RIP Scruffs
Yesterday, once more, I was struck by the suffering of impermanence, when I had to say goodbye to an old meditation companion seen in the photo. This brought home some reality to two topics.
Precept on Killing
Since my feline (formally feral) mediation friend was put to sleep by the use of chemicals one might say “you have broken the first precept on killing”. Like all things, however, this precept is more nuanced. To “kill” in this precept sense one has to have a volitional intent to take life (or to take life through carelessness) and after the event show a lack of remorse. In this event, the volitional intent was to end the extreme suffering of an animal that had lost 25% of its weight in 3 months and had a massive tumour impacting his eating/breathing. Consider the surgeon who tackles a complex case with the intent of helping and then loses his patient. No intent and most likely remorse.
Five daily contemplations
This highlighted several of the daily contemplations:
- Bodies are all subject to old-age
- Bodies are all subject to disease
- Bodies are all subject to death
- Inevitable is separation from the loved
- All are owners and heirs of their kamma
Whilst that sounds a little bleak it is merely a tool to understand annica & dukkha and work towards real, lasting happiness 😉
What a lovely item – we also miss Marmalade, died of posioning five months ago. I have just deleted him from the chip register – time doesn’t heal – there are moments when it is as if it were yesterday.
I now have Marmalade as my desktop photo – just to admire those whiskers!