The Meating

I chanced across a bunch of videos :

<Warning: Not for the faint at heart>

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DBY61x4lIXM

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H-4p4Upx-aM

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ohuZ89IOFWI

Well well. So what do we see here ? Renowned Chef Ramsey making Goat Biriyani in the traditional Indian way. Now, for many, this'll stir-up taste buds, but for me it stirred up a lot of thoughts instead.

First things first, a disclaimer: I'm not a proponent of vegetarianism or related doctrines.

The vegetarian population of the world might be 15%, so the remaining whopping 85% eat some form of meat. So for the veggies, where did all our beliefs go ? In India we follow strict veggie rituals in temples and in festivals, barring a few 'sacrificial' ones. We are indoctrinated to believe that eating meat is not good for the body and mind. That it is a 'Rajasik' food and introduces extreme emotions and desires. 

However.. Is eating a cereal, fruit or a vegetable not killing the plant or its progeny ?

Coming to meat-eating:

1. Are there any emotions when killing an animal for food ?

2. Are there any emotions when preparing a dish out of packaged meat ?

If the answer to either questions is 'no', then how is eating animal meat different from eating human meat ? Yes, honestly, I ask this. 

Because one might say 'I don't feel connected with the animal that I'm about to cut'. Well, then there are billions of fellow humans who'll fit that role perfectly well. So is it only fear of judicial backlash, or is it guilt or what .. ? Do animals not express fear and pain when killed for food ? They are just as humans when it comes to these emotions, only that they don't express it as well as we do.

Then there are many who'll not eat animals they have as pets. Again this looks like the case of emotional connection with the broader population of the pet. It is analogous to hearing about people dying due to some cause, and it only remains in our minds until we forget. Only those whose kin were killed continue to remain affected. Its all about the connection that we make. 

So, the more we connect, more the compassion.

I feel its all in our minds. We are under the influence of a thought and hence it is the most powerful. So either get a reverse-thought to kill this 'culprit-thought' or simply don't harbor the unwanted thought, and we'll be just fine. Just like we cannot sing two songs at once, we cannot have two thoughts at once. After all, we only have one CPU-core !

Ultimately, I'm tempted to quote the Gita: "Perform actions without the sense of attachment. Only then you'll be free of the reaction". 

So, meat-lovers, enjoy your delicacies for now, and be detached of the arising desires just as whilst eating :-)

सुन ले तू दिल की सदा

सुन ले तू दिल की सदा, प्यार से प्यार सजा
सुन ले तू दिल की सदा

मेरी आवाज़ का तीर, जायेगा दिल को भी जीर
खोये नफ़रत, लाये उलफत
ये असर है मेहरबान
सुन ले तू दिल की सदा

प्यार जिस दिल में जवान, समझो भगवान् वहां
प्यार जिस दिल में जवान
मान ले तू और समझ ले, धडकनों की ये जुबां
सुन ले तू दिल की सदा

प्यार दुश्मन से बध्हा, तब है जीने का मज़ा
प्यार दुश्मन से बध्हा,
यह  ज़मीन भी तू बना दे एक मिलन का आसमान
सुन ले तू दिल की सदा

हाय गुस्से की झलक, लूटे  सुख चैन तलक
सबसे हिल मिल ए मेरे दिल, ऐसी महफिल फिर कहाँ
सुन ले तू दिल की सदा

दो दिलों की यह लगन, जाने धरती और गगन
तू जहां है में वहां हूँ, जिस्म दो है एक जान
सुन ले तू दिल की सदा, प्यार से प्यार सजा

प्यार रास्ता है मेरा, ऐसा राही हूँ तेरा
न रहूँ मैं, न रहे तू
पर रहेगी दास्ताँ
सुन ले तू दिल की सदा

आज तक जो भी हुआ, झूठे झगडों ने किया
आज तक जो भी हुआ
प्यार होता तो कुछ न होता, न उजड़ते आशियाँ
सुन ले तू दिल की सदा