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Absolution for Accidental or Unavoidable Violence
From the book 'Vaisnava Compassion'
By HH Satsvarupa das Goswami
Submitted by Manoj
It's inevitable that no mater how conscientious we are not to commit violence toward other creatures, we will still be guilty of harming some of them. We unknowingly crush ants or other small insects when we walk; we accidentally crush a spider under our drinking glass; we throw wood in the stove, but it's full of hibernating beetles; we drive a vehicle, and hundreds of insects are smashed against our headlights and windshield. In this society, we often have no choice but to participate in the violent acts of others-perhaps we have to buy milk that is produced in factory farms. Many of the products that we use regularly contain animal products-soaps and film, for example. We have to take responsibility for that violence.
Therefore, we devotees cannot call ourselves perfectly nonviolent, especially if we make little effort to avoid animal products. More and more people in the West are becoming aware of products that use animal ingredients, and although they may not have the deeper Krsna conscious motive, they are good at practicing nonviolence in a violent world. If we are making little endeavor in this regard, we shouldn't be proud of our nonviolence.
Still, devotees like to practice nonviolence, and we usually feel awful when we suddenly discover that the ingredients of something we have been using were acquired by violent means. What can we do to absolve ourselves?
The main thing is to be sure that we are fully engaged in Krsna consciousness. We should not risk acting in this world without the shelter of Krsna consciousness. When we travel, we should travel for a Krsna conscious purpose; when we eat, we should offer our food to Krsna. We will commit unintentional violence no matter what we do in this world whether we travel or stay at home-but whatever we do will be purified when we offer our lives to Krsna. That is the meaning of yajna, The best yajna in this age is the sankirtana-yajna, which when considered in its broader context, includes all the services we render in order to give Krsna consciousness to others. From the purport to Srtmad-Bhagavatam 11.3.24:
"Ahimsa indicates that one should not commit violence against any living entity.... Ultimately the material world is full of violence, and the laws of nature, which impose old age, disease and death upon every living creature, are themselves filled with violence. Therefore, if somehow or other one can convince others to surrender to Krsa and thus release themselves from the violent laws of material nature, that is the perfection of ahima".
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