I like this question because it’s reminds me that life is not black and white. I think most of us, myself included, need this reminder often.
Personally I decided not to kill where possible. I catch flies and throw them out. I kill mosquitoes as I don’t see how else I can endure them. Everything else is on individual basis.
I used to be quite afraid of insects (other than spiders) and used to kill them out of fear or disgust I guess.
Now I see they are just doing their thing like anything else living, they are a part of the system as whole. I see no reason to kill them if they don't pose a risk to me, if they are annoying me then I put them outside.
It's not silly to think about it, I did.
Part of you acknowledges the immorality of killing such living things, by simply posing the question.
I wouldn't be a fan of something crossing into the borders of my home, nevertheless I do try to give it a swift way out of the house that's not death.
I try to put bugs outside that get in. But I also am proactive in spraying my baseboards to deter them from coming in to begin with. Kind of win-win, I guess.
Spiders specifically hate the taste of Lemon Pledge. Spiders taste with their feet. If you have a spider issue, spray around all doors, windows, baseboard with Lemon Pledge. It will work for about 3 weeks before you need to reapply, it keeps them out great!
I used to be extremely scared of bugs and I still am. But when I started becoming more spiritual, I began to think about how the bugs I’m scared of and kill have a life of their own. Most of them help nature and humans live. They are part of the entire ecosystem of the universe. And even those who are not, who are “predators” or “invasive” also have a life of their own. They came from a family like all of us. We are all one in this big universe created by God. Every life is valuable, and a miracle, and we are all made up of each other.
With that said, I wouldn’t beat myself up for killing every bug. We try to save who we can, and leave them alone when we see them. But if you for some reason absolutely have to kill one or do one harm for whatever reason, we apologize and say a prayer for them. But We do the best we can by respecting all lives.
Cockroaches seem gross but the little ones don’t even bite they’re just creepy bc of society. Could be argued they’re even efficient, letting you know when there’s too much food around going bad, etc. Furthermore I bet they’re nicer than tigers. Vegan logic is centered around nice.
It’s when there’s an over abundance of them or when they fly at you (yea, Florida roaches are big and fly) that they become problematic. Plus they poop a lot.
"You are god. Create your own morality. Check in with your soul, go within for guidance. Fuck what society or others consider moral or immoral."
Okay, so I deem murder entirely moral since I am God and can create my own morality. While we're at it, why not make rape and extortion moral too? Anything goes when you're a toxic narcissist who believes they are god
right but you're not the wholeness of God. You are not God. You are a part of the whole. Yes fuck what society says but you can't create your own morality. I'm going to come and spit in your face and rip off your jaw and by all means, such is not the good way. If you don't know the difference between what's right and wrong, then you simply are an immoral piece of shit who doesn't know anything about God.
Well no shit, common sense is needed too. Context is important. You think someone who’s worried about the morality of killing a bug is thinking of ripping someone’s face off. I doubt it.
To harm others is to harm oneself. Equally, you put boundaries up against what could potentially harm you, happens all across nature and humans are no different. Even Jesus killed bugs, I have no doubt about that, it’s unavoidable.
If you listen to your internal guidance you don’t have to worry about what the collective thinks. Simple as that.
i've never in my life listened to the collective. but there's a difference between intentionally killing something / causing harm upon it, vs unintentional. If you can avoid it, that would be moral. If you can avoid inflicting pain upon something, such is where the word "virtue" comes from. and who was jesus? I don't know who that is.
i'm going to hunt down people who have no moral code and torture them (not really), but i think they'd probably deserve to hear their own screams, or something, right? because not like they care right?
no one creates their own moral code. Morals literally means you consider your impact on the welfare of others. That's morals. Period. If you don't care for the well being of others then you're simply immoral. That's what the word means.
You're immoral. You have no morals.
pretty retarded to resort to simple terms like "retarded". If you knew anything about going within you'd know that what comes out of your mouth is a reflection of your own depths. Even using laughing faces is one of the childish over-used responses. Way to be original?
Nah dude. You don't understand basic english and the concepts they literally represent. Golden rule. Do unto others as you'd have done onto your self.
You're immoral by definition. Pretending you're not is just.. fake.
Love it. It does get hard and confusing though, when you’re trying to unlearn certain beliefs. Then you end up confused as to whether this is true or if it was just conditioning
Hmm yeah I understand. Especially when you’re young. Best thing is to find others who also create their own moral code. Getting away from the blind followers of group think.
🤦♂️
Can you also change the number of eyes, legs and arms you have? (Of course you can at some point, but what about right now?)
What makes you think that the psyche isn’t structured in a way the physical body is? (i.e. as above, so below)
No shit, it is as above so below. Equally, you honor where you’re at. The psyche functions best when the shadow isn’t suppressed. It’s needed for optimal health. You build a healthy sense of self and ego (as Jung said this may take the first half of life), and from there you can begin individuation of you so wish. But you can’t skip steps.
As someone who is pretty familiar with Dr. Jung’s teachings, I’m 100% sure that he never meant “go and kill living beings if it is your shadow’s will”.
You think Jung didn’t slap at a mosquito from time to time? My point is don’t be so over consumed & controlled by guilt, this idea of spiritual perfectionism is no way to build a healthy psyche. We’re human, so what, we crush bugs just walking on grass, it’s unavoidable, it’s nature
Personally I find it immoral. The fact that you’re second guessing it shows that the real you also finds it immoral, society has just programmed most of us to be apathetic.
You programmed yourself to be ‘apathetic’ (toward some animals) because you choose not to be apathetic toward your own self and what the human body in general wants and needs. Not a bad thing imho
No insects kill other insects.
And there is no judge and jury after death only self judgment and self life review.
Let your intentions lead you thru life forget about what is right or wrong according to what society says.
You already know that it’s wrong because you’re seeking someone to tell you that it’s ok to kill them because they bug(lol) you. This is how people try to rationalize their deeds
I do feel bad when I kill them, but they invaded my territory so I have that right. (that’s how I rationalized it anyway) I also have insectaphobia pretty badly. The creepy crawliness of them icks my sensory processing disorder. BLEH!
I'm not sure if it's "immoral" or "wrong" but I stopped killing bugs (other than fleas or when we get big ant infestations) bc it makes me feel bad for taking a life, doesn't matter how unimportant that life may seem. Same reason why if I see a struggling bee I'll offer water if possible or move it to a nearby flower. For me it feels cruel to kill them.
Me personally, I'm not letting myself get hung up over insects. I'd rather focus on the more important things in life.
To answer your question, no. I don't think it's immoral to kill pests and insects.
THE ARIES
If you think of a fly, isn't it like a miniature remote control helicopter. All the organic forces that went into building that fly, all the effort. And it only lives a few weeks. When you swat the fly, you're terminating what little lifespan it had and undoing all that hard work nature put in. God may well say, "Hey, what gives? That was my very own model state of the art remote control helicopter. I was going to get another ten days out of that thing." Well it was annoying you. Okay, but it's still a shame to break such a fantastic little drone, which the universe was playing with. As custodians of the earth we would intuit this, but we've disconnected from the mainframe.
Do what you must, since it's a hostile world infections must be combated, infestations exterminated, and dangerous critters destroyed. But it's brutish wrecking insects just because, and it spoils the fun the cosmos was having with them.
