Animal welfare
Note: This letter is only for those who have reverence for Sadguru Baba Shrii Shrii Anandamurti ji and try to follow His Ananda Marga ideology.
Namaskar,
This letter addresses how some set aside their first spoonful of their meal - i.e. human food - as an offering to animals. We have examined why this is harmful to those animals, as well as why such an offering is merely a token gesture and does not stand as true service. That has been explained in prior letters (links below) as well as reviewed herein - plus new aspects are addressed.
https://anandamargauniversal.blogspot.com/
Bird houses & animal sanctuaries
Here we investigate safe and meaningful ways of offering food to animals whereby we are rendering real service to those creatures. In some places, people set up bird houses / bird feeders and this is a very effective and appropriate way to feed the animals. The only requisite is to put bird food in those feeders and then the birds will come. So this is a very positive way to serve those birds.
And a similar method can be used with respect to other animals. Find an appropriate place and feed them the food they normally eat - i.e. not human food - and those animals will be benefited. This everyone can do in their own locale with the wildlife (birds and animals) of the region. That is an excellent way to serve those creatures, and this can be complemented by maximum participation in PCAP activities.
https://anandamargauniversal.blogspot.com/
And in those regions where animal sanctuaries have been established, one can leave food for the animals there as well - if it is allowed. And the main theme all along is not to feed them human food, but food that is part of their natural diet. Then that will be true service to those animals.
The dogma only arises when people think it is fine and well to serve human food to those unsuspecting animals. That is when harm is done and that is when those humans are going against neo-humanistic principles.
Ecological reason behind spoonful dogma
When this practice of serving a spoonful of food to animals was first started, then those rishis had the best interests and welfare of those animals in mind. And the system worked well. The foods those rishis were offering those animals were simple grasses and leaves. The animals could easily eat that food and get the benefit. Plus the common people saw this and they too became involved in offering food to those animals in the spirit of service.
Times have changed. With all the ecological destruction, the natural habitat of those animals has been decimated and with the growth of materialism and convenience foods etc the human diet has changed drastically. Now feeding a spoonful of human food is just one dogma. Because that spoonful is not enough to satisfy an animal's hunger in most cases; plus the food that is being offered is harmful to those animals.
https://anandamargauniversal.blogspot.com/
Thus what began as a meaningful practice that served animals has now turned into senseless dogma that harms those creatures.
Why spoonful of human food is not neo-humanistic
1. The food that is set aside often contains spices, sugars, and oils that are harmful to an animal’s health and well-being. Those animals - birds, dogs, & monkeys etc - are not meant to eat salty, oily, sugary foods etc. That is not animal food. If they eat that food they will get sick, suffer from disease, and die a slow, painful death.
2. In some cases, that food just gets wasted because it gets washed away in the rain, or there are no birds or street dogs around, or a person lives on the 10th floor so animals cannot reach their home etc. Plus we have to remember that any food that has become rancid will create terrible harm to the animal.
3. There are many big animals such as elephants, tigers, rhinos, and other wild creatures that have voracious appetites. Serving a huge animal one spoon of food is essentially a meaningless endeavor.
By all this, we can easily conclude that the prevailing dogma in certain parts of India of setting aside a spoonful of human food is neither practical nor neo-humanistic. It is just a meaningless ritual that can bring much harm to animals.
https://anandamargauniversal.blogspot.com/
As Ananda Margiis, we must stand up to the high ideals of neo-humanism and engage in meaningful endeavours to help all living beings. That at is the mission of Prevention of Cruelty to Plants and Animals (PCAP) & Cheap Literature (CL). Plants and animals are the manifestation of Parama Purusa and we should serve them with that ideation.
Ananda Marga ideology guides us, “Bhúta-Yajina: Bhúta Yajina means services rendered to any created entity of the manifested world. For example, watering trees, serving cattle, undertaking scientific explorations and doing anything for the sake of welfare.” (1)
How to shift: dogmatic to dharmic
The overall spirit behind offering one spoonful of food to animals is very good, but unfortunately nowadays the practice has become dogmatic. Here is a solution to again make this a dharmic endeavour:
(a) Purchase a stock of dry grains to serve to animals and keep this in your home.
(b) Whenever you sit down for a meal, first take Brahma bhava (Cosmic ideation) and take a small amount of those dry grains from your main stock (i.e. container A) and place it in small container, i.e. container B.
(c) Before each meal take a small amount from container A and put it into container B, until a moderate amount of food has been collected in container B.
(d) When time permits, take container B outside and place it in a strategic place where animals can find it and safely eat.
(e) By this regular practice, those animals are served and the person serving with proper ideation will gain mental expansion. The outcome will be more love and affection towards the entire creation.
https://anandamargauniversal.blogspot.com/
In addition, we should follow Baba’s guidelines about PCAP & CL.
Conclusion
The real solution lies in administering a distinct call to action and awakening people’s awareness to the plight and dire situation of animals and plants in today’s modern world. Token offerings are meaningless. Once people are educated about the problems then properly organised efforts can be made.
To this end, Baba has graciously given the guidelines for the formation and development of PCAP & CL – that wing of Ananda Marga for Prevention of Cruelty to Plants and Animals (PCAP) & Cheap Literature (CL). By this way, a dynamic movement can be made to truly improve the condition of non-human life forms.
Although Baba has given this ideal long back, it is yet to be properly developed. As things are now, if any new person sees that some in Ananda Marga Pracaraka Samgha are making token food offerings by the spoonful of human food to relieve animals of their suffering etc, they will think we are completely dogmatic and impractical.
https://anandamargauniversal.blogspot.com/
So now is the time to inculcate the neo-humanistic ideals which Baba has given and truly develop meaningful programs under the banner of PCAP & CL. If in these beginning stages, we do not have a lot of resources, that is understandable. By taking proper steps, invariably the support – both human and financial etc – will follow.
