West “hypocritical” to protest Hindu mass animal slaughter
Every five years, Hindus travel for miles to participate in Nepal's mass sacrifice of tens of thousands of buffaloes, goats, roosters and pigeons. Animal rights activists, including French actress Brigitte Bardot, have attempted to put an end to the tradition. But as one of our Observers there points out, the five-yearly mass slaughter is no worse than the daily dealings of a modern abattoir.
Held on November 24 -25, this year's festival in southern Nepal attracted up to a million Hindus, many from neighbouring India where the practice is banned. Priests say that over 150,000 animals were offered to the goddess of power, Gadhimai. It is thought to be the world's biggest animal sacrifice.
“Gadimai brings to light what happens every single day in cattle farms across the planet”
Sushma Joshi is a writer and filmmaker from Nepal. She writes the blog "The Global and the Local".
For the urban elite in Kathmandu, who get their meat from butcher shops where the slaughtering part is safely hidden out of sight, the mass slaughter was cause for outcry. And so too for the people in Europe and the US. But as my friend explained to me, the deep and profound workings of human belief may make these sacrifices less of a terrible animal massacre spree and more of a profound moment of connection with the universe for the participants of this festival.
Of course, culture doesn't excuse everything. But for those of us jaded by the stories of the US and Europe's hidden slaughterhouses, where animals are shot with electric stun guns and killed in much larger numbers everyday, the Gadhimai sacrifice shouldn't cause any concern. How many Gadhimai-like sacrifices happen every single day in cattle farms across the meat-eating world? Nepal, incidentally, has a poor population for whom meat remains a luxury - for many of those doing the sacrificing, this may be the only meat they eat during the entire year. So there is just a tiny bit of hypocrisy associated with those who protest this event - if only because the global footprint of meat consumption is so much more gigantic in the western world.
Gadhimai brings to light what happens every single day in cattle farms across the planet. People sacrifice huge numbers of animals everyday, especially for those populations where meat is eaten more than twice a day. The only difference in this is that we see the crudeness with which animals are killed in this event. I, an aspiring vegetarian, almost support sacrifices for this reason - because it provides a mirror for the world to see exactly what goes onto their plates when they eat some dumplings."
Comments
Hindu Religeon Vedas Says Animals Cannot Be Treated This Way!
Submitted by Unregistered user (not verified) on Mon, 30/11/2009 - 14:57.The Authentic Hindu Religeon and the Vedas says that Animals cannot be treated this way!
This kind of treatment of animals is strictly prohibited by Hinduism and the Vedas!
Why is it prohibited in India? Isn't India a legitimate Hindu Nation?
The Nepalese are not following one of the most important teachings of the Hindu religeon!
So why do you say that we are against the Hindu religeon?
Can you answer this question?
It says in the Vedas that even hurting an animal is 100% prohibited!
Can you answer this question?
So are the Nepalese going against one of the most important laws and rules of legitimate classic Hinduism, as it is practiced in India?
Yes or no?
I have not read about the Moslem festival that you mentioned, how do they treat the animals, do they show any care or kindness to or for them from beginning to end,
or do they just go about it, in a wild haphazard, cruel and inhumane way, as it is done in Nepal?
Why argue or start a long discussion with people on a website blog, if they would threaten you for criticizing them, it's not worth the trouble!
If you check the posts on this blog you will see that all nations and cultures, including Nepal-article, the West, China, Japan, etc, abominable animal factory farming,
and Chinas, Indo Chinas, Koreas, Japans, etc, unbelievably abominable, abhorrent, deranged, depraved, criminally insane, psychotic, sociopathic, animal abuse practices
have all been thoroughly condemned, by most of the posters,
But the article was about Nepal, so of coure there's going to be alot of criticism being aimed at them!
I understand that you need to keep your nation in a strong fighting ready condition, but you'd be better off just training with your sword on wooden targets,
because training on weak, defenseless, innocent animals with your swords is against the Hindu religeon, most other religeons too, and is a stupid, lowlife, retarded type of activity and behavior!
As far as Bali is concerned,
would not a sacrifice of less than 100 animals, done 1 at a time, humanely, at any big festival, along with lots of different types of religeuous activities, to fill the festivals time with other types of reverent ceremonies not be enough?
Are you so sure that there is no merit at all, to the heavy criticism that you are receiving?
From your post I see that your people believe that these warlike deities, must be pleased with you, or they will be angry with you!
You also believe that if they are pleased with you that they will lead you into battle, and you will render a stunning defeat on your enemies!
You see I am not against you!
In my country, their are millions of people, if they see someone hurting an animal anywhere, in the town, on the street, in the home,
they would, stop them, fight them, hurt them really bad ,or worse, to stop them and/or just out of anger, and/or would call the police, and press charges if the abuse was serious enough!
The police would also harass the hell out of the perpertrator by the way!
In some parts of my country if your are convicted of animal abuse, cruelty, torture, or killing, dogs, cats, rabbits, all kinds of birds, etc, or big water birds, you can go to jail for up to 10 years, for multiple charges combined!
With fines up to $10,000!
And you will be watched and harrassed by the police if you have done these kinds of low life activity and behavior!
Now do you understand why some of us who believe that animals deserve to be treated well are complaining?
We are not hypocrates, because we really do believe that animals should be protected, as it shows in our strict animal protection laws.
The corrupt factory farmers are able to get around the animal laws because of their emense economic and political power and influence.
The people are not happy about the animal factory farming, and if they could, they would put all of the powerful and immoral people who are behind it, in long prison sentences.
