Can you agree with this? | 你认同这样的行为吗？
*For the Chinese translation, click here.
（中文请往下看）
Dear everyone,
Pictures really convey powerful messages. Without alot of explanations, pictures are powerful. Tell me, do you agree with this? Is it painful? Would it be painful for you?
Everyone has flesh, bones, nerves, tendons, veins, blood and sensitivity. Anything that is in the human and animal kingdom will have this and definitely can feel agony, fear, pain and tremendous horror. If this was done to you, would you enjoy it? I don’t think so. So if we do this to animals, it does not serve them or us any purpose. Why perpetuate pain to beings who can feel pain. We should do our best to create no pain for others. No pain is the gain in this case.
If we continue to eat flesh and enjoy entertainments at the cost of animals, then we create what we see in these pictures without wanting to. When the demand from consumers stop, then suffering to animals will drastically reduce. Please sacrifice your taste buds to save lives. Please.
Please help. Go vegetarian. Promote vegetarianism. Learn up on the virtues of it so when others and yourself have questions you can answer. I have much information on this blog on it and vegetarian delicious recipies to get you started. Please learn up. Please I beg you.
Tsem Rinpoche
Monkey and Child Picture:
A mother and child. Chained. Terrified. Abused and made to suffer. To those out there looking upon us activists as terrorists, why aren’t you instead, looking upon this as terrorism?~from Source Animaveg
Pig Picture:
GO AHEAD EAT MORE BACON,EAT MORE PORK,EAT MORE MEAT,YOU ARE DOING THIS TO THE ANIMALS YOU EAT,AND FOR THOSE OF YOU WHO THINK THERE IS A BETTER DEATH,NO DEATH FOR OUR CONSUMPTION AND GREEDINESS IS A GOOD DEATH. IF YOU THINK IT’S OK TO DO THIS OR TO KILL AN ANIMAL FOR THE SAKE OF EATING MEAT,YOU NEED TO GET A HEART TRANSPLANT AND PLEASE GET A COMPASSIONATE HEART THIS TIME!!!!!!!!!~from Tierra Nuestra
亲爱的各位：
图片确实能传达有力的讯息。无需太多文字，图片本身就很有效。告诉我，你赞同这么做吗？这会带来痛苦吗？这会让你觉得痛吗？
每个人都有肌肉、骨骼、神经、肌腱、血液和触觉。人类和动物都拥有这些结构，当然也会感到痛苦、害怕、疼痛和极度恐惧。如果这一切发生在你身上，你喜欢吗？我不那么认为。如此对待动物，并不会为它们或我们带来任何好处。为什么要施加痛苦在那些能感觉痛苦的生命身上。我们应该尽可能减少其他生命的痛苦。在这种情况下，痛苦并不能带来任何好处。
如果我们继续吃肉，并以伤害动物为乐，那我们无形中就制造了以下的画面。如果消费者不再有这种需求，动物的痛苦也会急剧减少。请牺牲自己的味蕾来拯救生命。我请求你。
请帮助它们。成为素食者，推广素食，学习其背后的意义，好让自己能够回答来自他人和自己的问题。我在这个博客上分享了许多相关资讯，也提供了许多美味素食的食谱，为你开始持素做好准备。请好好学习。我恳求你。
詹仁波切
母猴和幼猴：
这一对母猴和幼猴被铁链锁着，饱受惊吓、虐待和痛苦。那些将动物保护主义者视为恐怖分子的人，为什么就不把这种行为视为恐怖行为呢？ ～ 摘自Animaveg
你继续多吃一些培根、猪肉、肉类吧！你这么做就等于是对那些你所食用的动物做着同样的事。对于那些认为这么做对动物而言是善终的人，任何为了满足我们的味蕾和贪婪而造成的死亡都不可能是善终。如果你认为为了吃肉，人类可以如此对待动物和宰杀动物 ，你需要进行一场心脏移植手术。这一次，请换一颗慈悲的心！！！！！！！～ 摘自Tierra Nuestra
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Sometimes a single image can speak much louder than words. It’s very painful to see the abused made to suffer of a Monkey and Child.
It is really sad to discover how many animals sacrificed for fulfilling our taste buds and not only sacrificing their life.
Why don’t we try to eat more vegetables instead of eating more animals. Vegetables are healthy too, you know! And do you also know that being vegetarian or vegan will not only make you become healthier, it will also make you feel more energetic.
https://bit.ly/2PNePtX
It is heart breaking seeing these pictures. A mother chain up while carrying her baby. They don’t need to suffer all these pain. It’s because of us human who are so selfish that contribute to their pain. We should stop eating meat and stop creating any demand that kills more animals.
The picture of the mother and baby monkey really breaks my heart, they were so helpless and what they had was only each other, this was how desperate they were. So so sad, no animal deserve this, they are beings with feelings as well. Can you imagine you were them? How would you feel then?
Dear Rinpoche, I feel really said for then. They didn’t do anything to deserve to be treated this that. We must always remember that animals are our friend that will never leave you dead like some people. And therefore, we should learn to appreciate them. I hope that these kind of cruel actions will be stop by people soon and vegetarianism will spread far and wide.
