7th Issue (March, 2008)

Transgression of the First Buddhist Moral Injunction: Restraint from Killing

By Mandy Mui

At the breakfast table
One glance at the newspaper
At the very front page
News outbreak of today

Another teenager was murdered
A knife plunged in the heart
By a total stranger
No fault of his own

Robbed of his wonderful life
Due to the other one being unkind
A murderer with no emotion, no compassion at all
Bad karma created, due to aversion

Victim’s family and friends wept
For their loved one has been swept
Away from this life
Where sunrise could be seen

The murderer was not aware
Robbing a life was so unfair
He will now live in fear
For his guilty conscience will appear

Haunting him day and night
Till the day that he dies
He will live to regret
Robbing someone’s life

One should not kill
One should not steal
Practice compassion to all living things
Peace on earth we will bring.