The Spirit of Vegetarianism
This essay has been written to meet the demand of several friends of far off countries interested in Vegetarianism.
In this mundane world we come across living substances consisting of soul and body. The sustinence of the body depends upon the diet taken by the living being.
A view of the world leads us to the conclusion that life thrives upon life. The majority of animals live upon the flesh of others. The beasts are moved by their instincts. Since man is also an animal and has a body, it is argued that he should not break the law governing the lives of the beasts; he therefore must adopt meatea- ting without any hitch. There is no sense in taking recourse to Vegetarianism.
It has been said : “While life is yours, live joyously, None can escape Death’s searching eye, When once this frame of ours they burn, How shall it e’er again return.”In Milton’s memorable masque the embodi¬ment of lust and licentious life Comus deprecates the practice of restraint as foolish and against the wishes of God. The fact that Nature has bounti¬fully produced innumerable things, proves the futility of the sermon of the ‘doctrine of the Stoic fur’. These lines of the poet are noteworthy .
“If all the world, Should in a pet of temperance feed on pulse, Drink the clear stream and nothing wear but frieze, The All-giver would be unthanked, would unpraised, Not half of his riches known, and yet despised; (720-724)”. The pleasure-seeker Materialists and Hedonists adduce such flimsy and frivolous arguments in favour of their riotous and revellorous life.
They perhaps aim at ‘Carpe diem, quam minimum credula pastero’ enjoy the present day, trusting the least possible to the future.
Criticism:
Deep thought and mature experience show the hollowness of the above stand Let us critically examine the above statement on the touchstone of our experience and rational thought. No body can question the fact that the beasts mostly live upon the flesh of other animals although there are some animals like monkey, cow, camel, horse, elephant etc., which are herbi-vorous.
It is admitted by all that man is superior to other animals, in-as-much as he is rational, is equipped with the faculty of discrimination between right and wrong or good and bad. In view of the superiority of mankind over brutes it is but natural, that man does not blindly pursue the path trodden by the brainless brute but chooses his independent way of living as is dictated by his reason or conscience.
Soul is immortal:
Modern researches in the domain of spiritualism, study of sacred literature of manifold creeds and our own experiences convince a rational and judicious mind that the soul is in fact non-material and immortal.
The investigations of the Psychic Research Society headed by Sir Oliver Lodge have conclusively established the existence of Soul and in some cases even the truth of the theory of trans¬migration. Descartes supports the theory of soul- existence thus.
‘Cogito ergo sum’—I think, there-fore I am. This unique characteristic of ‘thinking’ is not found in material objects. The capital T stands for the independant existence of the soul. The expression, “I have a body”, clearly exemplifies the the existence of soul as different from the physical frame. The senses do not constitute the soul, because they are utilized by the soul as means of perception and knowledge.
The sentence ‘I hear with my ears’ shows that the ears serve the master, Soul, when the ego desires to hear the sound. It is worthy of note that the Soul thinks about the material things objectively and speaks about itself subjectively. Brain is not the Soul. It is an organ, not the organist.
Consciousness is something greater than the mechanism. The experiences of several people printed through press every now and then speak of the immortality of the Soul. Poet Wordsworth chants about immortality in these pithy words.
“Our birth is but a sleep and forgetting; The soul that rises with us, our life’s star, Hath had elsewhere its setting, And cometh from afar; Not in entire foregfulness, And not in utter nakedness.When Soul’s independent existence is establish¬ed, it can never be non-existent.
The existent can never be non-existent and the non-existent cannot be existent The proverb is ‘Ex nihilo nihil fit’ out of nothing nothing comes It is against rational thought and experience that something can come out of nothing and that something will one day become nothing. With respect to the modifications of a substance we visualise present modification becoming non-existent next moment yielding place to a new form, but the substance remains intact For example a golden chain may be transformed^into a bracelet.
Its chain- form is destroyed when the bracelet is brought into being. Reviewing the whole thing from the stand point of the material i. e , gold nothing is destroyed or born. The Jain Acharya Kundakunda says:— There can be no destruction of things that do exist nor can there be creation of things out of nothing. Coming into existence and ceasing to exist, things do have because of their attributes and modes.
( Panchastikaya-Samayasara Verse-15 ). In the light of the above assertion we can safely observe that the soul is neither created nor destroyed. Its essence is eternal, although it may change its particular form and assume a new one in accordance with its emotional states or mental dispositions.
Transmigration :
The soul is the architect of its bright or dismal future. In fact it is the Lord of its own career. The poet sings :— ‘It matters not how strait the gate, I low eh rged with punishments the scroll’, I am the master of my fate. I am the captain of my soul.’ If the soul indulges in cruel and vicious activities, it is reborn as a sub human being associated with very poor intelligence.
It may take the form of a tree with the sense of touch only or a seasnail, conch shell, earthworm with the senses of touch and taste. The vegetable world comes under the category of mono-sensic and others are called bisensic.
The bug, scorpion, louce and other insects are triaesthetic for they have the sense of touch, taste and smell. The bee, beetle, butterfly, mosquito and the like experience touch, taste, smell and sight, hence they are termed as quadraesthetic ( having four senses ).
Horse, hog, frog, dog, deer, sheep, birds and many aquatic animals have five senses-touch, taste, smell, sight and sound. The infinite number of animals comes under the said five-fold categories in view of their gradual development of the faculty of knowledge or comprehension.
Soul’s Responsibility :
One and the same Soul successsively assumes innumerable forms and experiences pleasure or pain in accordance with its emotional states. Acharya Kundkunda says;
“The soul which is thus the agent of its own Karma and the enjoyer of the fruits thereof as conditioned by its own Karma gets blinded by the veil of ignorance and roams about in this universe”. Our progress or downfall does not depend upon the pleasure or wrath of some superhuman soul but upon our own good or evil actions.
The working of nature unerringly goes on without fear or frown. Suppose a saintly soul sleeps on the Railway line. The running locomotive will crush the person to pieces in no time without any considera¬tion for the noble character of the person. Whosoever violates the law of nature automatically suffers for his misconduct. They are insuperable.
The masters of Ahimsa philosophy have said that although all living-beings possess similar souls the destruction of the life of the higher grade is more harmful and debasing than that of the lower class of animals; e. g. a person kills an elephant and the other crushes a bug. The destruction of life is caused by both but there is a lot of difference in their mental dispositions.
Let us have another example. A fanatic causes the death of an innocent and sacred personality like Jesus of Nazareth and a magistrate pronounces his judgement for hanging the ring-leader of robbers. Every rational person will agree that the actions of the fanatic and the Judge do not stand on the same level although both were instrumental in the destruction of human life.
From this we can easily infer that it is incorrect to hold that the destruction of any living being is as bad as that of the other. Therefore it is right to hold that one who destroys the life of some vegetable does not stand on par with the person who butchers a bullock or a cow to placate his palate.
The mental disposition of the butcher is more cruel and callous than the fellow who collects vegetables from a garden or a field. One can easily mark the glaring difference between the life of a gardener and a butcher and their mental dispositions. It is to be specially noted that the farmer while collecting food-stuffs does not aim at the destruction of life, whereas the butcher aims at killing of the living beings.
