[Buddha-l] Nirvana Sutra Chapter 19

[L.S. Cousins]

Dan Lusthaus writes:
> Yes, Chris. There are already Pali suttas in which Buddha declares of 
> monks who had committed suicide that they were on to good destinies. 
> Modern sensibilities aside, asian cultures have not been squeamish 
> about suicide. In China, Korea and Japan, it is built into the moral 
> codes of the country (esp. in Japan) -- Buddhism was a never a 
> counteragent to those cultural tendencies. On the contrary...
I think this is quite wrong. About East Asia I cannot speak, but you may 
be reading East Asian attitudes into Indian culture. There are a few 
exceptional cases where someone reaches nirvāṇa after taking their own 
life, but suicide is generally seen as a form of taking life, bound to 
lead to a bad rebirth.

Lance