Buddhism and Veganism Read online

  Vegan Publishers

  Danvers, Massachusetts

  www.veganpublishers.com

  © 2018 by Will Tuttle, Ph.D.

  All rights reserved. No portion of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever, without written permission, except in critical articles and reviews. For more information, please contact the publisher directly.

  Cover art by Madeleine Tuttle

  Illustrations by Madeleine Tuttle

  Design & typesetting by Nicola May Design

  ISBN: 978-1-940184-53-1

  Table of Contents

  Foreword: Honoring the One Body of Life

  Joel & Michelle Levey

  Introduction: Do Buddhist Teachings Mandate Veganism?

  Will Tuttle

  Essays:

  Buddhist Foundations for Veganism

  Vegan Dharma

  David Blatte

  Buddhism and Vegetarianism: What the Sutras State

  Tony Page

  Vegetarianism in Chinese Buddhism

  Jun Gong

  Buddhism: The Hidden Thread

  Will Tuttle

  Vegan Perspectives from Primarily Mahayana Contexts

  Engaged Veganism and Interbeing with Other Animals

  Marion Achoulias

  Five Contemplations: A Mahayana Meal-time Blessing

  Heng Sure

  Compassion: The Heart of the Buddhist Teachings

  Tracey Glover

  Descending Into the Canyon: A Heart Broken Open

  Joanne Cacciatore

  Awakening Awakening of the Heart

  Sherry Morgado

  Eat Your Way to Wisdom

  Ven. Xianqing

  May All Beings Be Happy

  Vicki Seglin

  Birthday Crashing and Spiritual Awakening

  Paul Tarchichi

  Waking Up with Each Bite: Contemplations for Meals

  Andrew Bear

  Vegan Perspectives from Primarily Theravada Contexts

  Where the Dharma and Animals Meet

  Bob Isaacson

  One Man’s Commitment to a Revolution of the Spirit

  Ariel Nessel

  Are Vipassana and Veganism Compatible?

  William DiGiorgio

  Vegan Perspectives from Primarily Vajrayana Contexts

  What is Negativity?

  John Bussineau

  Born to This World a Bodhisattva

  Alan Dale

  Dark Alleys and Bright Aisles

  Tashi Nyima

  Conclusion: The Beckoning Path

  Will Tuttle

  Tree Shadow

  Madeleine Tuttle

  Afterword: May All Life Be Loved

  Master Ma Chuo

  Contributor Profiles

  FOREWORD

  Honoring the One Body of Life

  Joel & Michelle Levey

  Can you imagine what it would be like to live in a world based on the principle of non-harming?

  It’s our pleasure and honor to offer this foreword to Buddhism and Veganism, joining the assembled authors of this brilliant, timely, and consciousness-raising book that invites readers to take a big step forward towards bringing this transformative vision of possibility to life in our world.

  Albert Einstein reminds us, “A problem cannot be solved at the same level of thinking that created it… We shall require a substantially new manner of thinking if humankind is to survive.” With every bite of food we eat, with every purchase of products we make, our wisdom eyes and hearts may be open or closed. In myriad moments each day, the impact of our intentions and choices ripple across the universe linking our lives with the lives of all beings. The Buddhist precepts, or “Mindfulness Precepts” as Zen Master Thich Nhat Hahn calls them, provide a profound and essential set of guidelines that support the flow of mindfulness into ways of living that are ever wiser and kinder.1

  While many Buddhist teachers admit that it is impossible to practice the precepts perfectly, these guidelines function as a kind of spiritual North Star guiding our actions and intentions in the most liberating and beneficial direction for ourselves and others. As we practice them, our insight into our interdependence with all living beings naturally deepens and our compassionate concern expands. We become ever more care-full, or kindful, in finding a path through life that avoids directly or indirectly harming other living beings. While this can be a challenging, and even disturbing, aspiration to live with, when approached from a Dharma point of view, it can be a profoundly meaningful, effective, and liberating path toward awakening to our true nature and highest potential, and to helping others do the same.