I definitely cannot agree with the pictures but i do agree with the sources from animaveg and also Tierra Nuestra, especially Tierra. The person got right straight to the point, if we are just killing animals for the sake of eating then we sure can’t be forgiven. Animals are just the same as us, they are lives! There are no difference between killing humans and them,the amount of sin we have committed is huge! People need to wake up before it’s too late.
感恩仁波切的开示与教诲
一切众生具有情 ，我们常在法会上或自己的早课里念诵 愿诸众生永具安乐及安乐因
愿诸众生永离众苦及众苦因 愿诸众生永具无苦之乐 愿诸众生远离贪嗔之心 住平等舍
倘若我们并没有对于肉食佳肴的前身，有情的动物（众生）有丝毫的慈悲心，那么当我们念诵法本的时候，对一切众生又有什么祝福可言呢？
《法华经》说：“以大慈悲力故，度苦恼众生。”菩萨经过累劫修行，断除一切烦恼，成就一切梵行，本来可以证得清净涅盘，然而为了怜悯众生，不住涅槃，不断生死，
乘愿受生六道，广开甘露法门，转无上法轮。倘若我们并没有想过要放弃再杀害动物，继续的让它们成为我们的佳肴美食，这跟我们学佛不是背道而驰吗？那么佛菩萨又改如何加持与帮助我们呢？
感恩仁波切不断的给予我们在这个博客上分享了许多相关资讯，也提供了许多美味素食的食谱，为我们开始持素做好准备。让我们好好学，。学习其背后的意义，好让自己能够回答来自他人和自己的问题
感恩仁波切您，祈愿您长驻在世，常转法轮
why is there so many animal cruelty in this real!!! I should really stop eating meat. my friends convince me to eat me for nutrients and other stuff. then I found out from the internet that the nutrients you get from meat can also be found in other foods and it is more healthy!! GO VEGETARIANISM !!!
It really always puzzled me to see people cringe at the sight of watching animal activists videos spreading the awareness of what eating meat causes and what is done to be in their plates. I find it very hypocrite that some one chooses to avoid watching the videos just so they can save their appetites to eat meat. Many of these people deep down as they cringe know its wrong and is aware of the pain and suffering animals have to go through before their death just so they can fill their stomachs but choose to continue because of their greedy attachments.
Using animals for entertainment by tormenting them, torturing them and apparently disciplining them is just plain violence and brings disgust to my mind. There is no “right way”, “good way”, or a “clean way” of killing animals for consumption, killing is the act of violence and it only shows that a person has the potential to act violent towards a human being if given the chance. Eating meat is only terrorism to humanity and I really wish more people would become vegetarian.
Thank you for sharing Rinpoche and I really hope this helps spread more awareness and hopefully changes peoples minds to becoming a vegetarian.
Time and again I have been reminded about vegetarianism through Rinpoche’s blog. I am yet to become a vegetarian but ever since I come to know about Rinpoche, I am more aware of the foods that I take in.
I couldnt bear to see animals being tortured, or used by humans, such as in the case of fur farm. Yet I am consuming meat. I know this is conflicting.
May I start with taking less of meats and consuming more of vegetables and change gradually.
Usually all of us will think very carefully when regards of some decision in life which we think it is important to us. We will measure every steps so much so that the decision will not fail but prevail.
Nobody in this world wanted to be a failure in this world. But in certain circumstances which doesn’t effect us directly we seems to have this “not my business” kind of attitude.
All the animals in the picture shown are suffering because of our “not my business” attitude whether directly or indirectly. Is the decision we all have made daily at least 3 times a day to have those animal to be serve as food on our beautiful dining tables and plates.
Please do think of the pain which the lamb have to through before it was turned into the chop and serve it to you. I strongly urge everyone to take less meat and eventually give it all up because certain decision we make will effect others tremendously.
I believe that animals do have feelings and animals are a lot like us. They eat, sleep, excrete and reproduce. The only difference would be that we have the opportunity to become Enlightened faster. Also, if we believe in Hell, why are we creating a special hell for them. Animals do not deserve it.
So, here is the solution to stop the production of suffering for animals.
Step 1: Stop eating meat. When you stop eating meat, the market slowly crumbles and the butchers will be forced to sell vegetables.
Step 2: Get your make-up or lotions from places that do not support animal testing, there are many shops who do that in the US but in Malaysia, The Body Shop does not support animal testing.
Step 3: Go to facebook pages like Animal Befrienders Coalition to spread awareness of suffering and learn more about what you can do to stop animal cruelty.
This is truly sad to see in our daily lives where some beings are not treated equally and respect but being abused, used, slaughter, eaten just to satisfy one’s desire for their own taste buds. How inconsiderate and selfish is that!!! Many only care for themselves and consciously ignoring the sufferings of others. Let us be the voice of these suffering beings by being vegetarian and share with many others who are still ignorance about this cruelty!!! Tenzin Thokpa
Even more torture inhumane pictures on another Rinpoche’s site. http://blog.tsemtulku.com/tsem-tulku-rinpoche/animals-vegetarianism/read-this-post.html
Please help stop animals testing, check out on this site,
http://www.pcrm.org
Please start using non-animal products be it skin care products, hair products, vitamins, accessories, etc. Please use vegan food for pets. Please be vegetarian.
