Ahimsa: The path of compassion

Ahimsa is a Sanskrit word meaning non-violence. It is a very important concept in Hinduism as well as Buddhism. Ahimsa was the main teaching of Mahatma (“great soul”) Gandhi and was what he based his political strategy upon. Gandhi’s teachings revolve around the existentialization of the concept of Ahimsa.


Ahimsa is also the basis of vegetarianism as a moral and ethical practice rather than a practice of health consciousness. It has its metaphysical roots in the theory of reincarnation and karma. If one follows the theory of reincarnation, one cannot harm any living creature because it may very well be your long dead uncle Phil.

Further, in relation to the law of Karma, to harm another living creature is tantamount to bringing bad karma upon oneself. Some schools of thought see karma almost as a physical substance that makes the soul heavy and unable to float to its place in the heavens or its union with the divine (re: Brahman). Ahimsa is also very important to the Jains.

There is also a story, which may be heretical, but nonetheless points out how the practice of ahimsa could be taken to extremes. The story goes like this: it is said that there are places of lodging in India which will pay you to stay there. This is done because they do not wish the bedbugs to go unfed, as that would be tantamount to harming them or doing them violence.

All kidding aside, Ahimsa is important as a practice, even in our so-called modern Western culture, at least in relationship to other humans, though this same benevolence and compassion would ideally be bestowed upon animal and plant-life as well. The importance of such a stance of non-violence in relation to others is obvious when one wishes to have harmonious relationships. This non-violent stance includes the abstinence from words that can harm.

This brings to mind the 3 gates in Sufi wisdom that words must pass through before they can be spoken. These gates are actually questions that must be answered in the affirmative before your intended words can pass your lips. The first is: “Are they true?” the second is “Are they necessary?” If your words have passed the test of these two questions, then they must pass the third gate which is the question “Are they kind?” If your intended words of speech cannot be answered in the affirmative when subjected to these questions, then they should not be spoken. These three gates are a form of ahimsa, in that the last and most important question is “Are they kind words?”, because kind words do not harm, they heal.