vegetarianism vs omnivourous diet

[Guest guest]

i had sort of picked up from variuos sources that

one reason for vegetarianism, especially for yogis,

was ahimsa--non-violence. it seems to me to be a

rather arbitrary approach, when to eat many foods

requires that they be reaped (killed). granted, eating a

harvested apple is not the same, but most grains, tubers

and lots of vegetables are harvested in a way that

eliminates the plant. does ahimsa apply only to the animal

kingdom or to all living things?

[Guest guest]

To me ahimsa means doing the least amount of harm

to living things that is feasible to you. Each

person has to honestly decide for him or herself how far

to take this. You could end up a very neurotic yogi

if you were constantly worrying about harming

something. Also remember that ahimsa not only means

non-violence; you also have to practice love. <br><br>drew

[Guest guest]

That's the rationale for fruitarians. They eat nothing that kills the plants,

just things that fall from the plants, ie fruit and nuts. You can be as extreme

as you want. All points on a line.

[Guest guest]

i recently read an interview with deepak chopra (spelling?) where he said he

thought vegetarians were the most violent people he's ever seen.<br><br>hop on

that list deepak!

[Guest guest]

Usually ahimsa is referenced for "living beings

that have a central nervous system and can feel pain"

- that from Swami Sivananda<br><br>His thought was

that plants do not feel pain, yet animals do and they,

in most cases are at our mercy. Just my 2 pence.

:-)<br><br>My personal thought is, live and let live... people

get to a point of comfort and have to resolve their

actions within themselves. <br><br>Peace to everyone...

Namaste,<br><br>Nada