The Lamp of Scriptures and Reasoning, A Tibetan Buddhist perspective on the faults of eating meat, by Lama Phurbu Tashi (1973) is one of the more recent texts on Buddhism and vegetarianism. Without doubt this publiciation is a must read for all (Tibetan) Buddhists, meat eaters or not.

The text is written by Lama Minyak Phurbu Tashi from East Tibet of the Kagyu school of Tibetan Buddhism. In a foreword both H.H. Dalai Lama XIV and H.H. Karmapa Orgyen Trinle Dorje recommend the book and underline the importance of the message of the author.

Phurbu Tashi expresses himself in a frank and clear manner. Already in the beginning of the book he asks the reader: "In general, regardless of the tradition, religions teach beings the means of searching for hapiness and truth. Suppose, if some should teach that one should kill and eat meat, need it to be said that this would be a perverted path?"

For Phurbu Tashi it goes without saying that a Buddhist is vegetarian. About craving for the taste of fellow sentient beings, he says: "There is no need to mention how this contradicts the view and conduct of the Mahayana where one is to cherish others more than oneself. It also contradicts the training of the shravakas and pratekyabuddhas of the Theravada tradition." And about vegetarianism within Tibetan Buddhism he explains that, "since the majority of the previous great beings of Tibet not even would wear cloths and shoes made with leader and skins", and (...) avoided riding animals such as horses, there is no need to mention that they did not eat meat.

« Back