do you have to be vegetarian to be buddhist?
441203
http://www.lioncity.net/buddhism/index.php?showtopic=8724\nMust Buddhists be vegetarian?\n\nNo.\n\nWhy the fuss then?\n\nThough the Buddha never made it a compulsory rule that all His followers have to be vegetarians, He strongly encouraged us to be. In the Bodhisattva practice of minimising harm to all beings and benefiting them as much as possible, the practice of vegetarianism as far as possible plays an essential role. We can see this in many of the Buddha's recorded teachings.\n\n\n\n“The eating of meat extinguishes the seed of great Compassion.”\n\n\n-Mahaparinirvana Sutra (The Buddha)\n\n"...Ananda, I permit the bhiksus (monks) to eat only the five kinds of pure flesh* which are the product of my transcendental power of transformation and not of animal slaughter. You, Brahman, live in a country where vegetables do not grow because it is too damp and hot and because of all the gravel and rock. I use my spiritual power of compassion to provide you with illusory meat to satisfy your appetite. How then, after my nirvana, can you eat the flesh of living beings and so pretend to be my disciple?..."\n\n\n"...All monks who live purely and all Bodhisattvas always refrain even from walking on grass; how can they agree to uproot it? How then can those who practise great Compassion feed on the flesh and blood of living beings?..."\n\n”...How can a monk, who hopes to become a deliverer of others, himself be living on the flesh of sentient beings?...”\n\n\n”...If a man can (control) his body and mind and thereby refrains from eating animal products, I say he will really be liberated. This teaching of mine is that of the Buddha whereas any others that of evil demons..."\n\n\n-Surangama Sutra (The Buddha)\n http://online.sfsu.edu/~rone/Buddhism/Shurangama/Shurangama.htm\n\n”The Bodhisattva, whose nature is Compassion, is not to eat any meat… For fear of causing terror to living beings…let the Bodhisattva who is disciplining himself to attain Compassion, refrain from eating flesh.”\n\n\n-Lankavatara Sutra (The Buddha)\n\n"If a bhikkhu sees, hears or suspects that it has been killed for him, he may not eat it."\n\n-Mahavagga of Vinaya Pitaka (The Buddha)\n\n"Let him not destroy, or cause to be destroyed, any life at all, nor sanction the acts of those who do so. Let him refrain from even hurting any creature, both those that are strong and those that tremble in the world." \n\n-Sutta-Nipata (The Buddha)\n\n"I have enforced the law against killing certain animals and many others, but the greatest progress of righteousness among men comes from the exhortation in favor of non-injury to life and abstention from killing living beings." \n\n\n-King Asoka's Edicts \n\n\nAll true practitioners of the Bodhisattva path eventually relinquish meat-eating. In His previous lives, the Buddha as a Bodhisattva would rather cut His own flesh to feed an eagle than let it eat a smaller bird. All advanced practising Bodhisattvas are thus necessarily vegetarians, since they cannot bear the pain of sentient beings.\n\nWhile nothing we eat makes us impure, our choice of diet is an action with implications. If our choice of diet arises from greed, sustaining the greed obviously makes us impure
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I don't believe in the idea of a petty God with vindictive rules.\n\nSo the answer is no, you wouldn't go to hell if you're a Christian and it turns out that Buddhism was the One True Faith because even then, you'd be forgiven if there is a God.  Just live your life the best way you can and be good to yourself and others.
