirit of life release.

How to do the practice? The practice has two aspects:-
1. The act of saving lives, 
2. The blessing of the prayers that accompany life release. 

When releasing animals such as animals, fish, bait fish, insects, earthworms, please make sure that the species you are releasing the native to your locations. Invasive species are plants or animals that do not belong where humans have intentionally or accidentally brought them and the effects are immense, insidious, irreversible.

IUCN, the World Conservation Union, states that the impacts of alien invasive species are immense, insidious, and usually irreversible. They may be as damaging to native species and ecosystems on a global scale as the loss and degradation of habitats. Hundreds of extinctions have been caused by invasive alien species. The ecological cost is the irretrievable loss of native species and ecosystems.

At the time of saving a life, Lamas or Rinpoches and so forth will cleanse the animals by wafting the smoke of burning incense over them and burning juniper, throw charmed mustard seeds and so on in order to expel obstructing spirits, and perform ablution rituals. The Lamas will then recite the ritual chant such as the Long Life Amitayus Buddha's sutra or Dharani and aspire that the animals may enjoy long lives. They will then remove the halters from their heads, the saddles from their back and so on, and vow never again to make use of these animals, and then send them off.

When is the right time to save "lives" ?
Every day should be a good and meaningful day for practising and saving lives. If according to the Tibetan traditions,  the main days of the Tibetan lunar calendar for releasing animals are (-)

1. 8th  ( Medicine Buddha and Arya Taras day ) 
2. 10th ( Guru Rinpoche day )
3. 15th ( Amitabha Buddha and full moon day )
4. 25th ( Dakini day )
5. 29th ( Dharmapala day )
6. 30th and 1st ( Shakyamuni day )
7. The Four Great Miracle Buddha's Days 
8. Any Buddhist festivals

This is because if one free animals on these days, the resulting virtue is hundred, thousand, ten millions times greater  than other days. If one who is unable to attend for releasing lives on such auspicious days, it is advised that you should have observed or practised for  a full vegetarian diet - including no onion, garlic, egg

His Holiness The 17th Gyalwang Karmapa, Ogyen Trinley Dorje himself a pure vegetarian, then turned to his own life as an example. “When I spoke about this, I was primarily thinking about the way I lead my own life. I can’t really do anything about how other people lead their lives, but in terms of thinking about myself there are some reasons for this.” 

He then explained two key reasons that he personally does not eat meat. The first reason is the intense suffering that the animals who are killed go through. Every single day millions of animals are killed to feed us, and many are subjected to terrible conditions to provide us with food. Just a few days previously the Gyalwang Karmapa had shared a story of how, as a child in Tibet, when animals were killed for his family’s food he felt unbearable, pure compassion for them.

The second reason he doesn’t eat meat, the Gyalwang Karmapa continued, is because of his Mahayana training in seeing all sentient beings as his mothers. “We say I am going to do everything I can free sentient beings from suffering. We say I am going to do this. We make the commitment. We take the vow. Once we have taken this vow, if then, without thinking anything about it, we just go ahead and eat meat, then that is not right It is something that we need to think about very carefully.” 

Benefits of Releasing Lives.
The benefits obtained by releasing the lives of animals are similar to the benefits obtained by holding full monastic vows. By freeing a single life, a single rebirth in the lower realms is purified. Even if one has committed the harmful actions in this world, the act of saving lives  can purify  those harmful actions and obscurations.

If one releases life on behalf of someone, whose life is coming to an end, their life will be extended. At the same time, in the sutras, it is said that killing  a single liberated animal ( i.e , an animal that has been released ) is equal to killing  one hundred animals, and that such an action brings countless other negative karmic consequences. 

Thank you for reading, may you find peace and great bliss. With your support it helps to spread the Buddha’s precious teachings and turning the Dharma wheels in the world.

Aspiration For Bodhichitta
For those in whom the precious Bodhichitta has not arisen
May it arise and not decrease
But increase further and further.

Dedication of Merit
By this merit may we obtain omniscience then.
Having defeated the enemies wrong-doings.
May we liberate migrators from the ocean of existence.
With its stormy waves of birth, old age, sickness and death.

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