Selected Questions and Answers

 

 

 

 

 

Being Meat-free Makes Us
Healthy and Carefree

Spoken by Supreme Master Ching Hai, Tokyo, Japan, May 22, 1993
(Originally in English) Videotape #375

 

Q: The purpose of an animal's life here on earth is to be eaten by human beings, and if we stopped eating them they would all be dead and useless, don't You think so?

M: No, we can eat animals if we want to because we are stronger and more intelligent than they are so they’re helpless against us. But the question is whether we should use our strength and intelligence to abuse those who are weaker than we are when we have other choices by which to survive. Besides, today we are raising more cattle, pigs and chickens so more exist now than there used to be. And according to scientific research, the great amount of money, time and land used to raise animals is weakening our planet economically, financially and even health-wise.

It is even said that many wastelands, many deserts, are the result of raising animals in the past because wherever cows are raised the land is frequently unable to be used for growing crops.* We need a big land mass to be able to feed cattle or other animals, and their waste products pollute the water in our lakes and rivers, as does the fertilizer that goes into the fields to produce grass and all the other food for animals. And the antibiotics and medicines that go into the animals’ systems, the water to wash them and all the hygienic measures cost a lot of money and manpower. So in the long run it's a loss of business for the world. It's no good for us. It's not my right to tell you what to eat, but according to research, eating animals is no good for us whatsoever, economically, financially, politically, health-wise and in every other way. I am not yet telling you about the moral obligation and guilty feelings that go along with the animal diet. I’m just telling you science-wise, the scientific aspect.

Inherently we all have a great love within us for all things that move. Therefore if we eat animal flesh, we subconsciously feel very guilty. It breeds sickness and all kinds of uncomfortable feelings and unhappiness in our lives. That's why we suggest that if you want to find a truly happy life, a truly free, carefree life, you should refrain from eating other living beings.