Taking A Stand

[Guest guest]

Taking a Stand By Ven. Abhinaya

 

Some time ago I picked up a Buddhist magazine, on the cover of which was

a design purporting to show the hand of the Buddha turning the

Dharma-wheel. On the back cover however, there was a commercial

advertising , among other things, meat and fish for sale. Strange

companions, front and back !

 

Certainly, I am aware that money must be raised for the publishing of

such magazines ; it doesn't grow on trees. But I also think that

discretion should be used in the selection of advertisements to be

included in Buddhist magazines, even if it means rejecting some and

thereby losing some funds ; after all, the purpose of publishing such

magazines is to propagate the Dharma, is it not ? If we compromise our

principles, we defeat our purpose.By allowing the pages of a Buddhist

magazine to be used for advertising meat for sale , we are even if only

indirectly condoning killing.

 

Indefensible

 

Feel free to disagree ; it won't prevent me speaking out. Some Buddhists

maintain that the Buddha never said we should be vegetarians, and that

monks ( who the bulk of the Buddhist rules apply to ), may eat whatever

is offered to them, as long as they do not see, hear, or suspect that

the animals, fish or fowl were killed especially for them ; if they so

see, hear or suspect, they are forbidden to eat the flesh. But this

standpoint is totally indefensible, as anyone who look sat things a

little objectively can see. And to say, as some people do, that by

eating meat, they are helping the animals with their spiritual growth,

is too ridiculous and transparent to be seriously considered for a

moment.

 

Firstly, the Buddha never called anyone to believe or follow Him ;

instead, He urged people to see for themselves and find out what is

true. Even so, many Buddhists become prisoners of books, repeating

things like parrots or tape-recorders, without investigating, thereby

missing the great value of the Buddha's Way, which is a Way of

self-reliance. He exhorted people to " Test my Teachings as a gold-smith

would test gold , " and " Workout your own salvation with diligence " (

according to the Buddhist scriptures, these were His last words ), and

not depend upon Him to save them,because " Buddhas are only Teachers ;

they do but point the Way " which is the most that anyone can do ;

belief in saviours is regarded as a myth, with no foundation in fact.

 

Metta-Karuna

 

To use scripture to justify the disgusting and cruel habit of eating

meat is both dishonest and unworthy. I've never been able to reconcile

the preaching of Metta-Karuna ( Loving-Kindness & Compassion ) with the

practice of meat-eating ; they contradict each other. And as to seeing,

hearing or suspecting that the animal was killed especially for someone,

well ,for whom is the animal killed if not for those who eat its flesh ?

No amount of twisting , juggling and verbal gymnastics can get around

that. If nobody ate meat, the butcher would not kill the animals. This

is not only obvious to everyone except those who refuse to see, but is

in line with the Buddha's teachings about the Law of Dependent

Origination, or Cause-and-Effect in the moral realm, whereby it is shown

how one thing leads to another in a chain-like sequence.

 

Let us examine the eating of meat by this doctrine, and see what it

involves :

 

T he Consumer

 

The consumer likes to eat meat, and his desire to do so is the main

force that keeps this Killing Wheel turning.

 

T he Killer

 

Because of people's habit of eating meat, others see a way of earning a

living and take up the gun and knife to engage in butchery. There will

always be butchers and war and senseless destruction of life, as long as

people condone killing ; it is a matter of demand and-supply : if there

is a market for meat, some will try to supply it just as with drugs, sex

and weapons.

 

T he Animals

 

The animals are victims of the unwholesome desire for flesh. Though it

may be the karma of the animals to be killed as some believe that does

not excuse the killer. The cause produces the effect, and the effect, in

turn, becomes the cause of other effects, and so on.

 

T he Buyer

 

The butcher kills for money. If nobody ate meat, the butcher would have

to find another job. Those who buy and eat meat keep the butcher's hands

bloody, and the only people to whom this is not clear are those who do

not want to see.

 

Demand

 

It is like the trade in ivory and rhinoceros-horn : because of the

demand for these things,elephants and rhinos have been hunted and killed

to the point where they are now in danger of extinction. Ivory is prized

for its beauty and rhino-horn for what is believed to be its

aphrodisiacal-properties, which is probably just another silly and cruel

superstition. In order to boost their libido, or sexual energy so they

believe people are prepared to let these magnificent animals be shot and

left to rot on the African veldt. The poachers who kill them cannot be

totally blamed for this, as they are just one link in the chain, and not

the main link, either. Most of them are just poor tribesmen who also

need to live,and the possibility of making big money far outweighs the

risk of getting caught and prosecuted. No, the buyers and users of the

animal products are the real cause of this, and there is no getting away

from the fact. Stop the demand, and the supply will cease. What a pity

people are so selfish and stupid much more so than the animals on which

they look down with scorn !

