Why are you a vegan?
Co-Founder, Jivamukti Yoga
We eat children and destroy our world in the process, says Gannon.
January 4, 2008 | In Belief
Co-Founder, Jivamukti Yoga
We eat children and destroy our world in the process, says Gannon.
January 4, 2008 | In Belief
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Discuss
Richard Crawford on January 30, 2008, 2:02 PM
I eat meat because it tastes good.
Maybe we should have better living conditions for animals on farms. But I don't see any reason why I or any other person should give up eating meat completely so that a cow can have a happy life.
Richard Crawford on January 30, 2008, 7:02 PM
I eat meat because it tastes good.
Maybe we should have better living conditions for animals on farms. But I don’t see any reason why I or any other person should give up eating meat completely so that a cow can have a happy life.
Henrik Petaisto on February 3, 2008, 2:16 PM
Eating meat because it tastes good is not a valid arguement. If I like the taste of a human with a sprinkle of salt, does it justify my eating of humans?
Henrik Petaisto on February 3, 2008, 7:16 PM
Eating meat because it tastes good is not a valid arguement. If I like the taste of a human with a sprinkle of salt, does it justify my eating of humans?
Jamie Tyroler on February 16, 2008, 6:31 PM
Although I do eat meat, I have cut down quite a lot over the past couple of years. One of the concerns I have is the world's population growth – to raise livestock to feed the US needs has created factory farming and the environmental pollution associated with it. During my lifetime (born in 1959), the world's population has more than doubled. In order to feed the number of people, we have destroyed rain forests, overfished the oceans, and have resorted to feeding livestock foods that they weren't meant to eat, etc.
Jamie Tyroler on February 16, 2008, 11:31 PM
Although I do eat meat, I have cut down quite a lot over the past couple of years. One of the concerns I have is the world’s population growth – to raise livestock to feed the US needs has created factory farming and the environmental pollution associated with it. During my lifetime (born in 1959), the world’s population has more than doubled. In order to feed the number of people, we have destroyed rain forests, overfished the oceans, and have resorted to feeding livestock foods that they weren’t meant to eat, etc.
Jules Febre on March 5, 2008, 6:49 PM
The amount of resources used to raise animals and the waste produces from them is so astronomical that to eat meat must come from a disconnect with our own power and influence in the world not to mention the suffering of others including human animals.
Jules Febre on March 5, 2008, 11:49 PM
The amount of resources used to raise animals and the waste produces from them is so astronomical that to eat meat must come from a disconnect with our own power and influence in the world not to mention the suffering of others including human animals.
Jannette Patterson on March 9, 2008, 7:31 PM
Sharon is a wonderful ambassador of kindness and truth! If only more followed Sharon's loving words of wisdom, this would be a better planet. For some helpful tips, visit GoVeg.com. Love you Sharon!!
Jannette Patterson on March 9, 2008, 11:31 PM
Sharon is a wonderful ambassador of kindness and truth! If only more followed Sharon’s loving words of wisdom, this would be a better planet. For some helpful tips, visit GoVeg.com. Love you Sharon!!
Chloé Berman on March 10, 2008, 10:28 AM
Sharon Gannon is a magical truth teacher.. listen to her and take in her brilliance.
Some words from other truth spillers;
WORDS TO LIVE BY:
"Take sides. Neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim. Silence encourages the tormentor, never the tormented."
—Elie Wiesel
"The victim feels the suffering in his own mind and body, whereas the victimizer … can be quite unaware of that suffering. The sword does not feel the pain that it inflicts."
— Philip Hallie, From Cruelty to Goodness
%u201CPeople often say that humans have always eaten animals, as if this is a justification for continuing the practice. According to this logic, we should not try to prevent people from murdering other people, since this has also been done since the earliest of times. %u201C
— Isaac Bashevis Singer (1904- )
%u201CWe are the living graves of murdered beasts, slaughtered to satisfy our appetites. How can we hope in this world to attain the peace we say we are so anxious for?%u201D
— George Bernard Shaw (Living Graves, published 1951)
%u201CA man of my spiritual intensity does not eat corpses.%u201D
— George Bernard Shaw
%u201CTo my mind, the life of a lamb is no less precious than that of a human being. I should be unwilling to take the life of a lamb for the sake of the human body.%u201D
— Mahatma Gandhi
"Thou shalt not kill" does not apply to murder of one's own kind only, but to all living beings; and this Commandment was inscribed in the human breast long before it was proclaimed from Sinai. — Leo Tolstoy
%u201CTruly man is the king of beasts, for his brutality exceeds theirs. We live by the death of others: we are burial places! I have from an early age abjured the use of meat, and the time will come when men such as I will look on the murder of animals as they now look on the murder of men.%u201D
-Leonardo da Vinci%u201CNothing will benefit human health and increase chances for survival of life on Earth as much as the evolution to a vegetarian diet.%u201D
- Albert EinsteinRosa Ena%u201CBy insulting vegetarianism you are insulting you own divinity. Who are you worshipping?%u201D
-
%u201C"For as long as men massacre animals, they will kill each other. Indeed, he who sows the seed of murder and pain cannot reap joy and love."
