Editing Five precepts (section)

=== In practice ===
{{See also|Religion and capital punishment#Buddhism|Abortion in Japan}}
[[File:Sign promoting vegetarianism at Key Monastery, Spiti, India.jpg|thumb|Sign promoting vegetarianism at [[Key Monastery]], [[Spiti]], India]]
Field studies in Cambodia and Burma have shown that many Buddhists considered the first precept the most important, or the most blamable.{{sfn|Ledgerwood|2008|page=152}}{{sfn |Harvey |2000 |p=69}} In some traditional communities, such as in [[Kandal Province]] in pre-war Cambodia, as well as Burma in the 1980s, it was uncommon for Buddhists to slaughter animals, to the extent that meat had to be bought from non-Buddhists.{{sfn|Ledgerwood|2008|page=152}}{{sfn |Spiro |1982 |p=45}} In his field studies in Thailand in the 1960s, Terwiel found that villagers did tend to kill insects, but were reluctant and self-conflicted with regard to killing larger animals.{{sfn |Terwiel |2012 |p=186}} In Spiro's field studies, however, Burmese villagers were highly reluctant even to kill insects.{{sfn |Spiro |1982 |p=45}}

Early Buddhists did not adopt a [[vegetarianism in Buddhism|vegetarian lifestyle]].<!--cited above--> Indeed, in several Pāli [[sutra|texts]] vegetarianism is described as irrelevant in the spiritual purification of the mind. There are prohibitions on certain types of meat, however, especially those which are condemned by society.<!--p=274--> The idea of abstaining from killing animal life has also led to a prohibition on professions that involve trade in flesh or living beings, but not to a full prohibition of all agriculture that involves cattle.<!--p=276-->{{sfn|Mcdermott|1989|pages=273–74, 276}} In modern times, referring to the [[law of supply and demand]] or other principles, some Theravādin Buddhists have attempted to promote vegetarianism as part of the five precepts. For example, the Thai [[Santi Asoke]] movement practices vegetarianism.{{sfn |Meadow |2006 |p=88 }}{{sfn |Swearer |2010 |page=177}}

Furthermore, among some schools of Buddhism, there has been some debate with regard to a principle in the monastic discipline. This principle states that a Buddhist monk cannot accept meat if it comes from animals that were specifically slaughtered for the monks to eat. Some teachers have interpreted this to mean that when the recipient has no knowledge on whether the animal has been killed for him, he cannot accept the food either. Similarly, there has been debate as to whether laypeople should be vegetarian when adhering to the five precepts.{{sfn |Cozort |2015}} Though vegetarianism among Theravādins is generally uncommon, it has been practiced much in East Asian countries,{{sfn |Cozort |2015}} as some Mahāyāna texts, such as the ''[[Mahaparinirvana Sutra|Mahāparanirvana Sūtra]]'' and the ''[[Laṅkāvatāra Sūtra]]'', condemn the eating of meat.{{sfn |Gwynne |2017 |loc=The Buddhist Pancasila}}{{sfn |Kieschnick |2005 |page=196}} Nevertheless, even among Mahāyāna Buddhists{{em dash}}and East Asian Buddhists{{em dash}}there is disagreement on whether vegetarianism should be practiced. In the ''Laṅkāvatāra Sūtra'', biological, social and hygienic reasons are given for a vegetarian diet; however, historically, a major factor in the development of a vegetarian lifestyle among Mahāyāna communities may have been that Mahāyāna monastics cultivated their own crops for food, rather than living from [[alms#Buddhism|alms]].{{sfn |Gwynne |2017 |loc=Ahiṃsa and Samādhi}} Already from the 4th century CE, Chinese writer [[Xi Chao]] understood the five precepts to include vegetarianism.{{sfn |Kieschnick |2005 |page=196}}

