Little question on meat eatting

[devotee]

Namaste,

Should we eat meat as we are Hindu ? Should we do this ... should we do that ... etc. etc. !!

These questions don't bother a born Indian Hindu. He does whatever he likes and he has no compulsion of doing something to prove that he is a true Hindu ! Why does it bother the new comers, I wonder.

Let's be clear on one thing. There is no taboo in Hindu Dharma except one or two and there also exceptions are there. There is no Mullah or Church telling you what to do or what not to do. Yes, once you have a Guru, you must follow what your Guru says.

a) Eating meat or not doesn't decide whether you are a Hindu or not. It is your choice. However, Hindus don't eat beef. Cow is sacred.
b) Though there is no authority stopping you from eating meat ... Ahimsa and controlling your sense organs have been considered important for higher spiritual aspirations. Again, there is no reason to become unreasonable here. If you are stranded on the Tundras where you can't find anything but meat to eat during winter ... please go ahead and have it ... as it is compulsion created by the situation you have been where you have no choice. So, it is your destiny and you accept it graciously. Middle path is considered the best ... so don't go the extremes ... going to extremes will harm you. There should be a sense of reasonableness and sense of proportion in deciding whether to indulge in anything or avoid it.
c) The above applies to all actions and indulgence in sensual gratification including sex (this question has also been raised here time to time). Any attraction towards sense gratification is our own bondage ... the more we are free from it ... is better. However, leaving anything just by action but not mentally is not advisable. It is better to indulge in an so-called action and then works towards spiritual upliftment with our other actions/choices forgetting that action ... than to keep thinking of the subject of sense gratification. The latter is more harmful.

OM

[Jainarayan]

Namaste.

These questions don't bother a born Indian Hindu. He does whatever he likes and he has no compulsion of doing something to prove that he is a true Hindu ! Why does it bother the new comers, I wonder.

It's a good question which underscores a few things. This all comes from a personal perspective.

I think it's less a matter of bothering than it is confusing. A born Hindu has the benefit of being surrounded by those experienced in the culture and religion. A born Hindu can take this for granted without being aware of it. And in his or her family and community s/he rarely encounters conflicting information (I would think). Newcomers are often alone in their new experience and subject to conflicting information.

Books and internet conversations, as in-depth and well-informed as they may be don't substitute for being raised with parents, grandparents, aunts and uncles who are experienced in Hindu cultural and religious ways. The next best thing would be Hindu School, regularly scheduled classes taught by experienced elders and/or pujaris. But then, what sect or denomination, or customs?

We learn by observation. A tigress teaches her cubs to hunt effectively because they observe her; they observe the right ways and wrong ways to hunt. Unless we can observe what comes naturally to someone else, it can be confusing. And for most of us (though not all) in the west, unless we have the benefit of living, working and being friends with a good number of Hindus, it can be difficult.

[smaranam]

Namaste

Why does it bother the new comers, I wonder.

OM

Because IMHO the newcomers come to Hindu Dharma for spiritual pursuits, not to join the Hindu Culture or Hindu Cafe.

He does whatever he likes

Not really (although i do understand what you mean in this context).

A born Hindu is surrounded by ample Arya saMskArs and they are built-in, to like what is generally good in the first place.

We must not take our saMskAr standards so much for granted, as Hindu Dharma goes overseas to other countries and cultures. I thought that sentence was important to make although it is not exactly overlooked in this case.


om namo bhagavate vAsudevAya

praNAm

[sm78]

N
What I meant is that I couldn't find anything one way or the other explicitly forbidding meat-eating and explicitly endorsing vegetarianism.

Well in the back-drop of kurukshetra war, there were more important things to discuss than diet.

[Jainarayan]

Well in the back-drop of kurukshetra war, there were more important things to discuss than diet.

Hmm... yes, I think you are right!

[NayaSurya]

Yesterday my husbands very dear Hindu friend from work come to him and says..."Do you roast a turkey?"

He tell her "Yes we have a turkey but most of it goes to animals because many won't eat."

When he tell me this and I say..."oh Ron we fail an important test from Beloved perhaps?"

and then he laugh and say..."No L not at all! She wanted to wish our family happy thanksgiving and to say she was just roasting a turkey breast as she only has three in her family to cook for!

and I had to giggle at how wrong I was!

Because this beautiful Indian family is also my family too! Celebrating a day which is for all religions.

She didn't have to ask for day off or explain it...in my country we all share this one day together<3

What a wonderful day to Thank Beloved for all of our blessings.

[kallol]

Namaste,

Should we eat meat as we are Hindu ? Should we do this ... should we do that ... etc. etc. !!

These questions don't bother a born Indian Hindu. He does whatever he likes and he has no compulsion of doing something to prove that he is a true Hindu ! Why does it bother the new comers, I wonder.

