________________
But now imagine a situation in which someone is trying to take our life, or rape our wife or daughter, or start a fire in our house or, steal our money. If we are unprotected and some evil person has a weapon, what should we do? Should we simply ignore that evil person, or just tell him that non-violence is the most important dharma? And if he does not listen to, or pay no heed to our plea, should we try to control him with whatever power we have?
Sage Manu advises us for this kind of difficult situation:
One should not hesitate to dispatch that evil person and we should not care if he is a guru, an old person, a child, scholar or brahmin.
Under such circumstances, if the individual kills the aggressor in the effort to protecting himself/herself, he/she is not considered guilty of the sin of killing, because in fact the evil person was killed by his own lawlessness. Another example: The killing of a fetus is considered a most heinous act. But if a child becomes dangerously breached in the womb and the mother's life is in danger, it is a moral imperative to sacrifice the child for the sake
of the mother's life.
Non-violence, forgiveness, compassion and calmness (santi) are described and prescribed as virtues in the shastras and the sacred
25