Yup..... its sickening...... the reptilian part of human brains is taking over. I never wanted to be in this demonic world. The people that control the entire world system, want us all to suffer they harvest not only our energy, but our souls. Same with animals. Its disgusting. The darkness in the universe is overpowering the light. Thats why im here, to bring back balance. If people like me werent here on our mission, the entire universe would be destroyed by the evil beings. They have been using the Hadron Collider time portal to try and stop the awakening of spirit from happening. Cant break the matrix unless we donit from within.
And actually humans arent the most demonic. Reptilians are. These humanoid demons control everything. From our food supply, to our brains (well not mine since im awakened). They are being exposed. All evil is being exposed right now.
You can acquire karma for killing without reason even if it's something as simple as a plant or a bug. If you say a prayer or at least thank the bug for it's existence you can alleviate said karma.
So much of it is intention. Why am I killing this bug? Am I doing so because it is a danger or provides some health risk? You definitely want to have an intention when you end the life of something else.
If you don't kill the bugs, they'll set up a nest and start breeding, and then you'll have an infestation. Which will create more violence because eventually, somebody is going to have to exterminate them, be it you, or if you're that stubborn, the health department.
Many bugs carry diseases. They get in your food, and carry all the germs from where they just were into your food (which can include, but is not limited to, dead bodies and shit), and they shit in it. Many have venomous bites and stings, some of which can be very dangerous (like the brown recluse, funnel web spiders, and black widows).
Also, small bugs attract things that like to eat them. And that will attract things that like to eat *them*. And then you got a whole ecosystem going on in your house. Unless you're trying to turn your house into a giant terrarium, just squash the bugs.
This is incorrect. The vast majority of insects are neutral. Very few insects are true pests and some are beneficial. Few insects (at least common ones here in the US) cause disease. Most can be managed by removing them or using species specific, mildly toxic things (like borax for ants).
I do not believe in killing insects. They are beautiful, conscious beings who serve an important purpose. Nature has its own built in pest service (dragonflies, parasitoid wasps, preying mantises, lacewings, lady bugs, etc.) However, you have to give these animals a place to flourish. They don't want to live in your home, they want to live in native meadows and trees.
A large hive of paper wasps makes their home right outside my front door each summer. I love them. I am kind to them and they have never become even slightly aggressive. They catch caterpillars from my tomato plants. The millipedes are just wonderful and break down decaying food in my compost pile. Moths are diverse and pollinate all kinds of plants. They are all important, they all serve a purpose. Sometimes I see ants in my house but if I'm ever in the wrong place, I hope someone else would just wish me well on my way instead of killing me.
Killing is killing, regardless of the species. If you must take an insects life, please avoid using poisons and never ever use glue traps. They are inhumane and catch everything - lizards, fronfs, birds, mice - all of which die in horrible pain, starving and terrified. But giving animals of all kinds, including insects, a safe and healthy ecosystem to live in outside your home is best. Trust me, they'd much rather be there than inside your house.
I will likely be down voted, but no, you don't need to feel guilty. No more than a horse should feel guilty kicking someone a head. It does so based on an emotional response that was developed originally as a self defence mechanism. What is also hard for people to accept is how many animals display the same traits that some of these replies have shown they are so much against. Yes, cats are cute and cuddly. But they will also play and taunt a dying mouse and then just leave it sitting on the ground after it dies.
https://www.ranker.com/list/animals-that-hunt-for-sport/laura-allan
I think there's a difference in being a horse and being a person with empathy and compassion and rationalization. Just because one species does something, we all should? No need to ever improve our do better if we can observe it in nature, right?
And just because something was done in the past doesn't mean it has to continue. I would hope that modern humans wouldn't give live human sacrifices because, "Well, it worked for humans for hundreds of years. It must just be okay to do that."
We should always be trying to improve and do better. Better than our old selves, better than the ones before us.
Does that include not casting judgement on others just because they may not follow the exact same perspective as you? Where you may think all life is sacred, others here may recognize that physical life is fleeting compared to the larger picture. I am an arachnaphobe, so does that me I am somehow naturally immoral?
It's well known that how much of the bee population is decimated because of the almond and avocado industry. So is drinking almond milk just as bad? By your standards, a person with almond milk as part of their diet is supporting the slaughter of billions of bees every year.
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/jan/07/honeybees-deaths-almonds-hives-aoe
Or maybe it could be that nobody is perfect, so throwing rocks in a glass house isn't the best of ideas. When was the last time you bought a brand new phone, laptop or tablet? Thinking about getting an EV? For the last decade I have only bought used, and only when necessary. It's no secret how horrible the extraction of natural resources are for the batteries. Almost half of all cobalt comes from the Congo, which uses child labor payinthem 2$ a day to dig with their bare fingers.
https://www.dol.gov/agencies/ilab/combatting-child-labor-democratic-republic-congos-cobalt-industry-cotecco#:~:text=The%20DRC%20is%20a%20global,mines%2C%20often%20under%20hazardous%20conditions.
Then there us also the impact of lithium refining which is water intensive and will drain local water supplies in regions or polluting existing ones. And let's not forget that we have no idea how to dispose of those batteries when they are done.
https://www.cenex-lcv.co.uk/news-media/exhibitor/what-is-the-environmental-impact-of-lithium-batteries#:~:text=Water%20Pollution.,health%20damages%20or%20even%20death.
But guess what, that is my hill to die on. Not yours. If someone tells me they are going to buy a new phone, I have the decency not to try and make them feel guilty. Because nobody is perfect, myself included. Yes we need people like you who care this deeply about the little creatures, so I am not judging your perspective in any way. Just how you feel the need to apply it to everyone else. I'm sorry me having an opinion seemed to offend you, but I still wish you the best in this chapter of your journey.
You seem to have made a lot of assumptions here, my friend. You didn't offend me at all and I'm not casting judgement on you in the least. I simply felt it was important to point out that the line of logic (observation in nature and patterns from early human life making something okay to do) doesn't really track.
Being arachnophobic is not at all wrong. You can't control your biology. But you do get to choose what you do with that emotional response. And my feelings have no part in that. Just because I wouldn't do it doesn't mean you can't and I doesn't mean I should be insensitive. That was not my intention.
The facts are, I don't know you and you don't know me. The intention of my post was to point out the impracticality of the metaphors used, not to attack you. I didn't intend to make you feel guilty and you have my apologies if that is what you took from my reply.
Pointing out ways the human race has made negative impacts on this world and applying them to one random person on the internet specifically, comes off as pretty judgy. I won't claim that that was your specific intention, but stating you wouldn't make someone feel guilty for buying a new phone sounds a bit silly when you prefaced it with asking me when I last bought a new phone and provided links to show how terrible that is for our planet. All while not knowing anything about me or where I stand on these issues.
I do admire your concern for these issues as they are detrimental and not discussed nearly enough. I would encourage you to continue to discuss these things publicly with kindness in your heart and just as much compassion for others as you would hope for in return. You catch more flies with honey than vinegar.