  In the Mahaparinirvana Sutra, expressing the Buddha’s final teachings, the Awakened One spoke to Kasyapa, saying:

  “Blessed son, those who have the mindfulness of the sravakas [Buddhist disciples] are not allowed to eat meat from now on. Even if one is offered meat with genuine faith, one should see it as the flesh of one’s own son.

  Bodhisattva Kasyapa asked Buddha, “Lord, why do you not allow the eating of meat?”

  Buddha replied, “Blessed son, eating meat hinders the development of compassion; therefore, all who follow the way of the Buddha should not eat meat from now on. Kasyapa, wherever a meat eater lies, sits, or walks other sentient beings become fearful upon smelling him. Blessed son, just as when a man eats garlic others will keep away because of his bad smell, likewise, when animals smell the meat eater, they fear death...”

  Kasyapa asked Buddha, “Lord, as monks, nuns and novice monks are dependent on other people for their food, what should they do when they are offered food with meat?”

  Buddha replied to Kasyapa, “Separate the food and meat, wash the food, and then eat. You may use your begging bowl if it does not have the smell or taste of meat; otherwise you should wash the bowl. If the food has too much meat, one should not accept it. Do not eat food if you see that there is meat in it; if you do you will accumulate demerit. There will be no end if I speak thoroughly about the reasons I do not allow meat eating. I have given a brief reply because the time has come for my parinirvana.”2

  The universally respected 19th-century Tibetan master Patrul Rinpoche echoed this teaching for those following in the Buddha’s footsteps, “As Buddhists we have taken the triple refuge [the Buddha, the Dharma and the Sangha]. To take refuge in the Dharma, one must practice non-violence to sentient beings. Thus, if we continue to eat meat—which has come from the slaughtering of innocent animals—then is this not a contradiction of our Buddhist commitments?”3

  At the conclusion of his essay titled “On Meat Eating,” the renowned contemporary lama Chatral Rinpoche wrote,

  Knowing all of the faults of meat and alcohol, I have made a commitment to give them up in front of the great Bodhi tree in Bodhgaya with the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas of the ten directions as my witnesses. I have also declared this moral to all my monasteries. Therefore, anyone who listens to me is requested not to transgress this crucial aspect of Buddhist ethical conduct…

  Those who argue that Buddha’s condemnation of meat applies only to the seven classes of Theravadayana vows and is not related to the Mahayana and Vajrayana are clearly indicating their lack of proper knowledge. They have not seen the following Mahayana sutra passage: “Meat-eating is a diet that convolutes the three realms [of Samsara]. It is a sword that severs the potential for liberation. It is a fire that burns the seed of Buddhahood. It is a shaft of lightning that ends rebirth in the higher realms or a precious human rebirth.”4

  Many more renowned adepts have condemned meat as a poisonous food. Machig Labdron, a legendary female Buddhist practitioner, said, “For me, eating meat is out of the question. I feel great compassion when I see helpless animals lookin
g up with fearful eyes.”

  We often say to our students that a good deal of courage is required if we are to take the wisdom teachings of the Buddhist tradition to heart, wake up to our lives and the world with mindfulness, and wholeheartedly practice the Dharma. When we open our wisdom eyes and behold the harsh, unwise, and misinformed happenings in the world, it can be devastating. It can be overwhelming to sit in the fires of bewilderment, rage, and the delusion of our separate self, or to conceive of the prevalence and magnitude of preventable suffering endured by human and non-human beings caused by humanity’s ignorance, greed, and aggression. It requires courage and compassion to expand our circle of empathic awareness to resonate with the sufferings of countless animals who quiver in fear and pain. Upon contemplating the profound interdependence of all beings, we may come to the realization articulated by Shantideva when he exclaimed, “How wonderful it would be when all beings experience each other as limbs on the one body of life!”

