VEGETARIANISM IN RELIGION

Buddhism

I forbid all meat eating, regardless of whether the animal dies naturally or is killed. I have never allowed my disciples to eat meat, and I will not allow in the present or future.

~ Shakyamuni Buddha, Lankavatara Sutra

All tremble at violence; all fear death. Putting oneself in the place of another, one should not kill nor cause another to kill. ~ Shakyamuni Buddha, Dhammapada

One is not a great one because one defeats or harms other living beings. One is so-called because one refrains from defeating or harming other living beings.

~ Shakyamuni Buddha, Dhammapada

All Buddhas and Bodhisattvas essentially practice the principle of great compassion. The suffering of living beings brings forth their great compassion. From this great compassion emerges the great wisdom, and with this great wisdom, they attain the ultimate enlightenment. ~ Shakyamuni Buddha, Avatamsaka Sutra

People who eat meat are destroying the great merciful seed of their own Buddha nature, and any sentient beings seeing them would leave them. Therefore, all Bodhisattvas (spiritual practitioners) must refrain from eating the flesh of sentient beings as this will incur boundless sin.

~ Shakyamuni Buddha, Brahmajala Sutra

Hurt not others with that which pains you yourself. ~ Buddhist Sutra Udanavarga 5,18

All the saints abhorred eating blood or flesh…. Celestial beings never go near people who eat meat as their mouth always has a foul smell…. Meat is not good, meat is unclean; meat eating generates evils and destroys merits and blessings. All the saints denounce eating meat!

~ Shakyamuni Buddha, Lankavatara Sutra

So with a boundless heart should one cherish all living beings, radiating kindness over the entire world, spreading upward to the skies, and downward to the depths, outward and unbounded.

~Metta Sutra, “Loving-kindness”

“Bodhisattvas (spiritual practitioners) should discern that all meats are from the filthy bodes, which are combined by pus, blood, dirtiness, red-bindu (Bright Drop)s, white-bindus of the parents. Thus, discerning the dirtiness of meat, Bodhisattvas should not eat meat.”

~ Lankavatara Sutra

“All meats are like the dead bodies of human beings…. the cooked meats are as stinky and feculent as the burned dead bodies, so how could we eat such things?”

~ Lankavatara Sutra

“Meat eating can increase desires, meat eaters are greedy….For the instinct of protecting and cherishing life, there is no difference between human and animal….

Anyone who wants to eat meat should first discern the pain of cutting his own body, and then discern the pains of all living beings, and then give up meat eating.”

~ Lankavatara Sutra

“Meat eaters have so many countless offences, thus vegetarians have masses of countless merits and virtues.”

~ Lankavatara Sutra

“Now in this Lankavatara Sutra I say, at all times, all kinds of meats are inedible, unexceptionally. Mahamati, I forbid meat eating not only for one time, I mean that both in present and future, meat eating is forbidden.”

~ Lankavatara Sutra

A disciple of the Buddha must not deliberately eat meat. He should not eat the flesh of any sentient being. The meat-eater forfeits the seed of Great Compassion, severs the seed of the Buddha Nature and causes [animals and transcendental] beings to avoid him. Those who do so are guilty of countless offenses.

~ Brahmajala Sutra

All men tremble at punishment, all men fear death. Likening others to oneself, one should neither slay nor cause to slay. ~ Dhammapada Sutra

A state that is not pleasing or delightful to me, how could I inflict that upon another?

~ Samyutta Nikaya v. 353