the great vegetarian debate

[Goedert]

From what it is seen a wild boar's diet consists mainly of plants.

Indeed wild boar favorite is fungi, but they feed themselfs on: Roots, fruits, nuts, fungi, insects, amphibians, reptiles, small mammals, birds, carrion.

In the wild, they are foraging animals, primarily eating leaves, grasses, roots, fungi, fruits and flowers.

[5heaps]

Why is it a problem if a Buddhist enjoys a BigMac?

its coarse and disturbs deep meditation, plus it creates tendencies youll have to deal with in future lifetimes (ie. the desire to eat meat, being born around shmucks who eat meat, etcetc)

[jcsuperstar]

being born around shmucks who eat meat,

what about non shmucks who eat meat? or what if youre born around shmucks who dont eat meat? so so many shmucks in the world

[bodom]

Why is it a problem if a Buddhist enjoys a BigMac?

its coarse and disturbs deep meditation...

Ahh yes, the dreaded 6th hindrance...

Monks, there are six impediments and hindrances, overgrowths of the mind that stultify insight. What six? Sensual desire is an impediment and hindrance, an overgrowth of the mind that stultifies insight. Ill-will... Sloth and torpor... Restlessness and remorse... Sceptical doubt... Big Mac's from Micky D's...are impediments and hindrances, overgrowths of the mind that stultify insight. — AN 5:51

[Prasadachitta]

Why is it a problem if a Buddhist enjoys a BigMac?

its coarse and disturbs deep meditation...

Ahh yes, the dreaded 6th hindrance...

Monks, there are six impediments and hindrances, overgrowths of the mind that stultify insight. What six? Sensual desire is an impediment and hindrance, an overgrowth of the mind that stultifies insight. Ill-will... Sloth and torpor... Restlessness and remorse... Sceptical doubt... Big Mac's from Micky D's...are impediments and hindrances, overgrowths of the mind that stultify insight. — AN 5:51

Wow. Ive found a hindrance I have totally overcome. I am completely free of this hindrance to insight. I must have overcome it in a past life.

[appicchato]

One might say that sarcasim is a hinderance too...where's the benefit?...

[bodom]

No benefit in having a sense of humour then either I guess? Oh thats right im a Buddhist. I must have forgot its all about gloom and doom..

[5heaps]

Ahh yes, the dreaded 6th hindrance...

it would come under sensual desire for obvious reasons and also dullness/sloth

[bodom]

Ahh yes, the dreaded 6th hindrance...

it would come under sensual desire for obvious reasons and also dullness/sloth

It was a joke..im well aware of what constitutes sensual desire.

[Prasadachitta]

One might say that sarcasim is a hinderance too...where's the benefit?...

Ven. Appicchato
If I offended in any way I am truly sorry. The issue of eating meat brings a solemness which I was hoping to lighten. I did not mean to diminish anyone's remarks.


Gabe

[Goedert]

It is a shame that most of the threads is turning to wild ad hominem speculations and fights. People keep with harsh or sarcastical statements towards others. Lets cultivate restrainment, tame the khandas, be good will, energetic, adicted to seclusion. It is not by means of what type of food that fall in the stomach one gain purification, it is by means of praticing accordance to the dhamma that one gain peace. The truth ly in ourselfs, not on arguments or eloquence speech but simple following the Noble Eightfold path, if you can't do it, go to a lay devote practice such as enjoying making merit and wealth, mindfull and economic about wealth, addited to given.

What is the use of knowing the doctrine and practice the opposition?

[pilgrim]

Hi pilgrim,

There is no absence of evidence.

Dhammapala, in his commentary to Udana VIII.5, suggests that it refers to young bamboo shoots trampled by pigs (sukarehi maddita-vamsakaliro).

K.E. Neumann, in the preface to his German translation of the Majjhima Nikaya, quotes from an Indian compendium of medicinal plants, the Rajanigantu, several plants beginning with sukara.

Dhammapala is certainly a very respected and credible Pali scholar, writer of many of the Commentaries.

Other suggestions from the Commentaries include: a medicinal plant or yam or tuber (also vegetarian).

Hello David,
I wasn't aware that the Commentaries also suggested that sukaramaddava could also be a vegetarian dish ( notably bamboo shoots and not mushrooms) Thanks for pointing that out.

However, the statement that "Today, the majority of Buddhist scholars agree that the Buddha ate mushrooms, which may have been poisonous and led to his death at the age of 80." remains factually wrong. It was I B Horner who first suggested that sukaramaddava is truffles in her translation of the Milinda-panha. This was then generalised as mushrooms by more recent scholars. Perhaps it was pork, or perhaps it was a vegetarian dish, it appears that the mystery will not be solved anytime soon, but in view of the fact that the Thai, and Burmese Tipitaka translates the term as pork, the claim that the "majority of Buddhist scholars agree that the Buddha ate mushrooms" is factually incorrect.

[Fede]

Given the Buddha's own instructions on what a monk may or may not do with regard to eating meat - does this all really matter?
Didn't the Buddha exhort us to come to our own conclusions using all the tools and guidance available to us (and be the creators of our own Kamma in the process)?


it little matters what is and isn't. What matters is how we view our own actions, and what we do with what we know to be true for ourselves, and how well we stick to our own developed principles.
What matters is our adherence to the 8 and the 5.
What matters is how we practice what we believe to be skilful, and how we do not succumb to doing what is not skilful.

Isn't that enough?

or am I just being a simpleton, yet again......?

[Prasadachitta]

What matters is how we view our own actions, and what we do with what we know to be true for ourselves, and how well we stick to our own developed principles.

Hi There Fede,

I should hope that this is what we spend our time and effort relating to each other. Expressing the state of our own personal understandings, how they are effecting our practice and vise versa, is the most valuable thing we can convey to each other.

Thank you for your grounding comment.

Metta

Gabe

[Annapurna]

It is a shame that most of the threads is turning to wild ad hominem speculations and fights. People keep with harsh or sarcastical statements towards others. Lets cultivate restrainment, tame the khandas, be good will, energetic, adicted to seclusion. It is not by means of what type of food that fall in the stomach one gain purification, it is by means of praticing accordance to the dhamma that one gain peace. The truth ly in ourselfs, not on arguments or eloquence speech but simple following the Noble Eightfold path, if you can't do it, go to a lay devote practice such as enjoying making merit and wealth, mindfull and economic about wealth, addited to given.

What is the use of knowing the doctrine and practice the opposition?

Funny, I thought I had seconded that.