Buddhism is a religion and philosophical system founded about 2500 years ago by a revolutionary teacher best known as the Buddha.1 Although there is no biography of the Buddha that is universally accepted even by all Buddhists1 there is plenty of evidence that he was extraordinarily kind to people and animals.
For example, Huston Smith who was a leading scholar of world religions remarks that whether the Buddha “actually risked his life to free a goat that was snagged on a precipitous mountainside may be historically uncertain, but the act would certainly have been in character for his life was one continuous gift to the famished crowds.” 2
It is also recorded that the Buddha came to the defense of a snake being beaten by a gang. He stepped in and admonished them that “If you don’t want to be harmed, you should also not harm others; if you harm others, you will not find happiness even in your future existence.”3
This was bound to be because of his belief in reincarnation and karma which are beyond the scope of this little blurb. However, it is safe to say that the Buddha would have also believed that “acts of kindness toward animals are likely to produce positive karma, leading to happiness in one’s present life and in the next”.4
This is in line with other teachings attributed to him such as: “All tremble at the rod, all are fearful of death. Drawing the parallel to yourself, neither kill nor get others to kill”5 and “With a boundless heart should one cherish all living beings; Radiating kindness over the entire world.6
sources and footnotes:
[1] Lopez, Donald S.. “Buddha”. Encyclopedia Britannica, 19 Feb. 2020, https://www.britannica.com/biography/Buddha-founder-of-Buddhism. Accessed 4 November 2021. [2] Huston Smith also states The Buddha “was undoubtedly one of the greatest rationalists of all times, resembling in this respect no one as much as Socrates… The remarkable fact, however, was the way this objective, critical component of his character was balanced by a Franciscan tenderness so strong as to have caused his message to be subtitled ‘a religion of infinite compassion’”Source: Smith, Huston. The World’s Religions. HarperCollins , 1991. [3] Bruce, Alex. “Buddhism: Paradox and Practice.” Routledge Handbook of Religion and Animal Ethics, Routledge, 2019. [4] Bruce, Alex. “Buddhist Rebirth, Reincarnation, and Animal Welfare.” Routledge Handbook of Religion and Animal Ethics, Routledge, 2019. [5] “Dhammapada.” Accesstoinsight.org, https://www.accesstoinsight.org/lib/authors/thanissaro/dhammapada.pdf. [6] “Karaniya Metta Sutta.” Accesstoinsight.org, https://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/kn/snp/snp.1.08.amar.html.