I’ve seen many hindus (at my work place) that they don’t eat any kind of meat including fish/shrimps (I know that cow is considered sacred).. All I want to know why?
is it prohibited by hindu believes or is it some kind of personal choice ?
it isn't prohibited by religion. it is a personal choice that is followed more by some sects within the Hindu religion than others. (some south indians will eat meat while gujrat generally are strict vegetarians).hindus during the Vedic times were non-vegetarians. it also has to do with Karma, and their belief of reincarnation. a family member can come in any kind of form so they tend to restrain from all animals.
at least this is what i know from my roomate of 4 years.
-mehndi
better ask hindus, you will get the right answer than just assumptions, is not it!!
I hope you will get answer for that vital question!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
[This message has been edited by Saghir (edited May 03, 2001).]
hindus are not monolithic . you can be canibal still hindu. there is no rule
written in page 403 we all have to folow
Well, some of my fellow himdu co-workers here say that they don't eat meat becasue they aren't allowed according to their religion, while some says that it's their personal choice. some of them do eat meat..
any kind, including pork and Beaf.. I am still fairly confused about this issue...can somebody give an answer correctly about what are the real hindu believes..
Assalaamu Alikum,
I don't know much about hindus but i thought that they didn't eat meat or atleast some of them because they worship it (na aoozo billah)
Fe Aman Allah
*** La Ikraha Fid-Deen ****
Let there be no compulsion in religion..2:256 Al Quran
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
****"That is because Allah is
the (only) Reality, and because whatever else they invoke besides Him is
Falsehood; and because Allah,- He is the Most High, Most Great". ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
what a highly intellectual discussion going on her!
still seeking an answer
Over 85% of Hindus are meat eaters. Only few sects do not eat meat.There is no written rule in Hinduism that meat eating is prohibited. As RKviz wrote during vedic times meat eating was common.
I think in Olden day India at some point of time people might have realised that meat eating has some bad effects and stopped eating it altogether. The climate of the region, social situation at that time also might have contributed to this. Also some people might have thought that killing other animals for food is bad. It is scientifically proven thing that meat eating is not suitable in hot climates. The same habit followed thru generations. Buddhists in Himalayan regions eat meat because it is very suitable
During great famine of Bengal - many vegetarians in the costal regions started eating fish because agricultural products were not available and only food available was fish . And their subsequent generations became non-vegitarians. I am a vegitarian because my family since generations are vegetarians and I am not used to eating meat. That's as simple as that.
Momin - your answer was really funny.. Do you apply the same logic for muslims (atleast majority of them) not eating pork ?
it also depends on where you live you can't
be vegetarian in siberia . where you going to get your vegetables to grow.
Except for Brahmins, meat is not forbidden to anyone traditionally. Some non-brahmin families are vegetarian by choice and then it becomes tradition for them. bengali brahmins eat fish traditionally.
i believe vegetarianism is a post-Buddha addition.
[This message has been edited by ZZ (edited May 08, 2001).]
[quote]
Originally posted by rvikz:
hindus are not monolithic . you can be canibal still hindu. there is no rule
written in page 403 we all have to folow
[/quote]
I will agree with you on this point. They are quite flexible in general. They see the case of Juna GaRh and Manavadar (Prince of these states wanted to be part of Pakistan) from people's point of view. On the other hand, they see Kashmir (Prince of this state was a Hindu) from Raja's point of view. Simple People.
As far as the question is concerned, there are few Hindus that follows Jainism. Some of them are quite strict and don't even eat vegetables that have roots thinking that it might harm the tiny creatures and their habitat. There aren't that many of them left.
[quote]
Originally posted by khan_sahib:
**
As far as the question is concerned, there are few Hindus that follows Jainism. Some of them are quite strict and don't even eat vegetables that have roots thinking that it might harm the tiny creatures and their habitat. There aren't that many of them left.
**
[/quote]
jaiinism is separate rom orthodox hinduism. it is like buddhism in the sense that lord mahavira was a strong proponent of non-violence. its founder was mahavira though jains claim that there were several tithkars before him that gave the same message.
Thanks everyone who replied.. Khan_sahib, first para
http://www3.pak.org/gupshup/smilies/ok.gif
great point..
but why some people are so strict about it if eating meat is not part of the religion?
And why most people from Gujrat avoid eating meat while south-indians eat it. I believe South india is way more warmer than north eastern part like Gujrat???
Purity of mind and soul are the fundaments of Indian religious books and meat, fish and some vegetables like onion or garlic are considered low category or exciting foods.
But as a whole a totalitarian vegetarian practice is limited to some very orthodox families. It has more or less nothing to do with a particular part of the country.
Due to weather conditions and price, a non-veg food is not a daily practice in Indian families. Though majority of hindus have no objection to it.
A majority of hindus, even from orthodox families forget all religious dogma and don’t say no to beaf while abroad. Beaf is prohibited in hindu religion and not easily available in Indian market.
It is rather a hypocrite character that a majority of hindus take meat, but boast of their being a vegetarian. It is something like Muslims don’t drink wine! About eating habits of Muslim I don’t take up the matter because many may not like it.
Purity of mind and soul are the fundaments of Indian religious books and meat, fish and some vegetables like onion or garlic are considered low category or exciting foods.
sky anand
then how come in ramayana rama go hunting
for deer? i dont think ksahtriyas are vegetarians. also not eating cow is due to
economic and emotional reasons. early hindus
used to sacrifice horses. so there is no
universal practise . also alcohol is not banned in hinduism but lot of people dont drink pork is not banned but you will never
find pork in any indian menu
also lot of tribal and dalits are not vegetarians who represent significant
% of the population.
[This message has been edited by rvikz (edited May 09, 2001).]
Dear rvikz,
I cannot argue your points, as what matter I have taken is a practice in Indian culture. If I am not mistaken no Indian religious book prohibits beef as such. Killing of cow is prohibited, as this animal is given regards as mother, most probably because cow milk is considered as most vital for life.
Better I say that hindus are supposed to be vegetarians. We have orthodox families, a totalitarian and vegis, don’t eat onion and garlic, and orthodox jains, don’t eat after sun set, all such dogmas have acceptance for purification.
Gita, a hindu religious book, definitely preaches a vegetarian and non intoxicating life, but does not imply it as a rule.
Basically Indians are selective non vegis. And when abroad they prefer not to follow any guidelines.
Rgds
[quote]
Originally posted by skv anand:
**Gita, a hindu religious book, definitely preaches a vegetarian and non intoxicating life, but does not imply it as a rule.
**
[/quote]
nope! gita definitely does not talk about being vegitarian or not. I dont think it talks about drinking either, but i am not sure on drinking part.
Thanks again for your time.. But I am still so un clear about this issue.. the above two posts are contradictory. Is there anybody who can Quote from some Hindu Book to highlight what the real believe is?
[quote]
Originally posted by PureLand:
Thanks again for your time.. But I am still so un clear about this issue.. the above two posts are contradictory. Is there anybody who can Quote from some Hindu Book to highlight what the real believe is?
[/quote]
The great thing about any religion is it's ability to adapt to the changing times. The ultimate goal is to have faith and believe in god. Things written over two millenia or hundreds of years ago include practices of that time, which might be inconsequential today. As long as we can understand the overall message, we can obtain the greater benefits of religion.
BTW/ Don't believe everything you read.