Vegetarianism is defined as the avoidance of foods obtained by killing animals. Over the years, vegetarianism has gained a growing number of followers. In my own home country, the Netherlands, the percentage of vegetarians increased from 1.9% of the total population in 1999 to 4.5% in 2005. What can be so attractive about the vegetarian diet?
Vegetarianism dates back a long time. The first famous vegetarian in history was the Greek statesman, mathematician, and philosopher Pythagoras (569-475 BC). He abolished animal sacrifice under his rule and was a fervent advocate of abstinence from meat throughout his life. He is considered the founder of vegetarianism in Europe and even as late as the 19th century, vegetarians were still called ‘Pythagoreans’. Pythagoras was a vegetarian primarily for moral reasons. He was deeply convinced that the killing of animals for personal consumption was an act of terrible barbarism, leading to the moral and spiritual decline of man.
“As long as man continues to be the ruthless destroyer of lower beings, he will never know health or peace. As long as men slaughter animals, they will slaughter each other. Indeed, whoever sows the seed of murder and pain cannot reap joy and love”. Pythagoras
In India, Gandhi echoed the beliefs of Pythagoras in his impassioned assertion that “the greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated.” Recently, this statement became the inspiration behind a new animal rights political party in the Netherlands, which won two seats in parliament in the recent November 2006 elections.
People become vegetarian for different reasons. Some choose the vegetarian lifestyle for health-related reasons, others become vegetarians as a silent protest against the suffering and mistreatment of animals in slaughterhouses, while others avoid meat for spiritual reasons. The Buddhist vegetarian diet is a logical consequence of the Buddha’s doctrine of *ahimsa* or non-violence towards all sentient beings. Eating meat is considered to be part of the process of killing and thus takes you away from the path to enlightenment. Fruits and vegetables are believed to promote physical and mental purity, while meat clouds the mind and hinders meditation. Spiritual philosopher Sri Chinmoy explains: “When we eat meat and fish, the aggressive animal consciousness enters us. Our nerves become agitated, restless and aggressive, and this can interfere with our meditation.”
Opponents of vegetarianism often claim that a vegetarian diet misses out on essential nutrients, especially protein. However, this claim has never been supported by scientific evidence and is simply a widespread myth, as all essential nutrients are readily available from vegetarian sources, including fruits, vegetables, grains, dairy, nuts, and seeds.
More recently, a contrary view has gained wider public appeal, arguing that not avoiding but eating meat poses considerable health risks. This view has been scientifically proven, as meat eaters tend to consume unhealthy fats and excess protein, which increases the risk of cardiovascular disease. To quote Dr. William Castelli, director of the Framingham Heart Study, “Vegetarians have the best diet. They have the lowest rates of coronary heart disease… Some people make fun of vegetarians, but they have a fraction of our heart attack rate and only have a 40 percent of our cancer rate. Studies carried out in England and Germany have also shown this proportion of 40 percent.
Finally, the vegetarian diet could prove to be a solution to the world food problem. Roughly half of the world’s corn crops go to livestock, while an average of 40,000 children die of hunger every day. The same food that is now fed to animals for meat production could end world hunger. The environment would also benefit from the change in diet. Livestock consumes much more land, crops and energy than agriculture. Large parts of the tropical rainforests of South America are cut down to grow food for livestock. The earth suffers even more from the emission of nitrogen caused by animal manure, which causes acid rain and the contamination of our drinking water.
The world’s greatest mathematician, himself a devout vegetarian, sums it up beautifully:
“Nothing will benefit human health and increase the chances of survival of life on earth as much as the evolution towards a vegetarian diet” Albert Einstein
*Sources: http://www.vegetarians.nl (website of the Dutch Vegetarian Association)
http://www.pcrm.org/health/veginfo/vegetarian_foods.html (Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine website)