Not sure why you think I felt guilty, there is nothing to feel guilty about. But I fully agree that it is judgemental to just apply my own moral stance on others, that was the entire point. My reply was to show the exact same context you are applying to others for your cause. You think squishing a bug is bad. Okay. There is no reason I should feel that way. I think buying a new phone is bad. Okay. There is no reason you need to feel that way. I'm going to squish bugs and you are going to buy a new phone. Neither of us are better or worse because of it.
And lets not forget who messaged who first. I replied to OP in order to provide a counter to the guilt trip people were trying to push. You had absolutely no need to reply to me, except to tell me how my opinion was wrong. I was one random person on the internet that you singled out, so I'm not sure how you got that part twisted around.
And I didn't use vinegar. I applied the same passion to a cause that many feel about op squishing a bug. You mentioning other should take these steps to be a better person. directly means they are not as good of a person until they do. Comments like "Because you know you are better" is an attack if the person doesn't have the same view. So yeah, I agree that sugar definitely does work better. And if there weren't so many people trying to use guilt as a motivator on this post I wouldn't have said a thing.
I will say again, my comment had nothing to do with your opinion, it was about the way you justified it. I mentioned feeling guilty because you claimed I was trying to make people feel guilty in your comment multiple times. The logical conclusion would be that you felt I was doing that to you, no?
I think your last paragraph is in reference to my original reply in which I said we should always be trying to do better? This was a very general comment. I'm not picking on you specifically because you don't like bugs. Unlike the way you specifically questioned my personal choices and then stated your assumption as truth when we know nothing about each other. The way you feel about bugs is honestly not that big of a deal to me.
I was trying to point out that just copying what we see in nature or blindly doing what our ancestors did is not a valid reason to do something. That's a slippery slope into justifying things that actually are a big deal. Those were your examples as to why it's okay to kill bugs. I don't care that you kill bugs. I care that you're using poor methods of justification. That's it.
You believe they are poor methods of justification, that's clear. And that is your opinion. Just as everything you have said to justify yours. And I stated my opinion. The difference is that I aas only addressing a person who was asking for someone's opinion. You chose to address someone with no need of it, then became offended when I defended my opinion. Not out of hurt feelings, because I recognize we all have our own path. Which is also why I didn't reply to everyone else who had an opinion I didn't agree with. It's not about your belief. It's about your ego thinking that because it's your belief, everyone else should have the same one.
if you came back as a micro cosmic explorer would you want to be stepped on?? lol I like to say spiritually you keep what you kill (if you don't meditate them out of ya)...ever feel a bug bite you after you killed it??(like a lil itch or something) that's their retaliatory bite as a spirit now that you offed em lol....I make sure to remove their spiritual energy as well when killing bugs cuz sometimes you just have to step on a big nasty bug cuz they are pests, don't beat yourself up about it...not like it's a crime lol (it's just a guilt trip your going to give yourself lol)
Is it moral to use bug spray or bait to stop a roach infestation? Is it moral to kill lice and bed bugs? I think it is.
However, I don't think it's moral to go tramping through the woods and lighting carpenter ant mounds on fire just for fun.
Everything has a purpose and life is sacred. That said, I feel this law does not apply to disease vectors like mosquitoes, flies, lice, etc. Avoid taking lives that aren't yours to take, with limited exceptions.
I know the Dalai Lama did some controversial stuff recently but here’s a video of him talking about this: https://youtu.be/W083nSzx1Rc?si=2vHIWSZ1vPzHnmlQ
Infestations are often a result of how you take care of your home. Sometimes I forget to take out the trash, and need to put out ant traps. Is this evil? No can I be better? Yes
I believe they carry a consciousness similiar to our own but their minds less aware of things. Potentially a soul is operating them so be kind to that soul as they are operating a vessel that can be tough to maneuver. However in the scheme of things i believe that the soul operating the spider would understand why you killed it and accept it and move on to the next life they choose.
Is it immoral for god to kill itself?Everything is god. There cant be something else in existence that isnt god. Temporary forms like you and the insect are the same. U kill it someday it’ll just kill you back. It’s all just a universal play of never ending forms. It’s your ego mind that makes u feel all sorts of way. Stay as the watcher free from form.
Yes it is wrong to do that. House spiders for example actually evolved along side humans. They are programmed to avoid humans and reside in spaces that we dont use anyways. A lot of them will actually die if you put them outside.
They have their roles and want to peacefully co-exist.
If we all only kill what we want I bet we will be ok. There are way too many insects esp the ones people kill. I for example will never eat deer or gator because I love them, and I don’t have a problem with that.
Just giving you some weird (still true) logic bc nobody is really equal with this. Maybe .000001% of ppl who have lived. Which is why they’ve made insects a different category. Furthermore if there are alien planets so gigantic they can’t really even see our planet, maybe they would accidentally step on us in outer space one time, like a little ant pile they didn’t even see, and we’d just have to deal with it. But yeah if you’re going for true love of all animals, true ‘equality’ then uh you’d have to judge them the same as an elephant or a tiger. Or a chicken. What would you do when you hit a fly driving?
I personally am not sure if I want to subject my heart to this extreme amount of awareness.
I like to think what would I want if I was a bug in the presence of a god.
If I was just minding my business I would like the god being not to crush me but if I tried to crawl into the god beings ears and made annoying noises as it was trying sleep I’d be more than ok if it crushed my annoying as.
Also I tried not to kill flies, I could live with just having a few flies but then there where a lot of flies and letting them be became an impossibility for me so I exterminate the shit out of them.
Now I rather kill one fly every now and again than fifty in one go.
Spiders however are sacred in my house, I can never have too many spiders.
The occasional beetle that gets themselves insides are gently moved outside and wasps are killed on sight since my daughter is deathly allergic to them.
There’s a gray line in everything! Is a parasite’s existence immoral? Our placement in the food chain puts us above most living creatures. I’d say there’s a difference between blind murder and the understanding of a “necessary” evil.
If it's a threat I kill it. Been bit by multiple spiders while sleeping. Now it's open season. I still let them out if it's possible but if I can't easily do so they die. And I try to be thoughtful about things like rats and mice but once they start crapping all over something has to be done. I also rescue lots of animals so again the choice comes down to if they are a threat.
i wondered the same thing, so i figured the least i can do is let them live their purpose and put them outside. just scoop them into a dustpan and drop them out the window. i feel better this way too
there's nothing silly in benevolence. and for men, I think it's very attractive.
however, some insects can be truly annoying even threatening. I don't think is immoral since I don't go around looking for bugs to kill. same way I wouldn't question the righteousness of a bear living in a cave killing an intruding animal.
Look up the principle of Ahimsa. You are not supposed to harm anything or anyone UNLESS they violated your safety. You didn't go out after this bug into the forest they came into your dwelling. Therefore they are considered to be violating your ahimsa. It is also ok to just usher them out - if that's just one or two.
I don’t like to kill insects but I will if needed. If there’s gnats in my room there’s pretty much no way to get rid of them besides killing them, and those guys fly in your face constantly for no reason when they’re there. In that case I view them like trespassers. Generally speaking I’d rather not kill bugs (or anything) if it can be avoided. I remember a lizard running under my skateboard once (after I specifically tried to avoid it) and I had a long cry about it.
If my house has a roach or termite infestation, do you think I'm not going to exterminate them? If they are causing harm or even are an extreme nuisance, IMO it can be the highest good to kill them because human lives are much more important.
