Random view on eating onion and garlic

[P.J.]

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Random view on eating onion and garlic


[FONT=&quot]‘Rajasic (expanding) foods including onions, garlic, hot spices, stimulants, fish, eggs and salt. are thought excite intellect and passion which interfere with meditation.’
‘For spiritual and devotional aspects some food items including certain vegetables are to be avoided! Only sattvic vegetables are to be consumed!! ‘

Proper food is to be taken in order to improve the Sattvic qualities in us and curbing the Rajo and Tamasa Gunas which lead us to commit sin after sins in this life.

These are the main objection to Onion and Garlic irrespective of good health values

Let us see the first objection:

Shiridi Sai Baba Himself was an emancipated soul and had full knowledge of the Supreme Spirit and was capable of giving such experiences to others. However, He not only had no objection to non-veg food; but never insisted that His devotees, used to non-veg food, should give it up. ([/FONT][FONT=&quot]Ch.[/FONT][FONT=&quot] 38, Shri Sai Satcharita)

He was also eating Garlic and Onion.

Sages such as Vishwamitra, kings like Janaka, who were famous as Brahma-jnani and having the knowledge of the Supreme Spirit, were also of warrior caste and non-veg food was not taboo for them. Otherwise great seers, like Mohammed Paigamber and Jesus Christ in other religions, where non-veg food is normally consumed, would not have been born at all.

Is Sage Viswamintra got attracted to Ramba due to eating onion/ or garlic? Surely not. He was doing Thapas. Neither Ramba ate Garlic before appearing in front of the Rishi.
How Parasara Rishi got attracted to Matsyagandha because of eating garlic? I doubt so; do not say he got attracted to her fish smell, because the sage is supposed to be pure vegetarian.

These Great Rishis lost their mind not because of taking Garlic or onion but because of losing oneself to senses. This can happen to anyone irrespective of the food they take.

WE have read the story about Agasthya Muni eating two demon brothers and digesting them to save Rishis and other people from these dreaded demons.

Sri Aurobindo used to eat chicken quite regularly for a year, even when he was in his high, higher, highest consciousness. Nothing affected him.

The common view of the majority of Sikh scholars appears to agree on the view that Sikhism does not require its followers to adhere to the long established Hindu and Yogic dictum of eating vegetables and grains only; that is refraining from the consumption of meat, eggs and fish. However the Guru Granth Sahib, the spiritual guide of every Sikh,
makes one thing very clear in regard to a Sikh's diet. A Sikh should consume only healthy foods and drinks that are good for the body, nutrition that causes no harm to the body.

Islam allows the consumption of halal meat, which meets ritual requirements.

The interpretation of Buddha’s teaching was that it was OK to buy and eat meat if the being wasn’t killed directly for you.
Tibetan Buddhist Monks are meat eaters since climatic conditions made successful year-round agriculture impossible.

Equating Garlic and onion with meat and fish defies the definition of vegetarianism itself!!


Hence this notion against Garlic, onion and other root vegetables is untenable

We offer Nuts to Hari and consume also!!!

Scientifically proven, Garlic is rich in amino acid arginine and low in lysine and onion too. But comparably the levels are far lower than the levels of arginine present in all the nuts. 100 gms of garlic has at least a 1000 fold lesser arginine than 100 grams of walnut or almond or cashew. Are you saying that only "Satvik" food can be offerable to Hari? Then why these nuts are taken by devotees and offered to God?

Medicinal Benefits of Garlic and onion

In Ayurveda, medicinal and healing values of garlic are mentioned. Onion and garlic helps boosting up immunity, fighting against coughs and colds, asthma, warding off several diseases, parasites in intestines and many infections. Even modern researches confirm those healing benefits of Allium species.

Several population studies show an association between increased intake of garlic and reduced risk of certain cancers, including cancers of the stomach, colon, esophagus, pancreas, and breast.
We eat Garlic and onion regularly and back home Garlic Rasam is a must after oil bath.
In those days Chinna vengaya sambar and potato/ vengayam curry on a Sunday morning is a treat.. Oh what a taste!!!
By the way what type of shoes and belts those who object to onion and Garlic wear; must be made out of leather. I leave that to you.

