Vegetarianism & the Dalai Lama

[Gauracandra]

dasanudas said:

Did Gautama Buddha teach to eat and kill other sentient beings?

JNDas said:

Speaking of the third point, does anyone want to discuss the Dalai Lama? I'd like to hear some of your opinions; but if you do, maybe we should start another thread so we don't mix up this one.

I hope no one reading what I'm about to say takes any offense. I mean none to Buddhists, the Dalai Lama, or his followers. But the one thing that has often disturbed me a bit is that the Dalai Lama is not vegetarian. He regularly eats pork and eggs. This was even shown in the biographical movie by Martin Scorscese called Kundun. It was pointed out that no previous Dalai Lama ever ate any meat (not even eggs).

 

I spoke with a devotee once who was fluent in Chinese. He said really the only strict vegetarian Buddhists are Taiwanese Buddhists. Most from Korea or Japan eat fish, chicken, eggs etc.... To me this goes directly against the principles of Ahimsa.

 

I do want to mention that last week I revisited that beautiful Buddhist Temple I spoke of before (see Travelogue forum). These Buddhists women monks are very strict. They had a great deal - for only $5 they served all you can eat, purely vegetarian Chinese cooking. Believe me, I left waddling like a penguin

 

Gauracandra

 

[BDas]

For your information:

 

We visited a Tibetan monk who was the SF representative of the Dalai Lama. He told us in no uncertain terms the the DL was not vegetarian and that Tibetan Buddhism does not accept the existence of God.

 

He also said Buddha was not vegetarian and that it is ok to eat meat as long as one does not kill the animal himself. He sited various Buddhist scriptures to establish his points.

 

He conceded that it was better to be a vegetarian and that both he and the DL have tried to be vegetarian at times but found it too difficult and bad for their health.

 

He also said that Tibetan Buddhism was the highest form of Buddhism and other forms were

deviations from TB. BDas

[Gauracandra]

I've been told there are or have been over 17 different lines of Buddhism. It is interesting to note that all prior Dalai Lamas were strict vegetarians (atleast from what I have read). This is disappointing that due to a lack of control over the body that animal slaughter is condoned.

 

Gauracandra

[shvu]

 

Interesting.

 

The chinese and Japanese buddhists are mostly meat eaters. Perhaps for them, meat eating does not come under the category of ahimsa. People find it easy to modify religion to suit their life style, rather than to follow rules. Some Brahmins in India remove the sacred thread while eating meat/eggs. That way they feel that they are not violating any regulations!

There is a story of the Buddha eating meat. During his end, he asked for a meal of pork and soon after eating it, he fell ill and died. But I have also read another story according to which he did not ask for pork, but for mushrooms trodden by a pig. No reasons where mentioned for such a strange request.

 

Cheers

 

[leyh]

Dear Shvu:

If I remember correctly from my personal reading of Buddhist stories,the Buddha did not "ask"for his last meal.It was offered to him by a blacksmith by the name of Chunda. It is a Buddhist tradition that Buddhist monks are not allowed to make specific requests for food. They have to eat whatever is given to them.It seems that whether the Buddha's last dish was pork or mushrooms trodden by a pig is still unclear.

[Jahnava Nitai Das]

Originally posted by shvu:

There is a story of the Buddha eating meat. During his end, he asked for a meal of pork and soon after eating it, he fell ill and died. But I have also read another story according to which he did not ask for pork, but for mushrooms trodden by a pig. No reasons where mentioned for such a strange request.

 

I have heard from different scholars on this. They say the buddha ate "the food of the pig". But the wording was such that it could have either been translated as "the food of pig" (pork), or "the food of the pig" (mushrooms).

 

Seeing that buddha's main teaching is ahimsa, and seeing the traditional environment where he was brought up (India, where sadhus do not take food that is impure), it is extremely unlikely that he asked for pork - a food that is eaten only by untouchables.

 

Could someone post a list of traditional biographies of the buddha, along with their connection to him.

 

 

[This message has been edited by jndas (edited 06-11-2001).]

[animesh]

It is unlikely that Buddha might have asked for food because he laid the rule forbidding monk from asking for any special kind of food. They had to depend on alms.

[Maitreya]

There may some useful info at this link.

http://www.ivu.org/history/east/buddha.html

 

MC

[Dharma]

The caste of Buddha permitted eating of meat. A translation I read not so long ago about the death of Buddha said that he had rested in the mango groves of Chunda. And Chunda was so overjoyed to hear him speak of high things that he begged Buddha to have a meal the next day with the monks at his home. Buddha silently consented. Much fine food was prepared icluding sweet rice and cakes and truffles, a food loved by pigs. Chundra was a smith. I am not sure what caste that would be, but whether or not meat was prepared could possibly be determined if Chundra's caste could be determined. There was no mention of meat except that boars liked truffles.

 

After Buddha ate he was in tremendous pain and he told Ananada that they would go to Kusinara.

 

Later near Kusinara where he was to die he meditated laying on his right side-as the pain was too much in other positions. He spoke to Ananada and said that there would be those who would judge Chundra and call him evil because he had fallen ill and died after eating there. He told Ananada to check this by saying that Buddha said from his own mouth that good karma of a long life, good fortune, and fame has been accumulated for Chundra, as well as the inheritance of heaven and sovereign power.

[animesh]

<QUOTE> He told Ananada to check this by saying that Buddha said from his own mouth that good karma of a long life, good fortune, and fame has been accumulated for Chundra, as well as the inheritance of heaven and sovereign power.</QUOTE>

 

I don't think that Buddha would have used the words "heaven" and "sovereign power".

 

[Dharma]

Lol. Do you think however that he would have spoken of karma?

[animesh]

Yes, Buddha did believe in the concept of karma though the final aim of good karma was not reaching Vaikuntha or Goloka etc. according to him.