  It can be heartbreaking to comprehend the suffering of more than a trillion creatures each year whose lives are destroyed by industries that enslave, brutalize, and slaughter animals for food or animal experimentation. In addition, when we learn about the research indicating that our societal addictions to eating animal foods and using products derived from animals are destroying our environment and quality of life, it can be devastating. Further, realizing our own complicity in allowing this to continue can stir regret, shame, or denial. Although finding the courage within ourselves to dedicate our lives and practice to the personal and social justice engagement necessary to reduce this suffering can be daunting, such wholehearted compassionate action, based on the wisdom of interdependence, is also a path to liberation and full awakening.

  As our wisdom eyes see deeper into the profound nature of interdependence through modern research, it is becoming increasingly clear that the current food production system is harming our lives and environment. The impacts of our current animal agriculture food production system are responsible for more than a quarter of all greenhouse gas emissions, more than all forms of transportation combined, eighty percent of which is associated with livestock production that utilizes nearly 66 percent of the arable land on earth to graze and grow feed for livestock. Unhealthy diets and high body weight are among the greatest contributors to premature mortality worldwide. Transitioning toward a plant-based diet, in line with standard dietary guidelines, could reduce global mortality by six to ten percent and food-related greenhouse gas emissions by 29 to 70 percent.5

  In his seminal book, To Cherish All Life, Roshi Philip Kapleau emphasizes the dignity and innate holiness of animals and their basic kinship with humanity. He reflects,

  In Buddhism the first precept of not killing, or harmlessness, is grounded in our Buddha-nature — the matrix of all phenomena — from which arises our sense of compassion and moral goodness…It is in Buddha-nature that all existences are unified and harmonized. To willfully take life means to disrupt and destroy this inherent wholeness and to blunt feelings of reverence and compassion arising from our Buddha-mind. The first precept of not killing is really a call to life and creation even as it is a condemnation of death and destruction.6

  Central to the compassionate practices of Buddhism is the practice of the Four Immeasurables. One of the most inspiring traditional versions of this practice and prayer is when we take it upon ourselves to create the causes and conditions for these qualities to flourish in our lives and world:

  If all beings had happiness and the causes of happiness, how wonderful it would be! May they come to have these. I will cause them to have these…

  If all beings were free from suffering and the causes of suffering, how wonderful it would be! May they come to be free from these. I will cause them to be free from these…

  If all beings did not lack the immeasurable joy of liberation, how wonderful it would be! May they come not to lack this. I will cause them not to lack this…

  And, if all beings were to abide in immeasurable equanimity, free from attachment and hatred, how wonderful it would be! May they come to abide so. I will cause them to abide so…

  I pray for empowerment from all the great teachers and wisdom beings to enable me to do this.

  Just as Dharma practice requires deep care, study, and discipline to awaken, not just for our own well-being but to benefit and liberate all beings, so too, making the transition to a non-harming, plant-based vegan lifestyle requires the study and discipline, courage and care necessary to go beyond the familiar customs, habits, identities, and lifestyles in which we have previously taken refuge and around which we have formed our identity. As our Dharma practice deepens and matures, we will naturally gravitate toward making choices that reflect deeper wisdom and loving kindness.

  When told by a farmer that we humans need to eat meat to get the stuff that bones are made of (read ‘protein’), Henry David Thoreau pointed out that the farmer and his plow are being pulled behind a husky team of oxen and skillfully wondered why the farmer doesn’t see that the much more powerful bones and muscles of the oxen are built solely by plants. Having lived as healthy, vibrant, Dharma practitioners and vegetarians for fifty years, and vegans for thirty-plus years, we can say from our experience that there has never been a time in our lives when shifting to a plant-based lifestyle is easier, more well-informed and resourced, when there are so many healthy and delicious options available, and when it is so clearly essential in terms of social and environmental justice.

  We encourage you to read this profound and inspiring collection of teachings on veganism and Buddhism as a meditation. Be mindful of how the words and stories offered here touch you, resonate with your own deep intuitive wisdom and noble true heart, and nudge, if not catapult, you toward living with an ever-deepening commitment to making choices that propel you into being a force for the good of all.

  “A human being is part of the whole called by us the Universe.

  We experience ourselves, our thoughts and feelings

  as something separated from the rest,

  a kind of optical delusion of consciousness.

  This delusion is a kind of prison for us,

  restricting us to our personal desires

  and to affection for a few persons nearest us.

