The Buddha originally said "eat what you like", but 40 years later, expounded a vegan doctrine??

Question

Near his ultimate Nirvana, the Buddha reversed his earlier teachings regarding eating meat, and so forth, and expounded the vegan doctrine of not taking anything that comes from animals, including leather, honey, milk, etc, because of the danger of "creating conditions with living things".....He also mentioned the danger of eating seeds, or fruits with seeds in them, as they, too, contained life.

What do you think could have possibly happened to change his attitude from "preferred vegetarianism" to "strictly vegan" and then some??

He even went so far as to state that those who would take from animals after his death (without him being there to make these things pure for them) will not reach Nirvana.

I never thought that there would be those who doubted my words, but since that is the case, the source is the Shurangama Sutra, and this is the quote I speak of, from the words of the Buddha himself:

" After my extinction, how can those who eat the flesh of beings be called the disciples of Shakya?
"You should know that these people who eat meat may gain some awareness and may seem to be in samádhi, but they are all great rakshasas. When their retribution ends, they are bound to sink into the bitter sea of birth and death. They are not disciples of the Buddha. Such people as these kill and eat one another in a never-ending cycle. How can such people transcend the Triple Realm?
"When you teach people of the world to cultivate samádhi, they must also cut off killing. This is the second clear and decisive instruction on purity given by the Thus Come Ones, the Buddhas of the Past, World Honored Ones.
"Therefore, Ánanda, if cultivators of chan samádhi do not cut off killing, they are like

one who stops up his ears and calls out in a loud voice, thinking that no one hears him.. He tries to cover up the sound, but only makes it greater.
"Pure Bhikshus and Bodhisattvas who practice purity will not even step on grass in the pathway; even less would they pull it up with their hands. How could anyone with great compassion consume the flesh and blood of beings?
"Bhikshus who do not wear silk, leather boots, furs, or down, whether imported or found locally, and who do not consume milk, cream, or butter, can truly transcend this world. When they have paid back their past debts, they will not have to re-enter the Triple Realm.
"Why not? When someone wears anything taken from a living creature, he creates conditions with the creature, just as when people ate the hundred grains, their feet could not leave the earth. Both physically and mentally one must avoid the bodies and the by-products of beings, by neither wearing them nor eating them. I say that such people have true

liberation.
"What I have said here is the Buddhas’ teaching. Any explanation counter to it is the teaching of Papiyan.


Insulting people with my ignorance is not a tactic I usually resort to, I'm happy to say.

And yes, while the Buddha may have accepted offerings of meat as his "last meal", he also spoke in the Great Paranirvana Sutra that one should wholly give up the eating of meat at that time. Will you take my word for that one, or must I find you the quote as well?

Answer 1

Without getting into a spiritual debate, all food contains "life". This is why we eat it... to live. We draw life from food. This is the cycle. With all life comes death.

Now, getting into the spiritual side: we should respect life in all of it's forms, especially our own life. We should do whatever it takes to live and to continue our lives without exploiting the things which keep us going. We need to take life in order to keep life. Don't take from the same source all the time. Variety and moderation. Life is sacred. Death is sacred. Both should be in balance. Both will be in bablance no matter what we do. Live peacefully. Respect life. Respect death. Live long and prosper. Smoke a little weed. Help your fellow man. Do unto others before they do unto you. Just kidding on the last one. Peace.

Answer 2

The BUddhist position on vegetarianism is not clear: sometimes its ok for monks to take meat if they don't request it, etc. I don't think that the Buddha ever said anything about not eating honey, and that business about not eating seeds definitely sounds like either a modern reconstruction or a Jain idea.

I'd also want to see the source on not taking anything that came from animals--in 500 bc India, that would have been an impossibly low-protein diet.

Short answer: your sources have misled you, and the Buddha probably didn't say anything like that.

Answer 3

stable element: because of the fact the Catholic Apostles and Fathers have been lots closer in time to the gospel activities, they in all probability had extra helpful wisdom of those activities and of the language and customs of the era. besides, they had recourse to the oral traditions that predated the written gospels and that furnish extreme history wisdom for information them. John makes this element on the top of his gospel 21:25): "Jesus did many different issues besides. If each physique of them have been written down, i assume that even the complete international does not have room for the books that could desire to be written." this suggests that we want modern-day bills to totally understand Jesus' words and moves. Protestants who push aside Catholic doctrines declare to realize this on the muse of the Bible, yet that still provides a situation. they don't look to appreciate the the recent testomony replaced into commissioned, chosen, and canonized by the Catholic-Orthodox Christians of Jesus' unique church. It does not make experience that people who issued the recent testomony don't are conscious of it, and that those examining their texts 15-20 centuries later have been given it suitable. Cheers, Bruce

Answer 4

i only know Lord Buddha says to eat wht is given/in front of u n to be grateful for every mean u get. i dun know anything abt being a vegan for Buddhists.

Answer 5

Please don't insult Buddhist with your ignorance.In fact the very last meal of the Buddha was meat.
Re:Mahaparinibbana sutta.