The environment

• Ahimsa


  Not killing; respect for life; never being violent; not hurting others
• Sustainability


  Only using natural resources at a rate at which they can be replaced
• Hindus see all created things as coming from God and being part of God, and therefore think they should protect and not harm the environment
• Hindu scriptures support ahimsa and sustainability and Hindus put these ideas into practice
• Svetasvatara Upanishad 5: 'Even as the radiance of the sun shines everywhere in space, so does the glory of God rule over all his creation. In the unfolding of his own nature he makes all things blossom into flower and fruit. He gives to them all their fragrance and colour. He, the ONE, the only God who rules the universe.'
• Svetasvatara Upanishad 5: 'He [God] is the Creator of all, everliving in the mystery of his creation. He is beyond beginning and end, and in his glory all things are.'
• Chandogya Upanishad 3.14: 'All this universe is in truth Brahman. He is the beginning and end and life of all.'
• Bhagavad Gita 11.19-20: 'Without beginning, midst or end, Thy might/is endless and Thine arms are infinite,/Thine eyes are sun and moon, Thy flaming mouth/with burning radiance sets the world alight. Between the earth and sky on every side/by Thee alone this space is occupied.'
• Hindus believe that everyone today should rediscover the reverence for life, which Hindus have practised for centuries; Hindu teachings encourage people to apologise to plants and animals when they use them for food or to make things with them
• Hindus are mostly vegetarians because killing animals for meat causes them to suffer, their breath used for uttering holy scriptures should not associate with killing of animals, not eating meat is a sign of religious purity, and animals are part of the life cycle and should not be harmed
• In the Bhagavad Gita, Krishna recommends eating pure foods such as fruit, vegetables, grains and milk products