Eating or using meat in any form means you are the cause for the horrors, terrors, pains, sufferings and killings of the animals.
No buying=No Horrors/Terrors/Pains=No Sufferings=No Animals Killings & Testings=Harmony
I TOTALLY CANNOT ACCEPT THIS!! Downright cruelty which should not be tolerated!I do not understand how people are so into animal rights and yet they consume meat. They do not understand the pain that the animals go through to end up at their dinner plate.
This pains me so much especially the piglets. It is bad enough people love to consume meat, but they are consuming suckling piglets which is really inhumane! I cannot imagine my baby whom i am still nursing being taken away from me for someone’s consumption. Disgusting!!!!!
Thank you for sharing, Rinpoche. The whole world needs to adapt the vegetarian diet. It is about time..
It is very sad and shocking to see these photos of how animals are being treated.I became a vegetarian 3 years ago partly due to health reasons and more so after watching a video of how animals are being killed for human consumption markets. In fact i feel healthier and don’t have anymore digestion problems when i stopped eating meat.
Eating animals for the pleasure of one’s tongue when plenty of other food are available certainly fits into a form of sadism, which every moralist should denounce. We cannot expect peace in this world if we go on unnecessary killing of billions of animals for their meat consumption. As the nation sows, so shall it reap! This is something we should take seriously, especially in our attempt to bring peace, harmony and unity into the World. Human beings’ conduct with regard to animals should be regulated by right reason, which prohibits the infliction of senseless pains and sufferings on them. As quoted by George Bernard Shaw, “We 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?” It is said that more than eight billion of animals are killed each year for food. It seems the animals welfare Act does not apply to food animals. With virtually no laws to protect them, cruelty and abuse of animals are institutional. Animals are often skinned, boiled and butchered alive! So therefore, do you still feel sensible to keep eating meat, or to listen to our Rinpoche’s compassionate plea to go vegetarian. I join Rinpoche to beg you to please do so. Om mani Padme hum.
I think most people still eating meat because they always have this perception that meat taste better and can be cook in many ways but not vegetable. We also think that meat can provide healthier diet although we all know that many people suffered from stroke because of having too much of meat. Some people even said that animals were created to be the food for human. But do not forget that we have a choice what we want to eat. Before we eat that piece of meat on the plate in front of us, please look at the meat and think of how this piece of meat was cut from an animal’s body. Please think of how the animal was killed, how much pain and fear they were suffered before they died.
We do not need to love the animals in order to stop eating animals but remember one thing, KARMA of killing which will lead us to reborn as one of them. Imagine if we reborn as a monkey that being chained all day. Imagine if we reborn as a pig living in the situation where our lips were hooked just like in the picture. Yes, we will become one of them if we continue to have the desire of eating meat. Karma will come back to us because we kill.
Remember, we have a choice because we are human being.
If we see pain in animals’ eyes, then we should stop eating meat and going to circus. It hurts.
Dear Rinpoche, my answer to Rinpoche’s question is no I would never enjoy watching animals getting slaughtered and if I see anything like that I will try free the animal. Think about it, if you are an animal and you have no choice but to be locked up and slaughtered, would you like that to happen to you? If you don’t like it then please help all sentient beings and stop this kind of madness.
i do not agree with this at all. this is entire reason why i am a vegetarian and i am proud of it !!!!!! stop this and save lives, please, just think about them. would you like it?
Definitely agree on this post and truly can feel the same painful too of those animal get killed, just because want to enjoyment food and taste nice. We should be a vegetarian, then all the animal won’t be get kill and so cruely.
Thank you Rinpoche for sharing this post.
“己所不欲，勿施于人”.. what you yourself don’t want, do not give it to others.
If we do not want any pain, then why we give it to others? It just shows that how selfish we are to even just consider how our action can lead others to pain and sorrow.
If you think eating meat is ok, then you try to cut your hand with a knife everytime you eating meat…if this is ok for you, then eating meat is ok. If it is not ok and you feel pain, then why the animals will be ok too? animal and human both have blood, and even the blood colour is the same…
It is really heart breaking to see these pictures. Especially when we imagine we are one of them and go through that with our family.
Since 1.5 years ago, i have started vegetarian after confinement to my youngest especially witness on how cows and goats are killed during Hari Raya Haji and the Earthlings.
Though my children are not vegetarian now, even when feeding them food that has been prepared by parents, at times i also feel very bad and will chanting Medicine Buddha Mantra to the food. I will find more options and ways so that they can be vegetarian once day too while at the same time promote vegetarian especially to elderly people and children.
为了满足我们贪口腹，人类可以如此对待动物和宰杀动物，吃素可以培养慈悲心
素食的目的，是为爱护众生的生命，要爱护众生的生命，就必须戒杀。不杀生，才是真正的仁慈！同时素食也是为了降伏我们的贪心，因为大家为了贪口腹，贪健康，贪长寿，才杀生的。
Om Mane Peme Hum, may all the pigs can take a good rebirth and meet Dharma in their next life.
