Book Title: Jain Philosophy
Author(s): Virchand R Gandhi
Publisher: Agamoday Samiti

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Page 192
________________ 163 : of the animal. It is said that there are many elea ments in animal food which would be nutritious and would help to support the huinan body, and which are as good as those found in vegetables. Certainly, in fruits and nuts and other things which do not come from the animal we may find these same elements. Still, we say that there is a maral and ethical reason against eating that kind of food, and not only moral but also spiritual reason. In the first place the moral philosophy of our religion says that we have no right to destroy life in any being if we cannot give it to any being. That is the funda mental proposition of our religion. If we follow that rile then any destruction of life is surely to be avoident. But the question may come in. For any kind of food destriction of life is necessary; even in the vegetable there is life, and one must destroy that life in order to prepare foot fitted for our diet. We adinit that we have to destroy life in order to live, but life is of so many grades, so many classes one higher than another, and if that argument is to be applied, that it is the same to destroy life, whether animal or vegetable, we can also apply the argu nent to the destruction of hu:nan beings; but we all make a distinction there. Why do we not destroy h:1'nan beings, then? We say that they have souls. B:1t we can never destroy the soul; they only leave the body and go to some other place or into sona other body, but according to the opinion Jain Education International For Private & Personal Use Only www.jainelibrary.org

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