To Cherish All Life: A Buddhist Case For Becoming Vegetarian

E-Book Overview

Clear, direct and concise, Philip Kapleau's "To Cherish All Life" marshals the basic religious, humanitarian, and scientific reasons for becoming vegetarian. Expanding on the Buddhist principle of cherishing all life, Kapleau's compelling discussion examines crucial Buddhist texts, thoughtfully considers the spiritual-ethical dimensions of the issue, and speaks cogently to those with a religious or humanitarian respect for all life.

E-Book Content

To Cherish All Life Roshi Philip Kapleau BO S B e DHANET ' UD O K LIB R A R Y E-mail: [email protected] Web site: www.buddhanet.net Buddha Dharma Education Association Inc. O���� B���� B� P����� K������ The Three Pillars of Zen (revised and expanded) The Wheel of Death Zen: Dawn in the West ����: � –������ – �� –� Library of Congress Catalog # ��–����� Copyright © ���� by The Zen Center, Inc. All Rights Reserved *R�������� ����� ��� ���������� �� ��� ���������� ������ ��� ������� �� ��� L���-���������� � P��������� S������ �� C������ D�������, T�� C�������� B��� �� T�� B����� E���������� F��������� A B������� V��� �� A����� S�������� ��� M��� E����� �� R���� P����� K������ To Elsie, Porky, and Donald F�� F��� D����������� C���� T��� American born Philip Kapleau has been a Buddhist monk for �� years. In ����, upon his return to America from Japan, where he had trained for �� years, he finally renounced what he calls, “my reluctant cannibalism,” the eating of every kind of flesh food. “While in Japan,” he says, “I wrestled with my conscience, trying to reconcile the first Buddhist vow to refrain from taking life with my obvious complicity in the slaughter of innocent creatures whose flesh I consumed. I pretended to love animals while at the same time regularly eating them. “This struggle, I now realize, generated the headaches and stomach upsets that had plagued me in Japan. But once I stopped indulging in animal flesh, to my surprise and delight the headaches disappeared and the digestive difficulties evaporated. There were other dividends, too. Now that I was no longer swallowing dead cows, pigs, chickens and fish, I could gaze upon live ones with innocent delight. And I knew Anatole France was only half right when he said, ‘Until one has loved an animal a part of one’s soul remains unawakened.’ What he also needed to say was that until one has stopped eating animals true peace of soul is impossible.” The Zen Center/Rochester, NY ����: �–������–��–� iv T���� �� C������� C���� T��� ............................................................................................................................ A�������������� iv ........................................................................................................ � I����������� ..................................................................................................................... �� P��� I T�� S��������� �� A������ R����� F�� S�������� ............. �� F������ F������ O� C������� ................................................................... �� T�� C�������� O� O����������� A�� C��������� ......... �� T������ O� T������������� T� S�������� ................................ �� E�������� I� T�� S������������� ........................................................ �� R����� S�������� ....................................................................................................... �� T�� C��������� O� M��� E����� I� A����� S�������� .......................................... M��� E����� A�� V�
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