VEGI-VOICES: A Different
Approach
Sometime back I took up martial arts. Our Sensei who is also a
Reiki practitioner is a firm believer that the pursuit of Yoga
and the Yogic way of life is the surest way of understanding one's
self as well as the world around us. He conducts regular talks
with us and one of the topics that he regularly delves into is
`the right diet for a sound, healthy mind.' In the last talk,
he mentioned veganism (though he didn't use that word). He had
not read any literature on it so what he said was a verbal statement
on the essence of the subject.
But the explanation that he gave for following vegetarianism and
veganism was very strange. For advocating vegetarianism, he said
that when you killed any animal, it curses you. In doing so various
toxins are released in its body. We eat the meat containing these
toxins, which result in various diseases like constipation etc.
Similarly, for promoting veganism he said that cows these days
are artificially inseminated to give a richer quality of milk,
at more frequent intervals. These chemicals are present in the
milk too and give rise to various problems. So much so, that there
have even been cases of women not being able to conceive, and
the cause was found to be the consumption of milk! Almost all
the reasons offered were a little vague. Now as I said before,
he is a very well renowned Reiki practitioner, and I could see
that the students were totally impressed.
However, he could also make out that I was thoroughly confused.
He called me later and asked me what I thought of his speech.
I told him that the only reason why I was a vegetarian was because
I thought it was very cruel to be otherwise. So he said, "Harsha
I agree with you. But if I go and tell everyone not to eat meat
because the cows, chicken, and fish suffer, do you think anyone
will listen? Nearly 99 percent of the humans are wilder than any
animal on this planet and the only reason for them to stop being
so would be if you could prove to them that it would be in their
best physical or mental interest to do so."
I was totally impressed by this new perspective, and everything
else that he said. It made me realize that our club is filled
with people who already have a strong conviction about animal
welfare. We are really not able to make any phenomenal achievement
towards getting people to convert into vegetarianism.
The key here is to educate humans regarding what is good for them.
It is a fact that the very structure of humans, right from their
teeth and jaws to their intestines, is not that of a carnivore.
Humans are the only ones who eat for their tongue and not for
their stomach. In trying to play around with nature's architecture
we unwittingly subject ourselves to various problems. There are
many myths in the minds of people, regarding vegetarianism and
non-vegetarianism, which need to be removed.
I believe that if we want to do something on a mammoth scale it
has to be an effort not just of the animal welfare activists and
vets, but also of scientists and doctors who could confirm that
vegetarianism and veganism would put an end to a lot of problems
that are faced exclusively by humans.
This, I feel, would be the most practical and effective approach,
and would initiate the understanding of a larger section of the
populace. There are similar practical answers to a lot of issues,
like that of training animals to perform on streets and in the
circus, keeping birds caged, and fish in
the aquarium. An understanding of our own system and its functions
will give us a clear idea about the importance of our existence
on this planet as well as the importance and role of the earth's
other inhabitants. Why we eat, what we eat, when we eat, what
to eat, etc. will become apparent once we understand ourselves.
If you support what I have said please convey this message to
everyone. Eagerly awaiting your feedback. Warm regards from Harsha
Udupa, India
E-mail: harsha_udupa@yahoo.com
It is the fate of every truth to be an object of ridicule when
it is first acclaimed. It was once considered foolish to suppose
that black men were really human beings and ought to be treated
as such. What was once foolish has now become a recognized truth.
Today it is considered as exaggeration to proclaim constant
respect for every form of life as being the serious demand of
a rational ethic. But the time is coming when people will be
amazed that the human race existed so long before it recognized
that thoughtless injury to life is incompatible with real ethics.
Ethics is in its unqualified form extended responsibility to
everything that has life.
Albert Schweitzer |
