What is the right way to eat vegetarian?

The word Chay, whose vowel sound is Trai, is translated from the Sanskrit word Upavasatha, which means Pure and also means Real Time. Real Time is having lunch at noon and Non-Real Time is having lunch after noon.

According to the common concept of Vietnamese Mahayana Buddhists, being vegetarian means using simple foods, not eating fish, meat, or strong-smelling things belonging to the five pungent flavors (five spices with strong smells including: onion, chives, garlic, shallots, and coriander).

Vegetarianism brings people a sense of peace and purity of body and mind, and helps them avoid many diseases in daily life. Illustration photo/Internet source

According to Buddhism, there are two ways of being vegetarian: permanent vegetarianism and occasional vegetarianism. Permanent vegetarianism is a lifelong voluntary practice of eating a simple diet and not consuming meat or blood. As for occasional vegetarianism, it is based on certain days of the month or year.

Furthermore, one of the most serious sins of Buddhism is killing. Animals, like humans, have lives and all lives are precious. Therefore, Buddhism encourages vegetarianism with the meaning of protecting lives, avoiding bad karma, and allowing people and animals to live together in harmony and happiness.

Vegetarianism is a daily practice that always reminds us of compassion. Vegetarianism is to improve our own consciousness, to make our consciousness more peaceful, more compassionate, a consciousness that is clear, broad, and sensitive to the suffering of sentient beings.

When compassion is developed to its extreme, it will bring the mind to Wisdom and Wisdom is Enlightenment. Only then is compassion truly Buddhist compassion. Only then is vegetarianism called Buddhist vegetarianism.

Southern Buddhists still eat animal meat, but they are vegetarians and follow the Five Pure Meat Principles: 1. Do not see the person killing the animal, 2. Do not hear the cries of the animal being killed, 3. Do not intentionally kill it for yourself to eat, 4. The animal dies on its own, 5. The meat of other animals is left over.

Northern Buddhists are more strict vegetarians, but they eat too much, two or three meals a day, and sometimes they eat very elaborately, almost imitating secular meat and fish dishes, sometimes looking exactly the same, even the taste is similar.

It can also be a way to deceive our minds, feeding our cravings and attachments. Therefore, practitioners, whether monastic or lay, must be very vigilant in their every action.

Fasting days

02 days: 1st and 15th (15)
04 days: 1st, 14th, 15th and 30th
06 days: 8th, 14th, 15th, 23rd, 29th and 30th
08 days: 1st, 8th, 14th, 15th, 18th, 23rd, 24th and 30th.
10 days: 1, 8, 14, 15, 18, 23, 24, 28, 29 and 30.
01 month: January or April or July or October.
03 months: January, July and October.
04 months: January, April, July and October.
Vegetarianism: Eat all year round.

If you are vegetarian, it means that your heart wants to be good, to live a more peaceful life. Therefore, do not be arrogant, thinking that your vegetarianism is better than others. Being vegetarian is to avoid bad karma, to create good karma, not to prove that you are more diligent, or to practice the right path.

Nowadays, vegetarianism is both a spiritual practice of Buddhism and a form of health preservation that is practiced by many people. Therefore, regardless of the purpose, vegetarianism should come from one's own voluntariness and aim for good and beautiful values.