two Questions

[LilyPhoenix]

Hi
I have started to look into Hinduism and i have some questions

I currently self injure what is the Hindu view on something like this ? is it forbidden to do this ?

Also am vegetarian is there any other things i need to know about like food i have to avoid ?

Thank you

 

[Madhuri]

I currently self injure what is the Hindu view on something like this ? is it forbidden to do this ?

Self harm for what purpose? Generally self harm indicates that the individual is overly self absorbed. This is negative in Hinduism as the purpose of spiritual practice is to realise that we are not this body and to not be attached to the material illusions of this world.

When is self injury not selfish? Selfish is what Hindus attempt to rid themselves of. But I don't know you or your purpose so I can't comment exactly how Hinduism would view your actions. Intention is very important. State of mind or consciousness is very significant.

Also am vegetarian is there any other things i need to know about like food i have to avoid ?

Not really, except for intoxicants and food that makes you sluggish. The only reason rules apply in Hinduism is because the purpose of practicing the religion is to gain spiritual advancement. That takes effort. To make advancement your have to have a healthy mind and body. A vegetarian diet is not necessary for all Hindus. But it has been commonplace for the priests and sages to be vegetarian as this diet is believed to provide for a healthy physical and mental balance (whereas meat gives too much energy and intoxicants make us too dull).

 

[LilyPhoenix]

Thank you for answering my questions am currently trying to stop self injuring but am finding things hard with my mental health ( i hear voices that tell my to self injure i do take medication for it )

I don't drink or smoke i do however drink coffee but i can change that into decaff easily
i would have to stop buying energy drinks and stop drinking diet coke as that has caffeine in it .

 

[Madhuri]

Thank you for answering my questions am currently trying to stop self injuring but am finding things hard with my mental health ( i hear voices that tell my to self injure i do take medication for it )

I don't drink or smoke i do however drink coffee but i can change that into decaff easily
i would have to stop buying energy drinks and stop drinking diet coke as that has caffeine in it .

I'm glad you are trying to become healthier.
Hinduism doesn't expect people to just become perfect in seconds. First we have to want to improve and then we have to decide how to do so in a healthy and balanced way. People who give up the life they are used to in an extreme way (giving up everything at once, for example) often fail because change is a gradual process.

Are you attracted to Hinduism?
I wouldn't worry so much about giving up caffeine if you don't think it is affecting your health. If you are like me then it's a good idea as it makes me feel sick.
It's much more important to grasp the principles of Hinduism and shape your life around those than to simply follow rules. Rules are meaningless on their own.

 

[LilyPhoenix]

Yes i am i done a quiz things and answered the question and the one i got 100 % for was Hinduism.
So i have started to look into it really liking what i am reading ...i believe in reincarnation ,karma and i love animals especially cows .

oh i though id have to give up caffeine that good cause i like my diet coke so much
but i will not drink as much as i do now.
My husband is trying to get me drinking more water like drinks

 

[Vinayaka]

Hi
I have started to look into Hinduism and i have some questions
I currently self injure what is the Hindu view on something like this ? is it forbidden to do this ?
Also am vegetarian is there any other things i need to know about like food i have to avoid ?
Thank you

Hello. Firstly, Hinduism is really vast, and you will get different answers from different Hindus. Good to know you got 100% on that quizzy thing. Says a lot.

Vegetarianism in Hinduism usually includes no eggs either. Milk is allowed, but usually not in abundance, or overdone. There would be very few nutrient concerns if you eat a lot of nuts and lentils, which are already in the Indian diet. But it might be good to research your own specific diet a bit. In India, lentils (dals) are just so common, like meat is in the west. There are at least 20 fairly common varieties of pea/bean/lentil.

Most Hindus don't avoid caffeine. There may be one or two sects that do. I'm not sure. But again, its everything in moderation. In India the tea stall is probably the most common business existing there.

Self-injury is practised amongst one sect in particular, and it is always for a purpose, and done in a religious context, although a few people do it for another non-religious purpose. (ego enhancement .. Hey, look at me. I'm tough.) (Google kavadi for more info.) The two legitimate purposes are for atonement, and for pre-atonement, or 'clearing the way'. In a few places its also just incredibly common, and people do it as an act of love because everyone else does it.

