# Hunting

Source: https://buddhisma2z.com/hunting/  
Author: Bhante S. Dhammika, *Guide To Buddhism A To Z*  
Licence: CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/)

![Hunting](https://buddhisma2z.com/images/H/hunting.webp)

Hunting (*migavā*) is the stalking, chasing and killing of wild [**animals**](https://buddhisma2z.com/animals/). In prehistoric times and even today amongst some primitive tribes, people have hunted to provide themselves with food or to supplement their diets. In later periods hunting was sometimes seen as a way to train for [**war**](https://buddhisma2z.com/war/). Today nearly all hunting is done for [**sport**](https://buddhisma2z.com/sport/), entertainment or as proof of courage. Buddhism has always disapproved of hunting because it involves cruelty and killing and is in most cases unnecessary. The [**Mahāvastu**](https://buddhisma2z.com/mahavastu/) pointed out that even the animals that were not killed during hunts can be wounded and  ‘escape into the bushes and thickets of the forest, into clumps of grass, reeds and brambles, die and  be eaten by ravens and vultures.’

The Buddha said that fowlers, deer stalkers and fishermen might all have an unfavorable rebirth (A.II,207; S.II,256). The early Buddhists also criticized using animals, e.g. dogs, hawks, cheetahs, etc. to hunt other animals (Ja.V,270), and using one animal as a decoy to catch another (Ja.V,375). Buddhist [**kings**](https://buddhisma2z.com/kings-and-kingship/) rarely indulged in hunting and few palaces or royal residences in Buddhist countries are decorated with hunting scenes, as are those in many other cultures. Several [**Jātaka**](https://buddhisma2z.com/jataka/) stories criticize hunting for sport and try to evoke [**sympathy**](https://buddhisma2z.com/sympathy/) for the victimized animals (Ja.I,145-54). The Buddhist attitude to hunting is well summed up by Sarabha’s exhortation to the king in the *Jātakmālā*: ‘If you wish to be dear to me, then give up hunting. Because animals are dull by nature we should have sympathy for them. When it comes to being happy and avoiding suffering, all beings are the same. Therefore, if you find something unpleasant you should not inflict it on others.’ See [**Blood Sports**](https://buddhisma2z.com/blood-sports/).

Subjects: Contemporary Issues