The Wife's Cooking

Once upon a time a young North Indian man who was seeking enlightenment came to the South. Here, he met a South Indian woman who was also seeking enlightenment. They fell in love and married.

After marriage, they began practicing the five mindfulness trainings and meditation.  They now studied the sutras together. It was wonderful! They would hold each others' hands and practice walking meditation in the morning and evening. They would study the sutras during the day. The young man would tend to the plants while his wife cooked delicious vegan food. At night they would practice sitting and hugging meditation before falling asleep.

There was just one problem. The young man ate very fast. The young woman diligently practiced cooking meditation and put all her love and culinary skills at work but it made no difference. It did not matter what she cooked, the young man would just gobble everything up in no time. She used to put in a lot of effort while cooking and desired to see her husband eat in a relaxed manner enjoying the food but this was not to be.

One day she confronted the young man.

"Why do you eat so fast?", she asked.

"What a strange question! ", he answered, "This is how my father ate, my grandfather ate and my great grandfather ate. They must have had a good reason!"

The young woman explained to her husband, "Dear one, do you remember the Kalama Sutra? Do you think we should do something just because our father, grandfather and great grandfather did so? Do you think this habit of eating so fast makes sense? How would it be if we walked very fast while practicing walking meditation? How would it be if we got up immediately after sitting while practicing sitting meditation? If we just hugged for the sake of hugging? An action performed in a hurry has no meaning. Eating mindfully also means to contemplate the food that we are eating and to enjoy it. Food is a gift of the earth, the sun, the moon, the stars, the rain, the farmer etc. There's my love in it too. I wish that you practice mindful eating from now on."

Upon hearing these wise words from his wife, the young man immediately understood the Kalama Sutra - the charter of free enquiry. He also understood the importance of eating mindfully.

Later that night while practicing sitting meditation the young man realised that we are what we eat. He realised that food obtained through cruel methods brought about suffering and food obtained from plants helped heal and nourish the body and mind.

He opened his eyes and looked at his wife. She looked so serene and beautiful practicing sitting meditation. He immediately understood that it was her love in the food that she cooked for him that brought him to such important realisations. He realised that it was her practice of the third mindfulness training, True Love, that was taking him closer to enlightenment. How wonderful it was that she was in his life!

(The author, Saurabh Singh, is a student of Thich Nhat Hanh.)

Mother's Day Meditation

Just like human mothers, cow mothers also love their children. They cannot be happy when their children are unhappy. Cow's milk is meant for the calf, not humans. Cows produce milk after childbirth. They are repeatedly impregnated so they give birth and produce milk, so we humans can enjoy milk tea, butter, ghee (clarified butter), milk sweets, milk chocolates, cheese, paneer (cottage cheese) etc. The calves are taken away and sold to butchers so some people can eat beef and wear leather shoes/bags/jackets. The cow mother spends all her life as a slave. She is repeatedly raped and helplessly watches the killing of her children.
Buddha taught that we cannot be happy by making others suffer.

The first mindfulness training is reverence for life. We cannot kill or let others kill if we have reverence for life. The second mindfulness training is to practice and promote true happiness. We cannot be truly happy by stealing from others, by exploiting others.

Veganism and Buddhism

Buddhism is learning to do the right things - to practice and promote right mindfulness, right view, right thinking, right action, right speech, right concentration, right diligence, right livelihood. It is the path to happiness. The foundation of happiness is freedom, so it is also the path to liberation. It is likely then that one who wants to be free respects, practices and promotes freedom.

Veganism is the practice of respecting the right of all sentient beings to be free. Vegans practice living in a manner that they do not end up using other sentient beings as resources like food or slaves and avoid exploiting their body and mind.

Thus, vegans do not consume milk or meat or butter or cheese or eggs. They do not use leather or animal-tested cosmetics or anything that comes from an animal or that might have jeopardized an animal's welfare, health or freedom. They practice living in this manner to the extent possible. The Buddha of our times, Thich Nhat Hanh, is a vegan.

In Buddhism there are many precepts. These are vows or declaration of our commitment to practice certain wholesome actions and avoid unwholesome actions. One of such precepts is not to harm other sentient beings. Killing and eating them may rightfully be construed as causing harm to them. It is also not mindful consumption - a violation of another precept. Similarly, not taking what is not rightfully ours is another precept. We can argue that the skin of an animal is not rightfully ours, so we should not use leather or fur. Similarly, we can say that other precepts are violated by not practicing and promoting veganism.

Samsara is imperfect. And yet, it leads to nirvana. A world of imperfections can be transformed into a perfect existence. Samsara and nirvana are in our mind, one exists because of the other. The imperfect samsaric existence can help motivate us to be free. We practice the precepts with the intention to be free and to help others be free from samsaric existence - an experience of suffering.

The foundation of suffering is slavery. We watch helplessly how people are killed and children harmed and women assaulted. We cannot prevent death or sickness or old age or desires. We are slaves to causes and conditions. This makes us suffer.

In spirit, veganism and Buddhism are so closely connected. In one we can clearly see the other. When we practice the precepts we are practicing veganism and vice versa. We are practicing and promoting freedom. By practicing in this manner we truly create conditions for liberation. We nurture the Buddha in us.

(The author, Saurabh Singh, is a student of the Buddhist monk Thich Nhat Hanh. He is a Foreclosure Prevention Activist and a vegan. He is also a member of People for Ethical Treatment of Animals(India), Consumer Advocates in American Real Estate, UNITES Professionals and supports charitable causes and crowdfunding.) 

Oh, My Happiness!

Freedom leads to happiness. We are free when we do not cling to anything - anger, anxiety, or possessions. The story of the monk Baddhiya illustrates this. Baddhiya belonged to the royal family of the Sakya clan. He had been a provincial governor and became a monk with Ananda and Upali. One night in sitting meditation, Baddhiya experienced so much happiness that he could not bear it and he said, “Oh my happiness, oh my happiness, oh my happiness!”

There was a monk sitting near Baddhiya who heard him and misunderstood. He thought that Baddhiya was longing for all the happiness he’d had in the past, when he was a powerful man, of a noble, wealthy family. So this monk told the Buddha about Baddhiya.　　

The Buddha knew his disciples, but all the same he called Baddhiya to him and in the presence of many other monks he asked, “Baddhiya, is it true that last night when you were doing sitting meditation you cried out 'Oh my happiness, oh my happiness, oh my happiness!'?" Baddhiya said, “Yes I did.” The Buddha asked Baddhiya to explain.

He said, “In the past when I was a governor, I had great wealth and many bodyguards around me but I was so afraid. I was afraid people would steal everything I had, or kill me. I was overwhelmed by fear day and night. Now all I have is three robes and a bowl and I sit at the foot of a tree and feel so much freedom. I cannot bear it. My happiness is so great! That is why I had to shout out “Oh my happiness, oh my happiness, oh my happiness!” If I disturbed other monks who were meditating I express my regret, I am very sorry.”

Our desire and reliance on material possessions only invites fear and anxiety. We are afraid of losing what we have and we are anxious about the future. This leads to stress and sorrow. If we cultivate a mind that is willing to let go of clinging to possessions,  we can experience happiness like Baddhiya. Without the fear of loss and desire for material possessions, without anxiety and anger we can experience freedom. Freedom leads to joy.