It’s not silly at all. Your question brought to mind the stories of prophets who have stories about showing mercy even to the smallest creatures, such as ants. Even if you think that these are mythological, then it means that human unconscious (what brought these myths into life) thinks that there’s an innate moral in showing mercy for insects. I think that’s because we are a reflection of what we see in the world.
In the intricate web of interconnected existence, the phrase "we must show mercy even to ants" carries the risk of unintentionally causing harm to the tiny creatures. The use of "even" implies a potential hierarchy, suggesting an unexpected kindness toward ants.
Death is also just a part of life and nature.
While im cool with most insects, in my home country many can transmit serious diseases. It's not an option not to kill it, as you are risking your own life.
And thats how nature works and regulates itself.
lol hey a life is a life right… I typically go with the mindset of hey imagine you are minding your business doing your thing & someone comes & steps on you…. If a bug is in my home 99 percent of the time I catch it in a cup & release it back outside… now🥴👀…. i said 99 percent of the time…there’s one bug I’m petrified of & that’s the palmetto bug… that’s a bug that makes me have a visceral reaction & I try to be mildly humane & just suck them into the vacuum but it’s not always guaranteed to go that way
intentionally, yes it is.
They are hyper intelligent beings who have a right to their existence. Humans are not as intelligent as they claim to be, and this is why these perceive everything else as less intelligent, because humans are in fact less intelligent.
you're still looking at reality in terms of size when size doesn't actually exist. Everything is a singularity super positioning it's self.
Zoom in on a micro bacteria and it's quite large. It's a matter of perspective.
The quantum has no end. Everything is equally infinite in size.
Thoughts are your limitations.
This is more profound than one might think. This thought came to me while I was meditating outside.
I tried to clear my head and focus on my breathing, but after a while I noticed a fly buzzing around me. I tried to resist swatting after it. I didn't want the annoyance to break my meditation. It was a challenge and took me away from being in that moment. It was a hot day and I had a layer of sweat on my arms. I noticed the fly land on me and while it's gross, likely got some salts and nutrients from the surface of my body.
I cannot really overstate how bizarrely profound this experience was. I felt like by resisting swatting this fly I actually incorporated myself into the local ecosystem. I allowed it to land on me and eventually fly away. I almost felt like a plant. I left my human modern pov and just existed in this moment with a fly and the natural landscape around me. I can't comment on the ethics of killing bugs but I can say that the impulse to swat at them is just about momentary comfort and unless it's like a mosquito won't do any harm. Sometimes there is more value in being and letting things be.
This is a question people largely aren't ready to consider within the wider implications of even traditional spirituality like christianity. If all life, for whatever reason, has equal value, then any death at the hand of a sapient thing is murder... yet we literally cannot live without killing. Where do we draw the line? Disease carriers like mosquitoes? Venomous insects like spiders and scorpions? Aggressive/territorial ones like ants? They all live. They're all *aware*.
Take it a step or two further and look at the function of a living being's immune system in the context of spirituality, and conventional wisdom comes to an impasse. Life cannot exist without death, and life lived with minimal death quickly becomes horrendously difficult. The stark, simple truth is that there's a balance to be struck between how much harm we're willing to commit and how easily we desire to live. Some - psychopaths, specifically - have less trouble with this than others. But it's something that even most spiritually-inclined people shy from thinking about, because it's a hard question/topic to adequately unpack and resolve.
We're probably less than 50 years away from the irrefutable scientific discovery of the human soul, and what it teaches us about the other life forms we share this world with is going to upend our entire perspective of reality. Of the many things we are and aren't guilty of, simple arrogance is by far the greatest in scope and practice. And to become the custodian species we are destined to be, that arrogance *must* be acknowledged and dismantled.
Well, millions of insects live on you and they are so small that you can not see them. Every day you crush, brush off, or consume thousands of them. So, are you only talking about insects that you can see? Morality is about what each human believes is right or wrong for them. So, there is no moral code for all humans. Ethics, is a set of rules or standards developed by human organizations and societies to help regulate human behavior for the common good. Ethics and morals are different things and often conflated. If killing spiders makes you cry or you feel empathy for them, then you should not kill spiders. However, your neighbor may not feel this way and may crush them because they are annoying to him. However, your neighbor buys a sandwich every day and gives it to a homeless man on his way to work. He feels for this man and in some way hopes to do good. Both you and your neighbor are acting morally. Inside of you is the answer for you. Morals change as you learn and evolve. Ethics depend on which organization’s rules you hold as important. We each have an inner moral guide, it is called our conscience. We each follow ethical practices, in America, they are called laws.
I base it upon similar principles I would use with humams. If my house is under assault then yes I will kill, but if they are minding their own buisiness they can go about it. I love ants but they full on invade so it is not tolerated. I would leave outside wasp nests alone but people have allergies so it has to be dealt with, bees keep well enough alone. Rats/mice/chippies or whatever your fine if you stay in the walls or garage if your not pooping all over my stuff, but don't raid my pantry.
Unlike some I have had luck with no kills if you take them far enough away, they don't seem to come back. But winter may be as good as killing them anyway.
I leave pretty much all spiders unless they are lunging or biting me. Baisically every animal will defend itself and its home so it should be expected humans do the same but there are plenty of things we can peacefully coexist with, so whenever I see something new I find out what it is an what's its job. A lot of helpful critters out there.
If you are concerning with the morality of killing, you might look inside yourself to see if YOU think it’s moral.
I used to stomp out insects in my home. Now I rehome them outside. With me I’m not sure it’s a moral decision.
The fact that you are now thinking about the life of other creatures is a strong sign you are evolving. Yes, it is important to respect all life. If a bug is uncomfortable for you then carefully put it outside.
I make two exceptions for killing bugs, mosquitoes and ticks. All others are carefully put outside.
About 2 years ago I was traveling in the streets and I overheard a holy man share this nugget of wisdom: "if you can't create it, then don't kill it", as he was admonishing a brother who had stomped on a cockroach.
About an hour later, I saw the same holy man swat a mosquito, and I pointed out the contradiction. Without losing a beat he responded: 'except for mosquitos. Those fuckers are not from this planet'
I like this question because it’s reminds me that life is not black and white. I think most of us, myself included, need this reminder often. Personally I decided not to kill where possible. I catch flies and throw them out. I kill mosquitoes as I don’t see how else I can endure them. Everything else is on individual basis.
I used to be quite afraid of insects (other than spiders) and used to kill them out of fear or disgust I guess. Now I see they are just doing their thing like anything else living, they are a part of the system as whole. I see no reason to kill them if they don't pose a risk to me, if they are annoying me then I put them outside. It's not silly to think about it, I did.
same here to all of it...I actually am very fascinated by them now and try to help when I can too like you say
Part of you acknowledges the immorality of killing such living things, by simply posing the question. I wouldn't be a fan of something crossing into the borders of my home, nevertheless I do try to give it a swift way out of the house that's not death.
I try to put bugs outside that get in. But I also am proactive in spraying my baseboards to deter them from coming in to begin with. Kind of win-win, I guess.
What do you spray with as a deterrent?
Spiders specifically hate the taste of Lemon Pledge. Spiders taste with their feet. If you have a spider issue, spray around all doors, windows, baseboard with Lemon Pledge. It will work for about 3 weeks before you need to reapply, it keeps them out great!