The best possible meditation and tapas in Kaliyuga is not to hurt anyone ,mentally or physically[/FONT]

 

[renuka]

Dear Sir,

I read before that being vegetarian means no harm to living beings or plants and that is the reason why Sanyasis eat what can be plucked and not vegetables or tubers that causes the death of the whole plant when we consume it.

When we eat fruits and vegetables that can be plucked the tree does not die.
But with tubers and onions/garlic the whole plant dies.

If we go by that logic that means by right even potatoes,carrots on any underground growing tuber and even mushrooms should be avoided.

I knew a person who was a Rajasthani Brahmin and he told me that he does not eat any tubers/onion/garlic/ginger and mushrooms for the reasons I mentioned above.

 

[prasad1]

Dear Sir,

I read before that being vegetarian means no harm to living beings or plants and that is the reason why Sanyasis eat what can be plucked and not vegetables or tubers that causes the death of the whole plant when we consume it.

When we eat fruits and vegetables that can be plucked the tree does not die.
But with tubers and onions/garlic the whole plant dies.

If we go by that logic that means by right even potatoes,carrots on any underground growing tuber and even mushrooms should be avoided.

I knew a person who was a Rajasthani Brahmin and he told me that he does not eat any tubers/onion/garlic/ginger and mushrooms for the reasons I mentioned above.

Jain vegetarian diet is practiced by the followers of Jain culture and philosophy. It is considered to be one of the most rigorous form of spiritually-motivated diet on the Indian subcontinent and beyond. The Jain cuisine is completely vegetarian and it also excludes onions and garlic, similarly like the shojin-ryori cuisine of Japan. The strictest forms of Jain diet is practiced by the monastic ascetics, it may additionally exclude potatoes and other root vegetables. This food is called in Sanskrit a 'sattvic' food, which means that it is based on the qualities of goodness, lightness and happiness. On the other hand, onions and garlic are regarded to be 'tamasic', as they tend to have a quality of darkness, lethargy and indeed a putrid smell.
Jain objections to the eating of meat, fish and eggs are based on the principle of nonviolence (ahimsa, literally "non-injuring"). Every act by which a person directly or indirectly supports killing or injury is seen as act of violence (himsa), which creates harmful reaction karma. The aim of ahimsa is to prevent the accumulation of such karma. The extent to which this intention is put into effect varies greatly among Hindus, Buddhists and Jains. Jains consider nonviolence to be the most essential religious duty for everyone (ahinsā paramo dharmaḥ, a statement often inscribed on Jain temples). It is an indispensable condition for liberation from the cycle of reincarnation, which is the ultimate goal of all Jain activities. Jains share this goal with Hindus and Buddhists, but their approach is particularly rigorous and comprehensive. Their scrupulous and thorough way of applying nonviolence to everyday activities, and especially to food, shapes their entire lives and is the most significant hallmark of Jain identity. A side effect of this strict discipline is the exercise of asceticism, which is strongly encouraged in Jainism for lay people as well as for monks and nuns.

Jain vegetarianism - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

[P.J.]

Dear Sirs
None of the answers touched some of the points in my write up.




Please go through this, you will get an answer
http://tarunkranti.50webs.com/vegetables.html

Potatoes and other root plants have millions of bacteria, and small insects are killed during the harvest of these plants. But has any one ever stopped to think how we get milk and dairy products? And if you drink milk or consume any dairy product, you’re a participant in a practice much crueler than eating root vegetables.
Being milked regularly, by the way, drastically decreases the lifespan of the cow, which is worse for your karma than eating a plate of French fries, don’t you think? Think about it the next time you reach out for a glass of buttermilk.
Onions and garlic are avoided because they inflame the passion, or to put it simply, increase sexual desire. In that case, one should avoid movies, music and television and even books and newspapers, because these will make them hornier than anything they eat will. Hell, stop looking at attractive people too.

