Dante Carrillo
Hindu dietary laws and customs are closely linked to the religion's core beliefs of non-harm, purity, and the influence of the mind on the body. The concept of ahimsa, or non-violence, is central to Hinduism, and many Hindus choose to be vegetarian or eat mostly plants to avoid harming animals. Some Hindus also avoid certain vegetables, like onions and garlic, believing they are tamasic and produce dullness and lethargy. Dietary practices vary across India, with Hindus in the Western, Central, and Northern regions more likely to be vegetarian than those in the East, Northeast, and South. Fasting is also a common practice among Hindus, seen as a way to cleanse the body and mind and show dedication to their beliefs. While some Hindus closely follow traditional dietary rules, others are adopting new foods and practices, such as veganism, demonstrating the religion's ability to adapt to modern contexts while upholding its core values.
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What You'll Learn
- A significant portion of Hindus are non-vegetarians, but most eat very little meat
- Many Hindus believe that eating meat is consuming the animal's pain and fear, which has negative spiritual consequences
- The cow is considered sacred in Hinduism, and many Hindus avoid eating beef
- Lacto-vegetarianism is favoured by many Hindus, which includes milk-based foods and excludes meat and eggs
- The Hindu tradition views the procurement and preparation of food as a violent process, where other life forms and nature are disturbed
A significant portion of Hindus are non-vegetarians, but most eat very little meat
Hindu scriptures promote a vegetarian dietary ideal based on the concept of ahimsa, or non-violence and compassion towards all beings. According to a Pew Research Center survey, 44% of Hindus identify as vegetarian. This is supported by another survey that found 39% of Indian adults follow a vegetarian diet, including 44% of Hindus. Lacto-vegetarianism is favoured by many Hindus; this diet includes milk-based foods and all non-animal derived foods but excludes meat and eggs.
However, a significant portion of Hindus are non-vegetarians. Hinduism does not require a vegetarian diet, and many Hindus do eat meat. Nevertheless, even those who identify as non-vegetarian eat very little meat. India has significantly lower meat consumption than other regions of the world. Non-vegetarian Indians mostly prefer poultry, fish, other seafood, goat, and sheep as their sources of meat. In Eastern and coastal south-western regions of India, fish and seafood are the staple of most local communities.
The reason some Hindus do not eat meat is because a central teaching of Hinduism is ahimsa, or respect for all living things and the importance of not committing violence against others. This principle of non-violence is applied to animals, and many Hindus believe that non-vegetarian food is detrimental to the mind and spiritual development. Many Hindus also believe that in the act of eating meat, people consume the emotional pain and fear of the animal, which can have negative spiritual consequences.
Dietary practice varies across the different religious groups in India. Jains are the most likely to abstain from meat, with 92% identifying as vegetarians. Sikhs are the next most likely to be vegetarian (59%), followed by Hindus (44%), Buddhists (25%), Christians (10%), and Muslims (8%).
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Many Hindus believe that eating meat is consuming the animal's pain and fear, which has negative spiritual consequences
Hindu dietary practices vary widely, with some Hindus eating meat and others adhering to vegetarian or vegan diets. Lacto-vegetarianism is common among Hindus, which involves consuming milk-based foods and all non-animal derived foods, but excluding meat and eggs. Many Hindus also refrain from eating onions and garlic, either totally or during certain periods, such as the Chaturmasya period.
Hinduism promotes the ideal of ahimsa, or non-violence, which is a key reason why many Hindus avoid eating meat. The consumption of meat is seen as a form of violence that involves killing and leads to karmic bondage. The Mahabharata, a Hindu scripture, states that the meat of animals is like the flesh of one's own son. It also highlights the belief that eating meat introduces negative emotions and energies, such as anger, jealousy, anxiety, and fear, into the body and mind. This belief is shared by many Hindus, who consider meat to be tainted by the pain and fear experienced by the animal during slaughter.
The idea that eating meat has negative spiritual consequences is supported by the concept of karmic consequences, where inflicting injury, pain, and death, even indirectly by consuming meat, will lead to suffering in the future. This belief aligns with the pursuit of higher consciousness, peace, and happiness, which is incompatible with consuming the negative energies associated with meat.
The Hindu tradition also views the procurement and preparation of food as a violent process, where other life forms and nature are disturbed or destroyed. Mendicants, or ascetics, in Hinduism avoid initiating this process and depend on begging for leftover food or collecting wild fruits and seeds.
While vegetarianism is prevalent among Hindus, it is not a strict commandment in Hinduism. The decision to eat meat or follow a vegetarian diet often depends on location, culture, and personal spiritual pursuits. Some Hindus who consume meat may choose to do so only if the animal has been slaughtered using the jhatka method, which is considered to be the least painful and traumatic for the animal.
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The cow is considered sacred in Hinduism, and many Hindus avoid eating beef
Hinduism has a deep and multifaceted respect for nature, which is evident in its scriptures, philosophies, and practices. The concept of Brahman, the ultimate reality, is seen as permeating all of creation, including rivers, mountains, trees, and animals. This imbues nature with an inherent sacredness. Hinduism promotes the concept of trusteeship for the Earth, where humans are seen as having a responsibility to care for nature, not dominate or exploit it. This is reflected in practices like sustainable living and avoiding waste.
