There are some schools of thought, as well as certain spiritual disciplines , that insist a vegetarian diet is essential to spiritual development. I do not concur, though I, myself, am a vegetarian. In my opinion, too much attention and importance has been assigned to the role diet plays in the spiritual process. On the other hand, the part it plays cannot be discounted entirely either. A vegetarian diet will not produce spirituality. Still, proper diet has its place upon the path of consciousness expansion and can be a valuable aid if understood and properly employed. The problem, it would seem, is that many people do the right thing for the wrong reason, or, lacking understanding, they fail to avail themselves of the useful tools readily available in the environment for spiritual development, one of which is proper diet.
Is a vegetarian diet a necessary discipline in the life of a spiritual aspirant and, if so, why? The generally accepted motivation for vegetarianism is the desire to refrain from taking life. The motive sounds noble, but is it sound? For me there are two reasons that I consider conclusive.
First, the physical world is composed of seven major modifications of matter: solid, liquid, gaseous, and four vital energy levels. The four grades of energy, sometimes spoken of as etheric energy , are to be found in various proportions in all substances and are essential to the well being of the physical body. The vital ingredient of etheric energy is called Prana by the Hindus and is absolutely essential to physical health . Prana is assimilated into the body in three principal ways; through breathing , exposure to sunlight, and by ingestion.
The lowest grade of etheric energy , found in great proportions in meat , produces, when ingested, an energy system in the body that is relatively heavy, coarse, congested, and restrictive. For the average person, this poses no problem. However, for the spiritual aspirant , it is another matter entirely. Once the path of spiritual development is embarked upon, a unique process is triggered that stimulates an unprecedented flow of energy in the body. If the body’s energy system is dense, clogged, and restricted—the result of a heavy and coarse meat diet —the effect of this amplified flow is the equivalent of introducing an electric current of 220 voltage into a building with wiring designed to carry 110 volts. This increase energy flow, coupled with the body’s coarse substance , can result in consequences of a disastrous nature.
The subtler grades of etheric energy , which possess higher frequencies and are more rarefied in nature, construct a body of greater refinement in its composition and are to be found abundantly in vegetables, fruits, grains, and nuts. These constitute the ideal spiritual diet . Of course, for some the ideal may represent an unreachable standard in their current evolutionary status. The habits of an incarnation , or possibly many incarnations, cannot be altered overnight without creating a commensurate amount of disruption. The internal conflict that may arise from an enforced change in lifestyle may be more detrimental to the individual than maintaining the status quo. A gradual transmutation of long established life rhythms, whether relative to diet or any other habit pattern, is the way of wisdom . Give your body a chance to adjust as you proceed. An acceptable compromise in diet might include the elimination of beef, pork, and lamb, but not poultry or fish. Poultry has a higher etheric frequency than beef, and fish is higher yet. Use good common sense ; listen to your body and its reactions to any changes you may initiate , and you will know what suits you best as an individual.
Incidentally, the energy frequency of cheese, although acceptable as part of a spiritual diet , has proven to be an inhibitor to anyone developing psychic capacities. A word to the wise is sufficient. Use diet as an instrument for growth, not as a crutch or addiction.
Therefore, the first simple rationale underlying the concept of vegetarianism as it applies to spiritual development is the recognition that, from a physical-plane standpoint, you are what you eat. Furthermore, the body’s capacity to channel safely the increased energy input that occurs as a result of expanded awareness is dependent upon its refinement.
My second motivation for being a vegetarian comes from the recognition that all substance is entified substance and therefore endowed with life and consciousness; that includes both animals and vegetables. An animal’s life and consciousness, however, are far more complex than that of plant existence, and are equipped with conditioned instincts, tendencies, and traits that have not developed as yet in the plant. Scientific experiments with worms and mice have demonstrated that conditioned behavior in one creature may be seeded in a second, previously unconditioned, creature, through ingestion. Worms having been conditioned to navigate their way out of a labyrinth have been fed then to untrained creatures that have thereafter shown a marked increase in their ability to learn the intricacies of the maze. Consider the implications of this.
Your body is the most evolved animal on earth. It is endowed with numerous conditioned qualities, the result of ages of evolutionary development. Some of these drives, essential though they were at earlier stages of homo-sapien evolution, are no longer desirable and are deterrents to the development of homo-nobilius—your next stage of growth. In order for man to evolve from the fourth to the fifth kingdom of nature he must transcend certain drives and instincts that are indigenous to his animal nature. Eating meat feeds these drives by feeding the body’s consciousness with that of the animal. You are climbing a mountain in the attempt to reach the pinnacle of conscious experience, an experience the animal consciousness cannot share. Virgil cannot enter “ Paradise ” (The Divine Comedy, Dante ).
Don’t get me wrong; one can overcome the body’s demands and achieve spiritual enlightenment in spite of improper diet . “Not that which goeth into the mouth defilith a man; but that which cometh out of the mouth, this defilith a man” (Matthew 15:11 ). “Therefore, whether you eat or drink or whatsoever else you do, do all things for the glory of God.” (I Corinthians 10:31). Ultimately, the individual consciousness has dominion over the body’s consciousness, presuming, of course, the development of that capacity. Likewise, one can climb to the summit of a mountain, foolishly carrying a 100-pound sack of stones upon their back. The question is, do you really wish to carry unnecessary, excess baggage, or would you prefer to make the trip as unencumbered as possible? The spiritual trip, I assure you, is much easier if you play down the body’s animal consciousness and refrain from feeding its appetites.
There is another aspect of this same idea that demands attention. Animals are slaughtered very inhumanely. Like convicted criminals on death row, they exist for a time awaiting their demise in slaughterhouses pervaded with the repressive stench of fear and under the overshadowing specter of death. The result is animal paranoia and the release of body chemicals and toxins that permeate the flesh of the animal and are detrimental to the flesh of the human consumer.
