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Re: Why can't Hindus eat beef?
Dear Friend:
In the Manusamhita, two chapters (4 and 5) deal with foods. The list of
recommended foods appear to follow some rules:
1. No to defatted (4.62), contaminated in various ways (4.209-216).
2. No to vegetables that grow in unclean places and to some that were
considered to limit life span (onions, garlic, mushroom).
3. No to red colored plant resins etc.
In chapter 5, meat eating is discussed. His overall recommendation is,
carnivorous animals and birds are not to be eaten. He did not approve
of fish eating, barring some common freshwater fishes. He approved of
eating meat from the slaughter of animals for rituals such as
madhuparka and jyotishtoma homas (5.41-42). Madhuparka is indicated to
be a ritual that included cow slaughter.
He was probably against meat eating, and tried to limit the meat eating
ways of the society in his time.
With best regards,
Dhruba.