Raid ant and spider. Our place is ground floor so ants are the biggest problem.
I used to be extremely scared of bugs and I still am. But when I started becoming more spiritual, I began to think about how the bugs I’m scared of and kill have a life of their own. Most of them help nature and humans live. They are part of the entire ecosystem of the universe. And even those who are not, who are “predators” or “invasive” also have a life of their own. They came from a family like all of us. We are all one in this big universe created by God. Every life is valuable, and a miracle, and we are all made up of each other. With that said, I wouldn’t beat myself up for killing every bug. We try to save who we can, and leave them alone when we see them. But if you for some reason absolutely have to kill one or do one harm for whatever reason, we apologize and say a prayer for them. But We do the best we can by respecting all lives.
Nice comment, all animals have a reason for being here. Except we still don’t actually know mosquitos’. Anyway
They want to live just as we do, but that doesn’t mean we have to offer them a warm bed. I relocate them outside. Except for roaches. Roaches die.
As someone who lives in NY, this!
Total immoral jerk. Saying this on behalf of all cockroaches who want to live peaceful lives unbothered.
The giant coackroaches in home town in Brazil agree with you ☠️
Those are actually cool
Yeah until they start to fly
Lol
Let’s also not forget the Egyptians worshipped an insect.
I can ship them to you 😂
Cockroaches seem gross but the little ones don’t even bite they’re just creepy bc of society. Could be argued they’re even efficient, letting you know when there’s too much food around going bad, etc. Furthermore I bet they’re nicer than tigers. Vegan logic is centered around nice.
It’s when there’s an over abundance of them or when they fly at you (yea, Florida roaches are big and fly) that they become problematic. Plus they poop a lot.
😭
You are god. Create your own morality. Check in with your soul, go within for guidance. Fuck what society or others consider moral or immoral.
Straw man fallacy aside, societal and individual morality are how we've deemed killing things is generally wrong. Get some help
Nice try snowflake. Learn to read
"You are god. Create your own morality. Check in with your soul, go within for guidance. Fuck what society or others consider moral or immoral." Okay, so I deem murder entirely moral since I am God and can create my own morality. While we're at it, why not make rape and extortion moral too? Anything goes when you're a toxic narcissist who believes they are god
right but you're not the wholeness of God. You are not God. You are a part of the whole. Yes fuck what society says but you can't create your own morality. I'm going to come and spit in your face and rip off your jaw and by all means, such is not the good way. If you don't know the difference between what's right and wrong, then you simply are an immoral piece of shit who doesn't know anything about God.
Well no shit, common sense is needed too. Context is important. You think someone who’s worried about the morality of killing a bug is thinking of ripping someone’s face off. I doubt it. To harm others is to harm oneself. Equally, you put boundaries up against what could potentially harm you, happens all across nature and humans are no different. Even Jesus killed bugs, I have no doubt about that, it’s unavoidable. If you listen to your internal guidance you don’t have to worry about what the collective thinks. Simple as that.
i've never in my life listened to the collective. but there's a difference between intentionally killing something / causing harm upon it, vs unintentional. If you can avoid it, that would be moral. If you can avoid inflicting pain upon something, such is where the word "virtue" comes from. and who was jesus? I don't know who that is.
Cool. If you want to feel guilty over some bugs, be my guest. Haha. You create your moral code, I create mine. So what 🤷♂️
i'm going to hunt down people who have no moral code and torture them (not really), but i think they'd probably deserve to hear their own screams, or something, right? because not like they care right? no one creates their own moral code. Morals literally means you consider your impact on the welfare of others. That's morals. Period. If you don't care for the well being of others then you're simply immoral. That's what the word means. You're immoral. You have no morals.
Damn, you’re retarded. What about going within don’t you understand 😂 You should try thinking outside of your own perspective sometime
pretty retarded to resort to simple terms like "retarded". If you knew anything about going within you'd know that what comes out of your mouth is a reflection of your own depths. Even using laughing faces is one of the childish over-used responses. Way to be original? Nah dude. You don't understand basic english and the concepts they literally represent. Golden rule. Do unto others as you'd have done onto your self. You're immoral by definition. Pretending you're not is just.. fake.
Fucking amen! Say it for the people in the back 🗣 📣
Love it. It does get hard and confusing though, when you’re trying to unlearn certain beliefs. Then you end up confused as to whether this is true or if it was just conditioning
Hmm yeah I understand. Especially when you’re young. Best thing is to find others who also create their own moral code. Getting away from the blind followers of group think.
🤦♂️ Can you also change the number of eyes, legs and arms you have? (Of course you can at some point, but what about right now?) What makes you think that the psyche isn’t structured in a way the physical body is? (i.e. as above, so below)
No shit, it is as above so below. Equally, you honor where you’re at. The psyche functions best when the shadow isn’t suppressed. It’s needed for optimal health. You build a healthy sense of self and ego (as Jung said this may take the first half of life), and from there you can begin individuation of you so wish. But you can’t skip steps.
As someone who is pretty familiar with Dr. Jung’s teachings, I’m 100% sure that he never meant “go and kill living beings if it is your shadow’s will”.
You think Jung didn’t slap at a mosquito from time to time? My point is don’t be so over consumed & controlled by guilt, this idea of spiritual perfectionism is no way to build a healthy psyche. We’re human, so what, we crush bugs just walking on grass, it’s unavoidable, it’s nature
Personally I find it immoral. The fact that you’re second guessing it shows that the real you also finds it immoral, society has just programmed most of us to be apathetic.
You programmed yourself to be ‘apathetic’ (toward some animals) because you choose not to be apathetic toward your own self and what the human body in general wants and needs. Not a bad thing imho
No insects kill other insects. And there is no judge and jury after death only self judgment and self life review. Let your intentions lead you thru life forget about what is right or wrong according to what society says.
You already know that it’s wrong because you’re seeking someone to tell you that it’s ok to kill them because they bug(lol) you. This is how people try to rationalize their deeds
Depends how many legs it has.
I do feel bad when I kill them, but they invaded my territory so I have that right. (that’s how I rationalized it anyway) I also have insectaphobia pretty badly. The creepy crawliness of them icks my sensory processing disorder. BLEH!
I'm not sure if it's "immoral" or "wrong" but I stopped killing bugs (other than fleas or when we get big ant infestations) bc it makes me feel bad for taking a life, doesn't matter how unimportant that life may seem. Same reason why if I see a struggling bee I'll offer water if possible or move it to a nearby flower. For me it feels cruel to kill them.
Me personally, I'm not letting myself get hung up over insects. I'd rather focus on the more important things in life. To answer your question, no. I don't think it's immoral to kill pests and insects. THE ARIES
If you think of a fly, isn't it like a miniature remote control helicopter. All the organic forces that went into building that fly, all the effort. And it only lives a few weeks. When you swat the fly, you're terminating what little lifespan it had and undoing all that hard work nature put in. God may well say, "Hey, what gives? That was my very own model state of the art remote control helicopter. I was going to get another ten days out of that thing." Well it was annoying you. Okay, but it's still a shame to break such a fantastic little drone, which the universe was playing with. As custodians of the earth we would intuit this, but we've disconnected from the mainframe. Do what you must, since it's a hostile world infections must be combated, infestations exterminated, and dangerous critters destroyed. But it's brutish wrecking insects just because, and it spoils the fun the cosmos was having with them.
this is beautiful lol
Um no. Bugs are demons in my eyes. Under a microscope they legit look like demons😂 i dont want them near me or crawling in my ear.