It is also to be borne in mind that the injuring of one-sensed being is not so debasing and objectionable as the killing of a two- sensed being and the destruction of a two-sensed soul is not so injurious as the killing of a three- sensed animal and so on. Thus the act of killing a five-sensed being like an innocent deer or a rabbit will be deemed most cruel and merciless. It cannot be equal to the destruction of one-sensed vegetable.
If this psychological principle is properly borne in mind several doubts raised against vegetarian diet automatically disappear. While dealing with the present subject we should also consult our con¬science along with our brain, since extreme rational¬ism hinders the easy and infallible approach to truth. Poet Tagore has compared such reasoning to a knife all blade, therefore the hand that uses it . begins to bleed.
Diet and Dispositions :
Let us carefully observe the effect of diet upon the life. We see that the animals which live upon vegetarian food look calm and peaceful like the elephant but the carnivora presents the spectacle of restlessness and cruelty. Visit any zoo and you will see that the meat-eaters are very uneasy and that they emit extremely detestable and filthy odour.
At times it is so nauseative that one actually vomits or gets sick. The carnivora is irritated easily and gets excited by means of simple inducement. The outward features and forms of meat-eaters differ with those of the vegetarians. Tolstoy after due enquiry and mature thought observes .
“Meat- eating encourages animal passions as well as sexual desires. Several men and women have clearly told that meat-eating encourages animal passions”. The Russian thinker strongly holds that genuine purity of mind is an impossibility for a flesh-eater. Modern research has shown that vegetarianism leads to longevity. Meat diet is the cause of several unique diseases. Criminal tendencies are also encouraged thereby.
The Jain sect in India strictly observes vegetarianism. Jainism, the religion of universal brotherhood preaches to peacefully embrace death rather than fatten the body by the blood of the innocent animals. Why should there be such turmoil and such strife, To spin the length of this feeble line of life ? This restricted diet has shown remarkable and wonderful effect upon the temperament of the Jains. It was observed by Lord Curzon as the Head India Govenment that the Jains have extremely white criminal record.
The great pacifist and liberator of India Gandhiji was a strict vegetarian. Roman Rolland in his book Mahatma Gandhi observes, “Before leaving India his mother made him take the three vows of Jains, which prescribe abstention from wine, meat and sexual intercourse”.
Why restriction in diet ?
Some people say, it does not look nice to comment upon ones dress or diet, for this is a matter of individual taste and temperament. A Japanese Professor of Chemistry during my tour of Far East told me, “Meat and vegetables belong to the same category.
You object to drinking but it is an innocent habit; you must be knowing that the water is immediately turned into alcohol, when it enters into the stomach. Therefore in this scientific age we need not think of any restriction about drink or diet”.
I suggested to my friend that the aspirants for real peace and immortality should not lightly take the matter of diet or drink, we should rather pay serious attention to it. We see that if the oil in the lamp is not pure, we do not get bright light; if the petrol in a car is unclean it creates lot of difficulty and noise.
In the like manner if our food is not fit for spiritual purity and if it engenders animal passions it must be abjured without any hesitation and delay. The view of the ^chemist for God’s sake should not be blindly followed. The cultured and wise should consider all points. Supposing a man on the basis of white¬ness declines to observe any distinction between milk and lime and out of obstinacy drinks a cup of lime what will be the fate of his mouth and stomach ?
Similarly from a particular view-point all objects may not appear different, but we need not utterly ignore the other view-points. The chemist, who keenly and very earnestly argues in favour of meat-eating if humbly asked whether he will advise a man to share the pig’s delicate diet, he will hold his tongue.
”Dignified living : If man claims that he is really superior to the uncultured beasts he must establish his superiority by his conduct. Even the socalled savage brutes possess the feeling of mercy and compassion.
Why should man close his eyes and not hear the moan- ings and bewailings of the poor and innocent creatures, who are buthered by him or his represen¬tatives for his comforts ? A Moslem poet has said that the Creator created man with the express purpose of possessing a heart, which feels the pangs of other creatures.
The theists should treat all creatures with affection since according to them the Heavenly Father has given birth to all living beings. One fails to understand the propriety of killing animals in sport or to satisfy one’s appetite when there are innumerable things to serve our purpose without any bloodshed. The sober and sensible soul should look into the present problem with humane heart of a gentle¬man. The short-sighted attitude of a glutton should not be adopted.
The selfish is not going to listen the voice of reason or conscience. The wise should bear in mind that ‘non vivimus edere sed edimus vivire’—we do not live to eat, but eat to live. Think¬ing mind should divert his attention from the belly to other moral virtues which uplift the soul and enable it to attain its inborn status of God-hood and immortality.
Sacred literature and flesh eating :
Some religionists say; our sacred literature has allusions and references supporting meat-eating, should we not abide by our sacred injunctions ? In this respect we must look to the nature’s directive for mankind. Our teeth formation etc., resemble with those animals, like monkeys, which are herbivorous. This nature’s evidence shows that we do not belong to the carnivora class.
It is really strange to see the modern man taking recoarse to religious injunctions, when in his life he happily over-rides several necessary practices taught by the religious-heads.
He there¬fore should not stick to the callous path of tortur¬ing the meek, mute and innocent creatures; because the practice of kindness is in conformity with the humanitarian outlook as well the dictates of the conscience. The fact is that short-sighted and selfish people have themselves fabricated many points under the garb of religion and have brought dishonour to the holy literature.
In this age of advanced comparative study of world’s sacred lore if the religionists fail is modifying their unscientific and irrational dogmas, the fate of their religion is sure to be doomed and sensible people will not have any attraction for this sort of thing. A man equip¬ped with scientific frame of mind will never bow down before irrational and thoughtless dogmas manufacturered by some crafty and mischievous mind, e g.
the following proverb prevalent among the uncultured rustics that once upon a time God had visited our land and when He was returning to the Heaven, His consort requested, “Lord ! wait a while, just chew some more tobacco because this thing will not be found in our celestial region”. Apparently, this is an interpolation by some expert addicted to that intoxicant. An impartial and fair study of various religions will show that their sacred literature is interspersed with many points which are opposed to reason, experience, and good conscience.
Therefore a sober and sensible gentle¬man should most vigilantly follow only those injunctions which conduce spiritual advancement and which are in conformity with equity, justice and good conscience. In the Bible we read “Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy” (New Testament). Man stands before his Lord in a mood of prayer and implores for God’s blessings and mercy, but when it comes to his turn he behaves in such a way as if he does not know what this mercy is ?
The sensible person should commune with his innerself thus : “My Lord being Omniscient knows everything. What right have I to beg for divine mercy when I am miserly in bestowing the same to the deserving, helpless, poor and innocent creatures ? They need divine mercy and care more than myself. I am called the best of God’s creation.
I should not eat anything that comes before me; but as a thoughtful person, I should make a proper selection about my eatables, wherein there is least of injury. For this temporary corporeal tabernacle why should I stain my hands and tongue with the blood of the inno¬cent and the mute creatures ?
Supposing, I were placed in the state of those unfortunate creatures how would I have experienced, when the butchers sharp knife would have minced me ? Since I am a man, I must act as a human being with a humane outlook. My physical form only does not make me a real man, unless and until I act and behave as befits the noble status of manhood”.
Why animal sacrifice ordained ?
