Therefore, most Hindus in the world abstain from consuming beef. And it is not surprising that there are many cow statues found in ancient sites and sacred sites, as a form of respect for these animals.
Hindus regard the cow as gentle and inoffensive, much in the same way as most of us view our own pets. While many Hindus do not eat beef and prefer to view the cow as highly regarded, Hindus do not worship the cow as a holy entity.
Among Hindus, 83% say they are either vegetarians or have restrictions on what kinds of meat they eat or when. The survey also finds that most Hindus say a person cannot be Hindu if they eat beef, and most Muslims say a person cannot be Muslim if they eat pork (see Chapter 5).
Hindus, who make up about 80 per cent of India's 1.4 billion people, are not prohibited from eating pork, but many consider the meat impure and this has made restaurants wary about putting it on their menus.
No state law explicitly bans the consumption of beef. There is a lack of uniformity among State laws governing cattle slaughter.
Dietary avoidance out of politeness. Sikhs also generally avoid eating beef because the cow, the buffalo and the ox are an integral part of rural Sikh livelihoods. Similarly, they avoid eating pork when they are in the company of Muslims. However, there is no religious prohibition about eating beef and pork.
The food that a strict Buddhist takes, if not a vegetarian, is also specific. For many Chinese Buddhists, beef and the consumption of large animals and exotic species is avoided. Then there would be the aforementioned "triply clean meat" rule.
Beef is always avoided because the cow is considered a holy animal, but dairy products are eaten. Animal-derived fats such as lard and dripping are not permitted. Some Hindus do not eat ghee, milk, onions, eggs, coconut, garlic, domestic fowl or salted pork. Alcohol is generally avoided.
All of India's most widely practiced religions have dietary laws and traditions. For example, Hindu texts often praise vegetarianism, and Hindus may also avoid eating beef because cows are traditionally viewed as sacred. Muslim teachings, meanwhile, prohibit pork.
The majority of meats consumed in India are fish, bovine (cow and buffalo), mutton, goat, pig, and poultry.
Shiva's fondness for meat is further emphasised when Jarasandha, a devotee of Shiva, keeps kings as captives only to kill them and offer their flesh to Shiva. Shiva's meat-eating habits find a clear voice in the Vedas as well as the Puranas, but his association with wine-drinking seems a later appendage.
The Hindu religion does not excuse accidental consumption of meat products. One who commits the religious violation of eating meat, knowingly or unknowingly, is required to participate in a religious ceremony at a site located along the Ganges River in Haridwar, Uttranchal, India, to purify himself.
India leads the countries with the highest rates of vegetarians, with nearly 24% of the population following a vegetarian diet, according to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.
Yajnavalkya says, 'I eat it (beef) only if it is cooked till it is tender'." The king of the gods, Indra, too is said to be fond of beef, Bhaduri reminds. In the Rig Veda, Indra demands that he be served 15 to 20 cooked oxen.
Beef Banned States in India
1000 fine, but slaughtering economically worthless animals is prohibited. Similarly, in Telangana and Andhra Pradesh, offenders will be punished with imprisonment of 6 months and a fine of Rs. 1000.
The cow, a revered animal in Hinduism
It represents Mother Earth, as it is a source of goodness and its milk nourishes all creatures. Krishna, a central Hindu deity, is often portrayed in stories recounting his life as a cowherd and referring to him as the child who protects cows.
For both religious and practical reasons, the Japanese mostly avoided eating meat for more than 12 centuries. Beef was especially taboo, with certain shrines demanding more than 100 days of fasting as penance for consuming it.
Most Hindus generally avoid consuming beef as it is considered to be unethical and immoral. This is because a cow is a sacred animal in the Hindu religion and is worshipped by the people. However, Muslims and Christians engage in the consumption of beef very often.
Pork is a food taboo among Jews, Muslims, and some Christian denominations. Swine were prohibited in ancient Syria and Phoenicia, and the pig and its flesh represented a taboo observed, Strabo noted, at Comana in Pontus.
Ancient Vedic texts also regard salty, spicy, strong and pungent foods to take away one's focus from the devotion of the Lord. According to Vaishnav tradition, people are weary of eating anything that grows underground and therefore, Vaishnav-Hindus particularly refrain from eating onions.
If the animal is treated poorly or tortured while being slaughtered, the meat is haram. Forbidden food substances include alcohol, pork, carrion, the meat of carnivores and animals that died due to illness, injury, stunning, poisoning, or slaughtering not in the name of God.
In 1872, it was suddenly announced to the Japanese people that Emperor Meiji had eaten beef. The Meiji government aimed for the adoption of western food culture under the slogan that Japanese people should eat meat.
The Chinese, traditionally, also do not eat beef because the cow is considered a sacred animal and a holy incarnation of the Goddess of Mercy — Guan Yin Goddess (Kannon or Kanzeon in Japanese, Kwan-se-um in Korean and Quan Thế in Vietnamese), one of the most famous Chinese Buddhist Images.
And the Thai-Chinese consider cows to be a sacred animal. In Chinese Buddhism, the cow is an incarnation of the goddess of mercy's (Guanyin's) father. This is similar to Hinduism, which believes that the cow is a gift from gods. This belief influenced Thai-Chinese people, who worship Guanyin, to avoid consuming beef.