Onions and garlic are considered very important for health by Ayurvedic practitioners. They help with depression, grief, flu. They are used for gout and infection. Even the monks will eat them for health.
All Jains Are Poseurs « Mehta Kya Kehta?

 

[Brahmanyan]

Dear Sri Padmanabhan,

I wish to add a few words on this subject in a casual manner without any scientific erudition.

One's life span is decided not only by food habits but depends on various other factors as well.
Chakravarthi Rajagopalacharyar and Periyar E.V.Ramaswamy were good friends but poles apart
in their living style, C.R was a strict vegetarian and E.V.R. relished Non-vegetarian food till the end.
Both of them lived a hale and healthy life till the age of 94.

Onion and Garlic belong to Allium family, which has very high medicinal value. Onion and other Allium
vegetables are known for their rich content of thiosulfinates, sulfides, sulfoxides, and other
odoriferous sulfur compounds. The cysteine sulfoxides are primarily responsible for the onion flavor
and produce the eye-irritating compounds that induce lacrimation. The thiosulfinates exhibit antimicrobial
properties. Onion is effective against many bacteria including Bacillus subtilis, Salmonella, and E. coli.
Onion is not as potent as garlic since the sulfur compounds in onion are only about one-quarter the level
found in garlic.

Garlic is acclaimed as a wonder drug. It is equal to a single drug that could prevent heart attack, reduce
cancer risk, lower cholesterol, lower blood pressure, improve digestion, and act as an antibiotic. Its value
as an indispensable medicine is known to many ancient systems of traditional medicines all around the world.

When I was a young boy, I suffered an attack of scabies,a severe irritating skin disease. We tried many
allopathic treatments but could not get complete relief. Ultimately at the advise of a friend my mother
took me to the Arya Vaithyasala to try ayurvedic treatment. I was attended by the famous Arya Vadhyar
P.V.Rama Warrier, who administered Ayurvedic medicines and prescribed a diet which included raw onions and
curd. He said that rich sulfur content in Onions is the best cure for many skin diseases. Of course I was cured
of scabies within the time frame given by Sri Warrier.

It is my view that One has to take food according to his requirement and bodily needs. My grand mother who
lived a hale and healthy life of 86 years never touched any root vegetable grown below the earth. According to
her belief they were meant for animals like rodents and pigs.

Regards,
Brahmanyan,
Bangalore.

 

[sangom]

Random view on eating onion and garlic


‘Rajasic (expanding) foods including onions, garlic, hot spices, stimulants, fish, eggs and salt. are thought excite intellect and passion which interfere with meditation.’
‘For spiritual and devotional aspects some food items including certain vegetables are to be avoided! Only sattvic vegetables are to be consumed!! ‘

Proper food is to be taken in order to improve the Sattvic qualities in us and curbing the Rajo and Tamasa Gunas which lead us to commit sin after sins in this life.

These are the main objection to Onion and Garlic irrespective of good health values

Let us see the first objection:

Shiridi Sai Baba Himself was an emancipated soul and had full knowledge of the Supreme Spirit and was capable of giving such experiences to others. However, He not only had no objection to non-veg food; but never insisted that His devotees, used to non-veg food, should give it up. (Ch. 38, Shri Sai Satcharita)

He was also eating Garlic and Onion.

Sages such as Vishwamitra, kings like Janaka, who were famous as Brahma-jnani and having the knowledge of the Supreme Spirit, were also of warrior caste and non-veg food was not taboo for them. Otherwise great seers, like Mohammed Paigamber and Jesus Christ in other religions, where non-veg food is normally consumed, would not have been born at all.

Is Sage Viswamintra got attracted to Ramba due to eating onion/ or garlic? Surely not. He was doing Thapas. Neither Ramba ate Garlic before appearing in front of the Rishi.
How Parasara Rishi got attracted to Matsyagandha because of eating garlic? I doubt so; do not say he got attracted to her fish smell, because the sage is supposed to be pure vegetarian.

These Great Rishis lost their mind not because of taking Garlic or onion but because of losing oneself to senses. This can happen to anyone irrespective of the food they take.