Be 100% vegetarian will be very tough to many of us, but why dun we make a first step to be a less meat eater then slowly train to be 100% vegetarian???
These are really shocking pictures and really painfull to see its !!
Thank you Rinpoche for the kindness to remind us again and again to stop harming animals and to be a vegetarian.Killing is against the pratice of compassion,animals do not deserve to be killed and eaten !! We should stop eating meat right now and become vegetarian !!
May all beings be well and free of sufferings !!
How many suffering and pain and torture toward the animal done by human being everyday. Is human must eat meat daily? How much more animal will get kill become our delicious food. When you see all the picture, slaughter house. You will not enjoy eating meat. It it so cruel until you can’t it anymore. I ready hope human can stop eating meat one day. They are so many type of food is available for human. Why must hurt animal to certified our own attachment by enjoying eating meat.
these are really Shocking pictures.
Really shocking -perhaps these are pictures people ought to see daily so they are reminded of the cruelty to animals and help them resolve to lessen meat intake. Many are ignorant and think there are some form of compassionate/painless killing. Or of some form of special ritualistic killing. Nothing can be further from the truth. I guess commercialism will always win over spiritualism in the short term but ultimately spiritualism will win. But for many, it may be too late.
Yes, it is very shocking. Just like what Keng mentioned in his comment… many people think that the meat they eat comes from ‘compassionate’ killing… well, I can’t see how killing something stems from compassion and at the same time, there is no way one can kill compassionately or painlessly. How do we know? Well, try taking a needle and prick our fingers… If even such a small needle can cause pain to our body, imagine getting our throat sliced…
It’s good that many people are standing up for animal cruelty now a days… there are many that once they are no longer ignorant to how their meat end up on their plates, they tend to lean towards a vegetarian diet or at least part time/ lessen their meat intake. Which ever it is, it’s still good as it’s one step closer to bringing the sufferings of animals to an end.
Never stop sharing the truth behind the meat factories… it will change not only someone’s life, but the animals too.
Yes, I agree Rinpoche.
Animals are born in one of the lower realms of samsara. We can already see with our very own eyes, hear with our very own ears the tremendous pains and sufferings these pitiful animals have to go through in their lives.
Animals have been our mothers or fathers in our countless past lives. Why would humans want to inflict pain on the animals and kill the animals for their meat? Do these humans realize what they had done is very cold blooded, cruel and heartless? To continue to bring suffering and death to these animals is totally ignorant and irresponsible! Results resemble the causes. One day in the future, these humans will end up the same as animals and subject to the same mistreatment, torture and death! Please stop creating the causes immediately!
Stop harming animals. Stop consuming meat. Become vegetarian.
Picture speaks louder than words. I feel so sad to look at the picture of the mama and baby monkey. They look so sad, so mournful…
They did nothing wrong to deserve to be treated that way. They should be freed from the cages and chains.
Thank You for sharing Rinpoche.
Love, beatrix.
Very very very sad when see this picture. Why people can so cruel to animals??? Opposite ,if someone did the same thing to your parents , how you feel???
Totally agree! 🙂
The baby monkey clinging on to his mother with so much fear and sorrow in both their eyes is very sad. Greedy and cruel humans causes this suffering to animals. If more awareness is created whereby we exchange roles with these animals, how would we be feeling now as an animal to be slaughtered or abused? Cruelty to animals in any manner is very inhumane. If it is too late to teach the adults, then we have to start inculcating loving and compassionate qualities in our young children so that they grow up to be kind adults and the cycle of causing suffering to animals can be reduced if not eradicated.
Dear His Eminence Tsem Tulku Rinpoche,
I never like eating meat or meat products as a child but was forced to eat it by my mother who’s logic was that of providing nutrition. When I left home to study in another state, free from her control, I went fully vegetarian. Today, living with her, I compromise by eating fish…she still holds her believe that a vegetarian diet is insufficient of nutrients. And not wanting to be self-centered as I have deprived her from eating other meat, my agreement to eating fish was so that she could have fish to eat apart from vegetables. Being a vegetarian was also muched looked upon in disdain by my work mates or society in general where during mealtimes. I was looked upon like an queer alien from another planet. Like I was living out of this earth. (like a subject from the Paranormal zone). and much interrogation as to reason I was vegetarian. I am also having to explain my stand of being a vegetarian, much to my displeasure as having to explain my eating preference. I would never understand why society frown on vegetarians. It is comforting to note that by being a vegetarian, there are much bonuses, apart from health is not causing the suffering to other living creatures.
I do not agree with any of this: animal testings, industrial farming, dairy production, meat, bacon, seafood, fish etc. I was a meat eater before and I’ve been a vegetarian/vegan for more than 7 years now. I used to love McDonalds, KFC, steak, satay, kerang, pretty much any meat product that is out in the market.
When I first take up vegetarianism, I do it 10-days a month according to the Kṣitigarbha sūtra. I remember once I craved very badly for meat, so naturally I eat it the day after. Strangely, it tasted very bad. It didn’t took me too long to understand that meat eating is only a habit like smoking, drinking, gambling etc.
