Venerable Master Cihui asked: the first question, is it a must to be a vegetarian to believe in Buddhism and study Buddhism?
Master Nebula: I will give a principled answer to this question first: believing in and studying Buddhism does not necessarily require vegetarianism! Some people eat vegetarian, he is based on hygiene, health considerations, like some people in the West now, vegetarianism is a lot, but not necessarily related to religion. Like in Tibet, there is no vegetarian food, the monks over there - lamas, they also use cows and sheep as food; like now in Japan, Buddhism is very common, but the monks in the temples all over Japan, is not a vegetarian; like Thailand, is a Buddhist country, they are begging for food, people give what to eat, and can not talk about meat, vegetarian; very famous Guangdong people - Zen school of the Sixth Patriarch Huineng master, once did not also eat meat side dishes, but also to eat meat side dishes, and to eat meat side dishes, but not necessarily with religion. Once did not also eat meat on the side of the dish? Not vegetarian either. It seems that vegetarianism and Confucianism are very related, equal to Confucianism says: "see its life, can not bear to see its death, hear its voice, can not bear to eat its meat, is a gentleman far blister kitchen also." Buddhism advocates not killing, it has no strict rules on vegetarianism. Because killing is breaking the seed of great compassion, what you eat, Buddhism has no strict rules, you just don't kill. We have a ceremony of conversion to the Three Jewels here tomorrow, and there are a lot of people who are concerned, after I convert to the Three Jewels, is it a vegetarian diet? Conversion to the Three Jewels is a matter of faith, and vegetarianism is a matter of habits, concepts of life, and morality. Therefore, we very much hope that universal people, etc., do not worry about the question of what to eat, this is not taboo, faith in Buddha, learning Buddha that is very important!
The second question, can vegetarians eat eggs and cheese? Can you eat leeks, onions, garlic and other five pungent?
Places like Tibet and Thailand, as mentioned earlier, can't talk about eating meat or vegetarian, only Chinese Buddhists, influenced by Confucianism, or by the fundamental Buddhist concept of compassion, feel that the elemental food. The question just now was: Can vegetarians eat eggs? Some people say no, because eggs may also have life, and vegetarianism means: don't cut off the life of all living beings, so one should not be able to eat eggs. However, people who like to eat eggs think that there is no possibility of life in the eggs that are raised nowadays, so is eating eggs also equal to vegetarianism? Within Buddhism there is a precept called the precept of ridicule and suspicion, the fear of people ridiculing suspicion. If we eat eggs and people see us, I can't always explain to them that the eggs I eat are from a breeder and have no life. In order to avoid people's suspicion, therefore, nowadays Buddhists still insist on not eating eggs. Animals have life, we do not eat, plants inside the green vegetables, radish can be eaten, why onions, garlic, leeks and other five vegetables can not be eaten? Because onions, garlic, leeks and other five pungent vegetables, fried in the pan, the flavor is very cloudy, so that others smell very uncomfortable. The meaning is that we should not violate others with our sense of taste or bad smell. We should also not make others suffer because of ridicule and suspicion. So eggs, onions, garlic, leeks, and other five-octane vegetables are also not eaten. Eating milk and cheese is permissible in Buddhism because milk and cheese, that is, they have no flavor and do not kill life.
The third question, vegetables also have life, eating vegetables is also considered killing life?
Buddhism looks at life not as a difference between plants and animals, but as the mind, and the mind represents life. When you kill an animal such as a chicken or a duck, it has a reflection of the mind - fear, it is afraid of death; when you eat vegetables, the vegetables do not have a reflection of the mind. So, within Buddhism, there is no question of compassion or lack of compassion in eating plants; there are scruples in eating animals.
The fourth question, there are many kinds of vegetarianism, some people eat morning fast, six fasts, the first day of the month, the fifteenth day of the month, the three clean meat, etc., how to eat vegetarianism?
