The Higher Taste

My friends and relatives, who have met me since the last quarter of the last year, are often surprised by the fact that I have taken to Vegan diet. Though for me this seems to be a natural progression and NOT a big deal but my friends and relatives think otherwise considering my one-time strong preferences for fish, egg and chicken. They often express their wonder by saying,  it’s ok to be pursuing the path of Krishna Consciousness but is it really necessary to give up on fish? In this way they often tend to indicate to me that being a Bengali, am I not getting too carried away by all this and losing my identity? I see this question always light up like red-traffic signal in the eyes of (primarily) my mother, wife, son and generally for all others. For my mother and wife this is an unwanted ‘problem’ that has come up as they have to now “think” about my ‘vegetarian meal’. My 9 year old son is also kind a taken aback by this change in his KFC happy dad! He remembers of the good old days of kebabs, tikkas, rolls and grills. It’s not that I have stopped him from having these food pleasures rather I sit opposite to him while he enjoy a chicken burger, I enjoy my paneer burger!(What made KFC to offer veg meals?)  I guess out of the three – my mother, wife and son, my son seems to be the only one who has somehow took pity on me and have accepted to a large extent my shift. Though sometimes he expresses his wonder as to what the fuss is about not eating meat. My answer to him ‘son, you will get it one day!’ I am waiting.

I have observed that many who take to Krishna consciousness inevitably end up following vegetarian diet and which in itself is NOT a big deal for the devotees rather it becomes a BIG concern for the people around, especially in Bengal.  Consider a Bengali wedding and vegetarian food, well they don’t fit in the same frame. I guess the veg item decisions are NOT even taken by the family they are just left to the chef to decide. And the Chef as a routine goes for one of the princely dishes - alu-chhola, alu-gobhi or mixed-veg.   Please read it again any ‘ONE’.  Now I joke with my brother “Khaya ya Dekha” (did you eat or see). Yes we two are the odd ones in the family (recently my father joined the group too). Actually, my brother is the one who is responsible for all of this.

I am not sure about others but as far as I am concerned there are very few basic ‘realisations’ for me to opt for vegan side. I wouldn’t go into the disputed zone that veganism is something of very high philosophy or some kind of very high moral standing. From the point of Krishna consciousness it’s obvious and a very natural progression.

As per Srila Prabhupada, devotees who wish to further in the path of Krishna consciousness should strictly avoid taking any kind of meat or for that matter any eatable that can be considered as intoxicant. This even includes tea, coffee, any form of liquor and any eatable that leads to any form of intoxication. From a spiritual perspective the reason for giving up such items is simple – unwavering love and devotion for Krishna.

Krishna is supreme, He is the only one who can be loved the most, He is the only one with whom the Soul can have the most pure and sacred relationship. With such a view a devotee gives up or tries to  give up impurities. To present and offer the most pure love to Krishna one tries to reach a state of purity- in words, thoughts, actions and behavior. Not eating meat and any kind of intoxicant is just one small step through which the devotee attempts to bring purity within so that he/she can approach Krishna for his mercy. The devotee is cognizant of the fact that in the entire creation, all living entities (plants and animal alike) are Lords reflections. Even killing plants is sinful. Eating is an existential requirement and by restricting the diet to vegan the devotee is trying to limit his sinful activities. Srila Prabhupada stated that a devotee is absolved of the sin of even the vegan meal when it is offered to the Lord and after offering it to the Lord it is consumed by the devotee as a prasadam. 

This concept of self-purification is NOT only exhibited in food but also in thoughts and actions by listening to Lords pastime and chanting Lords name. Therefore vegan food and all related aspects are nothing but a form of Bhakti (devotion). Srila Prabhupada succinctly defined bhakti simply as honesty and purity. It is devotee’s honesty and purity that propels him towards bhakti and through bhakti only, one can genuinely surrender to Lord and receive mercy. The supreme lord is free from desires or pleasures. It is only for the sake of devotee’s desire he accepts our bhakti. Only through our bhakti we can please the Lord.

A mother expecting a baby becomes very conscious of everything – what she eats, sees, hears or even thinks. All actions of mother are purely driven by her honesty towards the baby in the womb. It’s mother’s devotion to the unborn that propels her to do those things. Similarly a devotee is carrying love for Krishna within ones heart. All the actions of a devotee are driven by the motive of preserving and increasing that pure love of Lord.  

The act of self-purification is evident in all religion. People wash hands and feet before entering religious places. People in various religions do fast. In several religions there are some specific time period when people avoid meat, intoxicant, unethical/immoral behavior and acts. During those period people experience a heightened sense of spiritual connection with self and the Almighty. Research has proved that people during this period are rarely stressed, generally happy, more peaceful, energized mentally and physically and experience a very different level of existence. Krishna consciousness makes this simply a way of life rather than an intermittent approach.  Srila Prabhupada often said that Krishna consciousness is the eternal and the most advanced science given by the creator to its creation. The Krishna consciousness enables devotees to follow the eternal science on a continuous basis. Meat and intoxicants are a huge impediment in spiritual journey and that’s why they should be abandoned for once and for all. 

We have been taught that Man is on the top of the so called Food Chain as it can devour literally everything.  Through my humble experience I would submit that Man needs to come down few steps lower on the food chain to really enjoy ‘The Higher Taste’.

Supreme Lord states “If one offers Me with love and devotion a leaf, a flower, a fruit, water, I will accept it.”

Chapter 9.Text 26, Bhagawad Gita.

Hare Krishna!