Does illegal downloading violate the 2nd precept?

Buddhist ethical conduct including the Five Precepts (Pañcasikkhāpada), and Eightfold Ethical Conduct (Aṭṭhasīla).
Janalanda
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Re: Does illegal downloading violate the 2nd precept?

Post by Janalanda »

Buddha said "kamma is intention". Even normal humans realized this. For example: you don't go to jail for killing somebody by mistake. If it wasn't your intention, no need to feel too bad about it.
"'Kamma should be known. The cause by which kamma comes into play should be known. The diversity in kamma should be known. The result of kamma should be known. The cessation of kamma should be known. The path of practice for the cessation of kamma should be known.' Thus it has been said. In reference to what was it said?

"Intention, I tell you, is kamma. Intending, one does kamma by way of body, speech, & intellect.
http://www.accesstoinsight.org/ptf/dham ... kamma.html
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samseva
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Re: Does illegal downloading violate the 2nd precept?

Post by samseva »

spacenick wrote:So first of all, this comes from the commentaries. I take the 5 precepts from the Canon as being this:
1. Panatipata veramani sikkhapadam samadiyami
I undertake the precept to refrain from destroying living creatures.
2. Adinnadana veramani sikkhapadam samadiyami
I undertake the precept to refrain from taking that which is not given.
3. Kamesu micchacara veramani sikkhapadam samadiyami
I undertake the precept to refrain from sexual misconduct.
4. Musavada veramani sikkhapadam samadiyami
I undertake the precept to refrain from incorrect speech.
5. Suramerayamajja pamadatthana veramani sikkhapadam samadiyami
I undertake the precept to refrain from intoxicating drinks and drugs which lead to carelessness.
As you can see, no intention is mentioned here.
We would have barely any understanding at all of many parts of the Canon if it weren't for the Commentaries. Furthermore, the absence of the word 'intention' in only the formulation of the precepts—not the explanations—is an incorrect argument regarding intention not being part of the precepts.
spacenick wrote:But anyway, I mentioned intention in the sense of: it is not the having the intention to harm that...

[...]

[^1]: And it's helpful to try to escape our Judeo-Christian conditioning as much as we can and to remember that these training rules...
Obviously, intention of each precept alone aren't the precepts themselves; it is one factor among others—and most or all the factors must be fulfilled for the breach of a precept. Also, the association with Judeo-Christian beliefs and behaviours is not something everyone shares and is very much dependent on one's personal conditioning.

Intention is part of the precepts. I am sure there are many Sutta passages describing this. If the above excerpts from Bhikkhu Bodhi's work aren't sufficient, then please feel free to search for Sutta passages that support either point of view that intention is or isn't part of the precepts (you will probably find some for the former and none for the latter).

Regards.
spacenick
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Re: Does illegal downloading violate the 2nd precept?

Post by spacenick »

I guess we will agree to disagree.

:anjali:
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Chula
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Re: Does illegal downloading violate the 2nd precept?

Post by Chula »

I recently found a detailed response on this from Bhante Yuttadhammo that I think does a very good job:

http://buddhism.stackexchange.com/quest ... /2869#2869

I think I generally agree with that perspective.
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Bhikkhu Pesala
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Re: Does illegal downloading violate the 2nd precept?

Post by Bhikkhu Pesala »

A monk can be guilty of defeat without taking any physical object.
Buddhist Monastic Discipline wrote:d. Smuggling: A bhikkhu carrying items subject to an import duty hides them as he goes through customs. The taking is accomplished when the item leaves the customs area.
The law of the land decided that duty is payable on certain goods. Failing to pay that duty is theft.

The law of the land decides that payment is due on downloaded films, music, or software. What is the difference here if one fails to make the legally required payment?

Similarly, what about evasion of payment when travelling by train? One could argue that there is a negligible cost to the train company in carrying another 100 Kg when the fully loaded train weighs thousands of Kg. However, that's not the point. The law requires payment to be made.
Buddhist Monastic Discipline wrote:Special cases cited in the Commentary include the following:
a. False dealing: A bhikkhu makes counterfeit money or uses counterfeit weights. The taking is accomplished when the counterfeit is accepted.
b. Extortion: Using threats, a bhikkhu compels the owner of an object to give it to him. The taking is accomplished when the owner complies.
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Dhammarakkhito
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Re: Does illegal downloading violate the 2nd precept?

