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The Rationale Behind Vegetarianism in Dharmic Traditions
The Rationale Behind Vegetarianism in Dharmic Traditions
By Ved Kovid, Durgadas.
(c) Ved Kovid, Durgadas.
All Rights Reserved.
"In living beings, ahimsa (non-violence) is the best among factors that prolong life"
-Charaka Samhita, Sutrasthana, XXX.15
There are often questions people ask, such as "if we kill animals for meat, how is it any different to killing a cabbage and eating it?".
Well, this is a good question, but it comes into ahimsa (non-violence) and also one's dharma as a human. Various life-forms are created, with humans here on this planet at the top and vegetables at the bottom, owing to their karmic natures. Ayurvedic psychology considers as "Brahma" or enlightened person to be the most evolved and the "vanaspatya" or plant / tree type to be the lowest form of life. Matsya or fish comes lower than Pashava or four-legged beasts. Above fish are chickens etc. on the karmic evolutionary scale. Thus, we should select only the lowest forms as humans to eat to accrue less negative karma.
This model is also shown by the Hindu Dashavatar series, in which the deity Vishnu, representing the fallen soul, evolves from the lowest form of life (a fish) into a tortoise (amphibian) and then into a mammal (boar) before becoming a half-man, half-lion (Narasimha) and eventually a dwarfed human (Vamana). After this, he becomes the hunter with an axe (Parashurama), then the ideal King (Sri Rama), the King-Philosopher, Sri Krishna and then the ideal non-violent philosopher, the Buddha and finally the perfected man, represented by Kalki, the reformer.
Thus, the higher the form of life we go, the more negative karma we are likely to gain by killing such, and for sustainance of our bodies, we should take only the lesser forms of life to rejuvenate our bodies. In Ayurveda also, several alchemical formulas exist for rejuvenating the body, as also rasayana or rejuvenating formulas of herbs - notably Bala (sida cordifolia), Ashwagandha (Withania somnifera) and especially Amalaki (Emblica officinalis) from which powerful rejuvenation formulas for the body such as Chyawanprasha and Brahma Rasayana are made out of. Other natural forms that are purified and used include Guggulu (Commiphora mukul), Shilajeet (Ashphaltum / Mineral pitch) and Swarna (gold) - often made into a purified and medicated ash (bhasma) and used internally.
These rejuvenation formulas and herbs are quite sattvic or pure in nature and do not harm to higher forms of life or living-beings, such as those with blood.
Ayurveda and Yoga in India also list all food varieties and types into three categories or gunas (qualities) of sattvic (pure and giving rise to truth, clarity and perception), rajasic (passion-creating or agitating and giving rise to restlessness and violence) and tamasic (dark, dull or ignorant and giving rise to blockages in the body, toxins and diseases). Even many vegetables fall under these categories also.
Thus, the higher the form of life we go, the more negative karma we are likely to gain by killing such, and for sustainance of our bodies, we should take only the lesser forms of life to rejuvenate our bodies. In Ayurveda also, several alchemical formulas exist for rejuvenating the body, as also rasayana or rejuvenating formulas of herbs - notably Bala (sida cordifolia), Ashwagandha (Withania somnifera) and especially Amalaki (Emblica officinalis) from which powerful rejuvenation formulas for the body such as Chyawanprasha and Brahma Rasayana are made out of. Other natural forms that are purified and used include Guggulu (Commiphora mukul), Shilajeet (Ashphaltum / Mineral pitch) and Swarna (gold) - often made into a purified and medicated ash (bhasma) and used internally.
These rejuvenation formulas and herbs are quite sattvic or pure in nature and do not harm to higher forms of life or living-beings, such as those with blood.
Ayurveda and Yoga in India also list all food varieties and types into three categories or gunas (qualities) of sattvic (pure and giving rise to truth, clarity and perception), rajasic (passion-creating or agitating and giving rise to restlessness and violence) and tamasic (dark, dull or ignorant and giving rise to blockages in the body, toxins and diseases). Even many vegetables fall under these categories also.
As a result, even in Indian vegetarianism, the sattvic or pure diets consider forms such as mushrooms, onions and garlic to be dulling on the psyche and hence to be avoided, just like meats.
In the Bhagavad Geeta (XVII.8-10), Sri Krishna (c.3200bce) notes of the three food types as follows:
Sattvic foods: Those which are pure, impart strength and vitality and life to the body. Such foods are juicy, provide lubrication to the body and are palatable. Fruits, nuts and grains here with natural sugars and unctuous in nature, ghee (clarified butter), milk, paneer (cottage cheese) and other dairy from an organic farm or cow (i.e raw milk) that has been looked after and spices such as turmeric, saffron, cardamom, tulsi (holy basil), corriander, cumin, fennel etc. and natural sweeteners from fruits, jaggery or raw honey and nuts as cashew, sesame and almond.
Rajasic foods: Those which are too bitter, sour, pungent (spicy), dried and cause burning sensations and cause pain, distress and disease. These include hot spices as cayenne, chilli and excesses of black pepper, sour cream etc. and artificial sweeteners as refined sugar, cooked honey etc. as well as tea, coffee etc. and lighter meats such as chicken, fish, prawns etc. and other brown nuts, those that are roased, with spices etc.
Tamasic Foods: Those which are pre-cooked foods (three hours old), tasteless, bad-smelling, stale or decomposed (which includes processed foods, vinegar, pastries, pickles, preserves, fast-foods at Takeaways etc.) and leftover foods. These also include heavy and hard to digest foods, red meats, alcohol and heavier meats such as beef, pork, lamb, crabs, lobsters (as scavengers) etc. and nuts such as peanuts etc.
