For those of us who follow a plant based diet, which is a natural part of the Bhakti Yoga practice, there is a cloud hovering over the bright and candlelit Thanksgiving table. It’s the result of 45 million turkeys being slaughtered for this celebration of gratitude and a stark reminder of our complicity in it all. Just as we are burning up the earth with our overuse of fossil fuels, we are gathering enormous amounts of individual and collective karma by the slaughterhouse industry alone. The figures and startling and sickening.
Karma refers to the spiritual principle of cause and effect where the actions of an individual influence the future of that individual. Good actions bring goodness to our lives, and bad stuff brings pain and suffering. Where we are now is the result of our past activities, and what we do makes our future. There is also collective karma – the slaughterhouse industry world wide will have a huge impact on us all.
The law of karma is simple really and we see it in action all the time. I steal, I get caught, I go to jail. I am mean and nasty to others, I will get that back. I give generously, I will receive goodness in all kinds of ways. A Christmas Carol by Dickens is a classic tale of karma.
We humans, as opposed to the animals we so easily kill and eat, have evolved consciousness that allows us to stand back and examine our life and actions. If we don’t do that we are no better than the animals. If we do take the time to learn of this scientific law of nature, karma, we will see that we have many choices as to how to live our best life and reduce our karmic footprint – and especially our bad karma.
Why would we want to do that? “We are enjoying our meal now, let us not worry about our future.” Yes, we also have that choice (putting our head in the sand), but that is a fool’s paradise. Facing our life, our karma, and our choices can be a turning point in our spiritual life and our search for truth and happiness. What we eat is a good place to start. We are not only what we eat; we are also implicated in any violence that was involved on food’s journey to our plate. We also ingest that.
Here are some quotes to inspire us to change – for a better life and a better world.
“Indulgence in animal killing for the taste of the tongue is the grossest kind of ignorance. A human being has no need to kill animals, because God has supplied so many nice things. If one indulges in meat-eating anyway, it is to be understood that he is acting in ignorance and is making his future very dark.”
Srila Prabhupada
“By eating meat we share the responsibility of climate change, the destruction of our forests, and the poisoning of our air and water. The simple act of becoming a vegetarian will make a difference in the health of our planet.”
Thich Nhat Hanh
Think occasionally of the suffering of which you spare yourself the sight.” Albert Schweitzer
“You have just dined, and however scrupulously the slaughterhouse is concealed in the graceful distance of miles, there is complicity.”
Ralph Waldo Emerson
“It is my view that the vegetarian manner of living, by its purely physical effect on the human temperament, would most beneficially influence the lot of mankind.”
Albert Einstein
“I have from an early age abjured the use of meat, and the time will come when men such as I will look upon the murder of animals as they now look upon the murder of men.”
Leonardo da Vinci
“A man can live and be healthy without killing animals for food; therefore, if he eats meat, he participates in taking animal life merely for the sake of his appetite. And to act so is immoral.”
Leo Tolstoy
“If slaughterhouses had glass walls, everyone would be a vegetarian.”
Paul McCartney
“Animals are citizens too.” Srila Prabhupada
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