It is argued that if God did not desire his creatures to be utilized for food why did He ordain the sacrifice of the beasts ? A student of comparative religion can easily comprehend as to where the shoe pinches ? The fact is that the sacred literature in several places utilises allegorical languge. It does not speak the scientific truth in plain and convincing language but uses parables, metaphors and allegories.
A scholar with Scientific frame of mind will naturally conclude that animal sacrifice really indicates the abdication of brutish tendencies and vicious habits lurking in our hearts. When Gandhiji visited the Kali Temple of Calcutta, which is widely known for animal sacrifice in the name religion, he was distressed beyond description. He wrote in his Autobiography .
“We passed on to the temple. We were greeted by rivers of blood. I could not bear to stand there. I was exasperated and restless. I have never forgotten that sight… I thought of the story of Buddha, but I also saw that the task was beyond my capacity. I hold today the same opinion as I held then. It is my constant prayer that there may be born on earth some great spirit—man or woman, who will purify the temple.”
It is incum¬bent upon the disciples of Gandhiji to fulfil the nobie longing of their master. If this is not done how can our soul become pure by killing the small, innocent creatures, whose agonies will even move a stone to tears, but this devotee of the Divine still stands dreaming of getting heavenly favours.
If animal butchery and licentiousness lead to heaven, what will take the soul to hell ? We will have to admit, therefore, that sacred literature has been adulterated. It is the duty of the wise and the cultured to sift grain from the chaff. If this work is neglected what is the utility of man’s intelligence and discriminative faculty ?
Take another example. Ancient oriental lite¬rature shows that the unfortunate untouchables were highly condemned and the priest class was praised out of proportion. It is enjoined upon in the religious books that, “If any untouchable happen to hear the divine Vedas, molten lead must be poured into his ears If the untouchable recites some Vedic hymn, his tongue should be chopped off” ( Goutam Dharma-Sutra 12, 4-6).
If such material is not accepted as an interpolation made by the greedy and selfish persons, any one can con¬jecture the fate of religion in this atomic age, when the monster of materialism is dominating our entire world, which has been much narrowed by modem inventions.
If we sincerely feel and desire that our beloved and blessed religion should thrive and do good to humanity, we will have to cast away the senseless matter which is killing the very soul of religion and foundation of moral law. These pre¬cious remarks of George Bernard Shaw should be seriously ihotighl over, “I llnllv declare that a man fed on whisky ami dead bodies cannot do the finest work of which he is capable”.
False fear :
Some people argue that if the animals are not killed, they will multiply in number and that they will be beyond our control. This stand is erroneous and it does not stand to reason. Those, who believe that this world is ciented by God and the Heavenly Father looks after the alluirs of the world, should not worry. Why do you poke your nose into the divine sphere and transgress your limit ?
The counter argument can be raised that if this over¬wise man interferes in the divine dispensation and butchers the animals, their Omnipotent Lord can easily arrange for their rebirth into the same class as long as those animals do not fully experience the fruits of their past actions.
Further-more in view of the limited number of the human beings, it is but reasonable to suppose that only a very insignificant fraction of the animal world will thus be killed by man. Supposing you take out thousand gallons of water out of the Pacific Ocean, will it be empty thereby ? Certainly not.
In the like manner, the destruction of the finite number of animals will not show any significant decrease in their infinite number. The above argument loses all force when we see that various countries are trying to increase the number of animals used for meat.
Scarcity of vegetables :
A friend in Japan told me that meat is indis-pensable in view of the scarcity of vegetable food. “In Japan the domestic production of rice is not sufficient to meet the demand, hence large quantity of rice and flour are imported annually” (Japan Pocket guide—Page 27 ).
When this scientific age has made far off lands look like our neighbours, the shortage of food-stuffs can be won over by importing from the land of plenty, where bumper crops bless the fields. Besides this where there is a will, there is a way also. If we sincerely believe in the principle of vegetarianism and want to practice it against all odds, we can find out ways and means to improve our production.
We should remember that we live in the age of Science. If our Scientists work with a humanitarian spirit they will be blessed with such beneficial results as will improve our food production, and there will not cause for worry. For the sake of argument supposing the scarcity of vegetarian diet is not fully solved, what would be the remedy then ?
We should look to the present, not to the future. In this case I would suggest that at least the cultured and man of good taste should seriously stick to vegetarian diet. The Men of Religion, the Heads of various responsible posts in Government should not touch meat.
What I mean is this. We do not allow a motor driver to be drunk although the passengers may have been devoid of discrimination due to the over drinking; because if the driver’s mental balance is disturbed by wine, who will come to our rescue and save us from peril ?
On this analogy responsible persons, be they in the Government service of or elsewhere, should stop from getting vitality and inspiration out of the flesh of the dead brutes accumulated in the stomach. In Government or Public functions meat can be easily avoided.
Press, platform, pictures and other means of publi¬city can enlighten the public about the utility of vegetarianism and futility of the cruel practice of meat-eating. The leaders, saints, politicians and statesmen should seriously think about the propa¬gation of vegetarianism for common weal.
Jain viewpoint :
Acharya Amritchandra’s words need careful attention “Flesh cannot be procured without causing destruction, one who uses flesh therefore, commits Himsa or injury unavoidably. If the flesh be that of a buffalow etc., which has died of itself, even then Himsa is caused by the crushing of the creatures spontaneously born therein.
Whether pieces of flesh are raw or cooked or in the process of cooking spontaneously-born creatures of the same genus are constantly being generated there. He who eats or touches a raw or a cooked piece of flesh certainly kills a group of spontaneously-born creatures contantly gathering thereon”. (Puru- shartha-Sidhyupaya, pp. 65-68 ).
Egg is not Vegetable :
Persons interested in vegetarianism should carefully bear in mind the fact the taking-in of eggs comes under the category of non-vegetarian food. People in some countries think that eggs come under vegetable; therefore they serve the Indians egg-preparations under the name of vegetarian diet. An Indian had been to Osaka ( Japan ).
In a dinner some palatable dish was served, which was called vegetable, but which contained eggs. The strict-vegetarian friend did’nt take it. It is therefore necessary for strict-vegetarians to be careful, else fish or egg-preparations may violate their sacred vow. Fish is a living animal therefore apparently fish-eating will come under the category of meat diet. The point of eggs needs careful consideration.
Jain sages, who were great philosophers as well as astounding spiritual-scientists have ex¬plained that egg comes under meat-diet. The white side of the egg is a bony substance. The liquid matter inside consists of blood and similar other things which will be called meat. To treat egg on par with milk is as erroneous as to call a horse, a cow.
Milk is the stage of food before it is trans¬formed into blood, while egg contains blood and other constituents of flesh. The great Jain Saint Pujyapada in his monumental book Sarvarth-siddhi defines egg in these significant words : “The cover¬ing, which is composed of the white shell and blood, which is hard like the nail and which is globular or oval in shape, is the egg.”
( English translation Reality-Page 74). Therefore Vegetarians should never take egg to keep their vow of Ahimsa intact. The Jain teachings are conspicuous in the fact that they do not enjoin the use of meat under any circumstance. Even a sick person is not permitted to take meat or egg.
True scientific religion is primarily concerned with saving the soul from everlasting downfall or damnation. We must remember that man is mortal, there is no escape from death, therefore it is befitting to embrace death gloriously apd honourably for the noble cause of compassion and humane outlook.
