Animals

In the Hindu religion, it is believed
that some human beings can be
reincarnated as animals. According to
generally held notions about karma,
being born as an animal is an
unfavorable rebirth in punishment for a
previous grave sin. One is born as an
animal to expiate, or atone for, one’s evil
40
Angiras
deeds through suffering, in many cases
by being born as a particular type of
animal thousands of consecutive times.
Unlike the Jains, who see all matter
(even stones) as possessing souls, most
Hindus would consider this possible
only for sentient, or fully aware, beings,
including animal life. The conviction
that animals have souls is one of the reasons why many Hindus are vegetarian,
since this diet does the least harm to
other living things.
For Hindus, the animal realm is considered a place of punishment. From a
karmic perspective, being born as an
animal is an unenviable state, since animal behavior is run entirely by instinct,
and thus as animals they can make no
conscious effort to better themselves.
From a more concrete perspective, animals in India often lead very difficult
lives—including, in many cases, the
“sacred” cow.
As with all other unfavorable karmic
states, one’s animal life will eventually
end, but only after one’s sins have been
fully expiated. This suffering and lack of
control over one’s destiny makes birth as
an animal a state to be avoided.