 

Someone once told me of a high-ranking Tibetan lama appearing surprised

to learn she was vegetarian,and asked her why. And, far from praising

and encouraging her for abstaining from meat, he even disapproved of it

( may be because, being carnivorous himself and greatly attached to the

taste of meat ,he took it as a criticism of his habit ).

 

Consequences

 

Some years ago, in Malaysia, I was invited to stay in someone's home,

where I was served nice vegetarian food. One day, I went into the

kitchen to get some water, but my way was barred by the son of the house

; his mother was there eating her lunch. She knew I knew she was not

vegetarian, but was embarrassed that I should see her eating meat.

However,it was her house, not mine ; I was only the guest there. If she

wanted to eat meat, she should have done so without being ashamed ; the

fact that she was ashamed was a sign she had reservations about it.

 

If a person wants to eat meat, let him at least be honest about it and

admit he likes it ,and not use the scriptures to justify it , as that is

cowardly and unscrupulous. Let him also be prepared to accept the

consequences of his involvement in killing, without complaining or

blaming others for whatever happens to him, for he is surely involved.

 

Because of Tibet's altitude,few vegetables will grow there and so the

diet of the people is largely and unavoidably animal-based. The majority

of Tibetans are Buddhists and very pious as such. They scrupulously

avoid killing anything even to the extent of beating firewood vigorously

on the ground to shake free any insects before burning it.How, then, do

they get the meat they eat ?

 

The butchers of Tibet are Muslims,who are regarded by the Buddhists as

low caste or defiled because of their livelihood. The Buddhists

obviously do not see the discrepancy in their outlook on this, which

smells strongly of hypocrisy.

 

" If you delight in killing, you cannot fulfil yourself, " wrote Lao Tsu

in the Tao Te Ching. Are these just empty words ? How shall one attain

Enlightenment except by opening one's heart and becoming sensitive to

the rights and feelings of others ? We do not live by and for ourselves

alone. What kind of Enlightenment is it if we are indifferent to the

pain and suffering of others? Enlightenment is not just something to be

hopefully attained as a result of following the Dharma, but should be

something that manifests in our lives as we go about our daily living.

 

Movement

 

Now, suppose one person here perhaps you and another one there, starts

to think about this, and reflects thus : " If no-one ate meat or wore

furs or skins, the animals would not be killed for such. I do not agree

with killing, for the animals have the right to live and do not want to

die just like me. I can live quite well on vegetables, and so, as a

protest against killing and as an expression of sympathy for the

animals, I will become vegetarian from now on. " Let us further imagine

what would happen if the 300,000-plus monks in Thailand where Buddhism,

for the most part, has become passive and moribund decided to stop

eating meat, and asked the lay-people to offer them only vegetarian food

: Every day, millions of animals cows, pigs, goats, chickens,

ducks,fish, prawns,etc.would not be needlessly slaughtered ; many

lay-people would also probably become vegetarians. But I am happy to

report that now, at last, there is a new movement in Thailand which is

making quite an impression. The monks of this movement are strict

vegetarians, which is something I never expected to see there, but am

certainly very happy about. They lead simple lives, free from the modern

paraphernalia that fills many of the monasteries these days, and wander

around preaching.So there is hope ; it all depends upon understanding,

and begins with people like you and I .

 

Short-sighted

 

Many people mistakenly think that, alone, they can do nothing to change

the world, and that whatever they might do will make no difference. This

is weak-minded,short-sighted and wrong and, because so many people have

been touched by the Story of the Stranded Starfish in one of my previous

books, I will not ask pardon for repeating it here, so that it might

touch others.

 

Early one morning, a man went to the beach, and, while strolling along

there, he noticed,some distance ahead of him, a young boy frequently

bending down to pick things up and throw them into the sea. At first, he

thought it must be stones the boy was throwing, but as he got nearer to

him, he realized it was starfish. When he caught up with the boy, he

asked him why he was doing this, and the boy replied that the tide was

ebbing and the starfish were stranded on the beach, unable to get back

into the water, and would die of exposure as the sun rose higher in the

sky and became hotter. The man looked at the starfish all over the

beach,and said : " But there are millions of starfish on this beach ;

how can your efforts make any difference? " The boy looked at the

starfish he was holding, then looked up at the man and said: " It will

make a difference to this one ! " and flung it back into the sea.