Cream of culture :
This ideal of the sanctify of life is the cream of culture and the life-blood of civilisation. A noble soul of refined taste and cosmopolition out¬look gives priority to the service of the needy, help¬less and poor creatures little looking to his personal comforts or conveniences.
The superb happiness achieved from the life of compassion is beyond the imagination of a selfish glutton and a pleasure- seeker. This adage, that ‘Virtue is its own reward’ is fully justified in the case of a person who even risks his life to rescue the soul engulfed by vissici- tudes and calamities.
One fails to grasp the sense of the high-sounding utterances made by priests or parsons from their pulpits persuading people to adopt pious and sublime conduct and themselves enjoying the flesh of helpless, mute and innocent animals. Certainly this is an awkward way of loving God’s creatures by devouring them into the stomach.
Such practice of duplicity and insincerity does not become those who are noted for their regard for religion and God. The believers in the transmigration theory should seriously note this fact that if perchance the devoured poor creature is reborn as a stronger superior being, will it not take revenge for the cruel act prepetrated by the hunter or meat-eater ?
It is therefore wise to mend our ways of living before it is too late and the life’s sun sets. There is no charm to while away the precious moments of human life in sham jugglery of words and self- deceptive dissertations. Some lettered men are of opinion that since meat and vegetables both form part of living organism, meat diet should not be discouraged or disdained.
A saint while refuting this shallow stand has observed, ‘You treat your wife different from your mother, although womanhood is common to both, similarly meat and vegetables should be treated as separate. The soberminded man should not be duped by such common points. We should not support such experts who aver that all that glitters is the real gold.
False analogy makes one repent before the learned logicians. It is our sacred duty to inculcate upon our mind the golden rule that all life is sacred, therefore we should try to do our duty as humanely as is possible under the circumstances. We should seriously think over the noble idea underlying this verse.
Little deeds of kindness, little words of love, Help to make earth happy like the heaven above.The immortal words of Shakespeare should be enshrined in the heart of every sensible soul for they sing of the glory of mercy – “But mercy is above this sceptered sway; It is enthroned in the hearts of kings, It is an attribute to God himself;” ( The Merchant of Venice, Act IV, Sc. I).
Thoughtful observations :
How impressive are these remarks of Pytha¬goras : “Beware, O mortals of defiling your bodies with sinful food. There are fruits bending their branches down by their weight, and luxurious grapes on the vines. There are sweet vegetables and herbs which the flame can render palatable and mellow. Nor are you denied milk, nor honey, frag¬rance of the aroma of the thyme flower.
The bounti¬ful earth offers you an abundance of pure food and provides for meals obtainable without slaughter and bloodshed ” The Greek philosopher Pythagoras was of opinion that the killing of animals was a violation of the Cosmic Law of Life. The unnatural feeding on the flesh of the animals is an integral part of the Law. This way of the cannibal causes spiritual death.
To protect the physical frame and worldly possessions, the use of arms is sometimes justified, but to protect the undying soul from fall and damnation moral rearmament is indispensable. Moral development rests upon mental purity, which requires special care in what we eat. The decom¬posed dead animal meat is not worthy of being looked at or touched, what to think of eating the same with relish.
The right-thinking man should have a bright vision of reality and the legitimate rights of others whether they are strong or mute and dumb. He must eliminate the animal and brute in him and develop the divine and humane faculty which is the gate-way to bliss and immortality.
U. Nu, the Prime Minister of Burma has made thoughtful observations: “The sense of physical well-being that results from vegetarian habits, though pleasant and important is nothing to the consciousness of mental and spiritual clean¬liness that one feels as a vegetarian.
I verily believe that the aura of a habitual and confirmed vege¬tarian must be brighter and purer than that of any non-vegetarian. This feeling of peace and spiritual cleanliless has of course a foundation in the fact that the vegetarian does not directly or indirectly cause harm or injury, loss of life or suffering to any other living being in the world. Humanity loses its right to be called such, when he ceases to be humane.
The upward evolution of humanity demands that the law of the jungle, which obtains amongst beasts be discarded by human beings, who are after all on a much higher plane. Thus a vegetarian is not only practising noble habits from the ethical point of view, but also living out the only way of life which Nature intends for the highest product of her evolutionary processes.”
The politicians and statesmen ought to weigh these remarks of the Burmese Prime Minister : “I fully believe that vegetarianism can offer humanity a solid foundation for internal and external peace. World peace or any other kind of peace depends greatly on the attitude of the mind. Vegetarianism can bring about the right mental attitude for peace.
In this world of lusts and hatreds, greed and anger, force and violence vegetarianism holds forth a way of life, which if practised universally can lead to a better, juster and more peaceful community of nations.” From this if one concludes that merely abjuring meat can solve our modern troubles, his stand will be challenged by historians, since vege¬tarian kings have been warmongers also.
The purport is that this life of compassion helps one to keep his brain cool. When the intellect is not muddled with evil thoughts and brutish dispositions the man will not fall a prey to repacious vandalism and murderous temperament. He is in a position to exercise control over himself.
The cruel and callous can give a good sermon on peace like a harlot glorifying the life of chastity, but their conduct will falsify their lofty professions. It is the experience of almost every man that beef-eater gets easily irritated. When the conscience is alive and is healthy the morsel of meat will certainly be dis¬dained by the conscience.
Mahatma, Gandhi’s Experiences :
Gandhiji relates his experiences when he had made experiment with meateating in there words : “The goat’s meat was as tough as leather. I simply could not cat it. I was sick and had to leave off eating. I had a very bad night afterwards. A horrible nightmare haunted me.
Every time I dropped to sleep, it would seem as though a live goat were bleating inside me and I would jump up full of remorse.” “The constant use of meat in utter disregard of the sting of the conscience hardens the heart and the man becomes bereft of the feeling of mercy.
The butcher uses his knife upon bewailing mute creatures, who are images of fear and horror with¬out the least worry. For this reason in the United States no butcher is permitted to sit on a jury in a murder trial; he is not permitted to take part in such a trial simply because his continual contact with slaughter is held to somewhat blunt his suscep¬tibilities in this connection, so that all through the States no man of the trade of a butcher is permitted to take part as juryman in a trial for murder.”
( Dr. Annie Besant). She further adds : “This is very clear and definite : that if you go in a city like Chicago and if you take the class of slaughtermen there, you will find that the number of crimes of violence in that class is greater than among any other class of community; that the use of knife is far more common, and this has been observed.
I am speaking now oflacts that 1 gathered at Chicago- it has been observed that this use of the knife is marked by one peculiar feature, namely that the blow struck in anger by these trained slaughter-men is almost invariably fatal because instinctively they give it the peculiar twist of hand lo which they are continually habituated in their daily killing of lower animals.” ( World Vegetarian Congress 1957- Page 68 ).
This callousness of conduct is istinctly visible in those who have direct hand in the destruction of the animals, but outwardly the meateaters can make a good show of compasion and gentle be- havious amongst the socalled decent and cultured society, but in fact from the view-point of mental contamination and moral depravity they are no less than the slaughterer. If a black cat is dubbed as cruel because it kills mice, will not the same rule be applicable to the beautiful swan-coloured cat of white complexion ?