First and foremost, we should not be involved in this dogma of putting a spoonful of human food aside thinking that our duty is complete. To the degree people suffer from that mindset is the degree to which they are lagging behind from the real service work that needs to be done.
Involving regularly in PCAP activities and feeding small amounts of animal food to the animals on a daily basis - in accordance with local laws and ordinances - is a fine and accepted pathway to serve.
Namaskar,
In Him,
Sahadev Malakar
~ In-depth study ~
Mut'hia: a fistful of dry grain to serve
Here is an old village tradition for serving food to humans. Whenever a children's home was set-up in a village area, then one of the staff at the children's home would go round to the various village homes and ask them to donate food each month. The system is known as mut'hia and here is how it was done.
Before each meal, the members of a household would each grab a fistful of the most commonly used staple food (dry grain) of that area. And they would all deposit their fistful of food into a larger container. This would continue all month long. And by the end of the month, a substantial amount of food would be collected, maybe 5 - 8 kg or so. Around that time the representative from the children's home would return and pick-up that food donation. And by this way everyone would be benefited.
https://anandamargauniversal.blogspot.com/
The children's home would collect ample food from the villagers to properly feed the boys and girls in their home. And those villagers who participated in mut'hia were blessed to serve. So for them it was mind-expanding as each and every day they were consciously involved in the welfare of those kids by grabbing a fistful of dry grain and putting it in a collection pot. So this is one very old and effective way to serve humans and provide them food.
Previous letters on this topic
https://anandamargauniversal.blogspot.com/2014/04/dogma-of-first-spoonful-of-food-2-more.html
https://anandamargauniversal.blogspot.com/2014/04/baba-this-posting-has-4-distinct.html
Reference
1. Subhasita Samgrajha, Yajiṋa and Karmaphala
* * *
The below section is an entirely different topic, unrelated to the above material.
It stands on its own merit as a point of interest and ideological awareness.
* * *
== Section 2: Important Teaching ==
Social cycle shall advance
Seeing the slow progress of Prout pracara, some Proutists get depressed thinking that, “We lost yet another election and nobody is listening to us.” Everywhere capitalism / capitalist exploiters are thriving and sucking the blood. WIth this mindset they become defunct and do not want to do anything. Whatever questions they have about when Prout will be established, Baba has given in the following guideline. This society moves on. Now vaeshyas / capitalists are exploiting. In a short period those capitalists will be fully destroyed. That is the natural law. If one does anything or not, by the very nature of their deeds, those capitalists will be destroyed. At the same time, one can expedite and hasten this process, but even if you do nothing this social cycle will move forward. Nobody can stop it.
The rapacious capitalists are increasing the degree of their exploitation day by day. When the general society has no scope to even breathe, the common people will leap on those wealthy exploiters and destroy everything. In this way the social cycle will rotate one step ahead. This is the inexorable law of nature. So Proutists need not think twice about whether revolution will come or not. Just go on doing your duty and in the opportune moment the change will come like a wildfire.
Remember, regardless of how hard you try to start a fire in the rainy season you cannot do it. But in the summer, when the conditions are ripe, then without any effort a raging fire will break out. In that same way the social cycle will move. With our efforts we can bring that change a little bit sooner.
Prout philosophy states, "The rule of the social cycle is that the Shúdra Age is followed by the Kśatriya Age, the Kśatriya Age is followed by the Vipra Age...This kind of social rotation is the inexorable law of nature." (1)
Prout philosophy states, "Nobody can stop the rotation of the social cycle, not even the sadvipras. They stay in the nucleus of the social cycle, wakefully and vigilantly observing the process of rotation. One after another, one age follows the next: Vipra after Kśatriya." (2)
References
1. Human Society - 2, The Vipra Age
2. Human Society - 2, Shúdra Revolution and Sadvipra Society
== Section: Important Teaching ==
Squashes their ability to reach Parama Purusa
Those intellectuals and scholars who think about themselves become narrow-minded and degraded. Under such circumstances, it is impossible for them to reach Parama Purusa. Instead their mind becomes smaller. In their next birth they will not even get human life because their mind is lowly. That is the terrible danger of thinking about oneself: One becomes an animal or even a lower creature like a plant or an inanimate object. That is what is explained here below.
Ananda Marga ideology states, "You see, preya or káma remains busy with finite units only, and thus, the ego, who is the enjoyer of such fragmentary units, must be the small ego. It is impossible to develop such an ego which remains always absorbed in these units. Even people of wisdom, of high social status – even so-called intellectual and accomplished scientists and philosophers who are always concerned with earning high respect for themselves or saving their own prestige – even they pursue sensuous or fragmentary objects for the gratification of their egos. Perhaps they deliberately refuse to realize that these petty objectives of their egos will infuse their minds with meanness, as a result of which all their egoistic respect, prestige and status will ultimately be pulverized into dust." (1)
When a person does "service" for their own self-satisfaction that is not real service. Rather their ego is involved and instead of helping others they are ruining and destroying themselves by becoming more narrow-minded. Their future is very grim. The answer, as Ananda Marga ideology guides us, is to ideate on the Supreme and do thinking that you are serving Him. Then one's service will be true service and the one doing the service will develop a magnanimous and selfless outlook, by His grace.
Reference
1. Subhasita Samgraha - 3, Supreme Benevolence and Mundane Pleasure
== Section 3: Links ==
Other topics of interest
