ahimsa | The Hare Krishna Movement

Happiness & Suffering

Ever since I was a small child, I have been attracted to the statue of Buddha. Don’t know why, but I had a statue of Buddha in my bedroom, and it was a Christian home. I didn’t really know about Krishna then or who the Buddha was…but I was so attracted to everything Eastern. As I learned latter in life, Buddha was actually an incarnation of Krsna.

“From the Bhāgavatam we understand that Lord Buddha is the incarnation of Kṛṣṇa who appeared when materialism was rampant and materialists were using the pretext of the authority of the Vedas. Although there are certain restrictive rules and regulations regarding animal sacrifice for particular purposes in the Vedas, people of demonic tendency still took to animal sacrifice without reference to the Vedic principles. Lord Buddha appeared to stop this nonsense and to establish the Vedic principles of nonviolence. Therefore each and every avatāra, or incarnation of the Lord, has a particular mission, and they are all described in the revealed scriptures. No one should be accepted as an avatāra unless he is referred to by scriptures. It is not a fact that the Lord appears only on Indian soil. He can advent Himself anywhere and everywhere, and whenever He desires to appear. In each and every incarnation, He speaks as much about religion as can be understood by the particular people under their particular circumstances. But the mission is the same—to lead people to God consciousness and obedience to the principles of religion. Sometimes He descends personally, and sometimes He sends His bona fide representative in the form of His son, or servant, or Himself in some disguised form.” (from purport Bg 4.7)

I have included a short summary of the Four Noble Truths & The Eightfold Path, along with some references from the Vedic Perspective

Bill Clinton Explains Why He Became a Vegan

Last night former President Bill Clinton spoke at the Democratic National Convention. I was able to catch part of his speech. I woke up this morning thinking that sometime back Bill Clinton had stopped eating meat, fish and eggs, and became a vegan. Veganism, by definition is; “Veganism is a way of living which seeks to exclude, as far as is possible and practicable, all forms of exploitation of, and cruelty to, animals for food, clothing or any other purpose.” (this quote was taken from the Vegan Society). Although I personally am an avid vegetarian, and believer in offering everything to Krsna, I very much appericate the ideals of veganism and its attempt to practice ahimsa, or the idea of causing no injury and harm to other living entities, as well as it being a healthy lifestyle. There is a definition of ahimsa, or nonviolence, at end of post.

…”I just decided that I was the high-risk person, and I didn’t want to fool with this anymore. And I wanted to live to be a grandfather. So I decided to pick the diet that I thought would maximize my chances of long-term survival.” -Bill Clinton

Bill Clinton Explains Why He Became a Vegan
by Joe Conason

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