But I take it you're not referring to that purpose. So if you're doing it out of low self-esteem, or other psychological reasons, it would be considered adharmic, yes. Our idea of sin isn't so harsh as in Abrahamism. It's more just doing stuff because we haven't learned any better yet. We're just too stupid to know better, and each indivisual soul has to go through that to learn. So we have more compassion, fully understanding anava (primal darkness, clouds, stupidity) is part and parcel of life.

Best wishes. Looking forward to more questions.

 

[LilyPhoenix]

Oh no i eat eggs all the time and egg whites are one of the ingredients in the veggie burgers i eat
Can i ask why eggs are included in vegetarianism for Hindus?
I don't normally have a lot of milk so that is OK

 

[Vinayaka]

Eggs are considered 'animal' ... or potential flesh. But lots of Hindus do eat them. Lots of Hindus eat meat too. Probably the same ones. I'll try to find a scripture reference on it. http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20080916065517AA0kU1h Edit: Not scripture, but a better answer.

 

[LilyPhoenix]

So if i eat eggs i wouldn't be class as vegetarian? My husband says i should eat eggs as most of the food i have is based with egg ...we can not afford to go and get more food because we are on disability benefits and we dont get much money as it is
So i will not be vegetarian in the eyes of Hinduism

 

[Jainarayan]

Imo the eggs thing is iffy. There were some answers in that link regarding eggs that are not entirely correct and are misleading. Unfertilized eggs have no chance of ever becoming life. Female birds of all species will lay unfertilized eggs. I had a parrot who laid eggs every other year or so, with no male. She didn't even attempt to brood them. She would simply produce them, and drop them onto the floor of the cage where they'd smash. It's a natural hormonal biological process that happens.

The difference between a cow producing milk as a biological function and as a substance that will never become life itself, and the chicken producing an egg as a biological function and as a substance that will never become life itself is twofold: the cow is feeding her calf (more on that in a bit), and the chickens are kept under conditions that induce them to lay more eggs than my parrot would, for example.

However... as to the cows producing milk, they are bred and artificially and hormonally induced to produce milk whether they have given birth or not. A dairy cow would have to be pregnant and bear a calf every year to produce milk, and even then it would not be in sufficient quantities to supply the demand. Only some dairy cows reproduce. And even then it's by artificial insemination. This is not necessarily true on family-owned and operated dairy farms where the cows live as close to a natural life as possible. But those are few and far between. The chances of getting dairy products from a factory farm are far higher than getting dairy from a more natural setting. Granted that factory farms are for the most part immaculate and disease-free, the point remains that cows are kept penned and rarely allowed to live "natural" lives; dairy cows are kept in artificial conditions to exploit them, no different than chickens are. Male calves are taken away from their mothers and used for veal; the rennet from their stomachs is used to make certain cheeses.

At the end of the productive lives of both the chickens and cows, they are both sent on to their next lives by humans. In either case, there is violence involved. The point of all this is that there is very little chance of obtaining even milk products in a totally ahimsa way. Cows are not really much better off than chickens. There is exploitation and violence even in buttering one's toast. Hyperbole? No. more like a slippery slope imo. It's a decision one must make for oneself.

 

[Jainarayan]

So if i eat eggs i wouldn't be class as vegetarian?

There are degrees and categories of "vegetarianism": lacto-; lacto-ovo; lacto-ovo-pescetarians (milk, eggs, fish but no mammal flesh); vegan (no animal products that exploit animals, no wool, no honey, no cheese, even if it doesn't harm the animal); there are fruitarians who eat only what a plant gives up willingly, i.e. fruits or nuts that are ripe and fall from the plant, or does not harm the plant. Jains will not eat root vegetables, cabbages, lettuces, etc. because it entails the plant being killed.

My husband says i should eat eggs as most of the food i have is based with egg ...we can not afford to go and get more food because we are on disability benefits and we dont get much money as it is

You can only do the best you can with the life you have to live. God does not want you to suffer in His name. That is an Abrahamic (Judeo-Christian-Islamic) and western concept. If you follow the Bhagavad Gita, Sri Krishna says that even a person who is a perpetual sinner, but still has God in his heart, that person is still to be considered righteous and saintly. What this means is not that you can go out, keep stealing and murdering and think just because you pray, you're good to go. No, what Sri Krishna is saying is that if you are trying to live a good life and be devoted to Him, but things just get in your way or you have your own life's battles, because your intentions are good, you are still considered on the right path by Him (in my belief, He is Supreme God).