  Our task must be to free ourselves from this prison

  by widening our circle of compassion to embrace all living creatures,

  and the whole of nature in all of its beauty.

  Nobody is able to achieve this completely,

  but striving for such achievement is, in itself, a part of the liberation

  and foundation for inner security.”

  ~ Albert Einstein

  May all beings widen the circle of their compassion to be free, be happy, be safe, be at ease, and awaken to their true nature and highest potentials.

  References:

  1. Hanh, Thich Nhat. For a Future to be Possible: Buddhist Ethics for Daily Life, Parallax Press, 1993.

  2. Mahaparinirvana Sutra, tr. Kosho Yamamoto, The Karinbunko, p. 91. Parinirvana refers to the Buddha’s physical passing from the human realm into the state of enlightenment.

  3. Cited in Chatral Rinpoche, Compassionate Action: The Teachings of Chatral Rinpoche, Zach Larson (ed.), Snow Lion, 2007. Chapter 3.

  4. Chatral Rinpoche, op. cit.

  5. Springmann, M., et al. “Analysis and valuation of the health and climate change co-benefits of dietary change.” Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Marco Springmann, 4146–4151

  6. Kapleau, Roshi Philip, To Cherish All Life: A Buddhist Case for Becoming Vegetarian, 1986.

  INTRODUCTION

  Do Buddhist Teachings Mandate Veganism?

  Will Tuttle

  Many of us are surprised to discover that Buddhist monks, lamas, and teachers often eat meat. This may be contrary to our image of the disciplined and compassionate lifestyle we expect such people to exemplify. As several essays in this book explain, the Theravada and T
ibetan Buddhist traditions typically allow eating animal-sourced foods, while the Mahayana traditions have tended to make vegan living an integral part of their teachings. Additionally, as the more heavily meat and dairy consuming Western culture has impacted all these traditions over the past several centuries, and as these traditions bring their teachings to the West, they have understandably been influenced by Western culture and have moved away from earlier, more vegan orientations.

  So, what is the underlying relationship between Buddhism and veganism? Do the Buddhist teachings require or explicitly encourage vegan living, or is veganism seen as a mere personal choice? As Buddhism continues to spread, and as interest in veganism is burgeoning, these questions are heating up, and deserve a more thorough investigation and understanding. This book is a collection of essays by people who are committed to both Buddhism and veganism, and who share a variety of perspectives on how these two practices deepen and reinforce each other.

  All Buddhist traditions honor the foundational teaching of the Five Precepts (refraining from killing, stealing, deceiving, sexual misconduct, and using, or causing others to use, toxic drugs), which is similar to veganism regarding our treatment of animals. A second fundamental Buddhist teaching that sheds light on veganism is the Four Noble Truths: dukkha, the widespread existential state of unsatisfactoriness and suffering; samudhaya, the cause and arising of this dukkha; nirodha, the good news that we can be free of dukkha; and marga, the Eightfold Path that we can practice in daily life, leading to the extinction of suffering and toward liberation. These two core Buddhist teachings can be seen as comprising essential principles for vegan living as well.

  The Five Precepts explicitly includes not just humans, but also animals, in all Buddhist traditions. Animal agriculture is based on exploiting and harming animals – killing them, stealing their sovereignty, time, lives, eggs, milk, and offspring, deceiving them, sexually abusing them, and in most cases, forcing drugs upon them as well. Purchasing, producing, and eating animal-sourced foods and products directly breaks all or most of the five precepts. Veganism is, at its core, an effort to live in compliance with the spirit of nonviolence, ahimsa, the foundation of the Five Precepts. Just as Buddhist practice includes nonhuman animals in its sphere of concern, vegan practice endeavors to treat all animals, including humans, with respect and kindness. The Five Precepts teaching clearly mandates vegan living, based on the universal teaching of the Golden Rule. It shines a stark light on our exploitation of animals, illumining discomforting inconsistencies in our culture and personal lives that seem to prompt many of us, including Buddhists, to wear mental sunglasses to reduce the glare.