Selected Questions and Answers

Vegetarianism: Compassionate Respect for the Oneness of All Life

Spoken by Supreme Master Ching Hai, Dublin, Ireland,
June 7, 1999, (Originally in English) DVD #656

Q: I’m glad to read that You are a vegetarian. Can You explain why it is so important in life to be vegetarian?

M: It is important because we and all life on this planet are linked together by an invisible chain. And if one piece of the chain is broken, things go wrong. But because it is invisible, we do not know. Otherwise, how do we explain all these disasters, all the killing and all the war on this planet?

When you go inside and meditate on God, Hes will show you that compassion is very important and that compassion extends to all beings as well, even animals. Then you will know how important it is. In the Bible, God has said that Hes makes man and makes all the herbs in the field and all the vegetables for us as our food. And then Hes said, “Then I made animals also, to befriend you, to help you, and you will rule over animals.” But Hes did not mention that we should eat them.