Should you play violent games?

Thay answers questions on 21 June 2014. Question 3

(Half bell)

(Bell)

(FRENCH)
I would like to say

that certain people were not ok
to play a game called 'Werewolves'.

There are adults who say
that it is a bad game.

You should not play it here,
because you play with death.

You cannot do that.

And other people say it is very good,
because it's a game and you play together.

So the question is: Is it good or not?

What teaching can you
give on this argument?

(ENGLISH)
Dear Thay,

our friend is saying
that there is a certain game.

Some of the young people
like to play it.

It is called 'Loups-Garous',
'Werewolves.'

Some of the adults said that
they should not play this game,

because it has something
to do with death.

And other people say that
it can be a good game to play.

So how can they resolve this question?

And what kind of teaching can be helpful
to make them understand about this?

Do you want to say
more about the game?

(Mumbling)

It is just a simple game.

You have to choose at the end of a round
whom you want to kill.

There are some
special characters like witches.

And there is a vote and
that vote decides who is a werewolf.

So you have to keep the people
and hopefully kill the werewolf.

So that is why some people
who have children say

they have to kill, to choose
whom they want to kill.

And you have to defend yourself saying:

"I am not the werewolf.
Please don't kill me!"

And all the children
together have to say:

"I think this one is the werewolf.
We should kill him."

But maybe he is innocent.

And the object of this game is that

the werewolves win when
they kill all the normal people.

Or the normal people win
when they kill all the werewolves.

Sister Hai Nghiem, can you
help answer that question for Thay?

(Crowd laughs)

Maybe Thay Phap Luu also.

Do you kill or pretend to kill?

Do you really want to kill?

Microphone for sister Hai Nghiem.

Dear Thay, dear Sangha

I have played this game
in the past (laughs).

So I feel I know the spirit
of the game a little bit.

What is inspiring for me when I play
this game for children or young people...

is that you play roles.

Either we are an innocent villager,
or we are a werewolf,

or we are a witch
or we are a little girl.

Obviously in these roles
there is the good and the evil.

The innocent people,
they represent the good.

They want to save their lives.

The werewolves in this game
represent the evil.

They want to make victims.

There are also some roles in this game where
people actually save other people's lives

or you can...

or you can act in such a way that will
kill more people at the same time.

Of course you pretend this,
you don't have to actually make victims.

It is just a way of speaking.

But some people get
animated by the game.

In this game there
has to be a lot of talking

to convince the others that you
are not a werewolf

and you should not be killed.

Sometimes you are a werewolf
and people want to kill you.

Then you lie, because you say:
"No no, I am not a werewolf."

So...

I think that sometimes
you sort of play with fire in this game:

You lie or...

or you try to kill someone
that is innocent.

I think that something we can learn
from a game like this is that...

that we can have roles together
when we are in a community,

but it does not have to...

it does not have to
become...so violent.

Maybe the children could think of
a game which is similar to 'Werewolves',

where you have to discuss together
and you also have roles,

but maybe you won't
have to kill people.

Maybe instead of killing...

we can make projects or...

we can gain some wisdom together

or save the...weaker, the needy.

I hope that Thay will
contribute something more.

(Crowd laughs)

I think the children can sit down
and discuss about this

and come to a conclusion.

If a...

If a game is not approved by
a number of people,

then we can change the way of playing
so that everyone can accept it.

You know, I came from a country where
killing took place every day, every night

and many people died.

One side was the communist.

And one side was the anticommunist.

And they kill each other
every day, every night,

because they think
of the other side as evil.

And the suffering went on
for many, many years.

That is a game,
a horrible game.

So our thinking about
good and evil is very important.

Do not...

Do not try to say: "This is evil!

And if something
is evil we have to kill it."

Do not think like that.

Suppose someone is sick.

He has a kind of virus or bacteria
that makes him very sick.

And we want to...

We want to help him or her.

We have to kill the disease, the sickness
in him or in her and not kill her, right?

You have to kill the virus, the bacteria
and not the person, right?

So when someone is violent
because someone is injust,

when someone is a criminal,

we should not try to kill him or her,
but we try to kill the violence,

the anger in him or in her.

Do not kill.

That is why during the war
in Vietnam Thay wrote a song.

And he asked the young people
to sing it on the street.

"Our enemies are not men.

If we kill men, with whom shall we live?"

It became a folk song.

That is why our principle is no killing.

We do not kill any people, any person,
even if he is a terrorist or a criminal.

We want to kill the wrong perception,

and...

and the ignorance, the hate,
the fear, the violence in him or in her.

We don't want to kill him or her.

That is why you have
to create a kind of game

where we don't kill the person
but we kill the evil in that person.

That evil is violence, anger and hate.

But you have to be very skillful to
kill the violence, the hate in a person.

And with the practice of
mindful talking, mindful listening

you can help a person remove
anger and violence in him or in her.

You cannot do that with guns.

That is the first thing we have to learn:
never kill a man, a woman.

Only kill the evil in him or in her.

But you do not need weapons
in order to kill.

You need the practice
of compassion of listening.

That is the first part of the answer.
The second part of the answer is deeper.

Because you know that
nothing is born and nothing dies

that is why you cannot even kill anger.

You transform anger into something else.

You cannot kill a cloud,
you can help a cloud to become rain.

So there is a way
to transform anger and violence

into something else
that is more pleasant,

like compassion, understanding
and reconciliation.

And that you can do
with the practice of meditation.

That is what we learn here.

We do not even kill...

We do not even want to kill
anger or hate

because we know that nothing dies.

But we know we can transform
anger and hate into something positive

like understanding and love.

And in Plum Village we learn
how to transform anger into compassion.

We learn how to transform
violence into gentleness.

And the children can learn.

And when they go
back to school, this September,

they know how to deal with

the children who are violent
and have a lot of anger in them.

We don't want to punish them or hit them.

But we want to help them to be
less violent, less angry.

And you can learn that in Plum Village.

And you can help
your fellow students in the class.

Ask your mentors
here in Plum Village how to do that.

And create a kind of game
that can help us to learn.

This person, this guy,
is supposed to be evil.

And people say that we have to kill him.

Can we kill a person?

No!

We have to help him or her
not to be violent, not to be angry.

But how?

So we can create many kinds of games.

There are plenty of games,
beautiful games.

Why don't we spend our time playing
in such a way that we can learn more.

Thank you!

(Half bell)

(Bell)