Monday, September 11, 2006

Is It Wrong To Eat Meat?

You know, I've seen a lot of comments in the past about the morality of killing and eating animals. It's often taken for granted today because we don't even see the food we eat as animal, just grocery-market-packaged food waiting to be cooked.

I've always eaten meat. I've always eaten vegetables. I eat to nourish my body and replenish my energy.

The morality of killing to eat is natural. We need food to survive, so we go out and get it. Like a wolf, we prey upon the lives we can catch, eat its meat, and fill our stomachs. It's instinctual. It's animalistic. But you know what? Human beings are animalistic, instinctual creatures and any attempts to glorify humans as anything more in the *physical* sense is just pointless. We are what we are (I AM WHAT I AM).

Spiritually, however, humans appear to be the most evolved group of life forms on this planet (maybe not on another planet, but at least this one). Not that humans are just so great, but that humans at least have the capabilities to become great. With this in mind, is it possible to transcend the animalistic, instinctual behaviors to such a degree as to question the morality in killing for food?

Some would argue that we need to be on a vegetarian diet. But I think that even broccoli screams when you rip it from the ground. There have been studies that show plants are very aware of their environments. One in particular that comes to mind was an experiment that included two plants of the same species. One plant was hooked up to a polygraph machine, the other was not. Someone came into the room, destroyed the plant that was NOT hooked up to the polygraph, then observed the polygraph test. It was off the charts. Now - can you really tell me plants have no spirit?

Vegan diets seem alright, except for a problem that you might be keeping yourself from very essential, neccesary nutrients to function correctly. Especially when you get into eating rotten fruits and the like.

In essence, any time we take food in for the proper nutritional sustanance, a life form will have to submit and die. To look at it from a panantheist view - God is all things and more - there is no end to any of this life, just a transformation of one substance to another. One life absorbs the physical shell of another life, which continues the cycle. Only the physical is absorbed, however, as the spirit transcends the shell to find - in my belief - another shell to manifest.

So - can we kill for food? My take - yes.

Pointless gaming sports are cruel. Hunting "for sport" is the equivalent of murdering someone for "practice." You needlessly take the life of the animal. And fishing seems to be pretty popular "sport" too, where many people who are good at it just throw the fish back into the water. "They don't feel it, they have no nerves." Are you telling me that having a metal hook pierced into your cheek, pulled out of your natural environment from said hook-in-cheek to a completely alien atmosphere where no intake of breath can occur is...humane?

I have no qualms with those who hunt for food. As long as they eat the food, it's justifiable. To kill for fun - that's when humanity escapes the situation.

To give a quote from a great story teller:

It's not what goes in a man's mouth that defiles him, but what comes out of his mouth.

Or something to that effect. Now, if you'll excuse me, my chicken dinner is ready.

Pax.

11 Comments:

At 8:32 PM, Blogger Shawn™ said...

I posted about this recently and this one helped me get some more perspective on the whole topic.

What we do need to be aware of is what HAPPENS to the animals we eat or provide what we eat (dairy).

The torture and inhuman circumstances that all non-organic dairy and meat farms put their livestock through EVERYDAY is wrong.

I agree there is nothing wrong with eating meat, but they should not need to suffer needlessly for us to eat.

I choose to be a organitarian. I would encourage everyone to make the same choice.

Peace

Shawn

 
At 10:35 PM, Blogger + Mar Iohannes, Ep.Gn. said...

Shawn, while I applaud your conviction, I do have to say that non-organic dairy and meat etc are wrong -as such-.

Fact is, eating purely organic, on a whole, is more expensive than its conventional counterparts.

I have a friend, he's my age, 29- grew up with him, knew him and his wife before they knew each other, was a groomsman at his wedding, they have two amazingly awesome kids, and the flame between them burns strong.

But..

But..

He has lupus, and kidney failure- he undergoes dialysis, 3 times a week, at 4 hours a shot. He can't work due to his health, and his wife spends a lot of time looking after the little ones. Family won't give him a transplant because well.. I have no nice words for these folks.

So at 29, living off disability, in low-income housing, when the kids are hungry- they get what they get and are very happy for it.

He's had people say hey, you should eat organic, its nicer, better for your health etc etc- his exact response when relaying this story to me was to rub his thumb, middle and index finger together..

The kids come first.

 
At 10:36 PM, Blogger + Mar Iohannes, Ep.Gn. said...

Typo: NOT WRONG AS SUCH..

Hmph.. more coffee

 
At 11:29 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Ave Brother,

I agree with you on this one - there is nothing inherently wrong (or right, for that matter) in eating meat.

Firstly, as you mentioned, one could consider plants as a living things. Just because they don't jump around like animals doesn't mean they're not living (just in the same way that just because animals don't think like we do doesn't mean they're not living).

Secondly, while we may be human and therefore have a certain ammount of more advanced evolution, our spiritual qualitity is not what is requiring the physical sustenance. That requires a different kind of "food", but if we want to survive here long enough to actually "feed" our spirit, we need to feed our body. Idealism is one thing, but we have to take a realistic look at this too.

Lastly, through my own experience, I have found a stark "truth": morality does not exist outside of humanity's own created system. It's just another tool we're using until we don't need it anymore. When we don't need it, we will realise that we don't actually want to hurt or kill for no reason. We're not merely upholding a code of honour or fulfilling society's prescribed notions of what is "right" and "wrong", but upholding our True Will and nothing else. Food is essential for physical survival. The choice of what type of food is an individual thing, I'm afraid.

