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Author Topic: Accidentally broke dietary taboo  (Read 2102 times)

Hariti

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Accidentally broke dietary taboo
« on: October 18, 2018, 09:41:01 pm »
I realize that for most members of the Cauldron, eating meat isn't a problem or anything to worry about.

However, my religion expressly forbids eating meat, and I take that taboo very seriosuly. I'm also a person who suffers from severe anxiety and panic attacks, and who constantly frets over the state of my soul (I used to be a regular meat eater, and I also have other moral failings).

Today, I accidentally consumed gelatin. I'm not sure if it was pig gelatin or cow gelatin, not that it makes much difference. I was eating peanuts; the local off-brand is vegan, and so I naively assumed that the Planter's brand was as well. I ate a fistful of them before I checked the ingredients.

As a result, I'm going through a full-blown existential crisis, and I would like for you all to pray for my soul (and my mental and emotional health). Even if you aren't vegetarian yourselves, any positive energy you can send would be appreciated. I beleive that my Gods are forgiving, and won't hold this against me, but I don't know if I will forgive myself, and I'm afraid I will hold it against myself.

I know I can't police what other people say on TC, per the rules, but I would request that nobody comes here just to mock me for being upset about this. It's not a joke, and I take this very seriously as a breach of my religious and moral laws and my personal convictions. Frankly, I'm mortified.
"The worshippers of the gods go to them; to the manes go the ancestor-worshippers; to the Deities who preside over the elements go their worshippers; My devotees come to Me." ... "Whichever devotee desires to adore whatever such Deity with faith, in all such votaries I make that particular faith unshakable. Endowed with that faith, a votary performs the worship of that particular deity and obtains the fruits thereof, these being granted by Me alone." - Sri Krishna

Hariti

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Re: Accidentally broke dietary taboo
« Reply #1 on: October 18, 2018, 09:45:57 pm »
Frankly, I'm mortified.

Basically, I would appreciate:

A) Prayer that I forgive myself and overcome my guilt and anxiety.

B) Prayers that I be forgiven for my mistake.
"The worshippers of the gods go to them; to the manes go the ancestor-worshippers; to the Deities who preside over the elements go their worshippers; My devotees come to Me." ... "Whichever devotee desires to adore whatever such Deity with faith, in all such votaries I make that particular faith unshakable. Endowed with that faith, a votary performs the worship of that particular deity and obtains the fruits thereof, these being granted by Me alone." - Sri Krishna

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Re: Accidentally broke dietary taboo
« Reply #2 on: October 19, 2018, 04:11:22 am »
Basically, I would appreciate:

A) Prayer that I forgive myself and overcome my guilt and anxiety.

B) Prayers that I be forgiven for my mistake.

I do not mock you, and I will pray as you request. Possibly, to help ease your conscience, you might take some positive step as a propitiation. While the situation of livestock as such in this country and society "is what it is" and is unlikely to change, you might wish to consider making a donation to a wildlife habitat conservancy and/or a no-kill animal shelter.
--------Eric H. Bowen
Where's the KABOOM? There was supposed to have been an Earth-shattering KABOOM!
Computers are like air conditioning. They become useless when you open Windows—Linus Torvalds.

ehbowen

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Re: Accidentally broke dietary taboo
« Reply #3 on: October 19, 2018, 10:20:08 am »
I do not mock you, and I will pray as you request.

To amplify: In situations such as this, I believe that the greater part of the fault for violation of the conscience should be laid at the feet of those who market their products without making it clear as to what they contain. Now, obviously, the actual ingredient was in fine print on the label...but if I picked up a jar of peanuts and started munching, I would expect them to be vegetarian as well. I really get torqued about companies which practically require you to have a degree in food science, industrial engineering, or law before you can understand what it is that they really are (or are NOT) selling.
--------Eric H. Bowen
Where's the KABOOM? There was supposed to have been an Earth-shattering KABOOM!
Computers are like air conditioning. They become useless when you open Windows—Linus Torvalds.

Hariti

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Re: Accidentally broke dietary taboo
« Reply #4 on: October 19, 2018, 02:35:02 pm »
you might wish to consider making a donation to a wildlife habitat conservancy and/or a no-kill animal shelter.

Thanks Eric, that's actually pretty good advice. My community has a lot of stray animals, and animal abuse is common in Kentucky, so I'm sure that local organizations need all the help they can get.

"The worshippers of the gods go to them; to the manes go the ancestor-worshippers; to the Deities who preside over the elements go their worshippers; My devotees come to Me." ... "Whichever devotee desires to adore whatever such Deity with faith, in all such votaries I make that particular faith unshakable. Endowed with that faith, a votary performs the worship of that particular deity and obtains the fruits thereof, these being granted by Me alone." - Sri Krishna

Hariti

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Re: Accidentally broke dietary taboo
« Reply #5 on: October 19, 2018, 02:38:56 pm »
if I picked up a jar of peanuts and started munching, I would expect them to be vegetarian as well. I really get torqued about companies which practically require you to have a degree in food science, industrial engineering, or law before you can understand what it is that they really are (or are NOT) selling.

