Almost all Indians – no matter their religions – respect vegetarianism. Even non-vegetarians acknowledge that India has a substantial vegetarian population, many of whom are raised as vegetarians due to religious beliefs, which should be respected.
Take my own example. I eat meat, but many of my relatives are vegetarians — which is not unusual in a Gujarati Jain vanya family — and some of them also follow restrictions on the consumption of potatoes, onions, garlic, and other seemingly harmless vegetables. I respect their beliefs and always take them into account when dining out or hosting them.
Similarly, my wife, who comes from a Punjabi Brahmin family, grew up vegetarian. She occasionally eats meat and fish now, but most of her family does not. This does not make her feel gastronomically superior to them. In fact, because of our family backgrounds, both of us are more understanding of vegetarians and their preferences and fears. For instance, when there was a social media uproar over Sudha Murty’s comment about bringing her own cutlery to restaurants, I wrote a supportive column, saying that I understood what she was trying to say.
I share this background to clarify that I am the sort of person who believes that what you eat is entirely your business. It is a matter of individual choice. It may be influenced by religious considerations and social conditioning, but ultimately, the choice is yours.
Now, here’s my problem: not all vegetarians seem to take the same food-is-an-individual-choice-that-must-be-respected attitude when it comes to non-vegetarians. Every time a Muslim festival draws near, social media is full of fake sympathy for goats that may be slaughtered, and there is always a collection of humbugs who will post photos of their vegetarian meals, telling us how wonderfully moral and guilt-free they are because no living beings were harmed in the making of their meals.
Also read: Indian food is our soft power abroad. Sadly, it has become too politicised these days
Why do vegetarians discriminate? Only one reason
The prejudice extends across society. For one, it is a convenient way to target Muslims without explicitly mentioning them. It’s the same hypocrisy that leads housing societies to say that non-vegetarians will not be admitted as neighbours. What they mean, of course, is Muslims.
We know that the majority of Indians are non-vegetarian, but some Hindus have convinced themselves that vegetarianism is a pillar of Hindu belief. In reality, it is by no means clear that Hindu religious (or even mythological) figures were necessarily vegetarians or preached compulsory vegetarianism. Yet, to listen to today’s bogus propaganda is to believe that Lord Krishna took a break from telling us about the importance of duty in the Bhagavad Gita to denounce Kababs as totally immoral.
Historical evidence does not support the notion of a vegetarian Hindu renaissance either. Great Hindu kings like Chandragupta Maurya presided over kingdoms where meat was regularly consumed. The Vedic Aryans, from whom today’s Hindus draw some of their heritage, were not vegetarians. In the South, it is sometimes claimed that the term ‘pulao’ may have originated from an ancient name for a dish of meat and rice that was popular long before the arrival of Muslims.
So, why do we pretend that vegetarianism and Hinduism are inextricably linked? Why do some North Indians get so agitated when they discover that Bengalis celebrate their Puja festival by eating meat? Why do propagandists gloss over the fact that the Kashmiri Pandits have a refined non-vegetarian cuisine?
There is only one answer that makes sense: caste. Vegetarianism became the preserve of the upper castes in some parts of India. Of course, there were exceptions where even Brahmins consumed meat (Kashmir and Bengal, for instance). But the veneration of vegetarianism is still largely an upper-caste phenomenon.
While my wife and I are by no means ashamed of or embarrassed by our caste heritage, we recognise that our families have been privileged by the Indian caste system for generations. However, our caste-based privileges have not extended down the pyramid, and we have no right to judge those castes (forget religions) where there were no injunctions against meat-eating. And yet, so many of us do exactly that.
Also read: Ever wondered why only India serves ‘pure’ veg food?
The hypocrisy behind ‘everything has life’ argument
The notion of food purity is essentially an offshoot of the even more offensive idea of caste purity. And it really has no place in today’s India.
As for the non-religious, non-caste, so-called logical arguments in favour of vegetarianism, they are non-starters.
The ‘we-can’t-take-lives-when-we-eat’ rhetoric is based on imposing a caste system on all living things. We all know that bacteria are living beings, yet we have no hesitation in consuming them through fermented foods like dahi.
Vegetarians may claim that this is acceptable because bacteria are a lower form of life. Well, what about plants then? We know that they have life too—they grow, feel pain, and eventually die. Why is it okay to kill plants for food? Well, because they too are a lower form of life, some vegetarians argue.
