What is Ahimsa?
Ahimsa(Non Violence) is a Sanskrit term
meaning non harming or non injuring and can be interpreted as
“dynamic harmlessness”. The practice of Ahimsa includes specific
foods and products being considerate of the lives of humans and
animals, and actively participating in beneficial
action.
From the above definition, it is very
clear that, Ahimsa is in the nucleus of Veganism. Ahimsa is more
broader term, covers all kinds of living creatures on this earth
including so called most intelligent and most populated animal on
the earth.( Click here to read more)
What is Vegan?
Before knowing, what is Vegan? First, you
should know about the Vegetarianism: -
The term "Vegetarian" was coined in
1847. Joseph Brotherton and others first formally used it on September 30th of that year, at Northwood Villa in Kent, England.
The occasion being the inaugural meeting of the Vegetarian Society
of the United Kingdom.
The word was derived from the Latin
"vegetus," meaning whole, sound, fresh, lively; (it should not be
confused with "vegetable-arian" - a mythical human whom some imagine
subsisting entirely on vegetables but no nuts, fruits, grains
etc!)
Prior to 1847, non-meat eaters were
generally known as "Pythagoreans" or adherents of the "Pythagorean
System," after the ancient Greek "vegetarian" Pythagoras.
The original definition of
"vegetarian" was "with or without eggs or dairy products" and that
definition is still used by the Vegetarian Society today. However,
most vegetarians in India exclude eggs from their diet, as did those
in the classical Mediterranean lands, such as Pythagoras.
Type of Vegetarians: -
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Vegan
or strict vegetarian: eats no animal foods of any kind
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Ovo-vegetarian:
eats eggs, but no dairy foods or other animal foods
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Lacto-vegetarian:
eats dairy foods but no other animal foods or eggs
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Lacto-ovo-vegetarian:
eats dairy foods and eggs, but no other animal foods
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Pesco-vegetarian:
eats dairy foods, eggs, and fish, but no other animal foods
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semi-vegetarian:
mostly follows a vegetarian diet but eats meat, poultry and fish
occasionally
Vegan
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The term Vegan was coined by Donald Watson in 1944 and was defined as
follows:
Veganism is a way of living, which excludes
all forms of exploitation of, and cruelty to, the animal kingdom,
and includes a reverence for life. It applies to the practice of
living on the products of the plant kingdom to the exclusion of
flesh, fish, fowl, eggs, honey, animal milk and its derivatives, and
encourages the use of alternatives for all commodities derived
wholly or in part from animals.
Veganism is not about personal purity or removing oneself from
today’s society, but rather about applying a sense of compassion and
justice to our (often unseen) relationships with animals.
Vegan:
Strict vegetarian
diet eliminates animal flesh, such as meat, poultry, fish and
seafood, and animal byproducts, such as eggs and dairy. Many tend to
not even eat honey. Against animal exploitation, most vegans do not
wear animal products, such as leather, silk or wool. The word
vegan “pronounced as VEE-gun”. Watson established The Vegan
Society because he wanted to differentiate non-dairy vegetarians
from other vegetarians. (www.vegansociety.com)
Alice
Walker said, "The animals of
the world exist for their own reasons. They were not made for humans
any more than black people were made for white, or
women created for men." (I would also add that plants and the
earth were not made for humans either.)
One who doesn't use animals for food purposes and especially for
clothing and any other purpose? Hence, a vegan could commonly
be defined as one who doesn't use animals.