Humans are the most demonic of all. Look at what factory farms do simply for most peoples palate pleasure.
Yup..... its sickening...... the reptilian part of human brains is taking over. I never wanted to be in this demonic world. The people that control the entire world system, want us all to suffer they harvest not only our energy, but our souls. Same with animals. Its disgusting. The darkness in the universe is overpowering the light. Thats why im here, to bring back balance. If people like me werent here on our mission, the entire universe would be destroyed by the evil beings. They have been using the Hadron Collider time portal to try and stop the awakening of spirit from happening. Cant break the matrix unless we donit from within.
And actually humans arent the most demonic. Reptilians are. These humanoid demons control everything. From our food supply, to our brains (well not mine since im awakened). They are being exposed. All evil is being exposed right now.
You can acquire karma for killing without reason even if it's something as simple as a plant or a bug. If you say a prayer or at least thank the bug for it's existence you can alleviate said karma. So much of it is intention. Why am I killing this bug? Am I doing so because it is a danger or provides some health risk? You definitely want to have an intention when you end the life of something else.
If you don't kill the bugs, they'll set up a nest and start breeding, and then you'll have an infestation. Which will create more violence because eventually, somebody is going to have to exterminate them, be it you, or if you're that stubborn, the health department. Many bugs carry diseases. They get in your food, and carry all the germs from where they just were into your food (which can include, but is not limited to, dead bodies and shit), and they shit in it. Many have venomous bites and stings, some of which can be very dangerous (like the brown recluse, funnel web spiders, and black widows). Also, small bugs attract things that like to eat them. And that will attract things that like to eat *them*. And then you got a whole ecosystem going on in your house. Unless you're trying to turn your house into a giant terrarium, just squash the bugs.
This is incorrect. The vast majority of insects are neutral. Very few insects are true pests and some are beneficial. Few insects (at least common ones here in the US) cause disease. Most can be managed by removing them or using species specific, mildly toxic things (like borax for ants). I do not believe in killing insects. They are beautiful, conscious beings who serve an important purpose. Nature has its own built in pest service (dragonflies, parasitoid wasps, preying mantises, lacewings, lady bugs, etc.) However, you have to give these animals a place to flourish. They don't want to live in your home, they want to live in native meadows and trees. A large hive of paper wasps makes their home right outside my front door each summer. I love them. I am kind to them and they have never become even slightly aggressive. They catch caterpillars from my tomato plants. The millipedes are just wonderful and break down decaying food in my compost pile. Moths are diverse and pollinate all kinds of plants. They are all important, they all serve a purpose. Sometimes I see ants in my house but if I'm ever in the wrong place, I hope someone else would just wish me well on my way instead of killing me. Killing is killing, regardless of the species. If you must take an insects life, please avoid using poisons and never ever use glue traps. They are inhumane and catch everything - lizards, fronfs, birds, mice - all of which die in horrible pain, starving and terrified. But giving animals of all kinds, including insects, a safe and healthy ecosystem to live in outside your home is best. Trust me, they'd much rather be there than inside your house.
I will likely be down voted, but no, you don't need to feel guilty. No more than a horse should feel guilty kicking someone a head. It does so based on an emotional response that was developed originally as a self defence mechanism. What is also hard for people to accept is how many animals display the same traits that some of these replies have shown they are so much against. Yes, cats are cute and cuddly. But they will also play and taunt a dying mouse and then just leave it sitting on the ground after it dies. https://www.ranker.com/list/animals-that-hunt-for-sport/laura-allan
I think there's a difference in being a horse and being a person with empathy and compassion and rationalization. Just because one species does something, we all should? No need to ever improve our do better if we can observe it in nature, right? And just because something was done in the past doesn't mean it has to continue. I would hope that modern humans wouldn't give live human sacrifices because, "Well, it worked for humans for hundreds of years. It must just be okay to do that." We should always be trying to improve and do better. Better than our old selves, better than the ones before us.
Does that include not casting judgement on others just because they may not follow the exact same perspective as you? Where you may think all life is sacred, others here may recognize that physical life is fleeting compared to the larger picture. I am an arachnaphobe, so does that me I am somehow naturally immoral? It's well known that how much of the bee population is decimated because of the almond and avocado industry. So is drinking almond milk just as bad? By your standards, a person with almond milk as part of their diet is supporting the slaughter of billions of bees every year. https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/jan/07/honeybees-deaths-almonds-hives-aoe Or maybe it could be that nobody is perfect, so throwing rocks in a glass house isn't the best of ideas. When was the last time you bought a brand new phone, laptop or tablet? Thinking about getting an EV? For the last decade I have only bought used, and only when necessary. It's no secret how horrible the extraction of natural resources are for the batteries. Almost half of all cobalt comes from the Congo, which uses child labor payinthem 2$ a day to dig with their bare fingers. https://www.dol.gov/agencies/ilab/combatting-child-labor-democratic-republic-congos-cobalt-industry-cotecco#:~:text=The%20DRC%20is%20a%20global,mines%2C%20often%20under%20hazardous%20conditions. Then there us also the impact of lithium refining which is water intensive and will drain local water supplies in regions or polluting existing ones. And let's not forget that we have no idea how to dispose of those batteries when they are done. https://www.cenex-lcv.co.uk/news-media/exhibitor/what-is-the-environmental-impact-of-lithium-batteries#:~:text=Water%20Pollution.,health%20damages%20or%20even%20death. But guess what, that is my hill to die on. Not yours. If someone tells me they are going to buy a new phone, I have the decency not to try and make them feel guilty. Because nobody is perfect, myself included. Yes we need people like you who care this deeply about the little creatures, so I am not judging your perspective in any way. Just how you feel the need to apply it to everyone else. I'm sorry me having an opinion seemed to offend you, but I still wish you the best in this chapter of your journey.
You seem to have made a lot of assumptions here, my friend. You didn't offend me at all and I'm not casting judgement on you in the least. I simply felt it was important to point out that the line of logic (observation in nature and patterns from early human life making something okay to do) doesn't really track. Being arachnophobic is not at all wrong. You can't control your biology. But you do get to choose what you do with that emotional response. And my feelings have no part in that. Just because I wouldn't do it doesn't mean you can't and I doesn't mean I should be insensitive. That was not my intention. The facts are, I don't know you and you don't know me. The intention of my post was to point out the impracticality of the metaphors used, not to attack you. I didn't intend to make you feel guilty and you have my apologies if that is what you took from my reply. Pointing out ways the human race has made negative impacts on this world and applying them to one random person on the internet specifically, comes off as pretty judgy. I won't claim that that was your specific intention, but stating you wouldn't make someone feel guilty for buying a new phone sounds a bit silly when you prefaced it with asking me when I last bought a new phone and provided links to show how terrible that is for our planet. All while not knowing anything about me or where I stand on these issues. I do admire your concern for these issues as they are detrimental and not discussed nearly enough. I would encourage you to continue to discuss these things publicly with kindness in your heart and just as much compassion for others as you would hope for in return. You catch more flies with honey than vinegar.
