by Ethan NichternBoth yoga and Buddhist meditation philosophy ask practitioners to refrain from the act of killing - whether directly or indirectly - as much as possible. In the American yoga communities I am part of, vegetarianism is fairly prevalent. In the Buddhist communities, somehow, not as much (though some Buddhist practitioners are certainly vegetarian). Then I came across this eye opening quote from the Angulimala Sutra (discourse). Read the powerful quote, and then share your thoughts on the following question: do mindful and compassionate people eat meat? Do you eat meat? Why or why not?
(Pig Buddha T-shirt from Zazzle.com)
"There is not a single being, wandering in the chain...of endless and beginningless samarsa [cyclical confusion], that has not been your mother or your sister. An individual, born as a dog, may afterward become your father. Each and every being is like an actor playing on the stage of life. One's own flesh and the flesh of others is the same flesh. Therefore, the enlightened ones eat no meat."
-Angulimala Sutra
From Food of Bodhisattvas
-Angulimala Sutra
From Food of Bodhisattvas
Add to Del.icio.us
Add to Technorati
Add to Digg
Add to Newsvine
Add to Facebook
Add to StumbleUpon
Subscribe
The Dalai Lama eats meat. That's good enough for me. And I think it's more important not to be judgmental about what people eat, not everyone can be a vegetarian.
I am a yoga teacher and this debate continues in that arena also. In fact, I had this same conversation with my teacher, a Theravadan monk. He said live as mindfully and compassionately as you can and only do what YOU can do, stop judging what other people do! By the way, he eats eggs!
I don't think you have to be a vegetarian to be a good buddhist or yogi, but I can't imagine how you could justify to yourself if you truly accept the basic precepts of either system. I can't, but I'm not saying it can't be done and I'm judging those who do. it's all up to you.
The Buddha said that no one should follow his teaching just because he made certain pronouncements or followed a certain path. With this in mind, I don't think it matters whether the Dalai Lama eats meat or not. We all have to follow our own consciences.
I am a vegetarian less because animals are killed to create food, but because of how they are treated prior to their deaths. Factory farming results in lifetimes of severe suffering for animals, especially egg-laying chickens, but also cows and pigs. I would assume true believers in compassion, like the Dalai Lama (who, by the way, has said he would like to be a vegetarian, but was advised otherwise by his doctor) would be mindful of where their meat comes from. If you buy the remains of a free-roaming chicken in India, it's much less karmically toxic than buying them from a supermarket in Philadelphia.
World hunger and global warming are gravely impacted by the meat industry. Rainforests are cut down by the acre for grazing land. More grain is consumed by cattle than by people on a daily basis. These are things to consider.
A lot of vegetarians say they never liked meat anyway. I love the taste of meat and still feel longing when I smell a summer barbecue, but would never consider crossing my own personal line and consuming animal flesh again. Doing what's right (as defined by one's own standards) is not always easy.
People SHOULD do only what they can, but they should not confuse not being able to do something with electing not to exercise a little self-discipline.
It has always been my understanding that we should be far more concerned with what comes out of our mouths than what goes in. Some people get very caught up in 'the rules', especially in regard to observable spiritual practice, and some people are rather passionate about the effect meat consumption has on our spiritual and/or moral health.
Some mainstream religions discourage it entirely while others give it no consideration at all.
If I'm not mistaken, the Buddha wouldn't accept meat from animals killed for him specifically, would not ask for it, but would accept it if offered. I've heard about monks of various orders going out to beg for their food who simply ate whatever was given them, even if it was meat. The Dalai Lama says he eats meat for health reasons three times a week, though I don't belive he encourages people to eat meat thoughtlessly. Thich Naht Hanh discourages meat consumption entirely on the grounds of peaceful living.
Obviously, there are mixed feelings and teachings on this subject. So, why do people eat meat? I think it tastes pretty darn good for one thing, but I know some people can't stand it. Some have eaten meat all their lives because it was traditional and cultural to do so. Historically, there were tribes of people known for their capabilities as gatherers and growers, and others known for their great ability to hunt and store meats. Some obviously did both.
That brings us to why people choose to be vegetarians. Again, it is often cultural, and that is all they have ever known, depending on where they live and how they were brought up. I certainly understand why many people are vegetarians... compassion for animals, religious teachings, ecological reasons, the belief that it's healthier to be vegetarians, because they are better gatherers than hunters, or even because it's 'cool' to be a vegetarian at any given time in one's life. Every one of these reasons is valid.
My own personal thoughts are these ... I don't think very many people would eat red meat if they had to kill and dress the animal they wanted to eat. The separation of the animal from the butchered product is made easy by packaging. The plastic and the styrofoam make it so easy to forget that our nice steak was a steer a few days back. It makes makes sure we never see the face, the swishing tail, hear the moo, or the crowing. We would certainly never think of it as a package of the flesh of a dead animal, but that's what it is. That is the reality.
Some of us can live with this. I don't take eating meat lightly. I grew up on a small farm, and we surely did eat what we grew. We had large gardens, beef cattle, chickens, and horses...no, we didn't eat the horses! But we never took it lightly either. I can't say we were happy to take the steers to market. I always knew in the back of my mind that the cute little calf would one day be a big ole steer. But, there was no waste, and we shared with neighbors less fortunate. There was no moral dilemna for us. If you want to judge us based on whether we ate meat, I guess it's your time...do what you want with it. I don't think it diminished our morality or our compassion for others as a family to eat meat,and I don't think it has made me less of a loving person to have steak or chicken now and then. SOme would say, what about that chicken? What about that cow?
Well, every time you boil water for tea, you are also killing hundreds of small organisms. Every time you pull a plant from the ground you kill it. Every tree you cut down for firewood is a dead tree. It's what becomes of it after that that is really important... use that food energy to do good on the earth.
Peace
"If you buy the remains of a free-roaming chicken in India, it's much less karmically toxic than buying them from a supermarket in Philadelphia."
Have you ever seen what a free-roaming chicken eats off the street in India? I have. and no thanks.
Post a Comment
By submitting these comments, I agree to the beliefnet.com terms of service, rules of conduct and privacy policy (the "agreements"). I understand and agree that any content I post is licensed to beliefnet.com and may be used by beliefnet.com in accordance with the agreements.