Even if you take this caste-like hierarchy for plants and micro-organisms that places them at the bottom of the pyramid of all life and justify killing them, there is another problem. Most agriculture involves using chemicals and pesticides that kill innumerable insects, spiders, reptiles and other living creatures to cultivate food for human consumption. The harvesting process also invariably involves killing numerous insects and animals who get in the way.
Vegetarians would have to claim that these living beings do not possess what they regard as “life”; otherwise, the average vegetarian is responsible for having thousands of living beings killed each year for his or her lunch and dinner.
In recent years, vegetarians have found refuge in the save-the-planet movement. And yes, it is true that the methane released by barnyard animals can put the planet at risk. But if vegetarians genuinely believe this, then they should first give up dairy products, because in India, over 90 per cent of methane-releasing cows are raised for dairy purposes, not meat.
There is nothing more ridiculous than a self-righteous vegetarian posting a picture of a paneer curry on social media and patting themselves on the back for being so moral and so virtuous. In fact, given how hard it is to eat beef in India, it is the dairy-loving vegetarians who are doing the most harm to the environment.
Bigotry, hatred, self-righteousness, and snobbery have no place in food choices. People who use food to show off an imagined moral superiority are not just wrong; they are usually idiots.
And those who use other people’s food habits to discriminate against them and spread hatred are beneath contempt.
Vir Sanghvi is a print and television journalist, and talk show host. He tweets @virsanghvi. Views are personal.
(Edited by Prashant)
A study from Israel in 2023 April is often misrepresented by non- vegetarians by claiming that the study suggested that plants feel pain. But the study rather discovered that plants release certain popping sounds due to cavitation which is basically the releasing of gas. Infact bacteria also release frequencies but that does not mean they have sentience, individual experiences of life, interpersonal relationships which many animals like dogs, cows, buffaloes, sheep, goat etc. have.
And seriously, ask yourself – if you had to make a choice between plucking a tomato from the plant and slitting the throat of a dog, what would you do?
If one honestly believes that plants also have sentience and feel pain and suffering, then it is going to be a very difficult decision to make.
The truth is – the moment one shifts one’s focus from hypocritical vegetarians and ultra-Hindu nationalists to the very carnal suffering of innocent animals, the right choice becomes very clear, not just in food but leather, fur and silk made clothes also.
Just think – why should we keep continuing with animal products simply because some vegetarians are hypocrites in their use of animal products.
We human beings are living in 21st century with all the luxuries that have made our living so carnally comforting yet we are treating animals like early men used to. They didn’t have the choice. Technology was not advanced enough even few decades ago if someone wanted to live animal-products free life, but today it is, not to every single person on globe but at least to a large no. of people.
Just imagine how many innocent lives can be saved and spared from enduring the most excruciating pain and suffering on their bodies if people look towards animals with the heartful look of compassion untainted by the views and actions of a hypocritical vegetarian middle class and the sectarian poison advanced by a political party.
Us and animals (whose flesh we eat and skin we use) – WHEN WE SUFFER PHYSICALLY, WE SUFFER AS EQUALS.
Please suggest those studies.
“Plants emit high frequency clicks when they stress distress”
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A study from Israel in 2023 April is often misrepresented by non- vegetarians by claiming that the study suggested that plants feel pain. But the study rather discovered that plants release certain popping sounds due to cavitation which is basically the releasing of gas. Infact bacteria also release frequencies but that does not mean they have sentience, individual experiences of life, interpersonal relationships which many animals like dogs, cows, buffaloes, sheep, goat etc. have.
And seriously, ask yourself – if you had to make a choice between plucking a tomato from the plant and slitting the throat of a dog, what would you do?
If you honestly believe that plants also have sentience and feel pain and suffering, then it is going to be a very difficult decision to make.
The truth is – the moment one shifts one’s focus from hypocritical vegetarians and ultra-Hindu nationalists to the very carnal suffering of innocent animals, the right choice becomes very clear, not just in food but leather, fur and silk made clothes also.
Just think – why should we keep continuing with animal products simply because some vegetarians are hypocrites in their use of animal products.
We human beings are living in 21st century with all the luxuries that have made our living so carnally comforting yet we are treating animals like early men used to. They didn’t have the choice. Technology was not advanced enough even few decades ago if someone wanted to live animal-products free life, but today it is, not to every single person on globe but at least to a large no. of people.