— Pythagoras
%u201CThe animals of the world exist for their own reasons. They were not made for humans any more than black people were made for white, or women created for men.%u201D
— Alice Walker
Alanna K on March 10, 2008, 12:35 PM
I think Sharon is right on with this. If only all yogis, and/or those interested in changing the world for the better would take up this stance, our world would be in a VERY different place. It would also be really amazing if other yoga teachers would start embracing this subject, so we could hear more champions for the cause of compassion.
Chloé Berman on March 10, 2008, 2:28 PM
Sharon Gannon is a magical truth teacher.. listen to her and take in her brilliance.
Some words from other truth spillers;
WORDS TO LIVE BY:
“Take sides. Neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim. Silence encourages the tormentor, never the tormented.”
—Elie Wiesel
“The victim feels the suffering in his own mind and body, whereas the victimizer … can be quite unaware of that suffering. The sword does not feel the pain that it inflicts.”
— Philip Hallie, From Cruelty to Goodness
%u201CPeople often say that humans have always eaten animals, as if this is a justification for continuing the practice. According to this logic, we should not try to prevent people from murdering other people, since this has also been done since the earliest of times. %u201C
— Isaac Bashevis Singer (1904- )
%u201CWe are the living graves of murdered beasts, slaughtered to satisfy our appetites. How can we hope in this world to attain the peace we say we are so anxious for?%u201D
— George Bernard Shaw (Living Graves, published 1951)
%u201CA man of my spiritual intensity does not eat corpses.%u201D
— George Bernard Shaw
%u201CTo my mind, the life of a lamb is no less precious than that of a human being. I should be unwilling to take the life of a lamb for the sake of the human body.%u201D
— Mahatma Gandhi
“Thou shalt not kill” does not apply to murder of one’s own kind only, but to all living beings; and this Commandment was inscribed in the human breast long before it was proclaimed from Sinai.
- Leo Tolstoy
- Leonardo da Vinci%u201CTruly man is the king of beasts, for his brutality exceeds theirs. We live by the death of others: we are burial places! I have from an early age abjured the use of meat, and the time will come when men such as I will look on the murder of animals as they now look on the murder of men.%u201D -
%u201CNothing will benefit human health and increase chances for survival of life on Earth as much as the evolution to a vegetarian diet.%u201D
- Albert Einstein
- Rosa Ena%u201CBy insulting vegetarianism you are insulting you own divinity. Who are you worshipping?%u201D
%u201C"For as long as men massacre animals, they will kill each other. Indeed, he who sows the seed of murder and pain cannot reap joy and love."
— Pythagoras
%u201CThe animals of the world exist for their own reasons. They were not made for humans any more than black people were made for white, or women created for men.%u201D
— Alice Walker
Alanna K on March 10, 2008, 4:35 PM
I think Sharon is right on with this. If only all yogis, and/or those interested in changing the world for the better would take up this stance, our world would be in a VERY different place. It would also be really amazing if other yoga teachers would start embracing this subject, so we could hear more champions for the cause of compassion.
Rima Rabbath on March 11, 2008, 7:09 AM
Thanks for posting radical thinking like Sharon's on this site. An inspiration for all of us to live more compassionately, harmoniously, joyfully, peacefully!
Andrea Boyd on March 11, 2008, 7:32 AM
Being vegan brings more joy to my life than any other choice I have ever made. Eating animals for taste enjoyment is not only cruel, it's actually disgusting. People on this planet would be in much better shape physically, mentally, and spiritually if they went VEGAN! Animals are being tortured and killed by the billions and all because of what has been ingrained into this culture…I grew up eating meat and dairy, and it really is not that hard to give up. COMPASSION IS THE KEY TO HAPPINESS. Compassion means to feel with. No animals want to be tortured and killed. If we had to do it ourselves, I have a feeling that there would be many many more vegans out there. Please, for your own sake and for the sake of this planet and all on it, GO VEGAN! Keep up the amazing work that you are doing Sharon. Radicals must speak out. Thank you.
Rima Rabbath on March 11, 2008, 11:09 AM
Thanks for posting radical thinking like Sharon’s on this site. An inspiration for all of us to live more compassionately, harmoniously, joyfully, peacefully!
Andrea Boyd on March 11, 2008, 11:32 AM
Being vegan brings more joy to my life than any other choice I have ever made. Eating animals for taste enjoyment is not only cruel, it’s actually disgusting. People on this planet would be in much better shape physically, mentally, and spiritually if they went VEGAN! Animals are being tortured and killed by the billions and all because of what has been ingrained into this culture…I grew up eating meat and dairy, and it really is not that hard to give up. COMPASSION IS THE KEY TO HAPPINESS. Compassion means to feel with. No animals want to be tortured and killed. If we had to do it ourselves, I have a feeling that there would be many many more vegans out there. Please, for your own sake and for the sake of this planet and all on it, GO VEGAN! Keep up the amazing work that you are doing Sharon. Radicals must speak out. Thank you.
Tom Tom on February 14, 2009, 8:20 PM
Many people think “why should I go vegan just to give a cow a happy life?” Well, it’s about more than just the tortured cows. It’s also about the illegal workers who must deal with deplorable and dangerous conditions. OSHA calls slaughterhouse work one of the most dangerous in the US. It’s also about the environment and your health.
Veganism is the only choice for a safe and sustainable future.
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