It has been experimented that a dog is gentle if you supply him with vegetarian diet and the selfsame dog becomes fierce if fed upon flesh. Therefore it must be borne in mind that one who sincerely wishes to subjugate his lower passions must under all circumstances eschew the habit of fattening his exceedingly fleeting body.
The words of Gandhiji are noteworthy : “If any one said that I should die if I did not take beef- tea or mutton, even under medical advise, I would prefer death. That is the basis of my vegetarianism; I would love to think that all of us who called ourselves vegetarians should have that basis.”
The scriptures which are authority on Ahimsa philo¬sophy point out that the man, who feels himself much superior to beasts is reborn as a beast of low grade due to his life of animal butchery direct or indirect.”
Question :
Generally meateaters and hunters put a question ; What are the animals for ? Dr. G. S. Arundale curtly asks a counter question, “What are you for ? Are you to fatten on the sufferings of your younger brethren ? You are going to say me, of course, that human life matters more than animal life.
I put a great mark of inter¬rogation. Some human lives may matter more, but I do not know that the average human lives of all of us matter more than the weak creatures whom God has given to us not for use, but for our blessing.”
Those who believe on the theory of God as the father of the Universe should consider that the Omniscient Lord might have created these animals with a view to examine as to which class the parti¬cular human being belongs ? Is it that he is under the sway of the beguiler Satan or otherwise, so that proper justice be done on the day of judgment ?
At least the Theists should have been more compassionate towards fellow creatures, but it is the irony of fate that the cunning priest-craft has devised strange ways of preaching that God wants sacrifice of animals. Thus the glutton can easily have his desired flesh. Can any rational mind think for a moment that a wise father or mother is pleased with the awful and horrifying spectacle of the butchery of the progeny.
The several reference. in religious books of different religions ought to be intelligently interpreted that the offering of the outward beast cannot confer any good or prosperity, but the beast in man—rather the animal tendencies are to be destroyed before God. If we want peace we should stop our war against meek and dumb brethren of the animal kingdom.
We should invent ways and means so that they may have lesser suffering. Dr. Arundale observes.” Hunting is a mode of war upon the nation of animals, so is vivisection, so also is the killing of animals for personal adornment. And there is a tremendous war against the nation of animals as we force them into the slaughter-houses in order that we may have the satisfaction of consuming their flesh”.
Thomas Newton condemns animal butchery in these strong words : “Cruelty to animals is not only a stupid act, but it is an insult to God.” The lovers of sweet talk and sweets as well may tell that the above remarks are couched in undignified language, but really speaking the words are true to the import. Should we offer praises for the most cruel behaviour of modern gentle-man in depriving the meek innocent and voiceless of their minimum right of existence upon this earth ?
It is an irony of fate that free India seems to have broken the bonds of compassion and gentility and the Government is taking lead in the nefarious and most heinous traffic of animal butchery. The censurable step of earning money has been strongly criticised by an elderly Indian leader C. Rajagopala- ehari in these words : Sava Monkeys from yunkees ? London, Feb.
5—A deputation from British Animal Protec¬tion Societies has asked the Indian Government to prohibit the export of monkeys.The request was made at a meeting here today with Mrs. Vijayalakshmi Pandit, India’s High Commissioner in London and other top officials at India House. The deputation led by Mr. Peter Freeman, a Labour Member of Parliament and a member of the Council of the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, was “cordially received”.
They pointed out that in the last two years hundred thousand monkeys have passed through London airport for the United States. Seventyfive per cent of them were intended for experi-mental purpose the deputation alleged and the remainder for use in rocket research.
After the meeting an RSPCA spokesman said that although they had provided a hos el at the airport to “give the creatures some comfort in their journey”, casualties in the two years had amounted to about one thousand.“It is most cruel and contrary to the National genius of India that we should allow the export of the monkeys of our forests in the scale it is being done for being tortured for the sake of advance¬ment of so-called knowledge.
The evolutionists tell us that these monkeys are near-cousins of ours. Alas that this relationship has served as a special reason to make them the victims of torture for the selfish interests of man instead of evoking a higher degree of kindness to these most sensitive though dumb cousins of ours. Something should be done to open the ears of our Commerce department to the call of humanity and of the genius of our land.
The advance of civil and military science that depends on this cruel sacrilege on sentient life can well be given up or postponed. If it is a question of foreign exchange, it is a miserable bargain indeed of which we should be ashamed.
The religious sense of our millions, if not ordinary decency and humanity, requires that this blot on our civilization should be removed”. ( CorUtriitoJ from ‘Page 202 ) The request was made at a meeting here today with Mrs. Vijayalakshmi Pandit, India’s High Commissioner in London and other top officials at India House. The deputation led by.
Mr. Peter Freeman, a Labour Member of Parliament and a member of the Council of the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, was “cordially received”. They pointed out that in the last two years hundred thousand monkeys have passed through London airport for the United States.
Seventyfive per cent of them were intended for experi-mental purpose the deputation alleged and the remainder for use in rocket research. After the meeting an RSPCA spokesman said that although they had provided a hos el at the airport to “give the creatures some comfort in their journey”, casualties in the two years had amounted to about one thousand. ( Reuter )—Hitvada 6-2-55.
If unbridled greed enters into the brain one may resort to the vilest ways of encouraging lewd¬ness, harlotry and the like; what will then be the fate of this country, which in venerated for its great men who had kicked the royal pleasures for justice and noble ends of life like Rama, Mahavira or Buddha ?
Over affection of gold should not corrupt us to the extent that we may forget God or our Divine nature and play the part of a living devil. All the great and good have taught us that a man should prefer the life of peril or penury in lieu of the pomps of profligation and licentiousness. Man must behave as becomes the honour of a man.
Look at the innumerable sisters and mothers of Rajasthan who had embraced death with grace to keep their chastity intact and honour unassailed. Will not India ever remember the great Rana Pratap of Mewar and the crest jewel of ladies mother Sita ?
The people should give up their slumber and raise their voice against the activities of those luring and alluring leaders who are digging the grave of mercy and humanity under the disguise of national uplift and the deceptive promise of providing peace and prosperity in every house or hamlet.
History bears ample proof of the destinies of several nations, who no longer exist because they tried for raising their majestic edifice of happiness on the bed-rock of greed and selfishness in utter disregard of the legiti¬mate rights of other beings.
Sir Henry Thompson F. R. C. S. says: “It is a vulgar error to regard meat in any form as necessary to life. All that is necessary to the human body can be supplied by the vegetable kingdom…. The vegetarian can extract from his food all the principles necessary for the growth and support of the body, as well as for the production of heat and force.
It must be admitted as a fact beyond all question that some persons are stronger and more healthy, who live on that food. I know how much of the prevailing meat diet is not mearly a wasteful extravagance but a source of serious evil to the consumer”. The meat diet is a source of several incurable diseases e. g. cancer, arthritis, heart disease, scorfula etc. Dr. A. Kingsford of the Paris university observes .
“Animal meat may directly engender many painful and loathsome diseases. Scorfula itself, that fecund source of suffering and death not improbably owes its origin to flesh-eating habits”. Professor Gamgee in his report to the Privy Council in England has stated : “One fifth of the total amount of meat consumed is derived from animals killed in a state of malignant disease”.