Let's be clear on one thing. There is no taboo in Hindu Dharma except one or two and there also exceptions are there. There is no Mullah or Church telling you what to do or what not to do. Yes, once you have a Guru, you must follow what your Guru says.

a) Eating meat or not doesn't decide whether you are a Hindu or not. It is your choice. However, Hindus don't eat beef. Cow is sacred.
b) Though there is no authority stopping you from eating meat ... Ahimsa and controlling your sense organs have been considered important for higher spiritual aspirations. Again, there is no reason to become unreasonable here. If you are stranded on the Tundras where you can't find anything but meat to eat during winter ... please go ahead and have it ... as it is compulsion created by the situation you have been where you have no choice. So, it is your destiny and you accept it graciously. Middle path is considered the best ... so don't go the extremes ... going to extremes will harm you. There should be a sense of reasonableness and sense of proportion in deciding whether to indulge in anything or avoid it.
c) The above applies to all actions and indulgence in sensual gratification including sex (this question has also been raised here time to time). Any attraction towards sense gratification is our own bondage ... the more we are free from it ... is better. However, leaving anything just by action but not mentally is not advisable. It is better to indulge in an so-called action and then works towards spiritual upliftment with our other actions/choices forgetting that action ... than to keep thinking of the subject of sense gratification. The latter is more harmful.

OM

Thanks Devoteeji. This is the most prevalent position known.

This is true for anyone inclined towards Hinduism. It is upto individual, what they feel comfortable.

However as Devoteeji mentioned it is appropriate that one do not develop habit or obessesion for anything - it will create attachment and will lead to wrong state of mind.

Again if one wishes to follow the path of spiritualism, it is always good to be veg.

[PARAM]

A true Hindu cannot eat meat because all animals are mounts of different deities. In Ramayan we find that even insects were involved in building the setu. Most of the Hindus now eat meat but everyone avoid Beef because Cow is most sacred, monkey, peacock and elephant etc also comes in sacred rites of protection.

[Believer]

Namaste,

I think it's less a matter of bothering than it is confusing. A born Hindu has the benefit of being surrounded by those experienced in the culture and religion. A born Hindu can take this for granted without being aware of it. And in his or her family and community s/he rarely encounters conflicting information (I would think). Newcomers are often alone in their new experience and subject to conflicting information.

Thanks for bringing out these points.
Newcomers need some structure, some sense of discipline and one set of guidelines. When us Hindus speak with so many different voices, it must be very confusing and frustrating for a newcomer to decide what to believe and what set of rules to follow for your sadhana. We do a great disservice to you, and for that I am sorry. I wish we had one set of rules, but as you might have seen from your short stay in the forum, we all have different positions, and we all insist on being right. If we examine closely however, one could do almost anything and still be a Hindu, but a serious practitioner with the singular objective of spiritual upliftment, does have to adhere to some guidelines. It is not a requirement that everyone must shoot for a higher consciousness. But if one desires for it, then the path is there to follow. Then again some may follow it all the way, and others might pick and choose based on their disposition/understanding/desires. So, it is a mixed bag with people making the selection as to how much, if at all, they want to practice. Some may even challenge the guidelines because 'they think' the guidelines are wrong, or 'their guru' says so. I apologize for all the inconsistencies and the confusion it causes for newcomers. But don't let that discourage you. I am sure intuitively you can see what is real and what is fluff. We need to do a better job of introducing newbies to Hinduism, but that is a tall order, not to be filled any time soon.

Pranam.

[Jainarayan]

Namaste.

I apologize for all the inconsistencies and the confusion it causes for newcomers. But don't let that discourage you. I am sure intuitively you can see what is real and what is fluff. We need to do a better job of introducing newbies to Hinduism, but that is a tall order, not to be filled any time soon.

Pranam.

I don't think apologies are required, as no offense or deliberate confusion is intended, I'm sure. The key is to see and learn what is real and what is fluff, to use your (appropriate) word, though it's true there are basic guidelines that must be followed, for respect and devotion if nothing else.

It behooves the new devotee to keep inquiring and digging too, and not get discouraged and give up. It's not one-sided with learned Hindus and elders providing all the direction. If you want something badly enough, you'll go after it. You all know I'm a pitbull when it comes to digging up information, though not everyone has my degree of tenacity (which is not always a good thing ).

When all I had was a rudraksha mala and a mala of unknown wood, some people "clutched their pearls" at the thought of doing japa to Sri Krishna with those; other people asked what if you only have pebbles, or don't even have fingers?

It's the minutiae (and translations that sometimes have a decidedly western flavor) that can cause confusion. I myself am coming to realize it's not the rituals and the "do this" and "don't do that" which is most important. Sometimes I think that Lord Krishna must get a good chuckle out of some of the things we stress over. He was a practical joker and had a good sense of humor, after all.

I think two important verses from the Bhagavad Gita on this subject are: "Even if one commits the most abominable action, if he is engaged in devotional service he is to be considered saintly because he is properly situated in his determination." 9.30* and "Always think of Me, become My devotee, worship Me and offer your homage unto Me. Thus you will come to Me without fail. I promise you this because you are My very dear friend." 18.65


* not to say that you can go commit murder and think it's OK; I think the verse is saying that if you are steadfast in your devotion, and you commit a horrible act or offense, you cannot have done it deliberately.