+Mar Iohannes also makes a good point.

-D

 
At 5:49 PM, Blogger Joe Daher said...

...morality does not exist outside of humanity's own created system...

Exactly. You hit it right on the head there, brother.

I actually have a post on morality here.

 
At 11:22 PM, Blogger Shawn™ said...

I understand the cost of organics, I really do. $20 for a block of cheese smaller than my palm? Come on! As such I simply obstain from some things since I'm not exactly bringing in the big dollars. Eating out is a real chore.

15 years ago you couldn't find cosmetics that weren't tested on animals. Now look at it.

I just saying that this could be possible in what we eat as well. Personally I think it is a tragedy that people do not have reasonable access to healthy, hormone and chemical free, non-GMO, affordable food choices.

Since I can afford organic to some degree I make this choice. And as I can I will fight for this to become the norm so people like your friend can benefit from the pluses of eating healthier more wholesome foods.

And I like the morality point. But since we live within this created system, morality is something we need to face. Pointing out it is only real because we make it real, doesn't negate it's validity to our physical existence. I won't go murder someone tomorrow because I say that morality doesn't exist. So why is torturing an animal to death to satisfy my culinary needs any different?

 
At 8:15 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Ave Shawn,

You're missing the point of my argument about morality. Why do you need someone to tell you what is "right" and "wrong" to stop you from going out and killing someone? My argument that morality does not exist is NOT an excuse to do anything you want. There is a stage where we don't want to commit murder or similiar acts.

-D

 
At 8:04 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

The fact remains that it is not necessary for humans to eat meat for survival.
Sure, in places where farming is not possible such as the desert it might be, but for the average person it is not required.
There is a difference between the time when we were cavemen and now. We have evolved to the point where eating meat is a choice. The only reason left to eat meat is because it tastes better than other things to people who a). have grown up eating mainly meat and have therefore do not developed a sense of taste for other things, or b). have never actually eaten or prepared a delicious vegetarian meal.
I personally would much rather eat a vegetarian yellow curry with roti topped with slices of banana, yogurt and chutney sauce than a steak. (I'm hungry now)

My point is that the argument that "meat tastes better" is invalid because the people saying that have never actually experimented with vegetarian dishes.

My other point: Is it morally justified to "mass produce" (lets face the facts here) animals for the sole purpose of killing them just to satisfy our taste buds?

The problem is that in "civilized" (lol) society one is not faced with that dilemma. All the "dirty work" is being done in the background. All we have to do is pick up some fillet at the supermarket.

Would you still eat veal if you had to kill a calf in order to have your precious steak? Or would you rather just eat a sandwich (without meat) and spare its life?
Would you slaughter a pig to have ham on that Hawaiian pizza? Or leave the animal in peace and substitute the ham for mushrooms.

Now lets apply that to children. Do you think 10 year old little Jessica would still be so happy to get those chicken nuggets if she witnessed the ENTIRE manufacturing process leading up to the the moment the guy packs it in a bag together with a little toy chicken?
I don't think so. And I think it's pretty twisted how we delude not just ourselves but our offspring as well.

 
At 5:21 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

I just feel that if you can eat an animal, you can also raise a cow, kill it, skin it, butcher it, cook it, then eat it. If you do not have the stomach for these steps then how can you justify eating meat? Slaughterhouses have one of the highest job turnover rates in America. If the anaimal was in the wild and you were hungry, and everything was fair game, fine, kill the animal and eat it, you need to survive, however, farming is not fair game. Animals are born with the purpose to be killed. They have no choice or chance. In the wild at least it is anyones game. I mean, ok this might sound crazy, but imagine if aliens came down and pretty much said, oh yeah we bred all you humans for food, your alive because of us so we are going to kill and eat you. I think that every animal deserves at least a chance at survival.

 
At 6:14 PM, Blogger Unknown said...

There are many excellent gnostic teachings that many find helpful. The [Essene] Gospel of Peace of Jesus Christ is part of a a group of teachings [it was found in the Vatican Secret Archives], that has quite a grass roots movement for life respect, love, and much healing, it also has some 'key' alchemic alloy transformation understanding in the tract on the Prodigal Son, Book One, so Tin Man can transform with love, diet change, fasting.

http://gnosis.org/naghamm/silvanus.html

There are two trees growing in Paradise. The one bears animals, the other bears men. Adam ate from the tree which bore animals. He became an animal and he brought forth animals. For this reason the children of Adam worship animals.

http://gnosis.org/naghamm/GPhilip-Barnstone.html
from the "Gospel of Phillip"
If you are sensible, you understand the nature of learning.

Bodily forms will not deceive you,
since you will look at the condition of each person’s soul
and speak with that form.

There are many animals on earth in human form.

When you identify them,
then you throw acorns to swine,
barley and chaff and grass to cattle,
and bones to the dogs.

To slaves you will give only what is preliminary,
but to children you give what is complete.

Some more of the best knowledge of teachings about brotherhood of all creatures is found now in the ...[Essene] Gospel of Peace of Christ Jesus.

Love All !


 
At 10:51 AM, Blogger SharonAzar said...

It is wrong for humans to kill..or to have beings killed for food. This is a cruel pursuit. The Jains in India have been around for thousands of years and they follow Ahimsa (non harm) ..I cannot believe that the original Gnostic teachings would allow for the killing of defenseless animals.

 

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