Question: If someone commits suicide to avoid dying at the hands of an enemy, does that person suffer the same fate in the inner world as another person who takes his life?
Sri Chinmoy: It has happened many times that two warriors are fighting and when one of them knows that definitely it is a matter of a minute or a second before the other will destroy him, then immediately he puts an end to his own life. Many times when kings have been arrested, they do not want to be killed by their enemies. So they kill themselves. They say, “Since we are destined to be killed by you, then the best thing is for us to kill ourselves.” If they do this, I tell you, they are doing the right thing. They will not suffer the same fate as someone else who commits suicide.
Sri Chinmoy, The soul and the process of reincarnation, Agni Press, 1977