(03-17-2010, 02:10 PM)ayadew Wrote: It is written by an awakened being. You may not like it, feel insulted etc. But you should read it.
What do you mean by 'awakened?' Awakened in what way?
Thanks for the warning. You're right; I don't like it. But I don't feel insulted because everyone is entitled to their own opinion.
The author went back to eating meat. That's her choice. I appreciate your posting this, because it's always nice to hear other points of view.
My first impression of the book was that the author makes a lot of generalizations which I find very questionable. For example, although there are extremists in every group, I don't think I've ever met a vegan in my entire life who thinks we should separate the wild animals so they don't kill one another. I also vehemently disagree that everyone following a vegan diet long-term ends up damaged. Most long-term vegans I know are vibrantly healthy!
This person had health problems, but to say that vegetarian diet is not healthy for anyone is like taking any random meat eater with diabetes, heart disease, cancer, or whatever, and saying that their own particular diet caused all their problems therefore no one should ever eat meat. MOST meat-eaters have myriad health problems, and so do some vegetarians. But, statistically, vegetarians are healthier across the board, and that is an indisputable fact. There will always be those who, whether vegetarian or not, have health issues. There are many factors to health. Being a vegetarian doesn't guarantee health.
I also question whether her diet was actually the cause of her health problems. While returning to meat might have alleviated some of her problems, that doesn't necessarily mean that eating meat was the only solution. Many vegans have made the mistake of leaving out key nutrients which could easily have been remedied by either eating eggs or dairy (less drastic than eating meat) or simply eating more greens or taking supplements. Because of a drastic decrease in nutrients found in produce, it's difficult to get all the nutrients we need using supermarket produce. I personally utilize wild foods and superfoods, and I think this is generally a good idea, whether vegetarian or not.
The author seems to have a reverence for life and as strong spirituality, but I sense a great deal of bitterness as well. I appreciate her sharing her experience, but I'd have to say I disagree with her views overall, so far. I don't think we need to go to the extreme of worrying about how many microorganisms we might 'kill' each time we take a breath. I've heard the argument before, "You are killing that lettuce!" but disagree with it. I truly believe that if the spirit of the lettuce was individuated enough to choose a sentient life, it would not have incarnated into a plant body! It would have chosen an animal body, so it could run away when chased. It is logical to me that if an animal shrieks in pain, and flees from the hunter, that is a clue that it doesn't want to be eaten. The author doesn't seem to take into consideration the evolution of the soul and the choice of physical vehicle mirroring the evolution of the soul. (Perhaps she might discover the Law of One and find it enlightening on understanding plants and animals.)
I have only read half the book so far, but I wonder why she didn't consider a raw foods diet instead of going back to meat. That sounds strange to me. I hope she finds healing and balance in her life.
By the way, there are at least 2 other threads that explore the topic of meat eating further. I don't have time to find them at the moment but one had meat in the topic and the other was something like healthy nutrition or something like that. The meat thread was from awhile back but both are probably in the Life on Planet Earth sub-forum.
It's definitely an interesting perspective, ayadew, so thanks for sharing!