I'm glad I'm not the only one. I do appreciate that a large part of the onus is on the customer who buys a product, but it wouldn't hurt corporations to be more clear about what they're selling. Most people expect pork to be pork, beef to be beef, and vegetables to be vegetables. If you've added an unlikely substance, put it clearly on the front of the label, not hiding in the government-mandated nutrition facts.

I am usually much more attentive and cautious, because I know companies do this all the time, but I just didn't think about it this time. As a vegetarian, I should be reading every label, but that just gets tiring and is easy to forget when dealing with seemingly innocuous products.
"The worshippers of the gods go to them; to the manes go the ancestor-worshippers; to the Deities who preside over the elements go their worshippers; My devotees come to Me." ... "Whichever devotee desires to adore whatever such Deity with faith, in all such votaries I make that particular faith unshakable. Endowed with that faith, a votary performs the worship of that particular deity and obtains the fruits thereof, these being granted by Me alone." - Sri Krishna

ehbowen

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Re: Accidentally broke dietary taboo
« Reply #6 on: October 19, 2018, 03:21:56 pm »
If you've added an unlikely substance, put it clearly on the front of the label, not hiding in the government-mandated nutrition facts. ..As a vegetarian, I should be reading every label, but that just gets tiring and is easy to forget when dealing with seemingly innocuous products.

And what about when they don't give you a label to read? Suppose you were relaxing with friends in a bar and grabbed a handful of nuts to munch on? It's hardly practical to go around asking everyone, "Will you show me the container these nuts came out of?"

They're likely to think you're nuts!

Edit To Add: I have to leave here shortly, but I intend to take this discussion into another thread in an appropriate forum (not sure where yet) and continue it. If you beat me to it, I'll join your thread.
« Last Edit: October 19, 2018, 03:24:51 pm by ehbowen »
--------Eric H. Bowen
Where's the KABOOM? There was supposed to have been an Earth-shattering KABOOM!
Computers are like air conditioning. They become useless when you open Windows—Linus Torvalds.

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Re: Accidentally broke dietary taboo
« Reply #7 on: October 19, 2018, 03:32:07 pm »
Most people expect pork to be pork, beef to be beef, and vegetables to be vegetables. If you've added an unlikely substance, put it clearly on the front of the label

Agreed.  If a fellow vegetarian had eaten something such as a bag of bacon flavour chips in the naive hope that they contained no animal products then I might consider them a little careless or lazy (some would say hypocritically so, since as you may recall I'm not a "proper" vegetarian myself). But I think anybody can be forgiven for not thinking animal products might be in peanuts, so I do hope you can indeed forgive yourself really soon. I feel for you and send you what energy I can.
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Hariti

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Re: Accidentally broke dietary taboo
« Reply #8 on: October 19, 2018, 03:55:34 pm »
I have to leave here shortly, but I intend to take this discussion into another thread in an appropriate forum (not sure where yet) and continue it. If you beat me to it, I'll join your thread.

That's a good idea. I appreciate your prayers, but I think that we should take the discussion of food labels to a part of the forum where discussion and debate are encouraged, and leave this post for people to offer me support. I think I'll let you start the thread, I'm quite busy right now.
"The worshippers of the gods go to them; to the manes go the ancestor-worshippers; to the Deities who preside over the elements go their worshippers; My devotees come to Me." ... "Whichever devotee desires to adore whatever such Deity with faith, in all such votaries I make that particular faith unshakable. Endowed with that faith, a votary performs the worship of that particular deity and obtains the fruits thereof, these being granted by Me alone." - Sri Krishna

Hariti

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Re: Accidentally broke dietary taboo
« Reply #9 on: October 19, 2018, 03:57:42 pm »
I think anybody can be forgiven for not thinking animal products might be in peanuts, so I do hope you can indeed forgive yourself really soon. I feel for you and send you what energy I can.

Thanks, Pickle! I appreciate that. I've still been feeling kinda down today, but Eric and your posts have helped to lighten my conscience considerably.
"The worshippers of the gods go to them; to the manes go the ancestor-worshippers; to the Deities who preside over the elements go their worshippers; My devotees come to Me." ... "Whichever devotee desires to adore whatever such Deity with faith, in all such votaries I make that particular faith unshakable. Endowed with that faith, a votary performs the worship of that particular deity and obtains the fruits thereof, these being granted by Me alone." - Sri Krishna

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Re: Accidentally broke dietary taboo
« Reply #10 on: October 19, 2018, 08:26:08 pm »
Frankly, I'm mortified.

If it's any consolation, I'm guessing you're not the only devoutly vegetarian Hindu who's had an experience like this. In fact, I'd say nearly *every* strict vegetarian, religious or not, has had this happen. It's one of the perils of today's packaged foods; we can't always know what's in them.

So you are undoubtedly in excellent company with other devoutly vegetarian Hindus. Your gods would have precious few followers if they scorned all for an honest mistake. As for the scorn coming from yourself, remember that in religious matters, it's usually intent that matters most.