 

Can you put yourself into the place of that starfish? It is most

important, on a spiritual path, to be able to identify and empathize

with others, including animals.

 

We cannot force anyone else to change, but we can change ourselves, and

thereby change the world, as we are part of the world, and if we change,

the world also changes, be it ever so little. Don't always wait for

others to make the first move, therefore ; if you are convinced a thing

is right , follow it ; no matter if it seems that you are all alone, you

should know that you are never really alone.

 

Suffering

 

Are you concerned about suffering ? If so, you should know that it is

not something personal, like your private property, but something common

and world-wide. If you do not like to suffer, do something. Don't just

call yourself a Buddhist,and wait for someone to help you ; do something

yourself ! Calling oneself Buddhist or any other name for that matter (

this is meant not just for Buddhists ) has very little meaning. But to

be aware that we can do something to make our world a little bit better,

instead of worse, and to do it, that is something ! " Morality, " as

philosopher George Santayana said, " is the desire to lessen suffering

in the world. " Now, what do you think: Does eating meat increase or

decrease the suffering in the world ?

 

People become vegetarians for different reasons, but to abstain from

eating meat because one think sit is better for health or for making

merit ,or from the consideration that a chicken or fish might have been

one's relative or friend in a previous lifetime, are not Buddhist

reasons for being vegetarian. A Buddhist abstains from eating meat

because he knows it is right to abstain, and not from what he might get,

personally, from doing so. He is a vegetarian for the sake of the

animals, not for his own sake ; he considers the effects of his actions

upon others.

 

Mind of our own

 

Forget about what the Buddha may or may not have said about eating meat

; He died a longtime ago, and none of us ever met Him. We are not the

slaves of the Buddha or are we? but have minds of our own, which He

exhorted us to use. The animals are being killed right now, often with

our tacit consent and approval. What do you think about this? While it

means food for many, money for others and sport for some, for the

animals themselves it means suffering and death. Surely, this deserves

some thought. We should not be so subjective, always looking at things

from our own viewpoint, wondering how we can make use of things for our

own ends. The viewpoint we should look at meat-eating from is that of

the animals,is it not ? Try to put yourself in their position, and see

how it feels.

 

Now, reading this, some people monks and non-monks will probably fall

back on the old worn-out argument: " But Buddhist monks are not allowed

to ask for anything special for themselves, saying, like this or I don't

like that.They are supposed to eat whatever people are kind enough to

offer to them, without making a fuss and causing inconvenience to their

supporters. " Yes, it is good for monks to refrain from being fussy and

choosy, but if they were to request people to offer them only meatless

food, they would not be asking for themselves, but for the sake of the

animals; their asking would be altruistic instead of selfish. And it

would benefit the people who offer as well as the animals, for their

offerings would involve less suffering and so would be more meritorious.

From every point-of-view, therefore including health and economy

vegetarianism is better. And, as for the lame excuse that,without eating

meat, we would not get enough nourishment and would be weak and sickly,

well, what about elephants, horses, cows, buffaloes, etc.? They are

herbivorous, and are not weak ! It is our minds that are weak, not our

bodies ! So, why hesitate ? Is it because of attachment to taste ? Is it

because we might find it inconvenient to change our diet? Do we live to

eat, or eat to live ? In order for us to eat meat, the animals must be

killed. Is that not a great inconvenience for them ?

 

Attachment

 

Ah, attachment! Some people may counter what I have said above by saying

we can be attached to vegetarianism, too, and that attachment is

attachment in any form, and end sin suffering ; we can be bound just as

firmly with gold chains as iron chains,and should follow the Middle Way

that avoids extremes. But is this so? Isn't it a matter of who and how ?

Following the Middle Way doesn't mean living in a non-committal,

wishy-washy manner, without principles or firm foundations; nor does it

mean following a set of rules imposed upon us or adopted from outside.

Following the Middle Way means living according to our understanding,

and trying to keep Dharma at the center as a focal point, not self; we

can still be flexible while holding fast to the essence and not

compromising one's principles ; it must come from inside from

realization of how things are not outside. The MiddleWay or Noble

Eightfold Path on paper, is a general guideline, and must be seen as

such ; the Way is not in the books, but in walking it, not a concept or

doctrine, but a living thing of experience. And some of the Buddha's

final words were : " Be an island unto yourself ; be a lamp unto

yourself ; be a refuge unto yourself. With the Dharma as your refuge,

look not outside of yourself for a refuge. " He did not mean cling to it

as a personal possession and become attached to it,considering it a

thing of self, but to abide by it, live by it, accord with it,for in so

doing, we may break free of the idea of self. And the basic Five

Precepts covering our relationships with other living things (not just

people) are designed to help us refrain from causing suffering.

