Vegetarian in Indian Tradition ?

[Guest guest]

Vegetarian in Indian Tradition ?

Percentages of vegetarian population ?

 

Any info and present situation ?

2000 years ago ?

 

and any other related info

 

Thanks for help

[Guest guest]

Tue, 2 Nov 2004 09:50:33 EST

vedicinst

Re: Vegetarian in Indian Tradition ?

 

Vegetarian in Indian Tradition ?

The Hindu tradition has always emphasized vegetarian diet for

spiritual

practice and recommended it in general for everyone. However,

Hinduism

has never

excluded non-vegetarians, which have existed among certain classes,

including

Kshatriyas, and in certain communities of the country, like the

northeast or in

coastal areas (where some Hindus eat fish), or in mountain areas

where

vegetarian food is hard to find.

 

Buddhism has also emphasized vegetarian diet, but the great majority

of

Buddhists today, including most monks are not vegetarians.

 

It is interesting to note that no country in history has consumed

meat

to the

extent of modern America and its beef culture, which culture it is

now

trying

to export worldwide. Meat, particularly red meat, was generally

scarce

in

most non-vegetarian cultures.

 

Vamadeva

 

Tue, 2 Nov 2004 10:52:21 -0500

"Renu Malhotra" <renu

RE: Vegetarian in Indian Tradition ?

 

A comment:

 

Yes, Kshatryas were allowed to eat non -vegetarian food. However,

the

women

if not involved in warfare (many were) did not eat non-veg. food.

Food

according to what our line of work. True in my husbands family and

also

among many Sikh families even today. (Sikh Dharma was an attempt by

the

Gurus to take Hindus back to Vedic Dharma, so every Sikh is from a

Hindu

family.) The British of course tried to put as many obstacles in the

way of

that Harmony!!\

 

 

 

I think one help that our group the VFA can give is to make the

ordinary US

citizen (White and non white) understand that it is religions that

wrongly

claim to have the one right path to the Almighty that are the

enemies

of

Humanity not the HINDUS as the two religions claim. In all these

years

of

giving public talks to ordinary people here -even in conservative

Grand

Rapids I find people very nice and helpful. It is the system against

the

citizen; the system is the power structure that we ordinaries

validate.

If

we knew our strength then the system would come down to accommodate

us

rather than we accommodate the SYSTEM.

 

We should work on this together more and more now!

 

Shubha Deepaavali from the Malhotra family to all VFA - Family.

 

Renu

 

friend vijai <friend_vijai

RE: Vegetarian in Indian Tradition ?

 

 

Enlightening information from Vamadeva Shastri Ji and Renu Ji.

 

I suppose Vedic culture differenciated between veg and non-veg

eating

habbits but never discriminated people on eating habbits. Only those

Kshatriyas who opted for non-veg during certain war like

circumstances

(like modren day comandos who have to live in places where they is

no

access to veg food) were permitted to eat non-veg in a regulated

way, but

was limited to fish and rarely red meat was taken.

 

Non-veg eating was generally limited to the lower cardre of the

military but the generals were mostly vegetarians as they were in

the

Kshatriya-Bhramana (mixed mode). Most kings were vegetarian during

the Vedic

times. In vedic times the choice was very clear to the people, those

who

opted for spiritual life had to give up non-veg as it is a

hinderence

to spiritual progress. Those who opted for materialistic life, were

permited to eat non-veg (please note the word permitted here,

because it

was strictly regulated, and was not at all encouraged, so that it

does

not become an indulgence, as it is happending in todays world with

the

advent of kaliyuga).

 

Thanks,

Vijai

 

nmchad108

Re: Vegetarian in Indian Tradition ?

 

Vijai and VFA friends,

The rajasic (passion) and tamasic (ignorance) qualities that

result from

the eating of flesh, as stated in the Bhagavad-gita, may be

conducive

for

warfare, but not for spiritual life or education. As a teacher, I

come

in contact

with children everyday whose senses are agitated by the violent and

sexual

visuals of television and movies and foods and drugs which elevate

the

gunas of

rajas and tamas. It is cruel for parents who are ignorant of these

qualities

to allow their children to become so mentally and physically

agitated

that they

are literally uncomfortable in their own bodies. These bundles of

raw

senses

and lethargy are dumped into our classrooms and expected to focus on

anything

meaningful.

 

Luckily I have taught gurukula children enough to know the

standard

and

the possibilities of children raised in a nurturing and sattvic

environment.

Yogi children are taught the benefits of controlling their senses,

while most

Western children are conditioned to exploit their senses as much as

possible,

since they only have one lifetime in which to enjoy.

 

Although I am generally optimistic, it is still very difficult

to

see

children suffer and not being able to truly help them because of the

restrictive

laws of our education system. Teachers can even be arrested for

displaying

anti-war signs in our classrooms.

 

DDJP

 

 

"Yvette C. Rosser" <y.r.rani

Re: Vegetarian in Indian Tradition ?

 

This is very relevant. Americans are toxic due to eating beef.

 

They can't function with all the poison in their blood.

 

>

 

vediculture, "vrindavan2378" <vrindavan@r...>

wrote:

>

>

> Vegetarian in Indian Tradition ?

> Percentages of vegetarian population ?

>

> Any info and present situation ?

> 2000 years ago ?

>

> and any other related info

>

> Thanks for help