"Sin or no sin depends on purpose, intention & circumstance"

Question:Is it not a sin to kill silkworms for silk cloth, or to kill deers for making deer skin meditation mats?

The answer is that it is a sin if we do it for trading purposes.Sin is not a substance associated with a particular activity. The same activity can result in either sin or no sin depending upon the purpose, intention and circumstance. For example, killing in general is a sin, but killing a demon or murderer is not a sin. Similarly if we kill animals to avoid being killed, it is not a sin. As said earlier, every creature in this world is here for doing "sadhana". In this world the priority is for those who are doing greater "sadhana". To accomplish that, if others have to sacrifice their "sadhana", there is no harm in that.

For example, assume that there are two students in a house. One is preparing for second grade and the other is preparing for a college medical exam. Though both are preparing for their exams, we consider that the medical exam is more important and give preference to him. If needed, we may ask the other student to sacrifice his preparation, because he will not lose much.

Similarly, in this world, the living entity who is doing a higher level of sadhana, gets preference. So for the benefit of the higher sadhana, others performing lesser sadhana may be sacrificed without any sin. If we are preparing silk for God's pooja, then it is not a sin. But if we are preparing silk for decorating ourselves, then it is a sin. So we need to understand what is the purpose of the action, and what is going to be achieved finally.

Source: indiadivine.org