1103316
For a start, let’s get one thing clear; despite their claims to contrary the vast, vast majority of people who call themselves ‘vegetarians’ are no such thing. They are ‘non-meat eaters’, and it is not the same. Eggs, milk, honey, yoghurt and cheese are not vegetables; they are animal products and if you eat them you are not a vegetarian. Don’t bother with the moral snob’s holier-than-thou argument – “You’re confusing ‘vegan’ with ‘vegetarian’!” -  I reject it as completely as I reject any notion that meat eating is wrong. \n\nSimply, a ‘vegan’ doesn’t use any animal products at all; a ‘vegetarian’ doesn’t eat any at all. That’s it. I am not interested in any other definition of the words, and these self-serving ovo- or lacto- rationalisations are good for a laugh but little else. If you use milk, eggs, honey, yoghurt or cheese in your diet you are not a vegetarian. All you are doing is transferring the moral burden of slaughtering animals to those of us who do eat their carcasses (and by and large don’t care about what happens to them in the process of becoming carcasses, Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall notwithstanding) by pretending that you don’t. \n\nIt always amuses me to read the pretentious gibberish from well-meaning prigs in the BBC, Minority Inclusion Twits in local government or other overpaid, interfering busybodies to the effect that vegetarians can lead a healthy lifestyle as long as they take into account that: \n\n“Foods such as eggs, nuts, seeds, beans, pulses, vegetable protein foods and soya products all contain protein. There are also small amounts in grains and dairy products.” 1  \n\nGet that? Eggs lead the way, folks. If you can’t get all the nutrition you need from a real vegetarian diet (and you can’t) then try using a fake vegetarian diet and telling everyone you’re a morally superior person because you don’t eat animals! Except you do. But hey, as long as you can convince yourself that chickens lay tofu, bees are actually a species of strawberry and milk comes from some kind of mutated juniper berry, you’ll be fine. \n\nIn the same vein – while I am concerned about dignifying their existence by even mentioning them - let me point out that “pollo-vegetarians”, “pesco-vegetarians” etc. etc. are no more vegetarians than I am. It’s like my claiming that I am a “bovo-vegetarian” or a “porci-vegetarian” because I eat beef and pork. Poultry and fish carcasses are meat, and people who eat them are meat eaters. End of argument. \n\nThe only kind of farming that supports an exterior, non-primary economy is intensive, inorganic farming, and if you find that ‘cruel’, then start eating rocks. Every cheese omelette you knock together supports that ‘cruelty’, and you’re stuck with that whether you like it or not. If you chose to doubt any of this, ask any dairy farmer what they do with their bull calves now that we are no longer allowed to eat veal. (I lived on the stuff when during a visit to Austria, by the way.) Choose the greenest, most tree-huggingest ‘organic’ farmer you can find, one with a t-shirt made of woven hemp and nettle flax with a self-righteous slogan ending with ‘No Thanks’ on it, and ask him a straightforward question – “What do you do when your milking cows give birth to bull calves?” Ooo, look, he’s staring at his toes and shuffling his feet in embarrassment. Here’s the skinny, folks – they shoot them and burn the bodies, because nobody is allowed to eat them so nobody will buy them, and they are worth nothing.  I mean, let’s not be too obvious about it but the modern dairy cow has been bred for milk production, not meat. Male calves of the pure dairy breed are seen by many farmers as a pest, vermin, a nuisance to be disposed of by any means possible.  Prior to the opprobrium heaped upon veal production and its virtual disappearance from the UK market, half a million calves about 2 week
331106
There are many Buddhist practices that are usable to people of all faiths. Many of the forms of meditation and much of the philosophical teachings are complimentary to the teaching you are familiar with. (I am a Buddhist, was born and raised Catholic and spent more then a few years deeply involved with a Baptist Church. I guess you could say I was  born again gone again) <Sorry, bad humor>\n\nAs far as the more religious venues of the faiths, from a Buddhist perspective it works because Buddhism is open to everyone. If you do not agree with something then you can ignore it. My path is not your path. If you choose to believe in one creator god, then that is your choice. You may still study the teachings of the Buddha and learn how to be more compassionate. If you choose to take refuge in the triple gem, you may do so regardless of your other religious affiliations. Thus, you could be a practicing Christian and a Buddhist as well. \n\nFrom a Christian perspective, taking refuge in the triple gem, (The Buddha, his teachings and his followers) would be considered blasphemous. Still, studding the lessons of the Buddha is not 'anti-Christian' other then to say that the teaching are from outside the bible and thus deemed unnecessary. Still, I don’t see the harm.  \n\nI hope this helps.
