Hari-śauri: Do you want the peanuts roasted in ghee or just dry roasting?

Prabhupāda: No, no, they are... They... It is roasted.

Hari-śauri: They didn't get already roasted.

Gargamuni: Dry roasted.

Hari-śauri: They're roasted in the shells.

Prabhupāda: Roasted in the shells?

(Room conversation-------Bhuvanesvara).

Indian man (1): Does it say somewhere in the Bhagavad-gītā that we shouldn't eat meat?

Prabhupāda: Yes. Yes. Yes. Ahara-śuddhi. There are three kinds, four kinds of ahara: sattvika, rājasika, tamasika. Everything is there. The classification of ahara. Meat is tamasikāhara, fourth class. It is not first class.

(Morning walk-------Johannesburg).

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: He's saying if man is not meant to eat meat, then why is it that some animals eat meat? He's saying that we are animals also. Now, we're not meant to eat meat, but other animals are permitted to.

Prabhupāda: Other animals, they (eat) meat, but they follow the nature's law. They don't eat grain.

Guest: We don't follow nature's...?

Prabhupāda: No. You don't follow.

Just like a tiger. A tiger eats meat, but tiger does not come to eat grains and fruits. But you eat meat and grains, fruits, milk, whatever you can get you eat. Why? Is that natural? Tiger will never come to claim on the grains, "Oh, you have got so much grain. Give me." No. Even there are hundreds bags of grains, you don't care, but he'll pounce upon a... That is his natural instinct.

But why do you take grains, fruits, milk, meat, and whatever you get. What is this? You are neither animal or human being. Misusing your humanity. You should think that what is eatable for me? A tiger may eat meat. It is a tiger. But I am not tiger. I am human being. And if I have got sufficient grains, fruits, vegetables, and other things, God has given, why should I go to kill a poor animal?

This is humanity. You are animal plus human. If you forget your humanity, then you are animal. So we are not simply animal. We are animal plus humanity. If we increase our quality of humanity, then our life is perfect. But if we remain in animality, then our life is imperfect. So we have to increase our human consciousness. That is Kṛṣṇa consciousness. That is Kṛṣṇa conscious.

What is the purpose of eating? To live. If you can live very peacefully, very nicely, with good health, by eating so many varieties of foodstuff given by Kṛṣṇa, why should I kill an animal? This is humanity. Why should I imitate an animal? Then what is the difference between animal and human being? If you have no discretion, if you have no consciousness.

Besides that, scientifically, your teeth is meant for eating vegetables. The tiger has teeth for eating meat. Nature has made it like that. It has to kill another... Therefore he has got nails, he has got teeth, he has got strength. But you have no such strength. You cannot kill a cow like that, pouncing like tiger. You have to make slaughterhouse and sit down at your home. Somebody may slaughter, and you can eat very nicely. What is this? You do like tiger. Pounce upon a cow and eat. (laughter) You cannot do that. You cannot do that.

(Lecture on Bhagavad-Gita-------Los Angeles).