Vardhaman Book on Jainism

Author(s): Jayshree Menon
Publisher: Bennete Coleman & Co Ltd

Page 54

FOOD
FOR FITNESS
Science has established what
Jainism has advocated all along - we are what we eat, and to stay healthy, you have to follow healthy eating habits
TEXT ARUNA RATHOD
he menus of most vegetarian restaurants have the ubiquitous statement 'we also serve Jain
food', but why haven't we heard of a speciality Jain restaurant? That's because, besides being strict vegetarians, the Jains also have other restrictions when it comes to food. And the reason Jainism advocates strict vegetarianism is because the very first principle laid down by Bhagwan Mahavir is ahimsa, which means non-injury to living beings.
Many religious and spiritual practices that originated over 2000 years ago, continue till date. It is no coincidence that science and medicine have now deemed these practices conducive to good health. Dr. Ramanlal Shah, retired Head of the Gujarati Department of St. Xavier's College, explains, "Even though the basic principles of Jainism are framed from the religious and spiritual point of view, you can find scientific reasons for them. When we
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