Ahimsa

Ahimsa is non-violence. It is the feeling that harming others is harmng oneself. It is the sense that others, be they animals or microbes, have as much right to live on this earth as ourselves. Ahimsa is to 'Live and Let live'. Ahimsa is one of the five basic principles of Jainism. One who practises ahimsa truly lowers his burden of 'karmas' and improves his/her fortune of getting a good form of life in future.
Ahimsa has many meanings, not just not killing or harming others, but many. First of all, if you are a non-vegetarian, you cannot be practising ahimsa. Non-veg itself comes from killing animals. Ahimsa means that you don't have to do any such work which directly or indirectly is causing killing of innocent living organisms. Ahimsa tells you to feel for others. It is to not harm others yourself and stop others from doing it.
Here are some examples which are not related with 'hinsa' at all, but are. Wearing leather belts or shoes or using leather in any form is hinsa, YOU are liable for the animals killed for the leather with which those were made. And if it is that damn necessary (e.g. for wallets), use resin instead, i.e. things made of resin, they work the same. Now, wearing silk is yet another form of hinsa. Why? Because, just to make 1 m of silk, about 500 silkworms are boiled to death. It is most barbarous of acts to kill so many organisms for just style when you have alternatives as synthetic silk, or cotton, or many more. Now, as already mentioned in my previous posts, even thinking about killing other organisms is hinsa. Buying a chewing gum, even if you dont eat it is hinsa since it contains gelatin, obtaining which involves killing. You know, even seeing violence in movies and serials involves hinsa, since somewhere in your mind, while the hero is killing the villain, there exists a feeling "go kill him" and here the hinsa comes in. And then, these are the examples of hinsa which are unavoidable. When you walk, you kill the 'sthavar' organisms below your feet in the floor. When you speak, the microbes in the air in front of your mouth are killed. (this can be avoided by keeping your hand in front of your mouth or 'mukhpatti' while speaking as you would have seen the jain sadhus, but isnt practical for us). When you eat, you are being the cause of killing as cooking the food kills the microbes in the food. And even when you excrete or urinate, it involves hinsa. You switch on the light in your room or use any electrical appliance, you are doing hinsa as electricity kills 'jeevs'. There are many more.
Now, recall; Recall everything you do in routine. There are numerous incidents or works done by us which causes hinsa. But many of them are impractical to prevent. SO, I appeal to all of you to atleast abandon those reasons of hinsa which can be left, to clean your soul from all sins. eg. try not to eat non-veg and avoid leather shoes.
You might know ahimsa as one of the basic principles of Gandhi, but do you know where he got it from, our 24th tirthankara 'mahavira'. His thinking were radically affected by the teachings of 'mahavira'. If you are a pure ahinsak, ahimsa alone can lay your path to moksha.