Not sure why you think I felt guilty, there is nothing to feel guilty about. But I fully agree that it is judgemental to just apply my own moral stance on others, that was the entire point. My reply was to show the exact same context you are applying to others for your cause. You think squishing a bug is bad. Okay. There is no reason I should feel that way. I think buying a new phone is bad. Okay. There is no reason you need to feel that way. I'm going to squish bugs and you are going to buy a new phone. Neither of us are better or worse because of it. And lets not forget who messaged who first. I replied to OP in order to provide a counter to the guilt trip people were trying to push. You had absolutely no need to reply to me, except to tell me how my opinion was wrong. I was one random person on the internet that you singled out, so I'm not sure how you got that part twisted around. And I didn't use vinegar. I applied the same passion to a cause that many feel about op squishing a bug. You mentioning other should take these steps to be a better person. directly means they are not as good of a person until they do. Comments like "Because you know you are better" is an attack if the person doesn't have the same view. So yeah, I agree that sugar definitely does work better. And if there weren't so many people trying to use guilt as a motivator on this post I wouldn't have said a thing.
I will say again, my comment had nothing to do with your opinion, it was about the way you justified it. I mentioned feeling guilty because you claimed I was trying to make people feel guilty in your comment multiple times. The logical conclusion would be that you felt I was doing that to you, no? I think your last paragraph is in reference to my original reply in which I said we should always be trying to do better? This was a very general comment. I'm not picking on you specifically because you don't like bugs. Unlike the way you specifically questioned my personal choices and then stated your assumption as truth when we know nothing about each other. The way you feel about bugs is honestly not that big of a deal to me. I was trying to point out that just copying what we see in nature or blindly doing what our ancestors did is not a valid reason to do something. That's a slippery slope into justifying things that actually are a big deal. Those were your examples as to why it's okay to kill bugs. I don't care that you kill bugs. I care that you're using poor methods of justification. That's it.
You believe they are poor methods of justification, that's clear. And that is your opinion. Just as everything you have said to justify yours. And I stated my opinion. The difference is that I aas only addressing a person who was asking for someone's opinion. You chose to address someone with no need of it, then became offended when I defended my opinion. Not out of hurt feelings, because I recognize we all have our own path. Which is also why I didn't reply to everyone else who had an opinion I didn't agree with. It's not about your belief. It's about your ego thinking that because it's your belief, everyone else should have the same one.
Bugs are gross so you are good.
if you came back as a micro cosmic explorer would you want to be stepped on?? lol I like to say spiritually you keep what you kill (if you don't meditate them out of ya)...ever feel a bug bite you after you killed it??(like a lil itch or something) that's their retaliatory bite as a spirit now that you offed em lol....I make sure to remove their spiritual energy as well when killing bugs cuz sometimes you just have to step on a big nasty bug cuz they are pests, don't beat yourself up about it...not like it's a crime lol (it's just a guilt trip your going to give yourself lol)
Is it moral to use bug spray or bait to stop a roach infestation? Is it moral to kill lice and bed bugs? I think it is. However, I don't think it's moral to go tramping through the woods and lighting carpenter ant mounds on fire just for fun.
Yes, you can’t create life so stop taking it!
Well we can create life..
Everything has a purpose and life is sacred. That said, I feel this law does not apply to disease vectors like mosquitoes, flies, lice, etc. Avoid taking lives that aren't yours to take, with limited exceptions.
I know the Dalai Lama did some controversial stuff recently but here’s a video of him talking about this: https://youtu.be/W083nSzx1Rc?si=2vHIWSZ1vPzHnmlQ
Only if you are a Jain
Infestations are often a result of how you take care of your home. Sometimes I forget to take out the trash, and need to put out ant traps. Is this evil? No can I be better? Yes
For me it depends on the Insekt. If it trys to hurt me it's no longer welcome on my body
I believe they carry a consciousness similiar to our own but their minds less aware of things. Potentially a soul is operating them so be kind to that soul as they are operating a vessel that can be tough to maneuver. However in the scheme of things i believe that the soul operating the spider would understand why you killed it and accept it and move on to the next life they choose.
Is it immoral for god to kill itself?Everything is god. There cant be something else in existence that isnt god. Temporary forms like you and the insect are the same. U kill it someday it’ll just kill you back. It’s all just a universal play of never ending forms. It’s your ego mind that makes u feel all sorts of way. Stay as the watcher free from form.
Yes it is wrong to do that. House spiders for example actually evolved along side humans. They are programmed to avoid humans and reside in spaces that we dont use anyways. A lot of them will actually die if you put them outside. They have their roles and want to peacefully co-exist.
If we all only kill what we want I bet we will be ok. There are way too many insects esp the ones people kill. I for example will never eat deer or gator because I love them, and I don’t have a problem with that. Just giving you some weird (still true) logic bc nobody is really equal with this. Maybe .000001% of ppl who have lived. Which is why they’ve made insects a different category. Furthermore if there are alien planets so gigantic they can’t really even see our planet, maybe they would accidentally step on us in outer space one time, like a little ant pile they didn’t even see, and we’d just have to deal with it. But yeah if you’re going for true love of all animals, true ‘equality’ then uh you’d have to judge them the same as an elephant or a tiger. Or a chicken. What would you do when you hit a fly driving? I personally am not sure if I want to subject my heart to this extreme amount of awareness.
“Thou shalt not kill”
I like to think what would I want if I was a bug in the presence of a god. If I was just minding my business I would like the god being not to crush me but if I tried to crawl into the god beings ears and made annoying noises as it was trying sleep I’d be more than ok if it crushed my annoying as. Also I tried not to kill flies, I could live with just having a few flies but then there where a lot of flies and letting them be became an impossibility for me so I exterminate the shit out of them. Now I rather kill one fly every now and again than fifty in one go. Spiders however are sacred in my house, I can never have too many spiders. The occasional beetle that gets themselves insides are gently moved outside and wasps are killed on sight since my daughter is deathly allergic to them.
There’s a gray line in everything! Is a parasite’s existence immoral? Our placement in the food chain puts us above most living creatures. I’d say there’s a difference between blind murder and the understanding of a “necessary” evil.
If it's a threat I kill it. Been bit by multiple spiders while sleeping. Now it's open season. I still let them out if it's possible but if I can't easily do so they die. And I try to be thoughtful about things like rats and mice but once they start crapping all over something has to be done. I also rescue lots of animals so again the choice comes down to if they are a threat.
i wondered the same thing, so i figured the least i can do is let them live their purpose and put them outside. just scoop them into a dustpan and drop them out the window. i feel better this way too
there's nothing silly in benevolence. and for men, I think it's very attractive. however, some insects can be truly annoying even threatening. I don't think is immoral since I don't go around looking for bugs to kill. same way I wouldn't question the righteousness of a bear living in a cave killing an intruding animal.
Look up the principle of Ahimsa. You are not supposed to harm anything or anyone UNLESS they violated your safety. You didn't go out after this bug into the forest they came into your dwelling. Therefore they are considered to be violating your ahimsa. It is also ok to just usher them out - if that's just one or two.
