I think Jainism is the religion specifically created for Vegetarians.
1. It is the only religion which explicitly and absolutely forbids meat-eating and all cruelty to animals.
2. It sends all ( may be almost all ) Omnivores to Hell and sends none( may be almost all ) of the Veggies to Hell.
3. Precondition for being Jain is being Vegetarian. You don't have to face those annoying Omnis in the Church. You don't have to worry about the food in Religious Gatherings.
Isn't Jainism the religion (or one of them) that practices giving the human body back to the animals by placing them in an area where they get eaten by birds and such. Works for me.
Jainism is not a cruelty free religion. Though they go to extreme lengths to avoid DIRECTLY harming animals, they will let sick and injured animals suffer rather than euthanize.them, believing the animals to be living out their karma. I believe it was Ghandi who famously argued they should put down a suffering calf that they were trying to "make comfortable" by propping it up on some pillows while it was in agonizing pain.
Its easy to respect them for their efforts to not harm animals, but jainism is not opposed to harm.
In jainism (since the beginning) karma has been perceived as a pseudo-physical substance that must be 'burned off' by suffering, so practitioners are expected to engage in self harm. When someone ordains they must rip out all their hair with their bare hands and never again wear shoes, even if walking through broken glass or a burning desert. It gets more graphic from there and can even include ritual castration. Its uncommon, but not especially rare, for practitioners to intentionally starve to death to 'burn off karma'.
As for saying jainism is the only one to forbid cruelty to animals, thats simply not true.
Most Hindus & Buddhists respect all forms of life also. They let the Karma Police deal with you. Also, Seventh Day Adventists adhere to a vegetarian lifestyle & follow ahmisa principles, as well.
If more people would get a clue....compassion is out there for the taking. :lovesign:
I think Jainism is the religion specifically created for Vegetarians.
1. It is the only religion which explicitly and absolutely forbids meat-eating and all cruelty to animals.
2. It sends all ( may be almost all ) Omnivores to Hell and sends none( may be almost all ) of the Veggies to Hell.
3. Precondition for being Jain is being Vegetarian. You don't have to face those annoying Omnis in the Church. You don't have to worry about the food in Religious Gatherings.
I don't think this is a really accurate description of Jainism. It wasn't created for vegetarians; vegetarianism is one of its central practices, but it much more complex. The cycle of reincarnation is dictated by karma, so a person can be born into the hellish realm or as a demon, but this is not the same as the Abrahamic concept of hell. It isn't eternal and one can be born into higher realms after a time. The soul's karma dictates the place, rank, body, etc of their birth; it it better to say that they send themselves there rather than they are sent.
Also, the Jain diet is more complex than just vegetarian. In India, most people consider eggs not to be vegetarian, so the term "vegetarian" usually refers more specifically to lacto-vegatrianism than lacto-ovo. Also, many Jains do not eat onions, garlic, root vegetables, leftovers, fermented foods, or honey.
It is important to consider that Jainism emphasizes self-control and nonviolence in thoughts, deeds, speech, and intent. If you are very interested in Jainism, it would be best to set aside bad feelings toward omnivores.
I think it's highly subjective. I've known different believers in that religion who had vastly different practices.
Other religions are highly subjective as well... some Christians I know are vegetarian because they believe it's required of them by the 'don't kill' commandment. Same with Mormons. Many aren't. It's all in the personal and immediate community's interpretation and dogma.
Also, the whole thing assumes you can chose what you believe is the 'ultimate truth' and aren't atheist, agnostic, or buying into existentialism...
I think it's highly subjective. I've known different believers in that religion who had vastly different practices.
Other religions are highly subjective as well... some Christians I know are vegetarian because they believe it's required of them by the 'don't kill' commandment. Same with Mormons. Many aren't. It's all in the personal and immediate community's interpretation and dogma.
Also, the whole thing assumes you can chose what you believe is the 'ultimate truth' and aren't atheist, agnostic, or buying into existentialism...
Well , you can measure subjectivity by objectifying it.
Take any major religion , find % of vegetarians in that religion = (number of vegetarians in that religion)*100/(total population of that religion). And then take the decision.
Thank you Jain for correcting me about the bodies. Someone once told me that in Jainism people have a dying time. That is they can see it coming and allow themselves to die without a great deal of intervention if that seems right.
Thank you Jain for correcting me about the bodies. Someone once told me that in Jainism people have a dying time. That is they can see it coming and allow themselves to die without a great deal of intervention if that seems right.
This is highly technical subject. Nobody actually follows it , because for majority death comes as surprise. Best left untouched. Let us focus instead on the similarity of the worldview between vegetarianism/veganism and Jainism. Being vegetarian/vegan , you are implicitly discounting the doctrines of abrahamic religion , hindu religion , buddhist religion and atheism. And that by itself is a very big achievement.
I try to follow the teachings of Oahspe, in which being vegetarian is a commandment. I rather like the idea that refraining from killing animals for food is one of our Creator's laws. It also equates carnivorousness with the practice of warfare- that to give up one is to give up the other.
Interesting, I hadn't heard of Oahspe before, I just read the wiki and will look into the religion. I like what I saw, thanks Capstan.
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