A habit can be changed easily when we change our perception. The body need time to adapt to the new diet, or rather the nature diet, but that can definitely be done, especially for the best. The choice is made by us. We are smart enough to decide whether we want to continue to be controlled by advertisers, giant corporations in how we should consume.
This sort of treatment towards circus animals, or any animals that is being chained and trained to do tricks and being these being abused is definitely the most sickening a human can do, though many say human are the strongest of in this earth because of the capability and mind to manipulate others, especially animals that are being seen as inferior is the most disgusting, because such act is actually a cowardice act, an act that born out of fear, fear that others might see them as not capable, and thus these human turn to animal and abused them to show they are almighty. But they do not even understand what circumstances they will be enduring in the later life when Karma catch up on them.
I think if Rinpoche did not show us the videos and the pictures of how animals are being killed in slaughter houses, the conditions they live in, asking us to “feel” (exchange self for others)… I would probably not have been a vegetarian. This is exactly how it is with most people, we grow up with an attitude of disconnection due to desires, greed and that few moments of senseless pleasure which in the end turns in to waste anyways.
How could anyone after seeing all these images just avoid and ignore another beings’ feelings? Are we that disconnected, that heartless, that cold? Has materialism made us such monsters where we can no longer respect another life? Why do we like dogs, cats, rabbits etc and who ever created this separation of pets and edible animals and sea food? Don’t they all still come under the same category – animals? If the tables were turned around and they are eating us… I wonder what we will then say, scream, shout and cry for? Sometimes it seems we’re the animals.
It is really painful to see the pics. I used to think its ok to eat meat. Ignorant of the pain and suffering. I used to think its ok to watch animals in chains to perform. Ignorant of the abuse and torture.
Although some of you may think that eating meat is ok but have we ever thought of the pain, confusion and suffering that the animal have to go through before dying? They do have the same color of blood that we do if you noticed…
Like what Rinpoche said “Everyone has flesh, bones, nerves, tendons, veins, blood and sensitivity. Anything that is in the human and animal kingdom will have this and definitely can feel agony, fear, pain and tremendous horror.”
How is it that when a tasty meat dish is placed before a meat-lover, all thoughts of the suffering animal that wanted to live -but whose life was just callously snatched from it – fly out of the window? When will compassion for the animal, or fear of the karmic consequences, click in and stir the heart? When will pictures of such torment and suffering, as seen above, become etched forever in the mind and the memory?
We should school our deluded minds to see the reality: the meat in its bloody and raw form,the meat of a being that ( like us ) used to love the warmth and hate the cold, that had feelings of happiness and misery too.Empathy. That’s all we need.
I don’t know which is worse. The fact that the human race is desensitized to the sufferings of the food put on our plates or the over sensationalized news on killing and wars plastered all over newspapers and television!
What is scary to me is, we humans, the so called intellectual ones that are causing all this unnecessary suffering to ourselves and others! The question then arises is WHY? Why the hell do we do it knowing so well it blatantly does? (pardon my language!)
Delusion? Confusion? Or just outright contrived and selfish? Whatever the case is, it has to change. It must change! And if being vegetarian and promoting vegetarianism as a means to start with ourselves to make that difference, why not?
I am proud to be a vegetarian! It really is not difficult at all… 🙂 The benefits far outweighs our selfish wants!
No! If I wanted bacon, I might as well get down on my knees next to those pigs and take a bite out of their sides. That’s what bacon is though, isn’t it? The flesh of a pig? So why not just eat it right off the pig?
If THAT’S not right, then how can bacon be right???
i agree that this is how we now experience samsara, however, if we could but all see suffering as though we had found a *rare and precious treasure*samasara would change beyond all recognition_(*)_OM MANI PADME HUM******
OMG this is totally INSANE! Humans are NOT humans at all. How i wish all the slaughther houses on Earth be demolished Instantly Forever and Ever! Please help stop the pain and sufferings of all beings please. Please stop eating meat please. Really drives one craz simply looking at the pictures not even in the actual locations. Every meal is a struggle and heat cos all around are remains/stains of animals’ on plates/tables/walls in fact everywhere. There is always new food stall opening every now and then but i do not understand why nobody thought of opening a vegetarian restaurant here.
Thanks so much to His Eminence Rinpoche for directing me to this blog of his! _/\_
Eating meat has become the culturally and socially accepted norm, but it doesn’t mean that it is right. There isn’t any justification for eating meat. People say that they need meat for health reasons but we can get protein from mushrooms, soy, beans etc. Look at Patrik Baboumian http://blog.tsemtulku.com/tsem-tulku-rinpoche/animals-vegetarianism/patrik-baboumian-germanys-strongest-man-2011.html whom Rinpoche blogged about. Also, here are vegetarian and vegan athletes http://www.adaptt.org/athletes.html who do not look unhealthy to me!
The question about eating free range animals is moot because in the end, in order to eat the meat, you still kill the animal. However humanely the animal is killed, it is still killing. What right do we have to take a life? When human lives are taken by wild animals – and they really don’t have a choice – we immediately retaliate and kill the animal and even their families. Yet we happily kill animals without compunction for purely selfish and unnecessary reasons – merely to satisfy our tastebuds.
