I asked a good Hindu friend of mine why it is wrong to eat any form of animal life, strict Hindus also abstain from drinking the milk of a cow. She said that it all had to do with Karma and that because people can be reborn as an animal, you could be eating your own grandfather or ancestor. So I said, what about when animals eat other animals? And she said that was excusable as animals dont have the same sense man does.
Is this true? Maybe Hindus can clarify further.
Re: Vegetarianism in Hinduism
I am a hindu.. but i eat everything which does not eat me.:D
Re: Vegetarianism in Hinduism
These Hindus also don’t eat Pork. At least they do something good.
Cat... I read a couple of days ago that Afrian Lions like to eat Black people. Is it so?
Re: Vegetarianism in Hinduism
The basic reason of not meating meat is non voilence. Hinduism preaches non violance of any form. be it physical or mental. In my whole life i never heard of the reason you stated above.
Also i have never seen any hindu not driking cow’s milk.
I was a veggie until last year just because of my own principles of non voilance now when i eat meat i dont discriminate. cow, pig, fish, birds all are same for me.
Re: Vegetarianism in Hinduism
Madhanee- Wrong !
It is lioness...
Femenist propoganda, I tell you :(
Btw, don't go to Africa
Re: Vegetarianism in Hinduism
Pork.. its delicious..
Re: Vegetarianism in Hinduism
Catty what your friend has told you sounds about right. We were friends with an indian family and they basically said the same thing except the milk part.
Although we still have some indian friends who eat meat?? why is it that some do and some dont???
Re: Vegetarianism in Hinduism
Just adding to Roshi's statement. some who are less divout eat meat and what Ive found is sometimes the men eat meat and children too (until a certain age) but the mother doesnt. However the mother will cook the meat for the family.
Another thing some Hindus wont eat Onions and Garlic.
So when we invite friends to dinner the wife seems to get the raw end of the deal.
Re: Vegetarianism in Hinduism
^ because in hinduism, each person has his/own path to god. You won't be thrown out of hinduism if you eat pork. Vegetarainism is a recent phenomeon in hinduism. Around the time Jainism and buddhism started.
Re: Vegetarianism in Hinduism
Cat - woman a hindu friend of mine said something similiar, but she could drink milk as it didn't kill the animal.
Re: Vegetarianism in Hinduism
depends on what kind of hindu it is. vegetarianism is practiced by fewer than 20% of hindus, as per my estimates. but almost all brahmins are traditionally vegetarians (exceptions being bengali and kashmiri brahmins). so are most gujarati hindus.
and religious hindus abstaining from milk - i have never heard of it. if anything milk is given too much importance. yuck!
Re: Vegetarianism in Hinduism
Many gods such as Indra and Agni are described as having special preferences for different types of flesh - Indra had weakness for bull’s meat and Agni for bull’s and cow’s. It is recorded that the Maruts and the Asvins were also offered cows. In the Vedas there is a mention of around 250 animals out of which at least 50 were supposed to be fit for sacrifice and consumption. In the Mahabharata there is a mention of a king named Rantideva who achieved great fame by distributing foodgrains and beef to Brahmins. Taittiriya Brahman categorically tells us: `Verily the cow is food’ (atho annam via gauh) and Yajnavalkya’s insistence on eating the tender (amsala) flesh of the cow is well known. Even later Brahminical texts provide the evidence for eating beef. Even Manusmriti did not prohibit the consumption of beef.
http://www.hindu.com/thehindu/2001/08/14/stories/13140833.htm
Re: Vegetarianism in Hinduism
My friend is Gujerati as well - and yeah most of them are vegetarian.
So I guess there are various schools of thought. What about all the various fasts like saltless fasts etc.
Re: Vegetarianism in Hinduism
the details of most fasts are very very region specific, and are colored by local folklore and pilgrimage traditions. once again, i havent heard of a saltless fast, but i am sure it exists. one of my close friends does a friday no-sour-stuff fast, but only bengalis and some other north indians do that one for a local diety. the now popular karwa chauth fast is a punjabi tradition. then there's a fruit and vegs only fast which is probably the most common, though from region to region, the alleged purpose of it varies.
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Never came across such logic, that the animal we eat could be our relative by other means.
hindu religion disregards non-vegetarian eatings, because Hindu religion is against creating pain for any living being.
but the fact is that 85% of Hindus are non-vegetarians, and majority of them have tasted beaf as per the possibility.
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But I do not understand believer non-vegetarians.
Re: Vegetarianism in Hinduism
There are different kinds of fasts. Most general (atleast in North) is you eat once a day anytime you want. You can eat fruits (not vegetables) all day long apart from your one time meal. What you cant eat is anything which has cereals or salt.
Some people abstain use of sea salt during their fasts(i guess because sea salt is made of dead bodies) instead they use “Kala Namak” or rock salt.
There are other fasts in which you dont even drink or eat for the whole day.
Some people do 9 day fasting with out eating anything.
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Ohhh man … You just described my daily eating routine. Does that mean I fast everyday 
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I know some Hindus wouldn't eat eggs but I've never heard of them having a problem with milk, in fact pankagavya (butter, milk, curd, urine and dung) are considered sacred and Hindus are encouraged to use them, it's Halaal in fact even Mushtahab for them, lol.
The term "Hinduism" is a misnomer and actually refers to a whole host of different religious cults, which vary from family to family, caste to caste, ethnicity to ethnicity and usually contradict each other, each have their own distinct rules and/or rituals.
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ranjhan, hinduism doesnt have concepts like halal, haram, makruh, mushtahab whatever that is. society's norms and rules dictate whats "haram" and "halal" to hindus.
the rest of your post is bang on.