Christianity
Islam
Judaism
Hinduism
Buddhism
Animal Welfare & Compassion
Kindness to animals is enjoined across religious traditions, from the Bible's concern for working animals to Islam's prohibition against cruelty to the Buddhist precept of not killing. These teachings reflect a conviction that compassion must extend beyond the human species.
Across the World's Religions
Christianity
- Practice
- Care for animals — the righteous care for their beasts
- Key Text
- Proverbs 12:10; Deuteronomy 25:4; Matthew 10:29
Islam
- Practice
- Mercy to animals — reward for watering a thirsty dog
- Key Text
- Quran 6:38; Hadith (Bukhari 2466, Muslim 2244)
Judaism
- Practice
- Tza'ar ba'alei chayyim — prohibition of animal cruelty
- Key Text
- Deuteronomy 22:6-7; Proverbs 12:10; Exodus 23:12
Hinduism
- Practice
- Ahimsa (non-violence) — cow protection; vegetarianism
- Key Text
- Mahabharata 13.116; Bhagavad Gita 5:18
Buddhism
- Practice
- First Precept — abstain from taking any life
- Key Text
- Dhammapada 129-130; AN 5.174