Question:
I have read enough good about being a vegetarian and leaving non-veg food. In spite of that I cannot drop my eating habits. I strongly feel I have greed inside me that is not allowing me to drop this. If I sincerely wished for something good and of higher values, I have seen that nature supports. But here I know I shouldn’t be eating, but I don’t want to give it up either.
What should I do? I follow Art of Living and do my regular Meditation/Kriya etc. This is one thing I seek for Guru’s blessing to be out of, since I know that I have weak determination regarding this.
Please advise.
Answer:
If you have been a meat eater throughout your life, then it is probably a deep habit, and strong habits can be hard to change all at once. Since you have already tried that and it didn’t work, why not try eating smaller and smaller portions of meat. Some people find vegetarian meat-substitutes can be helpful too because they have become quite good at imitating many of the flavors and textures of meat. The main thing is not to make this a point of stress and self-recrimination. That struggle will do more to set back your spiritual growth than your diet. It is enough to have an easy intention to phase into a vegetarian diet, and to take easy steps in that direction every day. Don’t feel guilty or upset with yourself that it doesn’t happen instantly. Give it time and be gentle with yourself. Also, as much as possible, pay close attention to the taste and flavor of everything you eat. Don’t eat unconsciously and compulsively. When you notice you are not hungry any more and your body tells you it is satisfied (your body, not your mind) then stop eating. This process of conscious eating will also make it easier to change your eating habits by retraining your body to tell you what it really wants to eat.
Love,
Deepak
When you take a way a pleasure from the human body, it will crave for it. What has worked for me is to find substitutes that are as pleasant as meat. A good tip is to find recipes for fried and oven meals that don´t include meat. My goal was to reduce consumption(not ceasing eating it) and it worked. Let the body get used to the new pattern.