Eating vegetarian, eating meat is not very important, the key is in the heart, the heart is more important. Some people eat morning fasting, which is not exactly speaking, morning fasting, noon, night can eat meat? In the morning is to eat more vegetarian, can not get up in the morning on the big fish, meat well. However, you can think of eating fasting in the morning, can have a thought of kindness, is also a reflection of compassion. Some people eat three clean meat, not specially for me to kill, not I see kill, not I hear kill, so-called: the eye does not see for clean. This kind of meat is also very safe for him to eat. Personally, I have been a vegetarian since I was a child, and I can't remember what meat tastes like. Often when a devotee wants to invite me to dinner, he tells me, "When you come to dinner, I specially clean all the pots and bowls in the house, so they are very clean, so don't worry." In fact, when I really have the intention to eat, I tell them, "None of this matters, you don't need to wash them, the pot you have cooked meat in, cook a bowl of vegetables for me to eat, I am eating the vegetables, not your pot?" For people like me, who have had no contact with meat all my life, nowadays, bread, vegetarian food, etc., sometimes have the flavor of meat waking up, and I can feel it when I eat it. But I can't tell when everyone is eating it. Sometimes it is obviously vegetarian meatballs, but when I eat it in my mouth, it tastes like fish, so it is good to wake up, but I have to wrinkle my nose and swallow it, so that people will not be embarrassed. Once I was with an old Venerable Master, and the principal of a school invited us to eat dumplings. The school was in the suburbs, and on Sundays during the holidays, he made dumplings for us to eat. There was no one else in his house, just the principal. It was one o'clock in the afternoon, and the dumplings were on the table, so we ate one of the dumplings, and it was delicious! The dumplings were wrapped in eggs and leeks. I looked at the old Venerable Master, he did not move a bit, and ate a second one, of course, I also did not move, also ate a second one, a big plate of dumplings we all finished, the principal said: "There is more, there is more, I'm going to go and cook it again." The old Venerable Master said to me, "It looks like egg and leek dumplings, right?" I said, "It's egg and leek dumplings." He said, "Then I won't eat it." He put down his chopsticks and I said, "I'm not eating either." When you're full, of course you don't eat! Once, when I visited Japan on behalf of the Chinese Buddhist Association, at a banquet, the first bowl of noodles came up, and it smelled awful, so awful! It was a small fish soup, boiled noodles, a lot of people at the banquet, there is no way, but also had to endure, hold your breath, a few bites to eat it down. I also think, I did not open meat ah. I mean, "Buddhism is not taboo what you eat, is a vegetarian Buddhist, just eat the meaning of eating, eat the heart, you do not eat the odd on the good!" A group of bandits, surrounded a temple, said to the abbot monk: "You are all compassionate, all vegetarian, here is a bowl of meat, if you eat this bowl of meat, I will spare all of your lives, do not kill you. Otherwise, every single one of you I will kill all of you." Without hesitation, the abbot monk ate the bowl of meat, and I thought: he ate vegetarian food, he didn't eat any meat; that's sincere, that's compassion, that's a very great spirit.
Venerable Master Cihui: What the master has just said, people think it may be very convenient and compassionate. However, I would like to tell you that inside Fo Guang Shan, the master ordered: strictly prohibit pixel balls, vegetarian chicken, vegetarian shrimp, etc., with meat flavor, meat-like food, absolutely not allowed to enter the door! Once during the Chinese New Year, when thousands of our disciples were preparing a meal with the Master, the Master turned around and left as soon as he entered the Lenten Hall. Everyone asked him, "Master, why are you leaving without eating?" He said, "What is that smell you have there?" Later everyone knew that it was a vegetarian pill that imitated the taste of meat. The canonical seat was panicked and said, "This is sent by the devotees as an offering, and we can't do without it." But the Master said, "I've preached my rules, and with something like this, I don't eat it!" This is Fo Guang Shan!
Fifth question: the Master has been a vegetarian since he was a child, in your experience, what are the benefits of vegetarianism?
