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Dietary Rules

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Description and comparative analysis of the dietary rules of different religions and confessions

Dietary Rules

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7.1.2. Blandness of Food
The Fifth Precept, to avoid drugs and alcohol, and cultivate a pure and clear mind, lies behind the Buddhist habit of eating plain or bland food. In his book “Humanistic Buddhism,” Venerable Master Hsing Yun, founder in 1967 of the Fo Guang Shan Buddhist Order in China, argues that the correct way to view food and drink is as vehicles for nourishment, and nothing else. He recommends vegetables over meat, fruit over sugar and chewing thoroughly over eating more. Overeating causes lethargy, and inhibits the clarity of mind that Buddhist precepts aim to cultivate.

Mixing of Food
Another way to adhere to the Fifth Precept is to mix your food. The aim of mixing food is to obliterate the flavor of any individual part of the meal, so everything on your plate or in your bowl becomes simply food. Ravindra Khare notes that mixing food is especially important for monks in Buddhist cultures, who go from door to door in order to take their meals. In mixing the food all together, the monk blends the succulent offerings of the rich with the humble offerings of the poor. Khare further notes that in some cases, mixing food might enhance flavor, and is in some cultures a way of increasing pleasure. So mix at your own discretion.

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This project has been funded with support from the European Commission. This web site reflects the views only of the author, and the Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained therein.