[Prev][Next][Index]
Beyond Vegetarianism - veg6.txt [1/1]
Vegetarianism: A Means to a Higher End
>From the book "The Hare Krishna Book of Vegetarian Cooking"
By Adiraja Dasa
(c) 1989 The Bhaktivedanta Book Trust International
Used with permission
Beyond Vegetarianism
Beyond concerns of health, economics, ethics, religion, and even karma,
vegetarianism has a higher, spiritual dimension that can help us develop
our natural appreciation and love of God. Srila Prabhupada tells us in his
explanations of Srimad-Bhagavatam, "The human being is meant for
self-realization, and for that purpose he is not to eat anything that is not
first offered to the Lord. The Lord accepts from His devotee all kinds of
food preparations made from vegatables, fruits, milk products, and grains.
Different varieties of fruits, vegetables, and milk products can be offered
to the Lord, and after the Lord accepts the foodstuffs, the devotee can
partake of the prasada, by which all suffering in the struggle for existence
will be gradually mitigated.
Krishna Himself confirmed the divinity of prasada when He appeared in
this world as Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, 500 years ago: "Everyone has
tasted these material substances before, but now, these same ingredients
have taken on extraordinary flavors and uncommon fragrances. Just taste
them and see the difference. Not to mention the taste, the fragrance alone
pleases the mind and makes one forget all other sweetnesses. It is to be
understood therefore, that these ordinary ingredients have been touched
by the transcendental nectar of Krishna's lips and imbued with all of
Krishna's qualities."
Offered food, traditionally called prasada, "the mercy of God," offers not
only the healthy life of a vegetarian, but also God realization; not just food
for the starving masses, but spiritual nourishment for everyone. When
Krishna accepts an offering, He infuses His own divine nature into it.
Prasada, therefore, is not different from Krishna Himself. Out of His
unbounded compassion for the souls entrapped in the material world,
Krishna comes in the form of prasada, so that simply by eating, we can
come to know Him.
Eating prasada nourishes the body spiritually. By eating prasada not only
are past sinful reactions in the body vanquished, but the body becomes
immunized to the contamination of materialism. Just as a antiseptic
vaccine can protect us against a epidemic, eating prasada protects us from
the illusion and influence of the materialistic conception of life. Threfore,
a person who eats only food offered to Krishna, can counteract all the
reactions of one's past material activities, and readily progress in
self-realization. Because Krishna frees us from the reactions of karma, or
material activities, we can easily transcend illusion and serve Him in
devotion. One who acts without karma can dovetail his consciousness with
God's and become constantly aware of His personal presence. This is the
true benifit of prasada.
One who eats prasada is actually rendering devotional service to the Lord
and is sure to receive His blessings. Srila Prabhupada often said that by
eating prasada even once we can escape from the cycle of birth and death,
and by eating only prasada even the most sinful person can become a
saint. The Vedic scriptures speak of many people whose lives were
transformed by eating prasada, and any Hare Krishna devotee will vouch
for the spiritual potency of prasada and the effect it has had on his life.
Eating only food offered to Krishna is the ultimate perfection of the
vegetarian diet. After all, pigeons and monkeys are also vegetarian, so
becoming a vegetarian is not in itself the greatest of accomplishments. The
Vedas inform us that the purpose of human life is to reawaken the soul to
its relationship with God, and only when we go beyond vegetarianism to
prasada can our eating be helpful in achieving this goal.
