Thanks bro for helping me with the title. All right I did a
search just now and I came upon this interesting video by
净空法师. He strongly disapproved violent
video games and suggested that video game players/makers suffer a
karma "worse than the slaughterhouse butcher" Any thoughts on this?
Btw I also noted out of 344 viewers, 268 didn't like his statment
lmao.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mYi7MseHzos&feature=related
He's only refering to the makers, not the game players (or at
least I don't think he said that video game players are going to
hell).
I don't exactly agree that playing a video game is anything near
killing a real person.
However I would also like to give him benefit of doubt on his
comments on video game makers, because what he said has some
scriptural basis. (Master Chin Kung is a famous sutra explainer and
commentator and must be very familiar with them, so I believe his
comments usually have some direct or indirect scriptural backing or
source and aren't just made up by himself)
For example, the Buddha actually said that actors that incite
people's passions (the three poisons of Greed, Hatred, Ignorance)
are destined for rebirth in hell, so by this logic I believe this
equally applies to video game makers:
(oh btw before I quote the sutta just wanna add 2 points: Buddha
is refering to actors here, not audiences, and also when I play
video games I just play mindlessly and emotionlessly without hatred
or anger as I understand them to be totally illusory and virtual
and so I don't think I'm at fault of being 'inspired passions', in
the same way that when I watch a movie I don't hate the actor for
acting as a bad guy because he's just an actor, therefore I
personally think my playing games is quite blameless even though I
can't say this is the case for others)
SN 42.2
PTS: S iv 306
CDB ii 1333
Talaputa Sutta: To Talaputa the Actor
translated from the Pali by
Thanissaro Bhikkhu
© 1998–2010
On one occasion the Blessed One was staying near Rajagaha in the
Bamboo Grove, the Squirrel's Sanctuary.
Then Talaputa, the head of an acting troupe, went to the Blessed
One and, on arrival, having bowed down to him, sat to one side. As
he was sitting there he said to the Blessed One: "Lord, I have
heard that it has been passed down by the ancient teaching lineage
of actors that 'When an actor on the stage, in the midst of a
festival, makes people laugh & gives them delight with his
imitation of reality, then with the breakup of the body, after
death, he is reborn in the company of the laughing devas.' What
does the Blessed One have to say about that?"
"Enough, headman, put that aside. Don't ask me that."
A second time... A third time Talaputa, the head of an acting
troupe, said: "Lord, I have heard that it has been passed down by
the ancient teaching lineage of actors that 'When an actor on the
stage, in the midst of a festival, makes people laugh & gives
them delight with his imitation of reality, then with the breakup
of the body, after death, he is reborn in the company of the
laughing devas.' What does the Blessed One have to say about
that?"
"Apparently, headman, I haven't been able to get past you by
saying, 'Enough, headman, put that aside. Don't ask me that.' So I
will simply answer you. Any beings who are not devoid of passion to
begin with, who are bound by the bond of passion, focus with even
more passion on things inspiring passion presented by an actor on
stage in the midst of a festival. Any beings who are not devoid of
aversion to begin with, who are bound by the bond of aversion,
focus with even more aversion on things inspiring aversion
presented by an actor on stage in the midst of a festival. Any
beings who are not devoid of delusion to begin with, who are bound
by the bond of delusion, focus with even more delusion on things
inspiring delusion presented by an actor on stage in the midst of a
festival. Thus the actor — himself intoxicated & heedless,
having made others intoxicated & heedless — with the breakup of
the body, after death, is reborn in what is called the hell of
laughter. But if he holds such a view as this: 'When an actor on
the stage, in the midst of a festival, makes people laugh &
gives them delight with his imitation of reality, then with the
breakup of the body, after death, he is reborn in the company of
the laughing devas,' that is his wrong view. Now, there are two
destinations for a person with wrong view, I tell you: either hell
or the animal womb."
When this was said, Talaputa, the head of an acting troupe, sobbed
& burst into tears. [The Blessed One said:] "That is what I
couldn't get past you by saying, 'Enough, headman, put that aside.
Don't ask me that.'"
"I'm not crying, lord, because of what the Blessed One said to me,
but simply because I have been deceived, cheated, & fooled for
a long time by that ancient teaching lineage of actors who said:
'When an actor on the stage, in the midst of a festival, makes
people laugh & gives them delight with his imitation of
reality, then with the breakup of the body, after death, he is
reborn in the company of the laughing devas.'
"Magnificent, lord! Magnificent! Just as if he were to place
upright what was overturned, to reveal what was hidden, to show the
way to one who was lost, or to carry a lamp into the dark so that
those with eyes could see forms, in the same way has the Blessed
One — through many lines of reasoning — made the Dhamma clear. I go
to the Blessed One for refuge, to the Dhamma, and to the Community
of monks. May the Blessed One remember me as a lay follower who has
gone to him for refuge, from this day forward, for
life."