Bhikkhu Dhammavihari

All beings dread death. It is also true that all dread being battered and beaten. This we must remember about ourselves as well. Therefore we shall neither kill nor bring about the death of others. This idea is beautifully expressed in the Buddhist Manual of Good Living called the Dhammapada as follows.

Sabbe tasanti dasoassa sabbe bhayanti maccuno
attanam upamaü katva na haneyya na ghataye. Dhp. v.129

This Buddhist attitude of living in friendship with all else that lives everywhere, i.e. both on this earth and in the universe as a whole, is comprehensively covered under the terms metta [ in Pali ] and maitra [ in Sanskrit ]. It is often referred to as 'universal loving kindness'. It is, in other words, 'the spirit of friendliness expressed without any reservations towards all living things'.

This magnanimous philosophy of amity or friendship in Buddhism is fully enunciated in the Metta Sutta of the Buddhists [ Sn. vv.143-152 and Khp. p.8f. ], and brings within its fold all grades of life, of man and bird and beast, no matter how large or small they are. Seen or unseen, near or far, all life is encompassed within thoughts of loving kindness. In displeasure or in ill-will, one shall not long for or plan for the destruction of another. With more or less maternal affection, one is called upon to look at all life in the universe [ = Mata yatha niyaü puttaü ayusa ekaputtam anurakkahe / Evam'pi sabba-bhatesu manasaü bhavaye aparimanam. op.cit. ]. This attitude to the vast world we live in is expected to pervade all areas of Buddhist life, both religious and secular.