Is eating fish and meat wrong?
I have independently been practicing Nichiren Buddhism for about 1 year and have received tremendous benefit from my practice; but recently have been really trying to understand whether eating meat and fish is a contradiction in practicing Buddhism.
I have read quite a few articles lately that state that Shakyamuni was against eating meat and others that mention that he was not a vegetarian.
Also, I dress professionally for work everyday and realized I have been wearing leather shoes everyday; I guess this is another negative.
Although I am receiving benefits from my practice; I am starting to feel that I might need to make some major changes in order to continue practicing correctly.
I am really confused on this matter and wanted to know what everyone's thoughts were on the subject.
7 comments
It is a paradox. Life is only sustained through killing and yet the first precept is to not kill. Some people claim Shakyamuni never ate meat, some say tainted meat killed him. Nichiren was a vegetarian. But he said precepts were unnecessary. In the Mahayana sutras meat eating is denounced. But according to the Pali Canon Shakyamuni did not go along with Devadatta's suggestion to put vegetarianism in the rules of the monastic order. My sense is that a vegetarian diet would be ideal but not obligatory.
I agree with Clown. Overall, the point is to value your own life and recognize that it is sustained by the lives of countless other beings and organisms. Maybe this awareness can help us be more selective about what we eat, as well as be grateful for our life and the lives of others.There have been some good articles lately along the lines of "plants have feelings, too" -- one that comes to mind is this one by Natalie Angier:
I thank you both for your responses. May I ask if you both are vegetarians.If so, what is the best way to begin such a huge change in diet.
I can assure you the change is difficult, especially if you live in a community that has no vegetarian restaurants, and even then the ones that are there are more and more becoming vegan, which is a protest. I know of one person that said it is too expensive to be a vegan, so she remains only vegetarian. :)Myself, I have just become content to limit my intake of meat. My work requires me to eat out every day and there is just so much Mexican food a person can eat. Pasta is good, but try finding it without some kind of meat in it at most places.
I was a vegetarian for most of fifteen years. I still ate dairy. But I started eating meat again about 15 years ago. When I read Eat Right For Your Type which lead me to think meat eating was something I needed to do. I am thinking about going back. It's not that hard. You want to eat nuts and beans for protein lots of vegetables and fruit and cut down or out junk food even if it is vegetarian. I guess in some places it's harder to eat out vegetarian but I'm sure it can be done.
I eat meat and fish. I don't think twice about it - except to consider the quality, source and sustainability of the items I buy. I used to eat a lot of shrimp for protein thinking it was better for being lower on the food chain than cows. Then I read an article about how commercial shrimp are farmed, and that turned me off shrimp. I believe in eating quality food, humanely raised whenever possible, and eating it in moderation. I don't think my diet is going to make me more or less enlightened.
I consider myself a social vegetarian. I don't buy meat or order it in restaurants. But if I am invited to someone's home for dinner, I will eat whatever I am served. I will partake of holiday turkey. I will eat meat in social settings where it would cause comment, concern, trouble, work or embarrassment for others if I were to insist on being a strict vegetarian.