[[File:Dalai Lama 1430 Luca Galuzzi 2007crop.jpg|thumb |upright=.6 |The [[Dalai Lama]] has rejected forms of protest that are self-harming.{{sfn |Buswell |2004}}|alt=The Dalai Lama]]
Apart from trade in flesh or living beings, there are also other professions considered undesirable. Vietnamese teacher Thich Nhat Hanh gives a list of examples, such as working in the arms industry, the military, police, producing or selling poison or drugs such as alcohol and tobacco.{{sfn |Johansen |Gopalakrishna |2016 |page=341 }}

In general, the first precept has been interpreted by Buddhists as a call for non-violence and pacifism. But there have been some exceptions of people who did not interpret the first precept as an opposition to war. For example, in the twentieth century, some Japanese Zen teachers wrote in support of violence in war, and some of them argued this should be seen as a means to uphold the first precept.<ref>{{cite web |date=2009-11-23 |orig-year=2004 |title=Buddhism and war |type=Web page | url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religions/buddhism/buddhistethics/war.shtml |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180824071857/http://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religions/buddhism/buddhistethics/war.shtml |archive-date=24 August 2018 |url-status=live |website=[[BBC]] }}</ref> There is some debate and controversy surrounding the problem whether a person can commit suicide, such as [[self-immolation]], to reduce other people's suffering in the long run, such as in protest to improve a political situation in a country. Teachers like the [[Dalai Lama]] and [[Lu Sheng-Yen|Shengyan]] have rejected forms of protest like self-immolation, as well as other acts of self-harming or fasting as forms of protest.{{sfn |Buswell |2004}}

Although capital punishment goes against the first precept, as of 2001, many countries in Asia still maintained the death penalty, including Sri Lanka, Thailand, China and Taiwan.<!--239-41--> In some Buddhist countries, such as Sri Lanka and Thailand, capital punishment was applied during some periods, while during other periods no capital punishment was used at all.<!--239--> In other countries with Buddhism, like China and Taiwan, Buddhism, or any religion for that matter, has had no influence in policy decisions of the government.<!--240-1--> Countries with Buddhism that have abolished capital punishment include Cambodia and Hong Kong.<!--244 n.1-->{{sfn |Alarid |Wang |2001 |pages=239–41, 244 n.1}}

In general, Buddhist traditions oppose abortion.{{sfn |Agostini |2004 |pages=77–78}} In many countries with Buddhist traditions such as Thailand, Taiwan, Korea and Japan, however, abortion is a widespread practice, whether legal or not.<!--101--> Many people in these countries consider abortion immoral, but also think it should be less prohibited. Ethicist Roy W. Perrett, following Ratanakul, argues that this field research data does not so much indicate hypocrisy, but rather points at a "Middle Way" in applying Buddhist doctrine to solve a [[moral dilemma]]. Buddhists tend to take "both sides" on the pro-life–pro-choice debate, being against the taking of life of a fetus in principle, but also believing in compassion toward mothers. Similar attitudes may explain the Japanese ''[[mizuko kuyō]]'' ceremony, a Buddhist memorial service for aborted children,<!--102--> which has led to a debate in Japanese society concerning abortion, and finally brought the Japanese to a consensus that abortion should not be taken lightly, though it should be legalized.<!--103, 109--> This position, held by Japanese Buddhists, takes the middle ground between the Japanese [[Shinto#Post-war|neo-Shinto]] "pro-life" position, and the [[Sex-positive feminism|liberationist]], "pro-choice" arguments.{{sfn |Perrett |2000 |pages=101–03, 109}} Keown points out, however, that this compromise does not mean a Buddhist [[Middle Way]] between two extremes, but rather incorporates two opposite perspectives.{{sfn |Keown |2016a |p=205}} In Thailand, women who wish to have abortion usually do so in the early stages of pregnancy, because they believe the karmic consequences are less then. Having had abortion, Thai women usually make merits to compensate for the negative karma.{{sfn |Ratanakul |1998 |p=57}}