Sacred Cows and Flying Pigs – A New Look at Vegetarianism

Sacred Cows and Flying Pigs – A New Look at Vegetarianism

By Nimisha Mittal 5 October 2008 1,192 views 25 Comments

Let’s start with a quiz.

Question 1: Are you a vegetarian?
a) Yes
b) Hell no!

Question 2: If your answer to question 1 was (b), would you call yourself a non-vegetarian?
a) Yes
b) What’s that? I’m normal!

If you answered (b) to both questions, you’re probably one of the millions of people in the world born and raised in a meat-eating society; a world where eating meat was normal and everything else had a name, such as veganism, vegetarianism, pescadianism, weirdism. There were people like you, and then there were the others.

Meat-eaters and vegetarians have always been at odds with one another, which has resulted in the two classes morphing into unofficial cults, and each group trying to expand its membership body by using all sorts of illegal, immoral, and illogical methods. It seems that vegetarians heavily lose out in the witty-sayings battle against their rivals, especially when attacked with phrases such as ‘for every animal you don’t eat, I’ll eat three’, or ‘I didn’t make my way up to the food chain to become vegetarian’. The fact remains, vegetarians still exist. Meat-eaters often view them as a mysterious group of unfortunate beings who constantly deprive their taste buds and stomachs of God’s Greatest Gifts.

I apologize if I sound too antagonistic. I am just an annoyed vegetarian adjusting to a non-existent vegetarian society. I am annoyed when the main line in the college dining hall has only boiled green beans as a vegetarian option, or when the only vegetarian item on the menu of an allegedly ‘awesome’ restaurant is a Boca burger, which tastes like meat. I have to remind myself to breathe normally when I find that even McDonalds’ vegetarian salads sometimes have bacon in them, or when all the soups in Thai joints are made with chicken broth.

I get the ‘why’ question a lot. Is eating meat against my religion? No, it’s not. Most Hindus I know eat some kind of meat (except beef, because cows are sacred). Did my parents stop me from having meat? No, they did not. Was it because of health reasons then? Definitely not. I have lived off chocolate and chips and caffeine for days. And everyone knows that college students have caffeine, not blood, running through their veins.

People don’t really appreciate my answer of ‘I am against the cruel slaughter of innocent animals’ when they are enjoying a turkey sandwich.

People have often asked me why cows are sacred in Hinduism. After enlightening myself through Google and Wikipedia, I told them. No one really knows for sure. It may be because cows’ milk sustains humans throughout their lives, cow-dung is used to fuel many rural houses, cows are gentle and represent maternity, etc. But mostly, it’s because our ancestors said so.

What about pigs then? Muslims don’t eat pigs. Are pigs sacred too? Don’t ask a Muslim, or you are sure to get punched. Pigs are unfortunately at the other end of the spectrum. They are considered vile and filthy, and their meat is not supposed to be healthy either. In general, it seems that pigs have become victims of humans’ imaginations, playing roles such as Porky Pig, Babe, having statues with wings stationed all over cities like Cincinnati (which used to be called ‘Porkopolis’ as the center of the pork trade in the last century) and even end up being named posthumously for some launch-related figures aerospace engineers frequently reference, called ‘pork-chop plots’.

True – I am not the only surviving vegetarian in the world. There are, in fact, people I know who are (a) vegetarian due to religious reasons, (b) vegetarians because their parents forced them into it, and (c) because they truly, genuinely care about their health. There are also people who don’t exactly know why they are vegetarians. They just are. This group of people is most susceptible to ‘conversion’ when it moves from a vegetarian society to a not-so-vegetarian world. Some get sucked into role playing; they are vegetarian around their families, and ‘meatatarian’ otherwise. Some start eating meat to better adapt to a new society. Still more ask themselves ‘why not?’ and start eating meat with a new found vigor. My favorites are the ones who ask themselves ‘so what’ and carry on, and concentrate their worry-energies on problems such as furniture and world peace.

The problem still remains: I am usually the only vegetarian in a room of 50 or even 200 people. I am often asked if it is hard being vegetarian. My reply: Is it hard dying your hair a different color? Is it hard trying not to eat your dog? Is it hard being allergic to nuts? Is it hard acting like one?

Vegetarianism is a choice, not a disability.

I hope you’re fired enough to tell me what you think. The bombardment zone follows. You’ve come this far.

I rest my case.

Photo Courtesy: ickypoo, striatic

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Nimisha Mittal graduated from UT-Austin in 2008 with a degree in Aerospace Engineering. In her childhood, she wanted to be many things - a veterinarian, an IAS officer, and a writer; but when the pressure of being down-to-earth proved to be too much, she decided to pursue rocket science instead. She has no spare time; however, during her procrastination spells, she enjoys writing, reading, and rock-climbing.
Articles by Nimisha Mittal

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