Responsibility |
Lately when I go outside I feel responsibility for various creatures I encounter: slugs, snails, toads, caterpillars, moths. Usually they are in some sort of mortal danger and I have to save them. Usually my dogs want to step on them or chew on them. They wander into the fenced area where the dogs are and I have to find them and move them somewhere else.
So I had the idea that maybe I should just stay indoors so I don't see these things occurring and then I won't have this horrible feeling of responsibility.
And I wonder if it's this way with our fellow humans. When we learn of the plight of someone who is suffering we feel we must do something. So instead, we just stay indoors (metaphorically speaking).
The easiest solution would be to just get rid of the dogs, but I need them to scare the critters away. (And this wouldn't work for people anyway; can't just get rid of the needy people.) And I would have to get rid of my car too because I inadvertently drive over slugs and snails; later, on my walk I see them flattened.
I guess you would have to sweep the ground in front of you and wear a face mask like a Jain to absolutely minimize harming innocent creatures. (Of course it would still be OK to swat mosquitoes because they harm humans potentially.) And it seems odd we would have a moral obligation to go to such extremes just in living our day to day lives.