Killing in The Perfectly Enlightened One’s Teachings

Kesi, you are well known to be a horse trainer. Just how do you guide a horse to be tamed?

‘Venerable Sir, I guide one kind of horse gently, another kind sternly, and still another kind both gently and sternly.’

But, Kesi, if a horse to be tamed by you won’t submit to guidance by any of these methods, how do you deal with him?

‘Venerable Sir, if a horse to be tamed by me won’t submit to guidance by any of these methods, then I kill him. For what reason? So that there will be no disgrace to my Teaching organization. But, Venerable Sir, The Perfectly Enlightened One is the unsurpassed trainer of persons to be tamed. Just how does The Perfectly Enlightened One guide a person to be tamed?’

I guide one kind of person gently, another kind sternly, and still another kind both gently and sternly.

(1) This, Kesi, is the gentle method: Such is bodily wholesome conduct, such the result of bodily wholesome conduct; such is verbal wholesome conduct, such the result of verbal wholesome conduct; such is mental wholesome conduct, such the result of mental wholesome conduct; such are the heavenly beings, such are human beings.

(2) This is the stern method: Such is bodily misconduct, such the result of bodily misconduct; such is verbal misconduct, such the result of verbal misconduct: such is mental misconduct, such the result of mental misconduct; such is hell, such the animal realm, such the realm of afflicted spirits.

(3) This is the gentle and stern method: Such is bodily wholesome conduct, such the result of bodily wholesome conduct; such is bodily misconduct, such the result of bodily misconduct. Such is verbal wholesome conduct, such the result of verbal wholesome conduct; such is verbal misconduct, such the result of verbal misconduct. Such is mental wholesome conduct, such the result of mental wholesome conduct: Such is mental misconduct, such the result of mental misconduct.

Such are the heavenly beings, such are human beings: such is hell, such the animal realm, such the realm of afflicted spirits.

‘But, Venerable Sir, if a person to be tamed by you won't submit to guidance by any of these methods, how does The Perfectly Enlightened One deal with him?’

If a person to be tamed by me won’t submit to guidance by any of these methods, then I kill him.

‘But, Venerable Sir, it isn't allowable for The Perfectly Enlightened One to destroy life. Yet he says, Then I kill him,’

It is true, Kesi, that it isn't allowable for The Tathāgata to destroy life. However, when a person to be tamed won’t submit to guidance by the gentle method, the stern method, or the method that is both gentle and stern, then The Tathāgata thinks he should not be spoken to and instructed, and his wise fellow Monks, too, think he should not be spoken to and instructed.

For this, Kesi, is ‘killing’ in the Noble One's Teachings: The Tathāgata thinks one should not be spoken to and instructed, and one’s wise fellow Monks, too, think one should not be spoken to and instructed.

(Reference: AN 4.11)

Here again, The Buddha is sharing Teachings connected with that of training a horse. He is relating the training provided by a horse trainer to tame a horse to that of the training he provides to tame the human mind.

In this Teaching from Gotama Buddha, he shares that if a Student is not attentive to his guidance he has four methods of instruction.

1.) “The Gentle Method” which is to talk with Students softly to help them see areas of improvement.

2.) “The Stern Method” which is to talk with Students firmly to help them see areas of improvement.

3.) “The Gentle and Stern Method” which is to talk with Students both softly and firmly, depending on the situation and lesson to be learned, to help them see areas of improvement.

The method used would be based on what the Student responds to. If a Student responded to “the gentle method”, that is all that was needed. But some Students might only respond to “the stern method” with more firm talk. Remember, Gotama Buddha’s Students basically lived with him and he served as a parent. So, speaking firmly to a Student of his might produce the results needed for the Student to move the mind towards improved conduct. But, in using “the stern method”, that would not involve harsh speech as The Buddha and any Enlightened being would be practicing The Five Factors of Well Spoken Speech and choose not to speak harshly. It is possible to speak sternly or firmly without speaking harshly based on word choice, tone, and tempo a wise Teacher might choose to employ.

The Buddha chose to employ a fourth aspect of sharing these Teachings that if a Student did not respond to his Teachings, he “killed” them. Killing in his view was not to take their life through destroying the physical body but instead, choosing to no longer share The Teachings with a Student is considered “killing” in these Teachings.

It is these Teachings that breathe healthy life into the mind. Without this breath of healthy life being breathed into the mind, it is similar to “killing” a person.

I am sure Gotama Buddha did not take the decision to stop sharing The Teachings with a Student lightly. But, at the end of the day, a Perfectly Enlightened One is interested in helping Practitioners progress on The Path to Enlightenment. If a Student is taking time, effort, energy, and resources from a Teacher to have the Teacher share The Teachings yet does not apply the lessons shared to improve their life practice, this could be considered disrespectful to the Teacher and other Students.

The way to respect a Teacher is through dedicated learning and application of The Teachings into one’s life practice. Remember, the Teacher is not getting a salary, benefits nor are they placing any direct requirements or expectations onto the Students as part of sharing The Teachings. But it would be wise for a Teacher to recognize their time in this existence is limited as well as their effort, energy, and resources are also limited. If a Teacher invests heavily into a Student who chooses not to learn, reflect, and practice The Teachings, this would be unwise for the Teacher to continue sharing The Teachings with the disrespectful Student - as the Teacher will have many Students to help.

So, while the decision to kill a Student should not be taken lightly, there may come a time in your teaching career where the wisest and most helpful thing for a complacent Student is to realize they are being disrespectful to not diligently apply The Teachings, they are wasting time, and The Teacher is choosing to move away from them due to their decision to not learn, reflect, and practice The Teachings. This would be the Student’s Kamma - the results of their decisions. This could be exactly what that Student needs to ignite motivation and enthusiasm to more diligently learn, reflect, and practice The Teachings.

Anyone choosing to share these Teachings into the world may find this Teaching helpful but also parents, employers, community leaders and others may find applying these methods could be beneficial to produce results within your relationships. Just be sure that if you choose to speak “sternly or firmly” you are not speaking “harshly” and you may need to seek guidance from a wise Teacher to understand the difference and where is “the middle way” associated with this Teaching. Because if you spoke harshly, that would not produce wholesome results as it would be counterproductive based on The Natural Laws of Existence shared in The Five Factors of Well Spoken Speech.

I have found that in 99.9% of all relationships, I am able to use “the gentle method” of sharing these Teachings and Students will respond to this more readily. However, in relationships such as with my son, wife, and a very limited number of employees from the past, choosing to speak “sternly and firmly” was exactly what they needed to learn a lesson and get to the next step in their development. I ensured that if I employed “the stern method” there was a well established relationship that ensured the individual already understands I have deep loving-kindness, compassion, and respect for them as an individual. I would also attempt to always employ “the gentle method” first and in more than one instance. But ultimately if a firmer approach is what is needed, this can be employed in a skillful way that results in the improvement of the situation and circumstances leading to wholesome outcomes.

I do not suggest a Practitioner or Teacher employ “the stern method” until they have a well established practice of The Five Factors of Well Spoken Speech and a well established relationship with the individual that you feel a firm approach could be beneficial. I suggest you attempt “the gentle method” in 99.9% of all situations and if there is no improved response you could consider killing the Student - no longer sharing these Teachings.

And, if you do decide to use “the stern method” after much consideration, that you do so without craving, anger, and ignorance (unknowing of true reality). As if you use a firm approach while your own mind is angered, then this is not the proper time for you to speak and it will most likely have unwholesome results. One should not employ “the stern method” based on anger or an interest to punish an individual, but instead, based on compassionate interest in helping an individual improve their conduct and results.