Post by Dhammarakkhito »

does there not have to be a physical object? you can't take information, only see it
"Just as the ocean has a single taste — that of salt — in the same way, this Dhamma-Vinaya has a single taste: that of release."
— Ud 5.5

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Dhammarakkhito
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Re: Does illegal downloading violate the 2nd precept?

Post by Dhammarakkhito »

see it, hear it, etc., i mean. i'm surprised to see a lot of people here describing kamma as a positive obligation (rather than a negative one); to me, it is something you don't do.
"Just as the ocean has a single taste — that of salt — in the same way, this Dhamma-Vinaya has a single taste: that of release."
— Ud 5.5

https://www.facebook.com/noblebuddhadha ... 34/?type=3

http://seeingthroughthenet.net/
https://sites.google.com/site/santipada ... allytaught
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cappuccino
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Re: Does illegal downloading violate the 2nd precept?

Post by cappuccino »

Stealing — when indulged in, developed, & pursued — is something that leads to hell, leads to rebirth as a common animal, leads to the realm of the hungry shades. The slightest of all the results coming from stealing is that, when one becomes a human being, it leads to the loss of one's wealth.
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cappuccino
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Re: Does illegal downloading violate the 2nd precept?

Post by cappuccino »

when indulged in, developed, & pursued
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Dhammarakkhito
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Re: Does illegal downloading violate the 2nd precept?

Post by Dhammarakkhito »

forcibly liberating a slave in the united states would have been considered theft, but it would have been a very kind thing to do
"Just as the ocean has a single taste — that of salt — in the same way, this Dhamma-Vinaya has a single taste: that of release."
— Ud 5.5

https://www.facebook.com/noblebuddhadha ... 34/?type=3

http://seeingthroughthenet.net/
https://sites.google.com/site/santipada ... allytaught
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Kim OHara
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Re: Does illegal downloading violate the 2nd precept?

Post by Kim OHara »

Sovatthika wrote: Sun Oct 22, 2017 3:32 am forcibly liberating a slave in the united states would have been considered theft, but it would have been a very kind thing to do
(1) That's a very long way from copying a movie. :jawdrop:
(2) Most of the things we do carry some mixture of kamma and we need to assess the balance. In that case, the good of freeing the slave would (IMO) more than outweigh the bad of stealing.

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Kim OHara
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Re: Does illegal downloading violate the 2nd precept?

Post by Kim OHara »

Sovatthika wrote: Sun Oct 22, 2017 2:06 am see it, hear it, etc., i mean. i'm surprised to see a lot of people here describing kamma as a positive obligation (rather than a negative one); to me, it is something you don't do.
It's not an action, it's a consequence.
There's no 'obligation', any more than there's an 'obligation' to abide by the Law of Gravity.

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Dhammarakkhito
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Re: Does illegal downloading violate the 2nd precept?

Post by Dhammarakkhito »

yeah those points i made might have been irrelevant

but yeah the owner hasn't been deprived of their content (movie, song, book, etc.); violating the law and stealing (taking what has not been given) is not the same thing.
they might not be getting as much money (some content is released free and indirectly the company gains thru free advertising) but they still have their work. you run into absurdity trying to hold up this ethic. is taking a picture of a piece of bread taking the bread? no. 'do you need to download...' irrelevant
when you start with a bad interpretation of a precept and hold up unnecessary standards you make it harder to follow the precepts
"Just as the ocean has a single taste — that of salt — in the same way, this Dhamma-Vinaya has a single taste: that of release."
— Ud 5.5

https://www.facebook.com/noblebuddhadha ... 34/?type=3

http://seeingthroughthenet.net/
https://sites.google.com/site/santipada ... allytaught
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Dhammarakkhito
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Re: Does illegal downloading violate the 2nd precept?

Post by Dhammarakkhito »

analyze what is being taken. can you take data?
"Just as the ocean has a single taste — that of salt — in the same way, this Dhamma-Vinaya has a single taste: that of release."
— Ud 5.5

https://www.facebook.com/noblebuddhadha ... 34/?type=3

http://seeingthroughthenet.net/
https://sites.google.com/site/santipada ... allytaught
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Kim OHara
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Re: Does illegal downloading violate the 2nd precept?

Post by Kim OHara »

Sovatthika wrote: Mon Nov 06, 2017 5:09 am ... when you start with a bad interpretation of a precept and hold up unnecessary standards you make it harder to follow the precepts
When you try to distort the plain intention of the precept to suit your own desires, you are demonstrating that you don't want to follow the precept.

:thinking:
Kim
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