So breathe.
The first song sets the wheel in motion / The second is a song of love / The third song tells of Her devotion / The fourth cries joy from the sky above
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Re: Accidentally broke dietary taboo
« Reply #11 on: October 19, 2018, 10:04:42 pm »
I realize that for most members of the Cauldron, eating meat isn't a problem or anything to worry about.

However, my religion expressly forbids eating meat, and I take that taboo very seriosuly. I'm also a person who suffers from severe anxiety and panic attacks, and who constantly frets over the state of my soul (I used to be a regular meat eater, and I also have other moral failings).

Today, I accidentally consumed gelatin. I'm not sure if it was pig gelatin or cow gelatin, not that it makes much difference. I was eating peanuts; the local off-brand is vegan, and so I naively assumed that the Planter's brand was as well. I ate a fistful of them before I checked the ingredients.

As a result, I'm going through a full-blown existential crisis, and I would like for you all to pray for my soul (and my mental and emotional health). Even if you aren't vegetarian yourselves, any positive energy you can send would be appreciated. I beleive that my Gods are forgiving, and won't hold this against me, but I don't know if I will forgive myself, and I'm afraid I will hold it against myself.

I know I can't police what other people say on TC, per the rules, but I would request that nobody comes here just to mock me for being upset about this. It's not a joke, and I take this very seriously as a breach of my religious and moral laws and my personal convictions. Frankly, I'm mortified.

I'm having difficulty imagining what purpose it could possibly serve to add gelatin to peanuts. So count me among those who wouldn't have thought to check a label for that.

A staffly interjection: the rules do say you can't police people - but they don't allow others to mock you for something like this, nor bar you from reporting it if someone did. In particular, P&ER would be an inappropriate place for mockery. (But I also get that your concern about it is a side effect of your anxiety. Dratted brainweasels.)

It occurs to me that struggling with self-forgiveness is an obstacle. So I'll be sharing a little extra chocolate with Ganesh tonight, on your behalf - yes, I know 'bribes' aren't necessary, but I find it useful to aid focus to prayer, and a way to highlight my seriousness.

(((EDF)))

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Hariti

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Re: Accidentally broke dietary taboo
« Reply #12 on: October 19, 2018, 11:29:56 pm »
It occurs to me that struggling with self-forgiveness is an obstacle. So I'll be sharing a little extra chocolate with Ganesh tonight, on your behalf - yes, I know 'bribes' aren't necessary, but I find it useful to aid focus to prayer, and a way to highlight my seriousness.

Thanks, Sunflower!
"The worshippers of the gods go to them; to the manes go the ancestor-worshippers; to the Deities who preside over the elements go their worshippers; My devotees come to Me." ... "Whichever devotee desires to adore whatever such Deity with faith, in all such votaries I make that particular faith unshakable. Endowed with that faith, a votary performs the worship of that particular deity and obtains the fruits thereof, these being granted by Me alone." - Sri Krishna

Hariti

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Re: Accidentally broke dietary taboo
« Reply #13 on: October 20, 2018, 06:40:15 pm »
As for the scorn coming from yourself, remember that in religious matters, it's usually intent that matters most. So breathe.

Thanks, Altair. I've got my head mostly cleared out over the last couple of days, and I'm feeling more positive.

I intend to take Eric's advice and donate to my local animal shelter, as an act of penance and to set my Karma and conscience right, and also because it's generally a good thing to do for my community!
"The worshippers of the gods go to them; to the manes go the ancestor-worshippers; to the Deities who preside over the elements go their worshippers; My devotees come to Me." ... "Whichever devotee desires to adore whatever such Deity with faith, in all such votaries I make that particular faith unshakable. Endowed with that faith, a votary performs the worship of that particular deity and obtains the fruits thereof, these being granted by Me alone." - Sri Krishna

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Re: Accidentally broke dietary taboo
« Reply #14 on: October 21, 2018, 05:16:39 am »

As a result, I'm going through a full-blown existential crisis, and I would like for you all to pray for my soul (and my mental and emotional health). Even if you aren't vegetarian yourselves, any positive energy you can send would be appreciated. I beleive that my Gods are forgiving, and won't hold this against me, but I don't know if I will forgive myself, and I'm afraid I will hold it against myself.

I know I can't police what other people say on TC, per the rules, but I would request that nobody comes here just to mock me for being upset about this. It's not a joke, and I take this very seriously as a breach of my religious and moral laws and my personal convictions. Frankly, I'm mortified.

As a long term vegetarian I wouldn't think to look for gelatin in peanuts so firstly you should forgive yourself.

I have actually been in a  similar position to you in the past. Many years ago I broke a major taboo of my own religion and I still feel  sick when I remember how I felt at the time - I walked for hours trying to come to terms with it and still failed.

Apologising to the Gods wasn't going to come close to making amends for what was a serious spiritual shortcoming and I set out on a path of atonement which actually lasted a full year.

In retrospect it did me a huge service in forcing some spiritual growth and maturity.

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