A. Winter Blyth, F. R. C. S says, “Economically speaking flesh is not necessary; and meat seriously diseased may be so prepared as to look fairly good meat. Many an animal with advanced disease of the lung yet shows to the naked eye no appearance in the flesh which difference differs from the normal”.
Dr. H.J. Kellogg remarks, “It is inte-resting to note that scientific men all over the world are awakening to the fact that the flesh of animals as food is not a pure nutriment, but is mixed with poisonous substances, excrementitious in character, which are the natural results of animal life.
The vegetable stores up energy. It is from the vegetable world that all animals directly or indirectly derive the energy, which is manifested by the animal life through muscular and mental work. The vegetable builds up energy; the animal spends energy”.
It is strange that the Meat-marketing Depart¬ment of India Government has not taken the trouble to study the material obtained by eminent Doctors and experts It is hoped that the country will rise from slumber and soon try to vindicate the cause of truth and ahimsa which are full of real life and vitality.
At present the suprious coin is being circulated in broad day light still they take pride in their progress of ahimsa. It is a matter of pro¬found regret that the disciples of Gandhiji, who taught the sermon that death is preferable to meat- eating, have started a new department for the sale of meat.
False propaganda :
The Central Indian Ministry of Food and Agriculture in its report has begun to speak of the glories of meat-eating and its superiority over the vegetarian food. The report reads thus : “Meat is vitally important to Indian population, because their diet is deficient in first class protein and these could easily be obtained from meat”.
When the sun of Ahimsa has started illumina¬ting the land of meat-eaters by its rays of compas¬sion and mercy for all beings, the land of Ahimsa, our Bharat is fearfully flying away from the sacro¬sanct doctrine of Ahimsa. What a tragedy is this ?
The hollowness of the India Government’s propa¬ganda is exposed by the latest researches of eminent experts. The Government should not forget its ideal —Truth alone shall prevail. It is said that because of increasing population meat- eating has become indespensable. This view also does not stand to reason and experience.
Humboldt’s observations are valuable in this respect : “The same stretch of land which is used as pasture,—that is, used to fatten animals the meat of which would feed ten people, if cultivated with millet, peas, lentils, and barley, would be able to feed a hundred people”. Those, whose conscience is still alive ought to bear in mind these significant words of Plutarch .
“Oh, unnatural assassin, whom we call man, and who is a hundred times more savage than the wild beasts, who compels you to waste the blood of innocent animals ? Why kill and martyr so cruelly these gentle beings who harm no one, but who are so useful to you, who add you in your labour, are your faithful companions and furnish you with clothing to cover you and milk to feed you ?
What more do you require of them. Does not the ground produce sufficient fruits for your food ? Jain sages have warned humanity against animal butchery under any pretext. They have said plenty, prosperity follow compassion.
Economic Aspect :
It is some times observed that meat eating is invigorating and strengthening. This stand is basically wrongIt is worthy of note that meat-diet is the cause of several serious diseases.
Medical authorities like Graham, Fyler, J. F. Newton, J. Smith corroborate the fact that meat- eating causes Cancer, Paralysis, .Rheumatism, Tubercolisis, Pulminary, Constipation, Intestinal Worms etc The meat of sick animals plays havoc with the lives of the consumers.
Therefore it is advisable that people should not be befooled by the pernicious propaganda that meat-diet is the source of health. The strongest amongst men the Tirthamkaras and the souls worthy of liberation are said to be extremely powerful. Diet is not the only cause of strength. Dr. J. D. Craig writes .
“Vigour of the body is often boasted by flesheaters parti¬cularly if they live mostly in open air; but there is this peculiarity about them that they have not the endurance of the vegetarians…In Germany and England a number of notable athletic contests that required endurance have been made between flesh- eaters land vegetarians, with the result that the vegetarians have invariably come off victorious.” In the domain of martial spirit and physical fitness the Sikhs have earned a world-wide reputation.
A It is worthy of note that meat-diet is the cause of several serious diseases. Medical authorities like Graham, Fyler, J. F. Newton, J. Smith corroborate the fact that meat- eating causes Cancer, Paralysis, .
Rheumatism, Tubercolisis, Pulminary, Constipation, Intestinal Worms etc The meat of sick animals plays havoc with the lives of the consumers. Therefore it is advisable that people should not be befooled by the pernicious propaganda that meat-diet is the source of health. Sikh leader has said : “All the the Sikh Gurus and Sikhs of their times were pure vegetarians.
They were so strong and the fact that they over-powered the Moghul forces is not concealed from any one. Namdhari Sikhs who are pure vegetarians defeated all the tug-of-war teams of the British Empire in 1911.” A Namdhari Sikh Sardar informs, “Meat- eating is naturally accompanied by taking of liquor as it cannot be well digested or enjoyed without it.
The habits of meat-eating and liquor-taking, as they go hand in hand, have been the cause of the ruins and fall of many an empire, nation, and tribe in the past. Meat-eaters having no hatred for bloodshed develop in themselves an indifferent attitude to the sufferings and pains of others.” It is to be noted that meat is not our natural diet. Rousseau says : “To demonstrate that longing for meat is not natural in man, it is sufficient to point out that children look with indifference on all kinds of meat and show their delight for natural food, fruits.”
I he vegetarian diet exercises a salubrious influence on the harmony of the body and the beauty of the soul. Meat is repulsive to the sight. My heart still shudders with disgust and scorn when I recall to my mind’s eye the momentary sight of a slaugher house located in a magnificiant and attractive building at Singapore in 1956. The beauties of fruits and vegetables are agreeable to our sight and the sense of smell.
They have said plenty, prosperity and peace bless the land where the spirit of love and non¬injury prevails. The prosperity that is achived inspite of cruel and selfish ways of life is short lived like the lightning flash The present condition of the world appears to show that the edifice of soul-less civilization will soon tumble down if it is not protected under the sensible and saner outlook of universal brotherhood in principle as well as in practice. The high sounding sweet .professions will never serve our purpose.
Several men of learning and culture in East and West now feel that the habit of meat-eating must be stopped if we really want that the universal conflagration should not annihilate the palace of pride built by our scientists. Every action first takes its shape in the brain. If the mind is not fed upon non-vegetarian diet it will be adorned with noble and illuminating thoughts. It is the most precious object in the entire world.
If we rob a creature of its precious life, are we not defacto the greatest robber ? One who forcibly takes away one’s life is the greatest sinner. It is the duty of sensible individual as well as institutions to work for common good and universal welfare. In this regard the words of George Bernard Shaw are ever memorable .
We are the living graves of murdered beasts, , Slaughtered to satisfy our appetites We never pause to wonder at our feasts If kine, like men, can possibly have rights. We pray on Sundays that we may have light, To guide our footsteps on the path we tread. We’re sick of war, we do not want to fight The thought of it now fills our hearts with dread And yet-we gorge ourselves upon the dead.
Like carrion crows, we live and feed on meat Regardless of the suffering and pain We cause by doing so, if thus we treat Defenceless animals for sport or gain, How can we hope in this world to attain The peace we say we are so anxious for. . We pray for it, o’er the tombs of slain To God, while outraging the moral law Thus cruelty begets its offspring War.
