Contents
In the sacred Indian work – Dhammapada – there is a saying of the Buddha: “… they will argue that I allowed meat to be eaten and I myself ate it, but know that I did not allow anyone to eat meat, now I do not allow it and I will never allow it.” And this is in literature dating back to the third century BC! But many believe that vegetarianism is another modern fashionable diet. Anyone who thinks so should learn more about this food culture, which is not far from philosophy or even religion.
The first vegetarians in history
Getting acquainted with the history of vegetarianism, it is often believed that the authorship of this diet belongs to the UK. The British, however, in the XNUMXth century were the first to call the daily rejection of meat dishes vegetarianism. However, the “palm tree” does not belong to them, this philosophy existed long before that.
Anthropological scientists believe that the first people on Earth lived by gathering and ate exclusively plant foods. There was no need for them to kill animals, since their habitats were full of fruits, berries, root crops. Why waste precious energy on a grueling hunt if there is already ready-made food around? But with the onset of the Ice Age, the picture of the ancient world changed dramatically. The man was forced to look for other sources of food, since there was no vegetation.
So, according to science, people became predators and meat-eaters. However, guesses that we were all once vegetarians remain only guesses. Many of the scientists question this idea, because there are no drawings of apples or bananas on the rock art. But our ancestors were very fond of portraying the scenes of collective hunting. The first written evidence of vegetarianism was found in Egypt, they date back to the XNUMXth-XNUMXth century BC. e.
On the banks of the Nile, the priests refused to eat meat and wear animal skins. However, it is not known exactly why they did this. There is an assumption that the clergy were afraid that the killed animals would interfere with communication with the gods. May be so. After all, almost the entire Egyptian pantheon consisted of animal gods. Every living being here was valued very highly and possessed a soul.
A little later, in ancient Greece, the idea of refusing meat appeared without any mysticism. It was precisely the philosophy that modern vegetarians are pursuing here.
The birthplace of philosophers and mathematicians at one time was a very progressive and innovative state: the first democracy, mass education of women (in Europe until the XNUMXth century it was believed that education was very harmful to the female brain), art, etc. Here, many pundits deliberately did not eat meat killed animals, among them were: Socrates, Plutarch, Plato.
It is believed that the most significant contribution to the development of ancient vegetarianism was made by Pythagoras (VI century BC). He was known as a wise philosopher and surrounded himself with students, to whom he passed on his ideas. The scientist believed that every creature has a soul and believed in reincarnation, condemned the killing of animals and ate only plant foods. He was imitated by his followers – the Pythagoreans. Today they are called “the first society of vegetarians.” Two centuries later, the father of medicine – Hippocrates – described vegetarianism as a way of treatment.
At the same time, the idea of giving up meat was flourishing in other parts of the planet. Vegetarianism followed:
- Inca tribes (not exactly established);
- warriors of Sparta (they believed that meat takes strength and harms consciousness);
- Taoists (due to religion);
- the Hellenic tribe of Hyperborians (for this they were called “pure people”);
- the Romans (guided by the recommendations of doctors, including Hippocrates).
But India is considered the birthplace of vegetarianism, as many Indian religions do not allow eating animals. This country is still the leader in the number of vegetarians among the population. Even before the advent of the Buddha, Hindus refused to kill animals for food, as it was believed that meat interferes with achieving harmony of spirit and body. Also, the ancient Hindus believed that such food causes aggression and negative thoughts, gives rise to moral weakness.
In the XNUMXst millennium, Siddhartha Gautama, who later became the founder of Buddhism, continued the idea of the inviolability of every living being.
The spiritual mentor taught his followers: “… striving for compassion, let him not eat the flesh of living beings …”. However, due to climatic conditions, not every Buddhist is a vegetarian.
The ban on vegetarianism
The history of the development of vegetarianism is not without white spots. From the beginning of Christianity to the Renaissance in Europe, there are very few written references to this idea. It is only known that some monks in the Middle Ages refused meat because of their own convictions. It is the emergence and wide spread of the Christian religion, which occurred in the XNUMXrd century AD, that is considered the reason for the oblivion of vegetarianism.
Although in the sacred writings of this creed it is clearly stated: “And the flesh of the slain creatures in his body will become his own grave … he who eats slain flesh eats from the body of death” (Gospel of the Essenes).
