法苑珠林 68.45

68.45

問曰。何故名他。答曰。非自命故。若有他人是可殺者。能殺人得殺生罪。以自殺者無可殺境故。自斷命不得惡報。又阿羅漢自害其身。斷己命故而彼無罪。何以故。已離瞋心等故。是自殺不得殺罪。

Question: Why is it named 'another'? Answer: Because it is not one's own life. If there is another person who can be killed, the person who can kill incurs the sin of killing living beings. Because one who kills oneself has no object that can be killed, cutting off one's own life does not incur bad retribution. Furthermore, when an arhat harms his own body and cuts off his own life, he is without sin. Why is that? Because he has already left behind angry thoughts and the like. Thus, killing oneself does not incur the sin of killing.