The Sacredness of Life (and why I’m not a vegan)

On By Alethea KehasIn Gaia & Elementals, Reflections

 

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Stone Guardian of a Mountain

 

This is a post I have been wanting to write for quite some time, but have put off because it can be such a controversial topic. I don’t wish to offend or demean anyone, and I think this is why I also feel so compelled to write this. There are such strong opinions on this topic that it often spurs a “holier than thou mentality” for some and a defensive response in others.

I do not believe, morally speaking, one is better than the other. Some of the wisest and most reverent individuals I know are omnivores. I don’t believe they are better than anyone else, and they don’t either. They share a belief in the Native cultures on Earth, which is one that I share as well: That all life is sacred. The consciousness of Life moves through each of us, just as it moves through the animal kingdom, as well as the plant kingdom, and the mineral kingdom. It moves through water and fire. When you live in reverence for all Life, you realize all life becomes an eventual sacrifice to continue the existence of Life itself, yet the essence of all Life never dies.

“When you eat, do you give thanks to the life you are consuming,” were the words spoken to a group of us over a meal. They came from a shaman who had been chosen and trained not for monetary reward, but because he was destined to share ancient, sacred teachings. He is not a vegan, nor is he a vegetarian, but each time he places nutrients in his mouth he gives thanks to the sacrifice, whether it be the water he drinks or the body of the plant or animal life that has been sacrificed so his life can be continued.

When Native Americans, for example, take the life of a deer, they connect with the spirit of the animal by looking in its eyes and offering a prayer of gratitude. No part of the body of the deer is waste but repurposed with reverence for the life that has been sacrificed.

I have found, through my own journey in life, that I cannot place a hierarchy on the value of one life over another. I feel the energy of a tree as acutely as I do a dog. I have discovered that an apple tree shares different wisdom than a hemlock, just as a tiger does versus an ant. When I place my hands on rocks, I am often graced with the wisdom they hold. In fact, the most profound and humbling experiences I have felt have been through this very act. Water, which is recycled over and over again as the life-giving force in each of us, is also, to me, sacred. I have learned more through my conversations with water than I have through most people I have met. Therefore, who am I to place a value on one consciousness over another?

As I learn and continue my journey of Life, I have had to face the sacrifice that is Life, over and over again. There is guilt, along with reverence. When I feel the life force leave a tree, it can bring me to a state of intense sorrow, even though I realize that the essence of that Lifeforce still lives on. When I first learned Reiki, I instinctively hit a mosquito, then Reikied its body back to health. It’s not an easy lesson to learn: That all life is ultimately a sacrifice to Life. That we are born into life and death and exist through many deaths.

It is my belief that all life is sacred, and when we strive to honor it as such, we realize how connected we are to everything. That the consciousness that flows through you flows through a beetle, a cat, a daisy, a rock, a tree and the water that is recycled through the body of Earth and in you. Living in gratitude and awe of Life is something I try to practice with each breath, as even the air we breathe carries Life. Without it, I would not exist in this body.

 

 

22 thoughts on “The Sacredness of Life (and why I’m not a vegan)”

  2. Very much my own thoughts, Alethea. That which we call ‘life’ is unquantifiable and flows through cabbage and animal equally, includng humans. I cannot value one life above another, but it does make me conscious of my own part in their story and theirs in mine.

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      1. Many struggle with this, and all have to find the answers that satisfy their heart and mind. We are part of a vast and complex design, to big for us, who are but a tiny fragment of it, to see in its entirety. All the pieces are interdependant… and I see a beauty in that; our lives belong not only to us but to the whole.

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  3. I agree Alethea. Our evolution was enabled by our opportunisitic approach to eating. Ancient people honoured those they killed in cave paintings and worship. You cannot sweep all of that genetic history under the carpet every time a new religion emerges. I respect other’s beliefs but when I spend the day in the mountains or other places far from the cities, it is so much easier to connect with nature and the spiritualism within us all. From a nutritionists viewpoint… we are protein and our genetic inclination is to eat meat. I have seen far too many clients over the years who have dived into a vegetarian or vegan regime without thought of where they are going to replace the essential nutrients needed by their body to survive. Sally

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    1. Thank you for this, Sally. When I was very young, my parents were vegetarians. My sister and I had to fly across the country to see our father each summer, and one time we were served breakfast with sausages on the plane. My body craved the protein so much, I gobbled up mine and my sister’s when she went to the bathroom! My body doesn’t need a ton of meat, but it definately does better with some.

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      2. Yes, I agree. I think it’s so important to listen to and honor our bodies. There have been moments where I have wished I could do better on other forms of protein, but I am left with difficult digestion or feeling very ungrounded and hungry all the time.

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  4. So true. I’ve never quite grasped veganism. We are part of the natural world, and as such, should be conscious of the sacrifice of life unto life. Those who imagine we are beyond or even above the ways of the natural world are alienating themselves from the uncountable cycles and processes that enliven the Earth.

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  8. Interesting post, Alethea. I liked especially your references to ancient cultures (like native americans) that are omnivorous but who treated their meat with respect in death and the animals with respect in life. It’s a great shame that capitalism has turned the meat industry into a nightmarish production line for the animals and really, to me, that is the central moral question for a meat eater; can you put up with the factory farming and if not can you afford to live on ethically sourced meat, and if you can’t, how will your health be impacted by changing your diet? I make this distinction because I think a lot of people believe the moral question begins at should we eat other life forms, but as you point out, life isn’t always an animal. The world itself may be alive and there’s no particular reason why a rock shouldn’t be conscious. Meanwhile, there have been studies that seem to suggest that plants are conscious, or at least react to things in their environment like a conscious entity.

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    1. Thank you for your words. I agree, it does (or should) raise all of these moral questions as we choose what we consume and how we consume it. From where/how we get meat, to also how we raise and source plant-life. How much we consume and whether we consume with greed or gratitude. The world is slowly shifting back to awareness, though, I think, which gives me hope. ❤

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  10. Pingback: The Sacredness of Life (and why I’m not a vegan) – Yoga Lifestyle with Cristina

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