Master Nebula: What are the benefits of being a vegetarian? Just look at me, didn't I grow taller? I'm a very fat man, I'm a very healthy man, I'm a very healthy man. I'm a very healthy person, I'm a very healthy person. Vegetarianism, now called health food, vegetarianism is more hygienic, more healthy. Vegetarians have a softer character and a stronger sense of endurance. We can see that cows, horses, camels and elephants are all vegetarians and have great endurance. Tigers and lions are meat-eaters, and although they are very fierce, when a tiger pounces three times, its backbone is not as strong as it should be. I have seen some old monks in the Buddhist sect, after decades of vegetarianism, their strength for working longer hours, for hard work and endurance, is higher than that of the meat-eaters. I remember thirty years ago, when the United States wanted to send astronauts into space, they came to Taiwan to see me to study vegetarianism. I said why do astronauts need to be vegetarians? He wanted to train the astronauts' endurance. Because in space, it takes stamina to get through the silence. Therefore, vegetarianism, I myself in Fo Guang Shan also experimented, some young sanyasins often with the local college students to play blue ball, those young students on the field a few minutes of the game on the back of the sweat, no strength, the coach replaced; our sanyasins, the game for forty minutes, the whole field running. Sometimes to change down to rest for a while, they all said, "No, I have the strength." Strange, where do you get your strength from? I have slowly worked out that vegetarians are not as good as meat eaters at growing their mental strength and stamina. I don't need to tell you now that vegetarianism has more benefits and utilities, but it is good to have a harmonized, even and balanced diet.
The sixth question is: Is there any sin in eating vegetarian food that has a meat name and is made to look like meat, such as vegetarian chicken and vegetarian duck?
The person who eats it is not guilty, the person who makes it is guilty. We vegetarians, you use potatoes, bean skins made of vegetarian chicken, vegetarian duck, we eat, did not see the chicken, duck, or vegetarian. In fact, vegetarian food is just as good as clean vegetarian food, why do you have to make it look like a meat dish? I think that the person who made it was not doing it for us, but for you, the community at large, and he wanted to encourage you to be vegetarian and guide you to learn to be vegetarian. Once, at the dinner table, there was a chicken that was really made to look so much like a chicken that when I saw it, I was also shocked, and I was moved and moved to think about it, so there is indeed a need to improve vegetarian food by making it look like non-vegetarian food! In my personal life, I have been of an easy-going character, not too calculating or obsessive about the situation at that time, and therefore, I am not willing to change everyone's habits. For example, for decades, I have had a plate of vegetarian udon roe with my meals, and that thing tastes so bad that I have never taken a bite of it. However, after I finished eating, when I turned around and walked away, this plate of vegetarian udon was gone, presumably eaten by the waiter next to me, by someone else, and thus I got the bad name, "Master loves to eat udon." I have never declared in my life that I don't like to eat oyster roe, why? It's good to let others eat it and rejoice! So I think it's very important for vegetarians to have the right kind of heart and mood to get along with others. There was a gentleman who opened a vegetarian restaurant in the U.S. I asked him, "How many restaurants are open, and do people eat them?" He said, "Four hundred, and many Americans like vegetarian food. And we don't just make vegetarian food for people to eat, we make it with our heart." That is, it's also important to do it with your heart and make the vegetarian food delicious. In fact, it's not just vegetarian food that we have to make for people with our heart, but anything else we do, we have to make it out of our heart and offer it to the ten directions!
Seventh question: does Buddhism authorize killing? For example, is experimenting with small animals considered killing? Can a farmer use pesticides to get rid of insects? Can a fisherman study Buddhism?