1140058
Buddhism is a path of practice and spiritual development leading to Insight into the true nature of life. Buddhist practices such as meditation are means of changing oneself in order to develop the qualities of awareness, kindness, and wisdom. The experience developed within the Buddhist tradition over thousands of years has created an incomparable resource for all those who wish to follow a path - a path which ultimately culminates in Enlightenment or Buddhahood.\n\nBecause Buddhism does not include the idea of worshipping a creator God, some people do not see it as a religion in the normal, Western sense. The basic tenets of Buddhist teaching are straightforward and practical: nothing is fixed or permanent; actions have consequences; change is possible. Thus Buddhism addresses itself to all people irrespective of race, nationality, or gender. It teaches practical methods (such as meditation) which enable people to realize and utilize its teachings in order to transform their experience, to be fully responsible for their lives and to develop the qualities of Wisdom and Compassion.\nBuddhism explains the reality of life and the universe: that all beings are equal by nature and that all teachings are equal. The Buddha said many times that the wisdom to understand the true reality of life and the universe, and the virtuous abilities to cultivate are all already within our true nature. Buddhism teaches us to have a broad mind, one that overflows with sincerity, purity, equality, proper understanding, and compassion. Everyday, we must strive to awaken to this reality. Being contented with all conditions and settings is a good example for all, and striving for attainment of freedom of mind and spirit will help to awaken. From this, we can see that the Buddha is a compassionate multicultural educator who is worthy of emulation.\nBuddhism is Not a Religion. According to the Webster's Dictionary, the definition of religion is as follows, "An organized system of beliefs, rites, and celebrations centered on a supernatural being power; belief pursued with devotion."\nBuddhism is not a religion because:\nbullet\n\nFirst, the Buddha is not a 'supernatural being power'. The Buddha is simply a person who has reached Complete Understanding of the reality of life and the universe. Life refers to ourselves, and universe refers to our living environment. The Buddha taught that all beings possess the same ability to reach Complete Understanding of themselves and their environment, and relieve themselves from all sufferings to attain utmost happiness. All beings can become Buddhas, and all beings and the Buddha are equal by nature. The Buddha is not a God, but a teacher, who teach us the way to restore Wisdom and Understanding by conquering the greed, hatred, and ignorance which blind us at the present moment. The word 'Buddha' is a Sanskrit word, when translated it means, "Wisdom, Awareness/Understanding". We call the founder of Buddhism Shakyamuni Buddha because He has attained Complete Understanding and Wisdom of life and the universe. Buddhism is His education to us, it is His teaching which shine the way to Buddhahood.\nbullet\n\nSecond, the 'belief' in the Buddha's teachings is not blind belief, or blind faith. Shakyamuni Buddha taught us not to blindly believe what he tells us, he wants us to try the teachings and prove them for ourselves. The Buddha wants us to know, not merely believe. The Buddha's teachings flow from his own experience and understanding of the truth, and shows us a path of our own to taste the truth for ourselves. The Buddha uses a perfectly scientific way of showing us reality in its true form.\nbullet\n\nThird, Buddhism is not a religion because all the 'rites and celebrations' are not centered on a supernatural being, but rather the people attending the assemblies. The ceremonies and celebrations in Buddhism all serve an educational purpose, a reminder of
958429
Few of the neo-Pagan religions require people to be vegetarians or vegans; certain traditions or sects might, but they tend to be fairly small.  Some religions may have prohibitions against specific *types* of food, especially in certain circumstances, but again, you're more apt to see this on the tradition level.\n\nThat said, there's a number of Pagans who are vegetarian or vegan, as a personal choice, often due to their religious beliefs.  At the same time, there's a number of Pagans who are decidedly omnivores, as a personal choice, due to their religous beliefs.  There's enough different interpretations that both are possible.
640360
I am vegetarian for the past 10 years. Vegetarian diet is healthy if we know how to eat right. There is no scientific prove to show that vegetarian diet helps in losing weight. Losing weight, regardless being vegetarian or none vegetarian, works on the same formula : calories input less than calories output.\nBeing a vegetarian, it is important to add protein like soya products, peas, dhals and so on. Enjoy vegetable fat and fats from the nuts in moderation. No matter what type of diet we take up,physical workout is the one matters more on our fitness level. Daily exercise gives us the energy and the healthy vegetarian diet is a bonus towards healthy life style. Good luck.
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You are both right.  It all depends on whether or not the practitioner is a believer or an atheist.\n\n If the practitioner believes in the Buddhist deities, then Buddhism is his/her religion. But if the practitioner is an atheist, then Buddhism is his/her philosophy.\n\n Its the same with Judaism. It all depends on whether or not the person is a believer or an atheist there too. If the person believes in God, then Judaism is his/her religion. But, if the person is an atheist, then Judaism is his/her culture.
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Some Buddhists in China and Vietnam also avoid eating strong-smelling plants such as onion, garlic, chives, shallot, and leek, and refer to these as wu hun (五葷, 'Five Spices'). One theory behind this Buddhist dietary restriction is that these vegetables have strong flavours which are supposed to excite the senses and, thus, represent a burden to Buddhists seeking to control their desires. Another theory is that these are all root crops, and harvesting them requires killing organisms in the soil.\n\ngood question aaron!
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It really depends. Vegetarians can get their protein from beans, nuts, tofu or dairy products. So they can in some cases consume more protein than someone who eats meat.\n\nSo there isn't a real answer to your question.