Just imagine how many innocent lives can be saved and spared from enduring the most excruciating pain and suffering on their bodies if people look towards animals with the heartful look of compassion untainted by the views and actions of a hypocritical vegetarian middle class and the sectarian poison spreaded by that one political party.
Us and animals (whose flesh we eat and skin we use) – WHEN WE SUFFER PHYSICALLY, WE SUFFER AS EQUALS.
I was expecting Mr. Sanghvi to be more thoughtful, more reasoned and more well informed than the writing in this article. Not once in this article did Mr. Sanghvi ever mention the suffering of the animals in the food industry.
We kill more than 70 billion animals every single year as per the UN Food and Agriculture Organization. And it is primarily for our enjoyment i.e. taste buds.
I used to look forward to Mr. Sanghvi’s columns and videos. No longer. Really disappointed. Goodbye, Mr. Sanghvi.
Here’s the real truth.
Food habit is not about individual choice. That’s a way to white wash the reality.
It is a statement of power. Power over a hapless animal to spill blood, kill, and eat.
Else, it is a statement of Virtue, that, I choose to show compassion to fellow animals on the planet and choose to eat vegetables that nature gave in abundance for consumption and survival for me and my fellow animals, while making the planet more sustainable.
Vir Sanghvi is too shallow to know this.
What about speciesism, isn’t it a broader perspective on casteism? It is no doubt that people who are compassionate and care about fellow living beings are more evolved souls. It’s only that others are unable to think beyond their levels of intellectual evolution.
Unfortunately Vir has just shown his shallow understanding of the subject. Definitely, veg is a better food and unlike non veg it doesn’t invoke violent behaviour. Just imagine india being a muslim or Christian country. We would have been starving and destroying nature with our food preferences
@ John – The killing of a plant and the killing of an animal, both lead to the destruction of life in some form, but I would suggest to you that these are qualitatively very different actions, with different outcomes. First, if we consider the case of plants, many times we can derive our sustenance from them without causing permanent damage, e.g., harvesting fruits and nuts. Even in cases where the plant itself is destroyed, its output, can often be stored without much effort for long periods of time, e.g., storing rice, wheat flour, dals, etc.. Compare this with the slaughter of an animal. Animals are much closer to humans in terms of their biology. They are mobile, appear alive, and can even communicate with us (to a degree). When an animal is killed, we can readily perceive the results of this action, namely suffering, blood, and a lifeless body, which cannot be stored for later consumption without much effort, e.g., refrigeration. Personally, I am not a vegetarian, but I understand the value of vegetarianism and aspire to it in later life.
You’ve got it all wrong Mr Singhvi – this be kind to animals forward is not a veg/non veg issue. It’s a Hindu Muslim issue. It’s being forwarded by people I know are non vegetarian.
Right below this it says Eid Mubarak – no brainier.
Also there is no such thing as strict vegetarian. You either are or you are not.
You don’t say I’m a strictly faithful husband. Either are -( or one dalliance) – or not.
It’s a black and white issue. No grey areas here.
Plants emit high frequency clicks when they stress distress – info available online from multiple studies. These need to be widely circulated to remove these notions of self righteousness of so called vegetarians.
Political dalals in old glorious days of UPA government. That business has died down under Modi. What can poor fellas do? They have to run their family, afterall.
Great eye-opening article, but the people living in their r0tten fallacies will still be blind bhakts.
Idiotic article based on imaginary grievances. If someone buys a goat or even a human being to save their lives nothing wrong. As for the castle argument, coastal Brahmins have been meat and fish eaters. To believe that present day Hindus follow Vedic beliefs or the gospels of Krishna or anyone else is living in cuckoo land. Indian belief systems have never been static and evolved over time for good or bad. Time this author pays attention to more important current issues rather than fighting illusory battles.
1) Calling devoted vegetarians as idiots is also a sign of superiority. 2) Vegetarianism has nothing to do with caste as Jains and many Sikhs who are vegetarians don’t follow the caste system. 3) West Bengal, Kashmir, Goa are states where Brahmins eat fish and meat. So how can you connect vegetarianism with caste? 4) Food purity exists among Jews, Christians, Muslims too in the form of Kosher, Halal regarding meat of certain kind of animals is prohibited. 5) Would Mr Sanghvi write on halal as discriminatory or is his liberalism afraid of Muslims?