In the first book of the Old Testament, you can read: “… only flesh with its soul, with its blood, do not eat” (Genesis, chapter IX). However, the Christian church supported eating meat based on the fact that Jesus ate it.
Today, theologians are still arguing about this, since the word “trophe” in ancient Greek texts used to be translated as “meat”, and today as “food”. Nevertheless, in the Middle Ages, meat was a public product for the rich and ordinary peasants, and no one forbade eating it. Vegetarian monks who tried to challenge this position had no effect on the situation. The church knew how to resolve the issue with the indignant: everyone who disagreed with it at least in some way was simply burned, including those who dared to accuse religion of murder.
The period stretching for almost 1000 years (from the XNUMXth century to the XNUMXth century) can be called the decline of vegetarianism.
Of course, such a picture was not everywhere, in the same India, people, as before, did not eat meat and no one burned them for it. However, in most of Eurasia, no one was already glorifying this idea. Unless, in the hungry years, people involuntarily became vegetarians.
Revival of philosophy
Again, the rejection of meat was boldly spoken about only by the beginning of the Enlightenment. New ideas and trends became fashionable, in addition, the second wave of popularity overtook the ancient Greek philosophers. The teachings of the wise Greeks began to be promoted anew, including a plant-based diet. One of her brightest followers was a lover of everything unusual and progressive – Leonardo da Vinci. He believed that soon killing an animal would be tantamount to killing a human.
It is believed that officially the revival of vegetarianism took place in the UK. The British brought from India – their largest colony – a variety of curiosities: animals, spices, fabrics, paint, incense. Also among the “imports” were the Vedic religion, culture and vegetarianism, which was then simply called the “Indian diet”. Ideas about plant-based nutrition and the ban on killing animals have also received their fans here.
By 1847, a vegetarian society had emerged in Manchester, which promoted its ideas (albeit not intrusively). From here, this philosophy spread to other countries and continents. At that time, there was an economic crisis in America and Europe and traditional meat products were quite expensive. This position in the market contributed to the development of a plant-based diet.
As with many innovations, Russia was a bit late with the flourishing of vegetarianism. Around 1885, the famous figure and writer Leo Tolstoy met with Vladimir Gaines (William Frey), who managed to prove to Tolstoy that the human body is not able to digest and assimilate meat normally. Since then, Lev Nikolayevich has become an ardent opponent of the meat diet. The first Russian vegetarian society was formed in St. Petersburg in 1901. A special canteen was even opened here, where the followers of this idea could enjoy dishes without meat. A little later, the same institution was opened in Moscow on Nikitsky Boulevard.
However, after 1917, the communist philosophy did not fit in with vegetarianism. Animal husbandry was supposed to flourish, and who needs it if everyone refuses meat? Like the Christian church, the communists banned such passions, conversations and thoughts. And for those who decide to find information about this food culture in the Great Soviet Encyclopedia, they wrote: “Vegetarianism is based on false ideas and hypotheses; it has no adherents in the Soviet Union.” This remained the situation until the new era.
Vegetarianism today
These days, the idea of an absolute plant-based diet can be followed by anyone. Humane treatment of living beings is promoted and such a food culture is gaining popularity.
Around the globe today there are almost 1 billion followers of this philosophy (3% of the total population of the Earth).
As before, the majority of vegetarians are Indians. Also, a significant part of this billion are Taiwanese and Chinese. In America, approximately 5% of the population refuse to abuse animals and do not eat them (statistics for 2012).
In Europe, the attitude towards vegetarianism is still ambiguous. For example, in Poland, this culture practically does not find followers, and some do not even know the term itself. In 2013, the recruitment portal Superjob organized a survey of Russians. 4% of them identified themselves as anti-animal abusers. Among the older generation, most of all disagreed with this movement, perhaps due to the fact that “there were no adherents in the Soviet Union.”
Many of our contemporaries say that the transition to a plant-based diet is not just a right of choice, but a duty of a person to our planet. Mass production of meat in developed countries pollutes the environment no less than other types of industry. For example, the waste products of livestock farms pollute it more than the sewers of megacities by almost 10 times. Also, in order to create the amount of meat consumed, humanity spends a huge share of drinking water. In 2006, the UN reported that livestock farms emit more greenhouse gases than cars.
As we can guess, today vegetarianism is experiencing another peak of its popularity. Perhaps, as da Vinci predicted, soon we will all feel the same way about killing an animal as we do about killing a person. Unless a new religion or political party appears again.