Can we kill mosquitoes, cockroaches & rats?

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3f21ivo10p1mx December 14, 2014 at 4:45am

nobody is more qualified to say abouth this subject then sri sukadeva goswami.

if someones thinks that any martial human is more qualified ,he is immidiately offender.

we might save our selfs from doing sin, if we learn that killing even insect is forbidden.

SB 5.26.17

yas tv iha vai bhūtānām īśvaropakalpita-vṛttīnām avivikta-para-vyathānāṁ svayaṁ puruṣopakalpita-vṛttir vivikta-para-vyatho vyathām ācarati sa paratrāndhakūpe tad-abhidroheṇa nipatati tatra hāsau tair jantubhiḥ paśu-mṛga-pakṣi-sarīsṛpair maśaka-yūkā-matkuṇa-makṣikādibhir ye ke cābhidrugdhās taiḥ sarvato ’bhidruhyamāṇas tamasi vihata-nidrā-nirvṛtir alabdhāvasthānaḥ parikrāmati yathā kuśarīre jīvaḥ.

Word for word:

yaḥ — any person who; tu — but; iha — in this life; vai — indeed; bhūtānām — to some living entities; īśvara — by the supreme controller; upakalpita — designed; vṛttīnām — whose means of livelihood; avivikta — not understanding; para-vyathānām — the pain of others; svayam — himself; puruṣa-upakalpita — designed by the Supreme Personality of Godhead; vṛttiḥ — whose livelihood; vivikta — understanding; para-vyathaḥ — the painful conditions of others; vyathām ācarati — but still causes pain; saḥ — such a person; paratra — in his next life; andhakūpe — to the hell named Andhakūpa; tat — to them; abhidroheṇa — by the sin of malice; nipatati — falls down; tatra — there; ha — indeed; asau — that person; taiḥ jantubhiḥ — by those respective living entities; paśu — animals; mṛga — wild beasts; pakṣi — birds; sarīsṛpaiḥ — snakes; maśaka — mosquitoes; yūkā — lice; matkuṇa — worms; makṣika-ādibhiḥ — flies and so on; ye ke — whoever else; ca — and; abhidrugdhāḥ — persecuted; taiḥ — by them; sarvataḥ — everywhere; abhidruhyamāṇaḥ — being injured; tamasi — in the darkness; vihata — disturbed; nidrā-nirvṛtiḥ — whose resting place; alabdha — not being able to obtain; avasthānaḥ — a resting place; parikrāmati — wanders; yathā — just as; ku-śarīre — in a low-grade body; jīvaḥ — a living entity.

Translation:

By the arrangement of the Supreme Lord, low-grade living beings like bugs and mosquitoes suck the blood of human beings and other animals. Such insignificant creatures are unaware that their bites are painful to the human being. However, first-class human beings — brāhmaṇas, kṣatriyas and vaiśyas — are developed in consciousness, and therefore they know how painful it is to be killed. A human being endowed with knowledge certainly commits sin if he kills or torments insignificant creatures, who have no discrimination. The Supreme Lord punishes such a man by putting him into the hell known as Andhakūpa, where he is attacked by all the birds and beasts, reptiles, mosquitoes, lice, worms, flies, and any other creatures he tormented during his life. They attack him from all sides, robbing him of the pleasure of sleep. Unable to rest, he constantly wanders about in the darkness. Thus in Andhakūpa his suffering is just like that of a creature in the lower species.
Volunteer

Sarvopama dasa ACBSP December 13, 2014 at 7:25pm

Chanakya Pandit says if you have unwanted guests, don't feed them and they will go. Similarly if we keep everything scrupulously clean and make sure all foodstuffs are well sealed up, then we decrease the likelihood that vermin will be attracted.
- Volunteer
  
  Shravn Prabhu > Bhumika Sharma February 22, 2011 at 8:26pm
  
  I heard this from an initiated practicing devotee of an incidence when Prabhupada saw a mosquito almost dying on the carpet, He called a devotee, gave him a flower and asked him to pick up the mosquito with the flower and take him (mosquito) outside. Devotee did just that and the mosquito gained energy from the flower and flew away.
  
  You see, even this fallen mosquito has participated in devotional service, chanting of Lord Krishna's Names (through Sravanam, listening) . Surely the spirit soul inside the mosquito has been put on a devotional path through Ahaituki Kripa of the pure devotee, Srla Prabhupada.
  
  I have also seen devotees kill mosquitos with the clap of hands as they shout Hare Krishna. I dont know if this is correct. Please comment if this is a good practice.
  
  How ever, this may be necessary to protect our bodies from poisons (Malaria) carried by mosquitos.
  
