meenakshiamman

Wow, even though I am not completely vegan at the moment, I don't understand such hostility towards it. This is an issue mostly about commercial milk...especially in America, Canada and England. If you know of a good company that you personally trust to get quality milk from (and who treat their cows decently) then drink it. Otherwise, why would you contribute to one of the most corrupt industries on earth as the mass meat industry? This isn't just about "saving the cows" but also about helping the planet. Going vegan also helps the environment as the meat industry is a major contributor to global warming. Also, the meat industries in America (I can't speak for other countries at the moment) are running mostly on illegal immigrant workers....whom they can get away with abusing and severely underpaying. I can't believe how much people take all of this for granted. Being vegan is not very difficult, nor extreme. Like all things, if you WANT to do it, you can. We have to end this corrupt cycle somehow. At the very least you can say to yourself "I don't have anything to do with this."

Thank you so much for the above answers. They make a lot of sense. Also, don't get me wrong. When I say "Idea" I only meant that so many people have different points of views, not that they make them up themselves...or that they are "made up" at all. I do believe in striving for God along your own path...it's just that when I've gone to ISKCON, everyone acts as if Krsna is the only path for anyone. They could be giving off this message without intending to do so. It could also be an after effect of growing up Christian. Everything is so cement...I'm not used to such flexibility. Still though, I found it odd that I already knew about so much that has been mentioned in this thread...and yet I did not know the answer to the question I asked above. It seemed as if it should've been addressed to me earlier at the temple....or perhaps I just hadn't asked the right questions. Thanks again.

OK, I have a beginner's question myself. I have been regularly going to an ISKCON temple for a while now, and have been reading the Bhagavad-Gita (As It Is, since I got it from their shop). I've also gotten free literature from them which I have scanned. Still, however, my head is left quite fuzzy on some of the basic ideas that they seem to want to get across. I understand that "Krsna Consciousness" is to think of Krsna all the time and do things only in His honor. Still, I am confused...why is it "Krsna" consciousness in particularly? Why is it not Siva consciousness or Mahadevi consciousness etc.? This is, as far as I can tell, the main goal of many religions...to constantly live and work in the honor of their idea of God. Why Krsna in particularly? I need a direct and well-defined answer. I understand that ISKCON is of the belief that Krsna is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, but not a single person or bit of literature has actually explained to me why. It is always stated as if it is a given. I ask this question with no bitterness and with no intent to offend anyone. I just want to know. Thank you.

Certainly, there are good things within it. No denying that. However, it is erratic due to the strange logic of whoever decided to put all these different books by so many different people (and so many different time periods) into one book. This just scratches the surface of such problems... Sorry for slightly derailing the topic.

This is a great topic! Just shortly after I got married (about 3 years ago), I "converted" to veganism (after being a strict vegetarian for much of my life) for a few months. I had no problems, but my family went crazy...and when I became very sick with a virus for two months, they of course blamed it on my "unwise dietary decision". My mother pleaded with me to go back to dairy products, even so far as having my doctor call me and tell me to "eat a balanced diet". Over time I gave in, but still didn't eat much....then I read about milk being holy and how one should drink it and cherish products made of milk. I then started going back fully fledged into dairy products. Now I'm at a crossroads. I certainly do not approve of the mass meat industry in the slightest. Their system is lower than low. Still though, being a vegan is not the easiest thing in the world...and milk is still wonderful. We have a local dairy farm nearby who distributes their own products in our local stores. I would buy from them but am not sure how ethical they are or now. It's a multi-faceted topic...but I do agree that we should all boycott the mass meat industry as much as possible.

This is so true. I grew up attending Fundamentalist/Baptist owned Christian schools and we spent great lengths of time in our history classes, dwelling on the Foxe's Book of Martyrs and how Catholics are/were evil. A big problem with Fundamentalists however, and other denominations of Christianity in general...is the Bible. At least their version of it. The Bible as we know it is incomplete, has been tampered with and is in need of some subtractions and additions of a few books. Also the idea that every word is completely "innerent" and should be taken without question at face value is another issue. Large parts of Christianity have become a cult for a book instead of faith in God and attaining spirituality.

It seems you have no idea why these bad things are happening to you. Pointing at others and blaming others for your problems, shows that there is a big problem with yourself. Too often people point the finger at an invisible evil-doer or "magician" but could you point out this awful person in the street? Would you point to the right person? People have to deal with so many awful things in this age. Not just you. The things you've described are being suffered by almost everyone. How many people have lost their parents? How many people suffer from chronic pain and/or suffering of some type? Can we all just easily blame it on someone else who has cursed us? Do these tantrics have so much time in their day to curse everyone? Lastly, what can we do about it? Nothing. God/The Lord is the only presence that can do anything about our problems. But the Lord will also help those who help themselves. If you are having health problems...address them. God did not grant you a working brain to waste it. Read up on your health problems, get as healthy as you can by your own means. Help your mother as much as you can. It takes a true effort to cause a bad tide to turn. This age may be tough, but there is so much knowledge out there to help us. We simply need to bother tapping into it. Ignorance is truly one of our biggest enemies...and allowing ourselves to succumb to evil is an outward sign of such ignorance.