 

To understand ourselves which is what the Dharma is all about we must

see ourselves in context, for alone and in isolation, there is no

meaning ; we simply do not exist like that. If we follow the Way from

fearful self-concern, far from getting what we hope to get,we only cause

ourselves more suffering. To become vegetarian with the idea of getting

something in return, such as merit, or better health, demonstrates the

kind of attachment that causes suffering ; but to do it with the idea of

lessening the suffering of others, means abiding in Dharma ; we cannot

call this attachment.

 

Support

 

It is often difficult to talk about vegetarianism to non-vegetarians,

for there is always the implication of criticism or disapproval of their

meat-eating indeed, just being vegetarian,without saying a word, is to

make a statement and few of us can accept criticism gracefully, even

when it is constructive, as in talk about vegetarianism. But if we

refrain from saying what needs to be said because we think people may

not like it and therefore might not support us, truth will be fettered

and gagged.Is this why there is so little Dharma-propagation in many of

the big and rich temples in Asia, where, more often than not, ceremonies

and superstition hold center-place, and crowd out all else ?

 

We must sometimes choose between speaking the truth and being popular,

as the truth is often unpopular. May be this is why Lao Tsu said: " The

wise person hears of the Tao [ Way,or Dharma ], and follows it

carefully. The average person hears of the Tao, and thinks about it now

and then. The foolish person hears of the Tao, and laughs aloud. If

there were no laughter, the Tao would not be what it is. " Thus, the

laughter of fools, who are unable or refuse to comprehend, is a tribute

to Tao. The praise of fools is something more to be concerned about than

their laughter, while the criticism and censure of the wise should be

taken to heart.

 

If we wish to propagate Dharma,there is an element of risk involved ; we

must face the possibility of being unpopular, as we cannot please

everyone, and if we try, we might end up pleasing no one. We may dilute

the Dharma to suit the tastes of those who are unable or unwilling to

accept it as it is, but what would happen to the quality ? There would

hardly be any flavor left !

 

Many Westerners, new to Buddhism, spontaneously become vegetarians as a

result when they hear the teachings about Compassion and Respect for

Life. What a pity,therefore, that many allow themselves to be influenced

and persuaded into dropping their gentler mode of eating when they come

into contact with forms of Buddhism that do not espouse vegetarianism,

instead of persisting in it. It's a pity they lack the courage of their

convictions, and conform, for the sake of convenience or so as not to be

different.

 

Should we not find out for ourselves what is right and wrong, true and

false? In this world of confusion,where it is hard to resist the

pressure to conform, if we know a thing to be right, should we not try

to abide by it ? Not to do so would be to lose the precious little

integrity we might have and which we must try to increase. Why should we

follow others, like sheep ? Is it because we think others always know

where they are going, while we do not ? Using the Dharma and seeing

things as they are, we have a way to develop clearer vision and more

self-confidence than this.

 

To conclude : Just as it is natural for a flower to give off scent, so

Vegetarianism should be a natural expression of our understanding that,

just as we ourselves wish to be happy and avoid pain,other living things

feel exactly the same way. Is it really so esoteric that only very few

people are able to comprehend this ? I don't think so, and therefore

I'll continue to stand up for the animals, and say :

 

Stop killing !

 

Be kind to animals by not eating them !

 

About the author

 

Venerable Abhinyana was born in 1946, in England to a Protestant family.

In 1970, during summer holidays in India, he made his first contact with

Buddhism and found out this religion was what he needed to follow and

practice. Finally, in 1972, he left his home and became Buddhist monk in

the Thai Theravada Tradition in Malaysia. From 1979 he started his

teaching career here and there, to provide the teachings of Buddha for

everyone with the purpose of helping them get rid of their suffering and

achieve happiness.Especially, he spent much time in helping Vietnamese

refugees in Malaysia, Philippines, Indonesia, Hong Kong, Singapore and

Thailand.

Venerable Abhinyana is constantly travelling to offer the Dharma talk

for those wishing to learn and practice Buddhism.

Courtesy of Venerable Abhinyana.Universal Dharma Website. Published in

PDF by Shabkar.Org, Amsterdam 2006.