Buddhism allows people to refrain from killing, but the question of killing is not easy to answer. I'm sick, I went to the doctor for a shot, and that shot killed a lot of microbes, didn't it? Isn't this also killing? Thirsty cup of water, Buddha view a cup of water, eighty-four thousand insects, a cup of water also has a lot of microscopic life, you thirsty it, this is not also killing? If you send our loved ones to the crematorium after they have passed away, the person is dead, but there are still a lot of cells, microorganisms, and other life in the flesh and blood of the body, and they are burned to death, isn't that also killing life? When you use firewood to cook or burn a fire to keep warm, there are many lives, bugs, and parasites in the firewood, and when you burn the firewood to make a fire, aren't you also killing a lot of lives? If these many killings are sinful, then there are too many sins for human beings. In my understanding, thirsting for water, taking injections, burning firewood, and so on, as just mentioned, are not considered killing. Why? I don't have the mind to kill, my mind is very peaceful, I don't have the slightest thought of killing. Therefore, to kill a living being, having the mind to kill and not having the mind to kill are not the same. Once I went to Penghu, which is an island, and some local people saw us and said, "What are monks doing here? We are all fishermen, we are all killers, they come, can they support us in killing?" At that time I thought, "Buddhism is about not abandoning a single sentient being, and the people here are fishermen and killers of life, can't we care for them and help them? Then doesn't Buddhism give up on people who kill living beings? Later, on another occasion, for the International Buddha's Light Association, we went to Xiaoliuqiu (the name of the place) to set up the Buddha's Light Association, and a school principal, who was the president, led us on a tour of Xiaoliuqiu, and he told me that there were more than 10,000 people on this island of ours, all of whom were fishers, and that it was very difficult for the Buddha's Light Association to set up here because they were all engaged in the business of killing, and if they didn't fish, they wouldn't have a way to survive or live. I told him at that time, "Fishing, even if you have to kill, don't have to kill." In human-centered Buddhism, everyone always has to survive? Like lions and tigers they have to eat zebras, cows and sheep, killing, but they have to survive. To have the earth completely like heaven, Buddha's pure land, that's impossible. The only thing we can say on earth is that we have to kill as little as possible, as merciful as possible without killing. Now, in this world, we have gone from divine right to monarchical right to civil right, and now the people are all very powerful, but this is not the end, and we have to go on to the "right to life", where all beings have the right to live. When the era of birthright (all beings have the right to live) comes, you can't abuse animals. If you make a cow or a horse overweight, you will be penalized; if you turn a chicken or a duck upside down and hang it on a bicycle, this is also inhumane and will be punished, because all beings have the right to live. Therefore, advocating the right to live and advocating compassion is the light of this society, which is much better than slaughter. Siddhartha Gautama was on a ship and found a bad man who was going to kill all the five hundred merchants on the ship, robbing them of their property and murdering them for their wealth. When Shakyamuni Buddha knew that, he only had to kill this bandit robber with compassion, in order to save these five hundred merchants, not to kill him, he had to kill others. Therefore, to kill a living being, it is not good to kill with anger; but there are times when it is not important to kill with compassion and to save people! With regard to the question of killing living beings, whether one can or cannot kill, whether one can or cannot kill, it is very complicated here. But from the standpoint of humanity, like we have times when we sacrifice for some justice and go to justice generously and gracefully in order to save people, this is something that depends on how life is valued at what time and place. Sometimes, we feel that life is precious. For example, in a cartoon drawn by Mr. FENG Zikai, there were a lot of small birds squawking inside the nest, asking for food, but the old bird had already been killed. He then wrote two lines on it: "Advise the king not to beat the three-inch bird; the son is in the nest looking for his mother's return." "If you know that the world is robbed by swords and soldiers, but you hear the sound of the butcher's door at half past midnight." So, we feel that it has gone too far now that you can eat meat. But some people say, "I eat monkey brains, I eat live fish, there are twenty ways of eating, thirty ways of eating; I eat sashimi." To have to study eating so cruelly on top of eating is a bit excessive. Regarding killing, in this world, many phenomena are very contradictory. I live in Kaohsiung, Taiwan, every year, the fish from other places to swim to the sea, the fishermen catch fish, newspapers, the media reported, praised, this year's fishing volume to obtain a bumper harvest, how many thousands of pounds of fish; on the other hand, we are next to Kaohsiung, Pingtung, every year, there are a lot of birds, in order to spend the winter, through the Taiwan towards the tropics to fly, passing through the mountains of Pingtung, the local residents, the use of nets to catch birds. The media and the public are against it: these many birds are passers-by, and it is too cruel to let them fly away safely and catch them, roast them, and eat them. A believer once asked me, "Is it okay to live off the mountain and eat off the sea? Or is it okay to do both and neither?" This sentient being, he has developed many habits, and killing is also a habit, and he is sometimes so used to killing that it is not unusual. Americans, there was a child who was naughty, used a pop arrow, and shot a bird, the bird was not killed by the arrow, it still carried this arrow on its back and flew everywhere. Aigoo, the Americans sympathized with the country: the bird was suffering too much! Every day, the newspapers published and the TV reported that the bird had flown somewhere, and the whole country was shaken, showing that Americans were very compassionate. But by Christmas, how many thousands of turkeys had been killed, and they did not sympathize at all, but they were very concerned about this bird, showing that they were used to killing turkeys and