Raw honey, legumes, fruits, nuts, rice etc. are considered sattvic. But even then, the life-form was considered. For example, it is stated that a cow is useful and so products such as ghee, milk, curd, paneer (cottage cheese) etc. derived from the cow make her useful and not to be killed. Moreover, the Ayurvedic texts state that beef is very hard to digest and dulling to the mind (tamasic) in quality. The ancient Seers knew such foods produced violence, aggression and dullness in people and thus psychological diseases and by their hard nature to digest, produced toxins forming diseases in the body, as also incompatible foods (such as cheese with beans or dairy with sour fruits or fish). Thus, they avoided these at all costs and also sought to reduce the karma down to a minimum.
With regards to dairy also, milk should be selected from a cow that has been well-tended to and looked after, not abused and neglected as in modern dairy farms.
In the Bhagavad Geeta (XVII.8-10), Sri Krishna (c.3200bce) notes of the three food types as follows:
Sattvic foods: Those which are pure, impart strength and vitality and life to the body. Such foods are juicy, provide lubrication to the body and are palatable. Fruits, nuts and grains here with natural sugars and unctuous in nature, ghee (clarified butter), milk, paneer (cottage cheese) and other dairy from an organic farm or cow (i.e raw milk) that has been looked after and spices such as turmeric, saffron, cardamom, tulsi (holy basil), corriander, cumin, fennel etc. and natural sweeteners from fruits, jaggery or raw honey and nuts as cashew, sesame and almond.
Rajasic foods: Those which are too bitter, sour, pungent (spicy), dried and cause burning sensations and cause pain, distress and disease. These include hot spices as cayenne, chilli and excesses of black pepper, sour cream etc. and artificial sweeteners as refined sugar, cooked honey etc. as well as tea, coffee etc. and lighter meats such as chicken, fish, prawns etc. and other brown nuts, those that are roased, with spices etc.
Tamasic Foods: Those which are pre-cooked foods (three hours old), tasteless, bad-smelling, stale or decomposed (which includes processed foods, vinegar, pastries, pickles, preserves, fast-foods at Takeaways etc.) and leftover foods. These also include heavy and hard to digest foods, red meats, alcohol and heavier meats such as beef, pork, lamb, crabs, lobsters (as scavengers) etc. and nuts such as peanuts etc.
Raw honey, legumes, fruits, nuts, rice etc. are considered sattvic. But even then, the life-form was considered. For example, it is stated that a cow is useful and so products such as ghee, milk, curd, paneer (cottage cheese) etc. derived from the cow make her useful and not to be killed. Moreover, the Ayurvedic texts state that beef is very hard to digest and dulling to the mind (tamasic) in quality. The ancient Seers knew such foods produced violence, aggression and dullness in people and thus psychological diseases and by their hard nature to digest, produced toxins forming diseases in the body, as also incompatible foods (such as cheese with beans or dairy with sour fruits or fish). Thus, they avoided these at all costs and also sought to reduce the karma down to a minimum.
With regards to dairy also, milk should be selected from a cow that has been well-tended to and looked after, not abused and neglected as in modern dairy farms.
Jains and several orthodox Hindu Brahmins (priestly caste) in India do not consume even onions, potatoes or root-vegetables as these are considered a higher life-form and contain many more lives than others. Jains in India are so strict that many even strain their water to avoid unnecessarily killing or injuring insects and will sweet the footpath and seats before moving, to avoid squashing them. This however is an extreme, since the human dharma is such that in our lives, we breath in insects, walk on grass and squash lower life etc. The model is however, just as we do not kill other humans, as a higher form of life, so we should not kill higher forms of life than necessary. The animals that humans consume themselves are predominantly herbivores and don't have access to the culinary skills, techniques and condiments that humans use. So, there is no need for humans to consume meat.
Some people have also argued about protein and iron. Dry beans, leafy vegetables and soy especially are high in iron. Soy is also high in protein as other beans and dals and can be taken. Vegetarians and vegans also have no real medical issues with iron deficiency and historically in Ayurveda, iron-extracts such as Lohabhasma, Loharishta etc. have been taken to counteract conditions such as anaemia where such cases arise from a variety of causes, not simply from being a vegatarian!
There is hence a deeper science to food then, than simply trying to rationalise that "we can eat meat as we are killing a cabbage", as indeed we are, but the karma is much less and is why historically also, we do not kill other humans and eat them in a more civilised or enlightened society. In areas where there are a shortage of vegetables, then meats have been taken, such as fish and goats, but still, there exists everywhere plenty of vegetable life that we can feast upon - if animals can live on grass alone, then certainly as humans with access to a boarder variety of herbs, spices, condiments and vegetables, beans and natural sweeteners (as honey and jaggery), then there is no reason for us to kill other life simply for our own sensory or base desires. As an example, giving up artificial sweeteners, or fasting for a period and then slowly tasting various bland foods and spices, one begins to appreciate the deeper aromas and subtle tastes in so-called "bland" foods that one never experienced before, as a result of dulling of the senses, due to processed and tamasic or dulling and rajasic or agitating (processed, canned etc.) foods.
This is how the ancient Ayurvedic Seers gave specific primary and secondary tastes, gunas (qualities), psychological and biological effects on the body to all food groups so that we may benefit from their knowledge and select only those conducive to our health and well-being.
This is how the ancient Ayurvedic Seers gave specific primary and secondary tastes, gunas (qualities), psychological and biological effects on the body to all food groups so that we may benefit from their knowledge and select only those conducive to our health and well-being.
Arogya Ayurvedic Health
72 Isleworth Road
Bishopdale
Christchurch, Canterbury 8053
New Zealand
ph: +64 3 359 6015
arogyayu