WE have read the story about Agasthya Muni eating two demon brothers and digesting them to save Rishis and other people from these dreaded demons.

Sri Aurobindo used to eat chicken quite regularly for a year, even when he was in his high, higher, highest consciousness. Nothing affected him.

The common view of the majority of Sikh scholars appears to agree on the view that Sikhism does not require its followers to adhere to the long established Hindu and Yogic dictum of eating vegetables and grains only; that is refraining from the consumption of meat, eggs and fish. However the Guru Granth Sahib, the spiritual guide of every Sikh,
makes one thing very clear in regard to a Sikh's diet. A Sikh should consume only healthy foods and drinks that are good for the body, nutrition that causes no harm to the body.

Islam allows the consumption of halal meat, which meets ritual requirements.

The interpretation of Buddha’s teaching was that it was OK to buy and eat meat if the being wasn’t killed directly for you.
Tibetan Buddhist Monks are meat eaters since climatic conditions made successful year-round agriculture impossible.

Equating Garlic and onion with meat and fish defies the definition of vegetarianism itself!!


Hence this notion against Garlic, onion and other root vegetables is untenable

We offer Nuts to Hari and consume also!!!

Scientifically proven, Garlic is rich in amino acid arginine and low in lysine and onion too. But comparably the levels are far lower than the levels of arginine present in all the nuts. 100 gms of garlic has at least a 1000 fold lesser arginine than 100 grams of walnut or almond or cashew. Are you saying that only "Satvik" food can be offerable to Hari? Then why these nuts are taken by devotees and offered to God?

Medicinal Benefits of Garlic and onion

In Ayurveda, medicinal and healing values of garlic are mentioned. Onion and garlic helps boosting up immunity, fighting against coughs and colds, asthma, warding off several diseases, parasites in intestines and many infections. Even modern researches confirm those healing benefits of Allium species.

Several population studies show an association between increased intake of garlic and reduced risk of certain cancers, including cancers of the stomach, colon, esophagus, pancreas, and breast.
We eat Garlic and onion regularly and back home Garlic Rasam is a must after oil bath.
In those days Chinna vengaya sambar and potato/ vengayam curry on a Sunday morning is a treat.. Oh what a taste!!!
By the way what type of shoes and belts those who object to onion and Garlic wear; must be made out of leather. I leave that to you.

The best possible meditation and tapas in Kaliyuga is not to hurt anyone ,mentally or physically

Our vedas give clear evidence of meat-eating during those vedic days. One of the Dharmasastras states that feeding the brahmans in a Sraaddha with different kinds of meat (even hippopotamus, if my memory serves me right!) keeps the pitrus or manes free of hunger for different periods of time.

The vegetarian "bhoot", if I may say so, entered the brahmin culture possibly after Jainism rose to a prominent position in the sub-continent. Since Jainism puts a lot of emphasis on ahimsa and vegetarianism, it became compulsory for the vedic brahmins to follow the Jain Sramanas lest they end up getting better following from the rest of the population. In Bengal, Bihar, Jharkhand and Orissa, the Muslim invasion and subjugation isolated Jains and so the Hindus continued with some amount of NV, viz., fish.

Viewed in the above background, the ban on O/G (onions/garlic) can also be traced to Jainism. One of the reasons some people abhor O/G in their food is that as a result of digestion, these substances produce peculiarly foul-smelling gas and stools and such people feel that the purity or Shuddha (?) of their body itself gets destroyed by this. I personally do not contribute or get affected by such considerations and do eat O/G but my intake is only in small amounts.

 

[P.J.]

Excellent Post Sri Brahmanyan thanks;
The main objection for onion , garlic and other root vegetables is that they disturb soil there by exposing thousands of bacterias, worm etc.
Any cultivation whether one uses the old method of Axe and bull or Tractor, disturbs soil , expose earthworm etc and also thousands of bacterias. Rice and other cereals are not cultivated on top of the trees!!
Are these people who avoid eating onion and garlic, are they also avoiding rice and other cereals?
Padmanabhan