were not used to killing this bird. But it's good, it's also very valuable to have such a little bit of compassion for this little bird, to show the preservation of humanity. In Buddhism, there is nothing that can or cannot be done! Like killing, killing is sinful; not killing, or repenting after killing: I shouldn't have killed it, I shouldn't have eaten you, sin! It's a sin! This sin is very small, you have repentance. But some people think: I should have killed it, it doesn't matter if I killed it. This error of opinion is more serious. So, in Buddhism, breaking the precepts can be repented of, breaking the view-thinking it's okay to kill, this foolishness of opinion, cannot be repented of!" What I mean by my speech is that you can eat, but you should not think: what should be given to you to eat, chickens, ducks, cows, and sheep should be given to people to eat. If a lion or a tiger comes to eat a human being, can you say that the human being should give them food? There is no such thing as should, but only to say, "I am sorry. Suppose it is said that everything should be eaten, it should not be. There is a verse that says, "My flesh is the flesh of all living beings, the name is different, the body is not different, the original is the same nature, but only for the other body, suffering from it, sweet and fat let me need, do not ask Yama to cut off, self-testing how to think?" Can all beings be equal? Take the old cow. Do we hear it crying? It pulled carts and planted fields for us, and at the end of the day, it was killed with a single cut, skinned, and ate its flesh; it devoted its whole life to us, and aren't we ashamed of it at all?
The eighth question, the Buddhist definition of killing, how to look at its severity, results?
Is it the same offense to kill a human being, to kill a human being, to kill all animals, to kill a mosquito, to step on an ant? Killing life, killing yourself, killing him, teaching you how to kill, I'm happy that you killed, these sins are also different. There are so many different sins and misdemeanors of killing. Some people use all kinds of cruel methods for killing living beings, so of course the sins are heavier. Among the many, many sins of killing, I think suicide is the most serious! Suicide, you're not even afraid of death, why don't you take your life and do something else good with it, instead of committing suicide? You say I can't stand it anymore, I'm in pain, so I'm going to die to find relief. You're too selfish, aren't you? Once you die, you leave a lot of pain to others, can you get relief? I think people who commit suicide not only can't be relieved, but also add to their sins. In this world, life is very precious, living is very lovely, why are you so ignorant, so unaware, letting down your parents, how many loved ones care, and then commit suicide, so selfish? Therefore, nowadays, all over the world, in quite a number of places, some teenagers are ignorant and often make fun of their lives, and commit suicide at the slightest emotional excitement. You should know that the pain after suicide is even worse. In the past, there was once a girl who was not good-looking. If a girl was beautiful, she would be praised by others; if she was ugly, she would be ridiculed by others. She often blamed her parents for giving her an unattractive birth and, unable to think straight, she went to throw herself into the river. When she was about to throw herself into the river, an old monk rescued her and said to her, "Why do you want to kill yourself?" She told him why. The old monk said, "There are two meanings of human life, one is for oneself - selfishness; one is for others; you have just committed suicide because you are selfish and can't think of anything else to do for yourself; the one I am saving now is the second kind of life, to be for others; how to be for others? To serve, to save suffering, and to be compassionate to others." After this young lady heard the Old Monk's enlightenment, her brain changed, and she has been joyfully helping people, serving people, and doing compassionate things ever since. Because this girl served people and did good deeds, she was thanked and praised by many people, and because they praised her, she was happy in her heart. As people praised her, she was happy. As her heart was happy, her appearance changed, and she slowly became beautiful. Later, a very promising young man fell in love with her, started a family, had a home, and lived a happy life. Therefore, I advise many people in the world who are not as good as they want to be and who want to commit suicide, they should think about it and hang on for dear life. Why should you choose suicide when there are millions of paths on earth that you don't take? Suicide, no matter what kind of life, you should not just kill it. How can you not kill a rat or a cockroach? Is there no other way but to kill them? For example, in order not to have rats, cockroaches and mosquitoes in the house, you can prevent them. You can't prevent it, you say. Then you can get rid of them with something. You say, these things can't be driven away. Even if you beat it to death, kill it, you shouldn't carry a feeling that you should kill it, you should still carry a feeling of indebtedness, sorry for hurting you. Let's take an example, there is a man who kills a mouse, and he instantly thinks: I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I accidentally killed you. There is another person who tells his friend, "How about I kill a mouse today, I threw that shoe, ping, it can't move. Hey, there is another one, and then beat it to death, beat it to death." Which of these two kinds of people, you say, has the greater sin? Then there are those who tell others, "It's not good for you to kill in this way; I'll tell you a better way..." I'll tell you a better way. This one teaches to kill, or he sees the killing and is happy with it. When someone else kills a rat, he is happy: he has killed so many rats. This sin is also different. It's best to be compassionate and not kill, and if you have to kill, you should be ashamed. There is no greater virtue in the world than protecting life; there is no greater sin in the world than killing life! If we use the karma of the three worlds, it's terrible! For example, there was a family that was having a wedding, and a luohan came, and he took one look and said, "All living beings are really suffering; grandchildren marrying their grandmothers, cows and goats sitting on the mat, and the six relatives cooking in the pot." Now why do we take the killing of living beings so seriously? Truly, in this age of civil rights and birthrights, everyone must respect life.