There are people on my facebook who say they get upset when i post up images like this. It makes them uncomfortable and they will unfriend me if i post more. I just told them to go ahead but it is sad that they would rather pretend it doesn’t happen so they can continue to eat meat without feeling guilty.
It’s good that Rinpoche is constantly reminds everyone of how the meat ends up on their dining table. It is because of Rinpoche’s passionate promotion of vegetarianism that many Kecharians and fans of Rinpoche’s social media have become vegetarian and spared many lives. Even the kids’ Animal Befrienders Coalition https://www.facebook.com/AnimalBefriendersCoalition?fref=ts is doing quite well in promoting to more and more people. “When the buying stops, the killing will too!”
Human’s cruelty towards animals never cease to amaze me… when you think you’ve seen the worst… a more horrible one comes along and tell you how some people can be so sick in the mind to even come up with something like that.
The quote on the monkey picture is so true… some people call many animal or environment activists as terrorists… how are these people being terrorist when the very thing they try to protect are lives and the environment that sustain life? The very definition of terrorist is one that bring terror to others… is it such a frightening thing to not have meat on your plate? is it such a frightening thing to save the lives of animals? I think people have got their priorities wrong in so many ways… but causing harm to animals, is one of the worst of their wrongs.
Please never ever eat animals… don’t be a direct cause to their suffering. If you believe in cause and effect, then you should know what the result of causing suffering to beings… if you don’t a believe that animals are creations of god, then remember, god created you too, and as much as you deserve to live, so does animals.
These images are shocking and horrifying, and if people can’t stop for a moment to even look at these photos and contemplate the suffering that arises out of it, then that itself is an indication of where we are. I have met so many people who are sad to see these photos but not sad enough to want to stop their consumption of meat, as if the pictures of these tortured animals is separate from the bacon or the steak on their plates.
They are horrified and angered by the cruelty done onto animals but not horrified enough to want to stop contributing to it by going vegetarian. But what’s the difference really between being the one actually chaining up these animals, or being the reason for these people to do the chaining? Where there is no demand, there is also no supply, so stop being the demand and logically, the torturing will also abate.
Why are we so disturbed by these pictures? Is it really because we don’t like to see another being with feelings being tortured (and will therefore do something about not adding to this?) Or it is only because it gets in the way of us wanting to continue eating meat? I think we can only just contemplate the effect of these images on us and why we feel the way we do, then we can begin to do something about it. If not, there’s really not point just feeling horrified and then, the next moment, turn off your laptops and go for a pork chop dinner.
At what point in the history of mankind did we become so desensitized to the pain of other beings? At which point in the past did it become alright to inflict such pain and sorrow on other lives and not feel the slightest pang of guilt and shame. You don’t have to be a religious person or even an animal lover to look at the pictures and realize that those animals and many others not shown, are undergoing tremendous emotional, psychological and physical pain. How can anyone not feel for them? And if that is ok by us, then it is a sure sign that our conscience is seared beyond repair and that being the case, what hope is there for humanity?
Human beings can live such beautiful, harmless and wholesome lives and not be deprived of delicious food to eat without having to be the cause of torture for animals and yet in large we choose otherwise. We may deny it but the reality is, by our choice and by our neglect we directly create the causes for animals to be abused, tormented before they are slaughtered. To think that it is so simple to make a decision not to eat meat, or even cut down on meat for starters. It doesn’t cause a single ounce of harm to refrain from eating meat and creating the reason for such cruelty to persist.
It is strange that with so many religions in the world, and each one preaching kindness over cruelty, and with so many people claiming to believe in a god, karma or a higher power that “punishes” wickedness, there are still such depravity taking place and people are mostly ignoring it. Which higher power and which god in the universe would listen to mankind’s pleas for mercy and kindness when none is shown to other beings and lives.
Just taking one look at the photos tore my heart out, and could feel the absolute pain, distress , despair that these poor animals had endured.
Once again, it is all created by man, for man’s own desires and entertainment. It totally sickens me to the core knowing that man had caused all these suffering.
Years ago, i remembered WWF started a campaign to stop people from buying tiger parts and from eating sharks fin, and the campaign brought home to the public how cruel all this is. The campaign made the people aware that all this cruelty is totally unnecessary, and nowadays , a lot of top hotels and restaurants have taken sharks fin off their menu, and the public knows now that the tiger population in Malaysia is becoming dangerously extinct.
The by-line was : WHEN THE BUYING STOPS, THE KILLING WILL STOP!!!!
I was a meat lover until two years back when I stopped eating meat after watching a documentary on how animals had to go through the pain and sufferings for our consumption. The living conditions and the way they were abused before being slaughtered is very heart breaking. Animals have feelings and emotions just like we humans. If we do not like to be hung upside down, helpless and waiting in fear to be slaughtered then we shouldn’t do that to the animals too.
