VEGETaRIaNISM: MaNY RooTS,MaNY SHooTSOnly a small percentage of the population in the industrialized world describethemselves as vegetarians or vegans. Such lifestyles are more common inparts of the world where religions play a major role. In most faiths, followersare expected to abstain from meat in one way or another.Many reasonsto avoid meat:ethical, religious,health, ecological,romanticIn South Asia, vegetarianism has a long tradition.As part of various Indian religions, it was,and still is, widespread. In India itself, about aquarter of the population do not eat meat. In Buddhismand especially in Hinduism, belief in rebirthand adherence to non-violence lead people to rejectthe consumption of meat and the slaughter ofanimals. A broad spectrum of religions range instrictness, the highest of which is Jainism, wheremonks brush aside even the tiniest insects toavoid treading on them. Most Buddhist sectsallow milk and milk products, some permit theconsumption of fish, and others allow meat ifthe animal has been slaughtered by a non-Buddhist.Although vegetarianism is declining in theregion, it is still regarded as virtuous and exemplaryin many parts of South and East Asia.For religious reasons, Muslims and Jews donot eat pork. Historically this is probably due tothe risk of trichinosis, a human disease causedby parasitic worms found in the meat of infectedpigs. Some Christians observe fasting days, andeat fish instead of meat on Fridays. Some devoutCatholics and many deeply religious OrthodoxChristians also fast on Wednesdays. The Orthodoxchurches of East and Southeast Europe and NorthwestAfrica recognize several fasting periods duringthe year. The 35 million followers of the EthiopianTewahedo Orthodox Church observe a vegandiet during the month before Christmas, for the55 days leading up to Easter, 16 days in the summer,and on Wednesdays and Fridays that donot coincide with a feast day – a total of about sixmonths a year. A maximalist interpretation of therules stipulates fasting on 250 days a year. In Europe,religious orders and hermits practised asceticismto dull their worldly desires. However, sinceeggs and milk were permitted they were ovo-lactovegetarians.Inspired by philosophy rather than religion,vegetarianism began in the West in the Mediterraneanregion. The ancient Greek and Roman poetsHesiod, Plato and Ovid mention a vegetarian lifestyleas a feature of the earliest times. The Scythiansof the Eurasian steppes were said to subsistmainly on meat; some said they were cannibals.In the Roman Empire, it was Apollonius of Tyana,in Asia Minor, who spread the idea of renouncingmeat in the 1st century AD. This philosopher, oneof the first vegans, denounced animal sacrifices,and refused to wear leather or fur.Two centuries later, the scholar, Porphyry ofTyre, wrote a special paean to vegetarianism. Inhis essay De Abstinentia (On Abstinence), he rejectsthe consumption of meat: it is unjust to eata sentient animal, and the complex preparationand digestion would distract a frugal philosopherfrom his other tasks. Other great thinkersVegetarians: a growing minority in the west, a major force in IndiaPeople describing themselves as vegetarian or vegan, in percent of the populationUSa4 men7 women2 men and womenEU 2–10men and women, estimatesIndiavegetariansvegans31men and womenGALLUP, NVS, SNSMillions of vegetariansUSaEUIndia1510–5037556MEaT aTlaS
145123“Vegetarianism” and “veganism” – page views in wikipedia73698995659585(sept.)99Monthly click rates in August of each year, by language versions, thousands16132009252720101722German201120252012192520139?200911?20101261310French201120121011201359200981120101216Russian20111916201223192013STATS.GROK.SE4944“vegetarianism”“veganism”English31Only click rates above 5,000 a month, selected language versions.Most users from developing countries use the English-languageWikipedia.251016102016Spanish205576 8 10138Portuguese91539312311japanese4129620092010201120122013200920102011201220132009201020112012201320092010201120122013are also reported to have been vegetarians. UnlikePorphyry, the philosophers René Descartes(1596–1650) and Immanuel Kant (1724–1804)rejected the “humanitarian” obligations towardsanimals. However, the inventor Leonardo da Vinci(1452–1519) and the statesman Benjamin Franklin(1706–90) supported these obligations. ThomasTryon (1634–1703), an English merchant andauthor, was an early animal-rights activist. Takingup Indian ideas in his books, he not only advocateda selection of vegetarian varietiesmeatMEaT aTlaSeggsveganismfi s hovovegetarianismvegetarianismpescetarianismovolactoveg.lactovegetarianismmilk,dairyproductsSome excludepescetarians fromvegetarianismpacifism among people, but also preached nonviolencetowards all types of animals.Vegetarian clubs and associations had theirbeginnings in England in the 19th century andwere soon established in many countries. Theterm “vegetarian” itself was coined during thistime. Repelled by the consequences of the industrialrevolution, the growth of the proletariat andurbanization, the vegetarians initially formed aromantic opposition. Poets and authors such asPercy Bysshe Shelley (1792–1822), George BernardShaw (1856–1950) and Leo Tolstoy (1828–1910) joined the movement. In addition to thecritique of civilization, vegetarianism addedstrands based on asceticism and animal protection– for example, opposition to experiments onliving animals.In wealthier countries, the animal-rightsmovement and political veganism are the mostrecent strands that insist on renouncing meat.The animal-rights movement sees people and animalsas equal components of a common society;it rejects the use and exploitation of animals. Veganismsets out ethical, environmental and antiglobalizationarguments. It is based in vegetarianism,but also avoids the use of animal productssuch as wool and leather, as well as anything containinganimal ingredients, such as cosmetics. Inindustrialized countries, veganism is increasinglyaccepted as a lifestyle.In the west,vegetarianism isbased on philosophyrather thanreligion57
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