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Re: ARTICLE : Just say no to "Hinduism" (was Re: ARTICLE : On
>
> : >can be seen at "Hindu" temples? What about those who claim to follow the
> : >Vedas, but eat meat, drink alcohol, or smoke cigarettes?
> : I thought vegetarianism was borrowed from Buddhism & Jainism into Hindu
> : religion. Do the vedas or any other scriptures explicitly prohibit
> : eating meat.
Yes. There are quotes in the RgVeda, which advocate protection
to cows and other animals. You will find similar quotes in the
Mahabharata as well as Ramayana. Then, there is the Smriti of
Manu, which is quite emphatic in advocacy of vegetarianism.
The narrator (Manu) calls meat as "mamsa" and elaborates on
it by saying that those who eat it in this life, will be eaten
in the next life. He labels "mamsa" as a word having roots in
"mam" (Me). There is also this opinion, that perhaps 100% ahimsa
is not achievable, due to the very nature of life. Manu says,
that no matter what you do, it is the destruction of one form
of life, that sustains the other. But, he adds, this destruction
should be minimized, as much as possible. Please note, that
the Smriti of Manu was written in about 1200 BC. Perhaps, it
was there, even before those times, in the memory of humans.
--
Nachiketa Tiwari
