Six Types of Homicide

Original text of the first section of the Upāsaka Five Precepts Sūtra: 佛告诸比丘。犯杀有三种夺人命。一者自作。二者教人。三者遣使。自作者。自身作夺他命。教人者。教语他人言。捉是人。系缚夺命。遣使者。语他人言。汝识某甲不。汝捉是人。系缚夺命。是使随语夺彼命时。优婆塞犯不可悔罪。

Explanation: The Buddha told the bhikṣus: Those who violate the precept against killing have three ways of taking a person's life: the first is killing personally oneself, the second is inciting others to kill, and the third is sending someone (to kill on one's behalf). Killing personally means the upāsaka personally goes to take another person's life; inciting others to kill means using words to tell another person: seize that person, tie him up, and kill him; sending someone to kill means saying to another person (often a subordinate, someone under one's authority): Do you know so-and-so? Seize him, tie him up, and then kill him. When this messenger follows the instructions and takes that person's life, the upāsaka commits an unpardonable offense.

The key point here is the difference and the stakes involved between inciting others to kill and sending someone to kill. What is the difference between inciting others to kill and sending a messenger to kill? "Incite" means to instigate and urge on; in the end, it is the person who was incited who directly kills and violates the precept against killing. The inciter and the incited are in an equal relationship, but the inciter's offense is greater. Sending a messenger to kill, on the other hand, means dispatching one's own messenger to kill according to one's instructions—it is killing on one's behalf. The principal killer is the upāsaka himself, and the person dispatched merely obeys arrangements and completes the task. The dispatcher is the principal offender, and the dispatched person is an accomplice who also bears guilt. Whether it is inciting others to kill or sending a messenger to kill, the principal offender and chief culprit is the upāsaka himself, so the upāsaka commits an unpardonable violation of the precept against killing. The karmic offense is even heavier than killing personally, because although the result is the same—one person is killed—inciting and dispatching others to kill also induces others to create unwholesome karma, defiling their minds and karmic actions, causing them to form unwholesome karmic bonds with others and planting seeds of unwholesome karma.

Original text: 复有三种夺人命。一者用内色。二者用非内色。三者用内非内色。内色者。优婆塞用手打他。若用足及余身分。作如是念。令彼因死。彼因死者。是犯不可悔罪。若不即死。后因是死。亦犯不可悔。若不即死。后不因死。是中罪可悔。

Explanation: There are three more ways of killing: the first is using one's inner form, that is, one's own body, to kill; the second is using non-inner form, that is, using killing tools outside the body to kill; the third is using both inner and non-inner form to kill, that is, using the hand to hold a killing tool to kill. Inner form refers to the upāsaka's material body; using some part of the body to strike and kill, such as striking with the hand, or kicking with the foot / butting with the head, or striking with other parts of the body, while thinking in one's mind: I will beat him to death like this. After the person who was struck dies as a result, the upāsaka commits an unpardonable offense of killing. If that person does not die immediately but later dies as a result of the beating, the upāsaka also commits an unpardonable offense of killing; if that person does not die immediately and later does not die as a result, the upāsaka commits a moderate, pardonable offense.

Original text: 用非内色者。若人以木瓦石。刀槊弓箭。白镴叚铅锡叚。遥掷彼人。作是念。令彼因死。彼因死者。犯不可悔罪。若不即死。后因是死。亦犯不可悔。若不即死。后不因死。是中罪可悔。

Explanation: In the case of killing with non-inner form, if the upāsaka uses wood, tiles, stones, as well as knives, spears, bows and arrows, lumps of pewter, and lumps of lead-tin alloy, throwing them at that person from a distance, while thinking in his mind of making that person die from being struck, then if that person truly dies as a result, the upāsaka commits an unpardonable offense of killing. If that person does not die immediately but only later dies from being struck, the upāsaka also commits an unpardonable offense of killing. If that person does not die immediately and later does not die from the beating, the upāsaka commits a moderate, pardonable offense.

原文：用内非内色者。若以手捉木瓦石。刀槊弓箭。白镴叚铅锡叚。木叚打他。作如是念。令彼因死。彼因死者。是罪不可悔。若不即死。后因是死。亦犯不可悔。若不即死。后不因死。是中罪可悔。

Explanation: In the case of killing with a combination of inner and non-inner form, if the upāsaka holds in his hand wood, tiles, stones, knives, spears, and bows and arrows, lumps of pewter, and lumps of lead-tin alloy, or uses a block of wood to strike and kill, while thinking in his mind of making that person die as a result, then if that person truly dies from the striking, the upāsaka's offense of killing is unpardonable. If that person does not die immediately but only later dies from the striking, the upāsaka also commits an unpardonable offense. If that person does not die immediately and later does not die as a result, the upāsaka commits a moderate offense that is pardonable.