I think mercy is a religious idea that came from christianity. Neitzche considered the type of feeling to be sickness and weakness. I don't think it exists at all in the wild. What might look to us like mercy has another explanation. Weak member if the pack are killed, cubs are killed by the new alpha males in the pride and I can't think of any example where one animal would show 'mercy' to another in the sense that we understand it.
Humans do show mercy on occasion but I think it is uncommon. The entire idea is very christian to me. Would a muzzie show mercy to an infidel or even to their own children who decide the faith is not for them? I think not. Maybe buddhism and some other religions could promote the idea and surely there are men who would naturally develop the feeling with age and experience. It ties in with the idea of a second chance and forgiveness. Only a highly evolved group could have such a thing. Monkeys and apes kill their neighbors and take their land. No mercy there and they are our closest cousins. It takes a developed/decaying civilization and the attendant religious ideas to have mercy on the weak imo.
Humans do show mercy on occasion but I think it is uncommon. The entire idea is very christian to me. Would a muzzie show mercy to an infidel or even to their own children who decide the faith is not for them? I think not. Maybe buddhism and some other religions could promote the idea and surely there are men who would naturally develop the feeling with age and experience. It ties in with the idea of a second chance and forgiveness. Only a highly evolved group could have such a thing. Monkeys and apes kill their neighbors and take their land. No mercy there and they are our closest cousins. It takes a developed/decaying civilization and the attendant religious ideas to have mercy on the weak imo.