So i will not be vegetarian in the eyes of Hinduism

You will not be vegetarian in the eyes of people. There are raging debates all throughout Hindu writings about veg. v. non-veg. Personally I think one makes one's own choices. This age is called 'Kali Yuga'; it is the age ruled by the demon Kali (pronounced Kuh-lih), and not related to the goddess Kali (Kaa-lee, different pronunciation). It is the age of the decline of dharma (righteousness). That is, it is not a perfect world as it was in the days of Sri Rama and Sri Krishna. This is the challenge we face... to do the best we can with what we have to work with.

I'm not Buddhist, but there's wisdom in things the Buddha said:

“Do not believe in anything simply because you have heard it. Do not believe in anything simply because it is spoken and rumored by many. Do not believe in anything simply because it is found written in your religious books. Do not believe in anything merely on the authority of your teachers and elders. Do not believe in traditions because they have been handed down for many generations. But after observation and analysis, when you find that anything agrees with reason and is conducive to the good and benefit of one and all, then accept it and live up to it.”

The last line refers to you also... if you are living only within your means and would do yourself harm to try to live otherwise, it would be wrong to do that. You are as, if not more important than, that chicken egg.

 

[Vinayaka]

Bottom line is its up to you. There are very few variations of Hinduism that have hard and fast rules. Guidelines, suggestions, yes. This is the middle path. Why would we have set rules and sin, and then if someone tries their absolute hardest, they get all disappointed, or feel they're not good enough, because their individual karma has them in a situation? That isn't a compassionate way of looking at other people. So yes, I'm a vegetarian. But that's just an honest statement. I'm also a Canadian. Jai there is American. We can only do what we can do, given the karmic circumstances.

So if you feel connected to Hinduism, just take what you can, do what you can do, please don't over-analyse it all, and do try to feel a connection to the divine within you.

Aum

 

[Shântoham]

Namaskāram

About the so-called slippery slope. I was born and raised in a strict vegetarian family – but more than tradition or mere habit the reason I kept to vegetarianism is because I can – as an omnivore I can deliberately choose what to eat and what not to eat. By choosing not to turn the stomach into a cemetery the human being manifests the potentiality of a fully ethical vision of life. Vegetarianism has more to do with ethics and personal choice than religion per se.

Pranāms

 

[Jainarayan]

... as an omnivore I can deliberately choose what to eat and what not to eat. ... Vegetarianism has more to do with ethics and personal choice than religion per se.

Pranāms

You raise a good point here. There are those who say, and I've heard it time and again and have even said it myself, that humans evolved on a carnivorous diet. And indeed we did, but that evolution also includes a spiritual and ethical evolution. We should be evolved enough, not just as individuals, but as a society to be more ethical and move away from our animal past. In this way the o.p. for example, is not forced to do something she is uncomfortable with, but cannot afford to change, i.e. eating eggs. I hope the better part of our species will choose [I emphasize choose because the ability to do so comes with our evolution] to move towards it. Alas, I'm a naive idealist.

 

[LilyPhoenix]

I have another question
Are women who are on there period allowed to read sacred texts ?

 

[Vinayaka]

I have another question
Are women who are on there period allowed to read sacred texts ?

Yes. The custom has more to do with where you go (temples and shrine rooms are off limits) than what you read. But once again you will get a variety of answers. Certainly one of the customs a lot of adoptives and converts ask, and have trouble with.

 

[Riverwolf]

So if i eat eggs i wouldn't be class as vegetarian? My husband says i should eat eggs as most of the food i have is based with egg ...we can not afford to go and get more food because we are on disability benefits and we dont get much money as it is
So i will not be vegetarian in the eyes of Hinduism

That's perfectly okay. I'm not vegetarian at all (though I don't eat beef), mostly for health reasons.

 

[Riverwolf]

Yes. The custom has more to do with where you go (temples and shrine rooms are off limits) than what you read. But once again you will get a variety of answers. Certainly one of the customs a lot of adoptives and converts ask, and have trouble with.

Indeed. I, personally, see that as a hold-over from a time when it was harder for women to keep clean, and is not as necessary anymore.

 

[Jainarayan]

I've also read there is another practical reason... the woman was the one who did all the housekeeping. This one time of the month was a time for her to rest and let others help with the housekeeping. It also gave her a rest from walking to temple and performing anything physical.

 

[Vinayaka]

In my experience. 99% of Indian born Hindus practice this custom. 75% of western adoptives and converts disagree with it. This is not surprising to me at all. Out with the old and in with the new.

There are several deeper reasons, but apparently tradition has no place in Hinduism.