I have given up gluten and diary for 9 months in the past (barely anything you can eat), all sorts of weird diets, and for some reason this is the most difficult for me to stick to, though I cook/eat vegetarian meals more often than not. It requires so much cooking time for 3 vege meals a day, so you up buying frozen dinners (becomes very expensive and no protein), can’t really eat out unless you want French fries all night, etc. As my income slowly goes up I’ll eliminate all meat. Huge pots of quinoa and lentils really help, any bulk recipes you can eat for the entire week, very health and cheap. I don’t think people should feel fight or flight about vegetarianism. It’s okay to open up and allow the concept to grow without becoming defensive. I find it also helps to “market” it in a way where people will want to eat it: for example if you ask someone if they want ice cream, “YES,” they don’t think of it as vegetarian haha. On the other end, even if it’s a meat-for-meat substitute, “want some turkey bacon?” “NO!”
Hi Steve,
I don’t no where you live, but in my city it is very easy to find vegetarian food.
A great website is http://www.happycow.net. It tells you where all the vegetarian, and vegetarian friendly restaurants are in the city. Also in terms of time, it really shouldn’t take much or at all longer to make vegetarian food. waffles are a very easy breakfast food to make if you have a waffle maker. For lunch there are many great things, like avocado and tomato sandwiches. And dinner you can fry some vegetables with some spices. There are tons of great recipes online. Here is a good website:http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/content/recipes/vegetarian/vegetarian-curry/
I hope this helps.
Not totally. Of course i don’t like this heartbreaking pig picture also harmers and hunters for fun.
But all meat eaters not alike that. There are others who will eat animals, but only when those animals are raised naturally, some of humanely (in clean places with enough room to move around in, with plenty of good food, and few, if any drugs given to them), and killed without pain, and only when the whole animal is used.
If we don’t care of animals some of them no longer live in the wild some of them spread all over. Also plants vegetables are limited too for all people and animals, Just we should kindly, I think
Though fictional in characters, I wondered if Hansel and Gretel agree with your point of view.
You got to be kidding. No matter how humane an animal is treated before slaughter, it does not take away the fear and the pain of death that we inflict upon them. Why don’t we do the same for certain sections of the human population? Why don’t we make sure they live a comfortable life with lots of food and we kill them off at a certain age for meat. See, if we can’t do that to the human race, we definitely cannot do that for animals. Yeah, this is like what Keng Nam here has said.
Perhaps we should eat our pet dogs and cats or even pet pigs for some. We shall give them a good home and raise them well so that they will have a good life before we slaughter them for our taste buds. Why I say taste buds is because humans can survive without eating meat. Hence the reason for eating meat would be for our taste and nothing to do with being a necessity for survival. The point is animals should not be looked at as food but as friends living in the same planet.
I already start promoted vegetarian to my family for a long time ago but for them it’s hard to stop eating meat and they will find out many “reasons” for not to be a vegetarian.Sometimes I really feel very sad because even though I am already become a vegetarian but I still cannot influence my family members.My dad is the first person that does not agreed to be a vegetarian and He always has opposition on me to be a vegetarian.
Perhaps you can approach it from the health perspective people can be more receptive. They do not have to know the real reasons why you became vegetarian. So long as you remain healthy and eat well.
Same case here. 90% of my friends seemed to shun away from me. in daily contacts, i seemed to be viewed as the odd one. It is real disgusting and kind of uncomfortable feeling somewhat when you see the bits/parts of animals everywhere. Worst so if they are being chewed in the so-called “humans'” mouths. Everytime makes me imagine the blood/organs streaming down the edges of their lips like Vampires! Totally hard to accept but they are everywhere all over the globe. Real disappointing!
Does anyone know where i can get vegan pet food or is it available somewhere in this blog ?
Hi Cherry,
I have heard of this brand of vegetarian dog food that you can get (although I’m not sure if it’s totally vegan): It’s called Addiction and there is a vegetarian option:
http://usa.addictionfoods.com/index.php?page=shop.product_details&flypage=flypage-ask.tpl&product_id=720&category_id=4&option=com_virtuemart&Itemid=57&p_catid=1&p_subcatid=0
Some selected pet shops have it in Malaysia so you could probably just enquire around to see who carries it; pet stores may even tell you the distributor.
As to being “shunned” as the odd one out at dinners, I do understand that but if you persevere, people get used to it. I think the key (that most people don’t realise) is that there is always something for vegetarians to eat, even if it’s something very simple like some vegetables and rice, or a salad. So it’s not like we have to put them out or make them change their plans for wherever they want to eat. We just work around it – be flexible and don’t make a big drama out of the fact that we are vegetarians. Worse come to worse, eat something before hand, or after their dinner. When we meet with friends or family, the company is more important than the food anyway! I think people don’t like vegetarians because a) they feel like they are being inconvenienced, when really nobody is asking them to make special arrangements lah! and b) perhaps they feel guilty because they know deep inside that it IS cruel to kill animals in this way and they don’t want a reminder of what they should or shouldn’t be doing!
So we just stick to our guns and do what we feel right without shoving it down other people’s throats. I’ve found that while the response was quite difficult in the beginning, people are now getting to be more interested to hear about my choice to be vegetarian and some even admire and respect it!
Tears roll in my eyes when i read this kind of news. People who greed for meat they intend to ignore what is behind the meat they ate. Animal does not have choice to select the life they can, if they are born as pig, their destiny almost 100% end as production items. They cant choose what they can eat and can’t eat. Compare to animal-we have choice, as human we are “free” to choose our food, our life.