Shaw’s unique will :
The mission of mercy had deeply illumined his heart therefore in his will of 1898 he wrote these memorable words which were in consonance with his ideal of universal brotherhood .
“My will contains direction for my funeral, which will be followed not by mourning coaches, but by herds of oxen, sheep, flocks of poultry and a small travelling ing aquarium of small fish, all wearing white scarves in honour of the man who perished rather than eat his fellow creatures. He will be, with the single exception of Noah’s Ark, the most memorable thing of its kind yet seen”. (Nagpur Times).
We are used to call evil activities as beastli¬ness, for ordinarily people feel that the lower animals are devoid of good sense and gentle behaviour but a little reflection reveals that all animals are not so. Pythagoras has said : “The lower animals satisfy their ravenous hunger by flesh. And yet not all them : for the horse, the sheep, the cows and oxen subsist on grass; while those whose disposition is cruel and fierce, the tigers of Armenia and the raging lions and the wolves and bears revel in their bloody diet”.
False stand :
Some incorrigible defenders of non-vegetatian diet show the audacity to tell that vegetarian food is on par with meat diet. This view is thus refuted by Zoroastrians : “Vegetables have life but no mind or feelings. Besides taking a small part of a tree does not kill it. Fruits when ripe are automatically separated from a branch, and offered to men and animals as food.
A tree can offer hundreds of fruits without dying.” The Jain thinkers have shown that tree belongs to the category of one-sensed being for it has the sense of touch only. The body of one-sensed being is devoid of blood and other developments like bone, skin, marrow etc. The vegetable is like the milk diet.
These days some persons try to preach that milk diet is also non-vegetarian, but this is far from truth. If milk had been taken under non¬vegetarian diet man must have been termed as a carnivora, since every baby gets its sustenance at least from its mother’s milk.
Sound Suggestion :
In this connection the remarks of K. Santhanam the Chairman of Finance Commission are note¬worthy : “Just as there is a division of work among men for their mutual benefit, there is nothing wrong in such a cooperation between man and animal.
If we can treat our cows well and enable them to produce more milk than is strictly inecessary for the calf, Tcanot see that there is any objection to taking milk in exchange for cattle-food.
It is however necessary to realize that the cow cannot complain and man is in duty bound to ensure its honourable treatment through severe social and legislative restrictions on himself. Subject to these conditions and proper provision for old cattle, the use of milk and milk products is not inconsistent with vegetarianism.”
Jain thinkers are very keen is not injuring even the vegetable life. Pious Jains do not take all vegetables but they make a distinction amongst eatable and non-eatable vegetables. Some vegetables are infested with a host of small insects like onions, garlic, potatoes etc., therefore those advanced on the path of Ahimsa try to lessen the use of vegetables. This sort of discrimination is made with the view of developing healthy and sublime thoughts. Right type of diet is conductive Ho dispassionate and equable temperament.
The sober and pacifying effect of vegetarian diet and life saturated with the sentiment of love for all beings ennobles the cruel & ferocious animals. It is told of St. Francis of Assisi that birds used to come to him and perch on his body since the sacred halo of his body possessed the magnetism of love, affection and fearlessness. Tn 1957 I had been to a great nude Jain saint Vardhaman Sagarji aged 95 years in the South.
It was a common sight to see birds come to him and perch on his shoulder or the head etc. When I enquired the Jain saint of supreme piety and penance the secret of the above, His Holiness told me, “ You terrify these animals, therefore they run away from you out of fear. I treat them as friends, therefore they are not irritated or frightened by me. They enjoy my company.
The greatest Jain Saint Acharya Shqjitisagar Maharaj, who breathed his last in 1955 had deve¬loped his spiritual faculties that even huge cobras came to him, encircled his body, but he was serene and peaceful. Even tigers were pacified by his presence.
The life of the saint is elaborately dealt . with in a separate chapter of this book, All these great developments are made by only those who do not cast a glance upon meat diet. Even the sound of the word meat disturbs their mental harmony. During his meals if a saint hears such cruel words ‘bring meat for me, kill the goat’ the saint of Ahimsa will forthwith give up his food and observe fast that day.
Those who are really critical about the subject of purity of diet and its invariable effect upon mind should with a fair mind dive into the sacred Jain literature. A Jain book calls a man a beast, if he is devoid of the exercise of proper discrimination and if a beast is equipped with the attitude of discrimination it is not inferior to man.
A Zoroastrian book “Desatir” contains an interesting story, wherein the animals impeach man for cruelty : “We beasts are more innocent, but we have learned cruelty from men’s hard-hearted behaviour.
The soul adorned with virtuous life of Compassion, genuine love possesses woild bewildering and marvellous spiritual attainments, which appear to the wiseacre as the phantom of imagination, but this cannot controvert the glory of truth based upon the bed-rock of non-violence. The following account from the ‘Prabuddha Bharata’, (May 1924 pp 121-26) is note-worthy.
“Mr. Anderson, a Europeon saw a tiger in the forest of Jayadebpur, where he went out for a hunt. The elephant, on which Mr. Anderson was riding, got frightened seeing the tiger and threw him down.
Mr. Anderson fired twice or thrice at the tiger, but missed his aim. He then began to run followed by the tiger. He saw a naked sage in a copse and ran to him The sage asked him to sit and waving his hand foibade the tiger to advance. The tiger sat at a distance, wagged its tail and growled for some time and then went away.
Mr. Anderson was astonished to see the wonderful phenomenon and asked the sage how he was able to pacify the tiger. The sage replied : “One who has no Himsa, is never injured by tigers or snakes. Because you have a feeling of Himsa in your mind, you are attacked by wild animals”.
“Mr. Anderson from that day became a vegetarian and gave up shooting. He was seen by many people in Dacca and Chittagong when this change had come over him ” ( Vide The Digambara Saints of India pp 102-103. )
In fact Vegetu-iianisin is the first step of the ladder of Ahimsa. We do not hurt saints who live in our midst in jungles. We have been chased and persecuted till we have learnt to be men’s enemies”.
Philosopher’s Prayer :
In this peculiar stone age we are pursuing peace, but it is getting out of reach like the water of mirage. We say it is not possble to follow the puzzling formalities of scriptures; therefore we need not worry with what to eat or what not to eat. We are to accomplish great things.
This sort of harangues are heard, but we should give a patient hearing and sober consideration to what the great philosopher Pythagoras observed : “O mortal race, do you dare to continue to feed on flesh ?
Do it not, I beseech you, and give heed to my admonitions. And when you present to your palates the limbs of slaughtered oxen, know, and feel that you are feeding on the tillers of the ground.”
If genuine efforts are made to educate the masses of the degenerating effects and influences of inhuman atrocities towards voiceless, innocent and meek animals lasting peace and happiness will bless the world.
Man-kind must be kind :
The wise men of this scientific age feel the imperative need of broader vision and the outlook to treat all man-kind as one’s kith and kin and banish the selfish thought of nationality being impelled by the principle of patriotism. Novelist Sir Compton Mackenzie appears to reflect the common view of the thoughtful gentle-men of the age in these remarks .“
If I were a good fairy capable of bestowing a gift upon a human godson which, above any, would secure him a happy life, I should give him an infinite capacity to love his fellowmen”.