  If you have rats, a cat may be kept to control rats/mice. You are not bound by the karma of the mice/rats killed by the cat.
  
  In America many Hindus keep cats and dogs and dont read lables on their food and end up feeding them go-mamsa (cow meat) and acquire serious bad karma
Sanjay Bailur February 25, 2011 at 11:46am

Thank You for your wonderful thoughts Prakash Shivalkar Prabhu, Shravan Prabhu & Jay Krishnan Ramaswamy Prabhu.. But the question is i see many mosquitoes in the house.. Im really confused whether to kill or not.. I live in coastal area and these areas are endemic places for Malaria and Filaria which are spread through mosquitoes.. So im really confused what to do.. We cant just shoo away mosquitoes. It will obviosly come back again..

Also as far as cockroaches are concerned we have to kill it inorder to check its population from multiplying inside house.. There is no other way.. Cockroaches contaminate the food and capable of spreading diseases like dysentry, gastroenteritis, typhoid etc..

so also rats.. Rats can cause fatal diseases like Plague, Leptospirosis etc.. so at many homes they keep rat trap and thus kill rats..

But we all know that every living entity is a spirit soul.. It is the same quality spirit soul which exists in a human body as well as any of these lower forms of life..

so can devotees please share your opinion as to what you practically do at your houses, temples or working places?
Volunteer

Jay Krishnan Ramasawmy February 24, 2011 at 10:28pm

Hare Krsna,

His divine grace, A.C Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, has indirectly (through the stories in Srimad Bhagavatam)

or directly (during talks or events with his own devotees) given examples of what should be done in this case.

I will try to give some quotes from these examples that should help devotees understand.

From the Srimad Bhagavatam, 5th Canto, chapter nine and ten:

"Sukadeva Gosvami continued: My dear King, after this, King Rahugana,
ruler of the states known as Sindhu and Sauvira, was going to
Kapilasrama. When the King's chief palanquin carriers reached the banks
of the River Iksumati, they needed another carrier. Therefore they began
searching for someone, and by chance they came upon Jada Bharata. They
considered the fact that Jada Bharata was very young and strong and had
firm limbs. Like cows and asses, he was quite fit to carry loads.
Thinking in this way, although the great soul Jada Bharata was unfit for
such work, they nonetheless unhesitatingly forced him to carry the
palanquin."

"Although Jada Bharata was forced to carry the palanquin, he did not
give up his sympathetic feelings toward the poor ants passing on the
road. A devotee of the Lord does not forget his devotional service and
other favorable activities, even when he is in a most distressful
condition. Jada Bharata was a qualified brahmana, highly elevated in
spiritual knowledge, yet he was forced to carry the palanquin. He did not
mind this, but while walking on the road, he could not forget his duty to
avoid killing even an ant. A Vaisnava is never envious or unnecessarily
violent. There were many ants on the path, but Jada Bharata took care by
looking ahead three feet. When the ants were no longer in his way, he
would place his foot on the ground. A Vaisnava is always very kind at
heart to all living entities. In His sankhya-yoga, Lord Kapiladeva
explains: suhrdah sarva-dehinam. Living entities assume different bodily
forms. Those who are not Vaisnavas consider only human society worthy of
their sympathy, but Krsna claims to be the supreme father of all life
forms. Consequently the Vaisnava takes care not to annihilate untimely or
unnecessarily any life form. All living entities have to fulfill a
certain duration for being encaged in a particular type of material body.
They have to finish the duration allotted a particular body before being
promoted or evolved to another body. Killing an animal or any other
living being simply places an impediment in the way of his completing his
term of imprisonment in a certain body. One should therefore not kill
bodies for one's sense gratification, for this will implicate one in
sinful activity."

Another direct example has been given by his HG Srutakirti Dasa when he was serving Srila

Prabhupada in March 1973, Camp: ISKCON Mayapur.

"I had never seen so many mosquitoes in my life. It was so bad that by the time I had the net over his bed there were already mosquitoes inside the net. One night, after we both climbed under the net I was massaging his legs. I said, "There are so many mosquitoes. Should I kill them, Srila Prabhupada?" He said, "Yes! They are attacking. According to Sastra, if one is being attacked, you have the right to defend yourself. And, they are attacking."

So, the instruction is you have to avoid killing any kind of animals as far as possible unless you are being really threatened/attacked by them. It would be better if you can find some ways of chasing them away or repelling them without having to kill them. Eg cockroaches are reputed to dislike the smell of bay leaves. Hence, if you can find some bay leaves or other thing that they don't like, use these things to get rid of them.

Hare Krsna

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SB 5.26.17