If we believe in karma, some how , after this human life if we do not create more merits, our ultimate “freedom” will end soon and it does not guaranty we will have human body next life . Imagine, now we are a pig, being hang like the pigs in the photos , hang for 24 hours before killed, what will happen? The pain that beyond imagination before and after killed is very hard to bear. So, why bring pain ? Why just because wanted to fulfill the taste bug and create suffer to animals. In the other way, why let the taste bud determine who you are?
Through my own ignorance, I’ve been a meat eater until 3 years ago, when I saw pictures and videos of how the animals are abused, suffered tremendous pain, fear and living in a horrible condition; it struck me deep inside that I gave up meat and become a vegetarian.
The image of cows fearing to be slaughtered is still vivid in my mind. May my action be able to minimize the agony these animals have to go through and may it strikes a chord with others to do the same.
wow. Yes as a photographer, photographs can bring many thoughts to the person viewing the image. I also use to raise chickens , 3 boer goats and 5 pigs out on grass and tried to give them a good life. My history in this life and in past lives , gives me my reflections on the images. I can not watch a rape scene or an abusive scene in a film. It haunts me.
I hope that when I share a photograph with society they do understand and reflect of what I was trying to portray.
I would love for you to get together with a panel of artists. I watched your session with Anne Jones. To see hear the stories was wonderful and I portrayed them in my head like photographs.
Love and Light Jen Henn
Dear Tsem Tulku Rinpoche,
I feel like we have to eat meat. Science says that we have a special taste evolved just for the taste of meat. I feel this is probably because there is some legitimate reason, sometimes, to eat meat, though not all the time. My guru even suggested at one point that I eat nothing but meat and vegetables to lose weight. Things need to get much much better for the animals though. This picture has convinced me, Rinpoche, that despite my very low income, I must try to eat free range food whenever possible, and preferably fish, though I worry because of diminishing fish stocks in the ocean.
I’m not sure about the ethics of growing meat parts for eating from stem cells. It’s kind of a weird franken-meat thing, but in a sense, it may actually be considered organic (possibly, I don’t know), and no life form is attached to the actual meat. If done skillfully, it may be a way to reduce the demand on actual living beings while providing food without denying our meat-eating components of our identity.
–Nathan
Dear Nathan
Here is an interesting view on meat consumption. http://www.shabkar.org/download/pdf/Shabkar_Food_of_Bodhisattvas_Introduction.pdf
I think it is definitely best to be vegetarian, but it is still commendable that you want to make more humane choices. Eating less meat still helps sentient beings even if one is not completely vegetarian. But I don’t think most humans need to eat meat. I have been vegetarian since I was 9 and am now 41. I am healthy, happy and over six feet tall. It didn’t stunt my growth or make me ill to be vegetarian and I will never eat meat again for the rest of my life because I love animals 🙂
Science actually says that we don’t need to eat meat. One anthropologist said that in the past, for some people, meat was some of the only food that was available, and thus needed to eat meat. He also said however that because of the availability of all kinds of vegetables and grains, etc that as a species we no longer need to eat meat, and that it would be very beneficial not to eat meat. This is because meat production requires vast more amounts of energy, water, and land than growing plants. Meat production pollutes more than all transportation in the world. Also from a dharma standpoint, fish is the worst because it is such a small sentient being, compared to a cow, which is much larger, so eating fish is actually not good at all. I am very happy that you are thinking about other beings, however it is best to go without meat and fish. A very interesting point is that animals get there nutrients from plants, therefore all the nutrients you find in meat are actually in a higher quantity in plants, because as we go up the food chain, we loose more energy. So it is actually better to eat plants from a nutritional standpoint. B12 is an argument I hear. B12 is actually produced from bacteria, not animals. We need to eat the right things to produce it, but the easiest way to get it is to buy fortified soy milk, almond milk, orange juice,etc. WIth the options today we don’t need to eat meat. Make sure to eat beans or lentils. They are a great source of fiber and protein.At least reduce meat consumption.
This is like the hell chambers. If we believe in the existence of hell realms we would do all we can to avoid getting there. So why create one for these helpless beings now. If we do not believe in heavens and hells at least we believe in happiness and sorrows. So why create sorrow when we can sow the seeds of happiness? If we do not see the pains these helpless creatures undergo, our attachment to the desire realm is much stronger than our compassion for happiness. Sad….
Dear Keng Tan,
I like the logic in what you wrote. Thank you for being vegetarian and compassionate. Every meal you have without meat is sending a message to the world, to your family, to your kids, to yourself. That message is COMMITMENT TOWARDS LESSENING SUFFERING OF OTHERS. That is a beautiful message.
Keep promoting Vegetarianism and saving animals on social media. That is wonderful.
Tsem Rinpoche
Thank you Rinpoche for your encouragement. Sometimes I do feel awkward when I am at friends for meals. Like I don’t really want the fuss and attention. But most of my friends are very considerate. Nowadays I post pictures of the food I prepare and consume as a reminder that vegetarianism do not have to be boring.