The ancient Indians, including Hindus, consumed beef. In the time of the oldest Hindu sacred text, the Rig Veda (c. 1500 B.C.), cow meat was consumed. However, over time, various religious sanctions were used to impose a prohibition on beef eating, particularly among the upper castes. The arguments against eating cows are a combination of symbolic arguments about female purity and docility, religious arguments about Brahmin sanctity, and a way for castes to rise in social ranking.
Today, many Hindus continue to abstain from eating beef, and it is considered a taboo within the religion. According to a Pew Research Center survey, 44% of Hindus identify as vegetarian, and 83% say they are either vegetarians or have restrictions on what kinds of meat they eat or when. Most Hindus say that a person cannot be Hindu if they eat beef. This belief has led to attacks on lower-caste Hindus and Muslims by cow vigilante groups, particularly under the Modi government, which has also prohibited the slaughter of buffalo, causing economic hardship for the Muslim-dominated buffalo meat industry.
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Lacto-vegetarianism is favoured by many Hindus, which includes milk-based foods and excludes meat and eggs
Lacto-vegetarianism is a diet favoured by many Hindus. It includes milk-based foods and other non-animal-derived foods, but excludes meat and eggs. This diet is based on the principle of nonviolence, or ahimsa, which is applied to animals. It is also believed that non-vegetarian food is detrimental to the mind and spiritual development.
Hindu scriptures promote a vegetarian dietary ideal based on the concept of ahimsa, or non-violence and compassion towards all beings. This is reflected in the Tirukkuṛaḷ, an ancient Indian secular text of Hindu or Jain origin, which emphasises ahimsa and insists on moral vegetarianism or veganism. The text criticises the consumption of meat, stating that "flesh is nothing but the despicable wound of a mangled body".
According to a Pew Research Center survey, 44% of Hindus identify as vegetarian, and another 39% restrict their consumption of meat in some way. This may include abstaining from eating certain meats, such as beef, as cows are considered sacred in Hinduism, or abstaining from eating meat on certain days, such as during the Chaturmasya period.
The diet of a lacto-vegetarian Hindu typically includes a combination of grains such as rice and wheat, legumes, green vegetables, and dairy products. Spices such as turmeric, fenugreek, coriander, ginger, and cumin are also commonly used in traditional dishes. Depending on the geographical region, staples may also include millet-based flatbreads.
While many Hindus follow a lacto-vegetarian diet, it is important to note that a significant portion of Hindus are non-vegetarians. However, even those who identify as non-vegetarian tend to eat very little meat, and India as a whole has significantly lower meat consumption than other regions of the world.
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The Hindu tradition views the procurement and preparation of food as a violent process, where other life forms and nature are disturbed
The Hindu tradition views the procurement and preparation of food as a violent process that disturbs and destroys other life forms and nature. This belief has led to the adoption of a lacto-vegetarian diet by many Hindus, which includes milk-based foods and all non-animal derived foods, but excludes meat and eggs. The principle of nonviolence, or ahimsa, is applied to animals, and it is believed that non-vegetarian food is detrimental to the mind and spiritual development.
The Shastras recommend that when a person sees food, they should fold their hands, bow, and say a prayer of thanks. This reverence for food is particularly prominent in the renouncer and monk traditions of Hinduism, where mendicants (sannyasin, ascetics) avoid being involved in the violent process of food procurement and preparation. Instead, they depend on begging for leftover food from householders or collecting fallen fruit and seeds from fields. Forest hermits, on the other hand, consume wild and uncultivated food, mainly fruits, roots, leaves, and anything that grows naturally in the forest.
The Hindu scriptures promote a vegetarian dietary ideal, and according to a Pew Research Center survey, 44% of Hindus identify as vegetarian. This promotion of vegetarianism is based on the concept of ahimsa, which values non-violence and compassion towards all beings. By about 200 CE, animal slaughter and feasting were widely considered a form of violence and became a religious and social taboo in Hinduism.
In addition to vegetarianism, there are other dietary restrictions in Hinduism. For example, in Maharashtra, some Hindu families refrain from eating eggplant during certain periods. Followers of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) and the related Pushtimargi sect abstain from meat, fish, and fowl, as well as certain vegetables like onions, mushrooms, and garlic, believing them to be tamasic, inducing dullness and lethargy. The Swaminarayan movement, mainly in Gujarat, also adheres to a strict vegetarian diet, avoiding meat, eggs, seafood, onions, and garlic.
Cows are considered sacred in Hinduism, and many Hindus avoid consuming cow flesh, with 72% of Hindus stating that someone who eats beef cannot be a Hindu. Meat consumption is generally low in India compared to other regions, and non-vegetarian Hindus mostly consume poultry, fish, seafood, goat, and sheep.
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Frequently asked questions
Hindus generally avoid eating beef because cows are considered sacred in the religion. In fact, 72% of Hindus say that a person cannot be a Hindu if they eat beef.
While there are no specific foods that all Hindus are forbidden from eating, many Hindus are vegetarian. Some Hindus who eat meat may still refrain from eating beef. This is because they believe that when a person consumes meat, they also consume the animal's negative energy, which can have a detrimental impact on their spirituality.
51% of Hindus say they would never eat food in the home of someone whose religion has different rules about food than they personally follow.
While Hindu scriptures promote a vegetarian dietary ideal, only 44% of Hindus say they are vegetarian. Many Hindus who eat meat still restrict their consumption in some way, such as by abstaining from certain meats or not eating meat on certain days.