This seems to me a sine qua non of a happy life. Jain philosophers and sages ordain that the ideal of brotherhood will remain a mere dream unless, the noble man develops the finer feeling of compas¬sion towards all beings. Mankind must learn the lesson of kindness towards the people of all nationalities, but he should also possess the sublime sentiment of fellowship and brotherhood towards all without any reservation.
One whose heart is not moved by the agonies & heart-rending screams and shrieks of dying voiceless dumb creatures and sucks their blood like a carnivora, will never develop the seed of mercy for all mankind. Callous and cruel heart is not fit for the growth of the seed of universal brotherhood or love for mankind.
The first pre¬requisite for this is the abandonment of flesh or eggs; forsaking the heartless habit of hunting and adoption of vegetarian diet. Meat-eaters or hunters no doubt can give an impressive sermon upon the principle of brotherhood and impress their audience by high-sounding honeyed words, but this prattle will not touch the heart and will be wasted like horrifying heavy down-pour of the rainy season. The soberminded and rational will understand the point easily and they will agree that
- ( 1 ) tall talk of God;
- ( 2 ) singing hallelujahs to glorify the Lord;
- ( 3 ) proclaiming God’s ordinances all the world over, will not be as useful and effective as;
- ( 4) the feeling of compassion and affection for God’s creation.
An atheist who treads upon the path of righteousness, mercy, truth and other virtues will be far superior to those who take pride in calling themselves as theists, but who don’t care a fig for God’s Sayings.
History :
There are references in Indian history when people were extremely happy and prosperous. In that age the agonies of butchered animals were not heard. Most of the people were pious and bene¬volent. Fa-hien, the Chinese traveller had visited India when Jainism was on its .ascendancy ( 399-414 A. D ).
In his memoirs he writes : “No trace of flesh-eating or slaughter of animals can be seen in India. None except a chandala (a low caste) touches a corpse of a dead animal or kills one. There is no liquor-shop or butcher-shop in India”.
Huen Tsang visited India in 7th century. He wrote, “Hindus are patient and true in their speech, bene¬volent and kind-hearted. Their customs are civilized and most humane”. Marco Polo who came to India in the 13th century says : “The people of India do not touch the flesh of animals”.
Government’s Duty :
Since the attention of the entire world is keen in knowing what Mahatma Gandhi, the Father of Indian nation thought about useful things for common weal, it is the sacred duty of the India Government, which always shows its veneration for the great leader to enlighten the public honestly what Gandhiji thought about vegetarianism.
The Government should abandon its greedy attitude and tell all that Gandhiji proclaimed : “Looked at from every point of view vegetarianism has been demons¬trated to be far superior to flesh-eating”.
He further adds, “The Spiritualists hold, and the practice of all the religious teachers of all the religions, except perhaps, the generality Protestant teachers, shows that nothing is more detrimental to the spiritual faculty of man than the gross feeding on flesh.
The most ardent vegetarians attribute the agnosticism, the materialism, and the religious indifference of the present age to too much flesh-eating and wine¬drinking, and the consequent disappearance, partial or total of the spiritual faculty in man”.
“The vegetarian admirers of the intellectual in man point to the whole host of the most intellectual men of the world, who were invariably abstemious in their habits, especially at the time of writing their best works, to demonstrate the sufficiency, if not the superiority, of the vegetarian diet from an intellectual stand-point”.
“The columns of the vegetarian magazines and reviews afford a most decisive proof where beef and* its concoctions, with no end of physic thrown in, have lamentably failed, vegetarianism has triump¬hantly succeeded. Muscular vegetarians demonstrate the superiority of their diet by pointing out that the peasantry of the world are practically vegetarians, and that the strongest and the most useful animal, the horse, is a vegetarian, while the most ferocious and practically useless animal, the lion, is a carnivore”.
“Vegetarian moralists mourn over the fact that selfish men would-for the sake of gratifying their lustful and diseased appetite, force the butcher’s trade on a portion of mankind, while they them¬selves would shrink with horror from such a calling. They also argue that since meateating is not only unnecessary but harmful to the system,, indulgence in it is immoral and sinful, because it involves the infliction of unnecessary pain to and cruelty towards harmless animals.”
“Lastly vegetarian economists-assert that vegetarian foods are cheapest diet and their general adoption will go a long way towards mitigating, if not altogather suppressing, the rapidly growing pauperism side by side with the rapid march of the materialistic civilization and the accumulation of immense riches in the hands of a few….Before the “Fall” we were vegetarians…” Noble souls in the Government and outside should do all in their power to spread the said message of the father of the Indian Nation.
If Gandhiji’s political disciple Pandit Jawahar Lai Nehru, the Prime Minister of India, helps the saintly President of India Dr. Rajendra Prasad to rouse the country to the holy principle of genuine Ahimsa, which is a way of life and not the golden gossip of an orator, the Independent India can make rapid strides on the path of genuine Satya and Ahimsa-truth and non-violence.
Memorable Message :
The words of President Dr. Rajendraprasad should act as a beacon light to the Government of India, inhabitants of this great cultured country and the gentle souls of far off lands : “Sometimes I wonder if we are giving the thought and considera¬tion to our food that it deserves. While, as the adage goes, we eat to live and do not live to eat, yet our food and eating habits determine in no small measure our environs and the general outlook on life.
I am one of those who believe that the healthiest and the most natural food for human beings is vegetables, fruits and agricultural products and that a vegeta¬rian diet is more conducive to simple living and high thinking than a non-vegetarian diet.” Will the various departments of India Govern¬ment given to glorify animal butchery seriously think over sensible and sublime sermon of the President of this great country ?
The intellectuals should deliberate and commune with the man within and find out light amid the encircling gloom. Surely the brilliant sun of compassion will illumine the path. Let us ever and anon remember the words of Bhagwan Rishabha Deo, the founder of Jainism, “The life of mercy and compassion is a panacea for all evils.”
Set us struggle honestly for the sacred cause of love for all living beings and vegetarianism. The seeker after truth should bear in mind these immortalised words of the great Jain saint Kundakunda in his Tirukkural: “A person who has personally experienced what is injurious to his own life why should he inflict injury on other living beings ?”
“All painful diseases fall on those who cause pain to other living beings. Hence those that seek the pain-less state of existence will never cause injury to others.” “What is a virtuous deed ?
It is not to kill. Killing brings all other evils.” “Share your meal with the needy. Protect every living being. This is the chief of all the moral precepts formulated by those well-versed in scriptures.” “Not to kill is the one good deed par excellence. *Next to this comes the virtue of speaking the truth.”
“Even if you are to lose your own life, never indulge in a deed that will result in depriving other beings of their sweet life.” “Even though the happiness of Swarga obtained by sacrifice is great, wise men despise it as worthless v because it is won by slaughter.”
Kindly light :
It is fortunate that in the India Government most of the eminent officials are strict vegetarians. Dr. Rajendra Prasad in an interview at Wardha in 1948 told me that he has been* a strict vegetarian. Vice-President Dr. S. Radhakrishnan in his letter of 29th April 1957 wrote to me, “I have been a strict vegetarian all my life and the few years that remain will not see any change.”
I feel that if these stalwarts and noble-minded leaders take into their hearts to establish the majesty and utility of the universally acknowledged golden gospel of compassion, the entire world will be much indebted for this Kindly Light.