How did Hindus Become Vegetarians?

masanamuthu and vengie bros

While you are/may be totally right about most Hindus being non-vegetarians, Murad A. Baig is 'right' too about Hindus being vegetarians.

The difference is that you and I look at India and Indian life as insiders, as people who live and breathe that life (even if some of us may be physically not present there) while Murad A Baig and others like him look at India and Indian life as aliens and as people living and breathing an alien life (even if they some of them may physically live there).

Apologies if that sounds convoluted. I will come back and explain that point of view. Meanwhile think of this. Are Muslims terrorists? Again, depends on whether you live Islamic life as an insider or look at it from the outside.

no problem, vrv bhai.

We need rationalists like you to be our leaders, if you would just leave a tiny little space for us neanderthals too. :)

Eklavya:

The difference is that you and I look at India and Indian life as insiders, as people who live and breathe that life (even if some of us may be physically not present there) while Murad A Baig and others like him look at India and Indian life as aliens and as people living and breathing an alien life (even if they some of them may physically live there).


That's right. I never realised that the author resides in India. :-). How does he not know the basic fact that a majority of Hindus are non-vegetarians?.

I can agree that the English man or the "orientalist" historian would not have figured that out, not knowing the local language and talking in English to the "brown sahibs" who are probably from the "upper vegetarian castes".

Apologies if that sounds convoluted. I will come back and explain that point of view. Meanwhile think of this. Are Muslims terrorists? Again, depends on whether you live Islamic life as an insider or look at it from the outside.


No it is not convoluted. I can understand the difference between an insider and outsider's view.

Re: # 51

Eklavya and Masanamuthu,

Eureka! It dint register till Masanamuthu opened the bag.

Fyi, I prefer being a veggie. I have been violating at times.

Way to go Murad Bhai. Is his 'treatise' on Hindus' eating habits aimed, at his brethren across the border, to
clarify that we are not aliens?

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vengie, masanamuthu undestands these things better than most of us. He has a deep, instinctive feel.

There are two Hinduisms. The Hinduisms of us who live the life. And the 'Hinduism' of aliens looking at us and wondering what must wrong with us. Since mostly it is the outsiders who are the masters of defining business, only their view forms common perceptions. :)

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ali_1, only complete fools believe in proportionate response. I never asked Mr. Baig to initiate the attack. :)

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Re: # 55

Do you spend the fee on wot to build toilets?

ali_1 bhai, all that is true, but Murad A Baig is still both wrong and misguided.

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#56, why lift a hand when the flick of a finger would get rid of a trouble?

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Anyways, we can leave ali_1 bhai and Murad Sahib alone to arrive at whatever consensus they want according to their common needs.

Later, my friends.

Re: # 53

Let me try to make you understand. Vegetarianism is indeed practiced at differing degrees within various Hindu communities. We abstain on selected days of a week. We don't have non-veg on Tuesdays, Fridays and Saturdays. We don't eat on the Hindu holy days. We don't eat on the day of visiting temple or pilgrimage. We don't eat in the month of ' Purattasi - Tamil month '. Women of the family almost remain veggies . You will have to forego non-veg diet, for 40+ days, to enter Ayappa's temple. Though 100% Hindus are not
veggies, vegetarianism is practiced at differing intensities. It ranges from complete abstinence to partial. My paternal uncle is a pure veggie.

Its for you to infer now.

Re: # 58 Eklavya

You seem like a reasonable person to have a discourse with. Could you please help me understand why Hindus almost universally found this writing by Murad so offensive. What does it mean when you say that Murad is ""wrong and misguided"

Baig saab doesn't claim that a majority of hingboos are veggies, rather he questions why some hingboos consider vegetarianism as part of their religion. You understand the distinction, but being shameless penchod hingboos, you take this opportunity to bash a minority member.


slyder:

I don't normally respond to insulting comments, but since this is a weekend and I have some spare time i'll indulge in disabusing you.

Don't you think Baig saab should then have used a different title?. It is like writing "How did Muslims become terrorists" and then claiming in a comment that "Muslims" in the title actually refer to some Muslims who consider terrorism as a part of their religion. :-)

slyder

Verse 100: To utter harsh words when sweet ones would serve Is like eating unripe fruit when ripe ones are at hand.

Thirukkural

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arjun, it will take time for beef to become just another meat for many Hindus. The change will occur mostly over generations. But believe me, at least in the US, every year it is becoming harder to find another totally vegetarian Hindu, and the number of Hindus who actually like beef is increasing every day. As expected, the trend is most noticeable among younger folks. People like Harimau and me are stuck in a time warp, and some of us know that. :)

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Urstruly, a fair question.

Mr. Murad started a little political game and we played briefly. The cows was not the issue for Mr. Murad or for us.

Some Hindus seemed genuinely taken aback that Mr. Murad would hold views that they would expect only an outsider to hold.
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vengat #62, that's so cool.