If human spirit wants to soar into the' sky field' of spirituality, man should master at least the basic lessons of non-violence.

Indian preceptors have, time and again, reminded us that it is impossible to progress in spirituality unmindful of non-violence, which is the ultimate dharma of man. Yet, the avaricious human nature has relapsed into violence in many ways. Man, all over the world, goes even to the extent of dyeing the rituals and rites in violence.

Chattambi Swami makes it abundantly clear that Nature's instinct is not violence, but non-violence and that ahimsa is the ultimate dharma.

First of all, no person kills animals and feeds on them out of liking. He comes to like that kind of food due to habit.

Human beings call predatory animals cruel. He calls cows and rabbits meek. But, in the world no predatory animal is as cruel as man. So, meateating men should be called the cruellest creatures!

There are some who argue that all other creatures were created for men. In their opinion, whiteness of rabbits is to ensure easy hunting by men even during night!

If all these creatures were created for men, then why do they need weapons for hunting them? On the other hand, there are many animals that can kill and eat man without recourse to weapons. As such, it is more reasonable to argue that men were created for such animals.

There is no similarity between the teeth of men and those of the carnivores. But, there is similarity between the front and back teeth of apes and those of men.

The length of the small intestine of the predatory animals is three times that of it's trunk and also their large intestine is soft. But the length of the small intestine of man is twelve times that of his trunk. And his intestine is also different. All these show that man is not a predatory animal.

The pain caused by animosity, violence, in any form, causes pain, misery, at physical, verbal and mental levels.

The next thing is that it prevents life from reaching its destination .. both internally and externally.

If we come to know that we will be harmed on the way to a particular place we will put off the journey until such time as we are sure that the imminent threat is over. When we are in the know of possibility of armed attack or earthquake, postpone our journey indefinitely out of love for our own life lest we shall be trapped in such miseries. In short, we will try to evade them.

The impediment to our own internal growth caused by violence is also notable. Every life has a born destiny and that it is for that, that all moving and unmoving forms of life take birth.

Nature has endowed every birth with an easy death. Whatever is born will die. The unnatural death caused by another person will deprive a person of his fated easy death and also existentially push him into the same form of yoni.

The one who causes such harm will incur sin. This is the impediment caused by injury to a man's self-destination.

Source: " Kerala Calling " September 2005 by" Swami Nirmalanadagiri "