What Does Buddhism Say About Food? What To Eat And Why

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Buddhism is synonymous with nonviolence and it applies to the eating habits as well. The history of vegetarianism in Buddhism that most of us are aware of. Gautam Buddha took a stance towards partial vegetarianism due to an ethical conflict he faced with his cousin Devadutta, an ambitious monk who groomed himself to be buddhas successor but failed ultimately.
Devadatta practiced five kinds of tapasyas including vegetarianism for which he asked Buddha to advocate strict vegetarianism among his disciples. This meant that Monks would starve without food. Here is the reason behind it. Monks had to beg from the villagers around, who offered them what they had including meat, in order to gain merit or punya for this deed. Monks were asked to accept whatever was offered to them as food as it will grant punya or merit upon the giver. This would ensure them a happy rebirth.

Meat Eating As Per Buddhist Scriptures

The Mahayana bodhisattva scriptures emphatically state that the flesh of sentient beings must not be consumed and also the 6 fasting days per month is a compulsory process. On the contrary, the Theravada scriptures, say that Buddha spoke about eating "three pure meats" and "five pure meat," which implied that both Mahayana and Theravada sutras supported the virtue of compassion and the protection of life. Eating the "three pure meats" is allowed only for the new students of Buddhism who still have their non-vegetarian desires still intact. Although people were well aware that meat should not be eaten, and that it causes bad karma, they have to eat it out of compulsion. Hence Buddha liberally allowed the consumption of three types of meat.

Three And Five Pure Meats Principle

"Three pure meats" should satisfy all three requirements. Firstly, not seeing the animal being killed, and secondly not hearing its scream while being killed. And thirdly not suspecting that it is being killed for consumption.
If a person sees an animal being killed in the market, he feels that he is getting fresh flesh and develops a desire to buy it. Their compassion dies the next moment and eating this meat creates sin.
Secondly when an animal is being killed for meat and screams at that time of death, it should be shown pity and its flesh should not be eaten.
Third, "not suspecting it being killed" is an instance where you are called by your friend for a social event or get together. Your friend, happy that you have visited them prepares a meat dish for your consumption. This creates a bad karma for both of you. If you had refused to eat meat, the chicken would not have been killed. It is compassion that should tell you not to kill animals and also tell others the same think. Some are scared to see an animal die, hence they get the animal killed by someone else and then consume it. This is equal to getting others kill someone for them. The accomplices also bear the same burden of sin.

Gautama Buddha's Final Stand On Meat Eating

If you wish to preserve your health but still stay a nonvegetarian, you can practice the three pure meats. As a result of this practice, we develop compassion and can reach the next level, the level of "five pure meats." Here the flesh of the animal which died naturally can be eaten, but the flesh of an animal which has died of old age, or disease or accident, cannot be consumed. One more option is to eat the remnants from the flesh that birds have eaten. So both can be rarely practiced. Hence, we can say that Buddha advocated pure vegetarianism as it elevated a person morally and spiritually.

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