Ritual Animal Liberation among Tibetans
Ritual animal liberation is extremely popular among Tibetans as an expression of actively lived faith. But what benefit does this practice actually offer the animals that are released?
Like a visitor from another era, the Tibetan monk dressed in a dark red robe stands out at the marina of Marina del Rey, in the heart of Los Angeles. Sitting before a concrete fish tank, he murmurs prayers. “May I liberate these animals tortured in the misery of agony with the rain of the Dharma. May they thereby attain enlightenment,” those who speak Tibetan can understand. In the announcement of the event on the Buddhist centre’s website, one reads: “Please do not call the fish vendors at the harbour in advance, so that no additional fish are caught for the release.”
Capturing and Releasing
The precise origin of this practice, today particularly popular among Tibetans, is lost in a dark pre-Buddhist past, having gradually replaced bloody animal sacrifices. During this ritual, which is carried out differently everywhere, primarily livestock, but also birds, fish, crabs and turtles are released into the wild or rescued from slaughter.
In contrast to the worst vice of killing, a person’s karmic merit never accumulates as rapidly as through the saving of lives, say the Tibetans, and so they eagerly liberate animals. “The practice of buying the freedom of animals that would otherwise be killed is something we cherish and value, though we do not conduct any rituals for it,” reports Max, a Swiss national who lives as a monk at the Tibetan monastery Rabten Choeling on Mont Pélérin near Geneva.
Worms on the Path to Happiness
In a small village outside Bern, there is a medium-sized fishing tackle shop. A small group of Swiss Buddhists will release bait animals at the suggestion of their Tibetan lama. “We bought so many bait animals that the salesperson was puzzled. ‘You do a lot of fishing,’ he said, wanting to know exactly where we would be fishing,” laughs Corina, a student of the lama.
The animal world is one of the six realms of rebirth in Tibetan Buddhism. Although there are gradual differences in value, humans and animals are equally capable of liberation. According to Buddhist teaching, animals are sentient beings capable of suffering, and how we treat them leaves karmic traces.
Death in Freedom and Dignity
How far does a Buddhist's responsibility extend for the well-being of the animals they release? “I believe this ceremony of releasing animals is primarily about freeing the animal from captivity. We all have to die eventually. In Buddhism, the main concern is to reduce suffering,” says Corina.
It has never been precisely studied how many of the animals actually survive their release. Researchers Shiu and Stokes speak of a high mortality rate. 90% of birds die on the way to the release site.
Intention with Responsibility
The survival of ritually released animals does in fact appear to carry great significance in Tibetan Buddhism. “What matters above all is the good intention,” explains a Tibetan woman regarding this grey area of lived faith.
Chatral Rinpoche, known for his tse thar ceremonies in the Indian city of Kolkata, reports: “The state of mind at the moment of death largely determines the nature of rebirth. When a being is killed, its mind is in a state of fear and confusion at that moment. Not a good condition for a favorable rebirth.”
About the author: Mirjam Lüpold, born 1970, resident in Bern, ethnologist, professional journalist FJS and translator, specializing in human-animal relationships and Tibetan Buddhism.