1182207
Buddhism is a path of practice and spiritual development leading to Insight into the true nature of life. Buddhist practices such as meditation are means of changing oneself in order to develop the qualities of awareness, kindness, and wisdom. The experience developed within the Buddhist tradition over thousands of years has created an incomparable resource for all those who wish to follow a path - a path which ultimately culminates in Enlightenment or Buddhahood.Buddhism does not include the idea of worshipping a creator God, some people do not see it as a religion in the normal, Western sense. The basic tenets of Buddhist teaching are straightforward and practical: nothing is fixed or permanent; actions have consequences; change is possible.\nthe 'devotion' used in Buddhism is not one based on emotion, but one based on reason.\nA Buddha is not omnipotent or all-powerful; otherwise the Buddha would have ended all suffering in the universe....\nHe did not claim that he was a god, the child of a god or even the messenger from a god.\nWhen we bow, we express our gratitude to the Buddha for what his teachings have given us. This is the nature of Buddhist worship.\nWhen someone worships a god, they praise him or her, making offerings and ask for favours, believing that the god will hear their praise, receive their offerings and answer their prayers. Real Buddhists do not indulge in this kind of worship.\n\nhence, the benefits of heart sutra is to understand our realities, not to 'pray' or 'worship' the words in the sutra.
340565
Not a vegetarian.  I guess my answer as to why I'm not a vegetarian is: why would I be one?  There are certain things that are harvested and sold as food products that I won't eat, but I still feel like animal meat is an essential part of the food chain.  One limit on food for me would be parts of the animal that are not technically muscle.  I won't eat things like hot dogs, which have all kinds of odds and ends in them.  Cow tongue is a muscle, but I wouldn't eat that either, unless I was starving.
197380
Yes you can. A  lot of Christians, mostly those that have never bothered to read much other than the Bible would say the answer is no. But incorporating Zen Buddhism I have found has made me a better Christian. I do not worship Buddha at all and I disagree with a lot of Buddhist teachings, however there are sects that don't promote the dogmatic aspect of Buddhism but instead act as more of a step by step  guide to being a better and more patient person. I've learnt a lot more about loving  and I mean really loving my fellow man by following Zen than I ever did in 27 years of faithfully going to church.
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Buddhists have been enjoying vegetarian dishes for centuries\n\n \n More of this Feature\n• Vegetarian FAQs\n \n From Other Guides\n• 5 Reasons for Being Vegetarian\n• Low Fat Vegetable/Vegetarian Recipes\n \nMention vegetarian cuisine and many people picture a group of aging hippies kneeling cross-legged around a communal dining table, helping themselves to carrot sticks dipped in yogurt or another plate of chickpea salad. While it's true that vegetarianism became trendy in the "psychedelic sixties," its origins date back much farther.  Pythagoras was a vegetarian (vegetarians were called Pythagoreans up until the 1800's) as was the poet Percy Shelley.  George Bernard Shaw, never one to shy from the spotlight, was a vocal proponent of a meat-free diet: \n\n"It is nearly fifty years since I was assured by a conclave of doctors that if I did not eat meat I should die of starvation." (Vegetariana: A Rich Harvest of Wit, Lore, and Recipes, by Nava Atlas)
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Buddhism is a philosophy, and so can be compatible with various religious beliefs. Christianity is a belief system, which makes it incompatible with other beliefs.
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I grew up in the West but since have embraced an eastern religion.  I am now a vegetarian, but it was not easy to make that change because meat-eating is such a given in my culture.  I think the main reason that modern Westerners tolerate meat-eating is that they take it for granted and do not think about it.  They grew up with it, so they just never think to question it.\n\nOriginally, meat-eating may have been necessary for people in cold climates in Europe or something.  Perhaps that is all they could find to eat to keep themselves alive in winter.  I know that even my own mother had to eat groundhog when she was a kid because that is literally all they could find to eat.\n\nBut once this becomes a part of the culture, people forget about the fact that what was once only done out of necessity is now done for pleasure.  People in my culture just love meat.  They don't like vegetables!  Eastern cuisines just know better what to do with vegetables!  They use spices and good sauces, whereas here, we basically just put butter, salt, and pepper on everything (usually out of a can at that).  So we think veggies taste bad!  \n\nAnother issue is the fact that some people purposely refuse to be vegetarians because they fear the stereotypical image that some vegetarians have.  They do not want to be seen as a "New Age liberal freak."  That's really how a lot of people see vegetarianism where I am.  \n\nThe Bible says that God put man over the animals and nature to "have dominion."  But instead of seeing this as a responsibility to care for the animals and plants, too many people see in this a justification to USE animals and plants to whatever benefit we can derive from them.  Most Christians I have talked to about this say that animals do not have souls, and that they were put here strictly for OUR purposes.  I believe that this is merely an attempt to justify their actions.  I do not think that is what the Bible originally intended.  In fact, the Bible depicts 2 times in history that are vegetarian:  the Garden of Eden, and the Messianic Era - the times where things are right and done in the proper way.
446662
Absolutely. I was a lacto vegetarian for three years. It got pretty lonely as even my family would avoid me and not invite me to family dinners because they thought I was just being too weird. It would have been nice to talk to someone more like me. That would be a pretty silly reason not to date someone, though. I don't care what others do or don't eat as long as they are not cannibals!