Ninth question, what are some of the misconceptions about killing in general?
The biggest misunderstanding is that killing a mouse will turn into a mouse in the future, killing a mosquito will turn into a mosquito in the future, and killing a person will turn into a human being in the future, won't it? This is not how the account of cause and effect is calculated. Buddhism's five precepts, the first is not to kill, everyone can hold this precept, because not to kill is not to kill. You say I didn't kill anyone, but I killed some small animals, is that a serious sin? This is not the same as the sin of killing. The sin of killing is called poloi, and this is not repentance! It's the same as the death penalty. You say killing some cockroaches or rats, this is called evil work, it's a tujira precept, wrong behavior, repentance can eliminate it! The greatest sin in the world is improper killing. Like this Iraq war initiated by the U.S. In the end, the U.S. captured so many Iraqis and mistreated the captives, this sin is different. Nowadays, human rights advocates are proposing to abolish the death penalty, is it appropriate to abolish the death penalty? Personally, in the Buddhist sense, we should try to be merciful, to mitigate, to understand, or to commute the crime, but the crime of killing has cause and effect, and it is worth looking into the fact that you are violating the cause and effect by killing people without paying for their lives. Killing, in short, are all sinful, however, some are reasonable, some are unreasonable, more than the general rationality, of course, the sin is different.
The tenth question, some people do not want to eat vegetarian, because vegetarian dishes are generally not cooked well, do not want to eat vegetarian, then how can I cook vegetarian dishes well?
What we do in life should be artful, and cooking should also be artful, with color and flavor. There is an anecdote, there is a boss from work at noon back to eat, his wife to do a dish for him to eat, not vegetarian, is meat, is a green steamed duck. Mr. is trying to eat, a look, duck how only one leg it? Where is the other one? He asked his wife, who said, "Our duck has only one leg. If you don't believe me, you can go to the pond in the backyard of our house to see it." When Mr. heard this, he said, "Is that so? OK, I'll go and see." At noon, the ducks were all resting with the other leg scrunched up. The wife said, "Look, isn't it all one leg?" When the gentleman looked, he clapped his hands, and when he clapped, the ducks all stretched out their two legs and ran away quickly. The gentleman said, "Look, don't all the ducks in our house have two legs?" The lady then said, "Sir, don't you know that they have two legs because of the sound of applause?" It means, I cook for you every day and you don't have any praise at all, so I give you one leg to eat. Ladies and gentlemen, if Mr. wants to have two legs, he has to praise his wife for being beautiful, capable, and a good cook; and his wife not only has to cook two legs of duck for Mr. to eat, but also has to praise Mr. with her mouth, "You have worked so hard and are so capable, it is thanks to you that this family eats well and lives well." To give Mr. have more delicious words than a two-legged duck, the husband and wife must have sweet feelings for each other. Life is to be eaten, and the dish must not only taste good, but the eyes are full when they look at it, and the eyes are full when they look at it, and the eyes are full when they look at it. There must also be good words, and the ear is comfortable to hear. In short, in a word, life should be more good words, so that the speaker, the listener, the heart is happy, more important than what to eat. Therefore, we say: eat meat, eat vegetarian are not important, more good words are more important!