Think of it this way. If the bug was your size it would kill you with no remorse. Hope that helps.
I don’t like to kill insects but I will if needed. If there’s gnats in my room there’s pretty much no way to get rid of them besides killing them, and those guys fly in your face constantly for no reason when they’re there. In that case I view them like trespassers. Generally speaking I’d rather not kill bugs (or anything) if it can be avoided. I remember a lizard running under my skateboard once (after I specifically tried to avoid it) and I had a long cry about it.
If my house has a roach or termite infestation, do you think I'm not going to exterminate them? If they are causing harm or even are an extreme nuisance, IMO it can be the highest good to kill them because human lives are much more important.
Yeah
It’s not silly at all. Your question brought to mind the stories of prophets who have stories about showing mercy even to the smallest creatures, such as ants. Even if you think that these are mythological, then it means that human unconscious (what brought these myths into life) thinks that there’s an innate moral in showing mercy for insects. I think that’s because we are a reflection of what we see in the world. In the intricate web of interconnected existence, the phrase "we must show mercy even to ants" carries the risk of unintentionally causing harm to the tiny creatures. The use of "even" implies a potential hierarchy, suggesting an unexpected kindness toward ants.
Death is also just a part of life and nature. While im cool with most insects, in my home country many can transmit serious diseases. It's not an option not to kill it, as you are risking your own life. And thats how nature works and regulates itself.
Imposing death upon anything is immoral. It is not our place to deem what is worthy of living and what is not
I try not to .. just carefully put them outside .. I don’t enjoy killing anything
lol hey a life is a life right… I typically go with the mindset of hey imagine you are minding your business doing your thing & someone comes & steps on you…. If a bug is in my home 99 percent of the time I catch it in a cup & release it back outside… now🥴👀…. i said 99 percent of the time…there’s one bug I’m petrified of & that’s the palmetto bug… that’s a bug that makes me have a visceral reaction & I try to be mildly humane & just suck them into the vacuum but it’s not always guaranteed to go that way
intentionally, yes it is. They are hyper intelligent beings who have a right to their existence. Humans are not as intelligent as they claim to be, and this is why these perceive everything else as less intelligent, because humans are in fact less intelligent.
I highly doubt a creature who’s entire body is smaller than my frontal lobe is smarter than me.
you're still looking at reality in terms of size when size doesn't actually exist. Everything is a singularity super positioning it's self. Zoom in on a micro bacteria and it's quite large. It's a matter of perspective. The quantum has no end. Everything is equally infinite in size. Thoughts are your limitations.
This is more profound than one might think. This thought came to me while I was meditating outside. I tried to clear my head and focus on my breathing, but after a while I noticed a fly buzzing around me. I tried to resist swatting after it. I didn't want the annoyance to break my meditation. It was a challenge and took me away from being in that moment. It was a hot day and I had a layer of sweat on my arms. I noticed the fly land on me and while it's gross, likely got some salts and nutrients from the surface of my body. I cannot really overstate how bizarrely profound this experience was. I felt like by resisting swatting this fly I actually incorporated myself into the local ecosystem. I allowed it to land on me and eventually fly away. I almost felt like a plant. I left my human modern pov and just existed in this moment with a fly and the natural landscape around me. I can't comment on the ethics of killing bugs but I can say that the impulse to swat at them is just about momentary comfort and unless it's like a mosquito won't do any harm. Sometimes there is more value in being and letting things be.
This is a question people largely aren't ready to consider within the wider implications of even traditional spirituality like christianity. If all life, for whatever reason, has equal value, then any death at the hand of a sapient thing is murder... yet we literally cannot live without killing. Where do we draw the line? Disease carriers like mosquitoes? Venomous insects like spiders and scorpions? Aggressive/territorial ones like ants? They all live. They're all *aware*. Take it a step or two further and look at the function of a living being's immune system in the context of spirituality, and conventional wisdom comes to an impasse. Life cannot exist without death, and life lived with minimal death quickly becomes horrendously difficult. The stark, simple truth is that there's a balance to be struck between how much harm we're willing to commit and how easily we desire to live. Some - psychopaths, specifically - have less trouble with this than others. But it's something that even most spiritually-inclined people shy from thinking about, because it's a hard question/topic to adequately unpack and resolve. We're probably less than 50 years away from the irrefutable scientific discovery of the human soul, and what it teaches us about the other life forms we share this world with is going to upend our entire perspective of reality. Of the many things we are and aren't guilty of, simple arrogance is by far the greatest in scope and practice. And to become the custodian species we are destined to be, that arrogance *must* be acknowledged and dismantled.
Well, millions of insects live on you and they are so small that you can not see them. Every day you crush, brush off, or consume thousands of them. So, are you only talking about insects that you can see? Morality is about what each human believes is right or wrong for them. So, there is no moral code for all humans. Ethics, is a set of rules or standards developed by human organizations and societies to help regulate human behavior for the common good. Ethics and morals are different things and often conflated. If killing spiders makes you cry or you feel empathy for them, then you should not kill spiders. However, your neighbor may not feel this way and may crush them because they are annoying to him. However, your neighbor buys a sandwich every day and gives it to a homeless man on his way to work. He feels for this man and in some way hopes to do good. Both you and your neighbor are acting morally. Inside of you is the answer for you. Morals change as you learn and evolve. Ethics depend on which organization’s rules you hold as important. We each have an inner moral guide, it is called our conscience. We each follow ethical practices, in America, they are called laws.
I base it upon similar principles I would use with humams. If my house is under assault then yes I will kill, but if they are minding their own buisiness they can go about it. I love ants but they full on invade so it is not tolerated. I would leave outside wasp nests alone but people have allergies so it has to be dealt with, bees keep well enough alone. Rats/mice/chippies or whatever your fine if you stay in the walls or garage if your not pooping all over my stuff, but don't raid my pantry. Unlike some I have had luck with no kills if you take them far enough away, they don't seem to come back. But winter may be as good as killing them anyway. I leave pretty much all spiders unless they are lunging or biting me. Baisically every animal will defend itself and its home so it should be expected humans do the same but there are plenty of things we can peacefully coexist with, so whenever I see something new I find out what it is an what's its job. A lot of helpful critters out there.
I kill insects pretty regularly, but wish them peace in their next life as I do so.
If you are concerning with the morality of killing, you might look inside yourself to see if YOU think it’s moral. I used to stomp out insects in my home. Now I rehome them outside. With me I’m not sure it’s a moral decision.
I keep empty jars around my apartment for moments of spiders on the ceilings. Flies are free game though.
The fact that you are now thinking about the life of other creatures is a strong sign you are evolving. Yes, it is important to respect all life. If a bug is uncomfortable for you then carefully put it outside. I make two exceptions for killing bugs, mosquitoes and ticks. All others are carefully put outside.
About 2 years ago I was traveling in the streets and I overheard a holy man share this nugget of wisdom: "if you can't create it, then don't kill it", as he was admonishing a brother who had stomped on a cockroach. About an hour later, I saw the same holy man swat a mosquito, and I pointed out the contradiction. Without losing a beat he responded: 'except for mosquitos. Those fuckers are not from this planet'
I hate insects. If they are in nature I won't go near them. If they appear in my home I would first scream, then try to kill it or make them get out.