Hi John and group,

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> Can someone please help me decipher the meaning of 'vijjamaane parakkame' in the verses at the end of AN 4:179 (A.iii.213). The context is:
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> 85. Na hi.mse paa.nabhuutaani vijjamaane parakkame,
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> 85. "One should not harm living beings
> [with effort existing ???]

I think you are right, to take it as a locative absolute: 'when there is effort', 'when effort is found'. The point seems to be that one should not _intentionally_ kill living beings. This might distinguish the teaching from that given to extremist ahimsa adherents.

In Buddhism one's intention is the decisive factor in weighing the ethical import of actions, while in Jainism (at least as it is portrayed in the Majjhimanikaaya) the physical action itself is decisive and the intention only secondary. So a bhikkhu could do work like emptying and cleaning latrines at a forest meditation center even if insects were harmed, since the purpose of the work has to do with hygiene, and the killing is unintentional. The effort is not directed towards the destruction of the insects. By contrast, a strict adherent of ahimsa would hardly dare take a step for fear of stepping on a microscopic living being.

best regards,

/Rett