Hopefully someday we will break the scandal wide open and have full congressional hearings on the truth about this shameful and scandalous institution,
and its barbaric methods, practices, procedures, and its totaly inadequate animal rights protection guidelines.
Along with a complete redesigning and reformatiom of the whole animal farming system. With strictly enforced, properly upgraded guidelines, into a thoroughly non abusive animal farming system!
Hindu Mass Animal Slaughter -- an Uncivilized Nation Indeed!
Submitted by Sarasarasara (not verified) on Mon, 30/11/2009 - 03:35.These "people" who behave uncivilized like animals--like wild beasts, are demonic. They are not even close to God in the least bit. First off, these psychos make gods with their hands. They worship wood and stone. They do not use any kind of wisdom or reason to see that it is futile to worship what their hands have made -- their man-made gods. Made up false gods are from the Devil. It is sickening to see such flagrant disregard for living things that they show. It angers us, not because we are western people and we don't do animal sacrifices, but because we cannot make sense of the unnecessary abuse and cruelty to animals they show. It is not because of race, but because of their horrid cultural practices that people view those in those lands as uncivilized. None of this is pleasing to the True God. Worshiping false made-up gods and Causing suffering and harm to animals is pleasing only to the Devil. They should be ashamed of themselves but they cannot see with their own eyes their badness.
What bout Bakar-iid
Submitted by Unregistered user (not verified) on Mon, 30/11/2009 - 09:55.I think some one here is against Hinduism, why don the same ppl become vocal to stop Bakar-iid in which million of animals are killed. You should be ashamed of yourself for posting such biased comment. I think you are afraid of Islamic Fatwa. Stop being Hippocratic.
The Bali make the person strong and give them strength to cut the head of enemy. This is how we (Hindus) saved our-self and our religion [deleted].
Dashain #1 Annual Nepalese National Festival Same As Gadhimai!
Submitted by Unregistered user (not verified) on Mon, 30/11/2009 - 02:23.Dashain is the #1 annual Nepalese national festival that has the same animal abuses, and on an even larger scale than Gadhimai festival!
It is held every year in October!
Read the full story here:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/7052543.stm
We are all agreeing to condemn the Wests, Chinas, Japans, etc, ect, huge animal farming industry, because it is an abominable system!
But these Nepalese are acting ( as a mob ) just like the worker or workers at the factory farms, who are caught on a hidden camera, being carried by another worker,
while they are mistreating, abusing, tormenting, torturing, or killing in an illegal way, from among the thousands of animals that are there.
These guys are just running all over the place, swinging away at the animals, and they're acting like it's no big deal about what they're doing to the animals at the festival!
The 2 cruelest and most dishonorable things that they are doing is,
doing it in front of the other animals. That is a criminally abhorrent, psychotic and sociopathic activity and behavior.
And it must be over for the animal in seconds after the first attempt or you are a criminally libel person!
These guys are just running all over the place, swinging away at the animals, which is way lower than shameful!
Some of the animals are done carefully and one at a time, but it's done right in front of the other animals, which is an activity and behavior, that is way lower than shameful!
Look, face it, the whole spectacle is barbaric, sadistic, and just doesn't make any sense.
Couldn't they sacrifice 5 or 10 animals to the wonderful idol, in a very solemn and extremely humane way, to show reverence for every aspect of the whole ceremony!
The food is the same, but if the animal is treated humanely in the process, it's without all of the libelous guilt, for performing completely unnecessary and uneeded, barbaric, criminal type, animal abuse actions, and behavior!
cruel animal slaughter
Submitted by Unregistered user (not verified) on Sun, 29/11/2009 - 19:39.How can anyone see letting an injured (by the hands of man) animal lay writhing and crying in agony and pain be anything other than the ultimate and unecessary cruel action it is!!!!!
Place yourself or your child in that animals position for a minute - think about it -
Hope they all go up in flames
Submitted by Unregistered user (not verified) on Sun, 29/11/2009 - 19:02.I think killing animals anywhere, in the West, East, North or South do not care where is an abomination. When you look at these poor innocents - what have they done to deserve being decapitated for some fairy tale God? - how can any intelligent person believe that any God would want such barbaric treatment of animals. I hope that all these people go up in flames directed by their Gods for such barbaric behavior. I am appalled that any government would allow this - yes, in the West it is also an abomination but people do not see. However, these poor innocent animals that are dressed in little pieces of cloth value their lives just like you or I do. It is unbelievable to me that in today's world, the 21 century around the world people kill animals for their Gods (or for any other reason). When in heavens name will people evolve?????????? If these individuals in Nepal, Turkey (also despicable customs of torturing bulls) and elsewhere want to sacrifice something, sacrifice fruits - desensitizing children to such shocking practices is so shameful and makes me ashamed of the human species - the dumbest and most destructive and cruel species on the planet. Amazing how headlines will sometimes state "most shocking predator attacks man" - huh? the most shocking predator and most vile predator on the planet is MAN in all his glory. Dumbest, cruelest, most vile species ~ perhaps our world will just vanish due to its lack of care constant destruction and deforestation for the raising and killing of animals and the animals will finally live in peace without our barbaric species. I am so disgusted and enraged by our evil, evil, evil, vile species!
Killing of animals is evil?
Submitted by J.R. (not verified) on Sun, 29/11/2009 - 19:16.Killing of animals is evil? No, killing is evolution in action. Check your teeth, you have both canines and molars which means after millions of years of adaptation, you ended up with teeth that make you an OMNIVORE! Forget want a so-called "God" wants. Natural selection has determined that you and your species are bettor off by killing and eating animals. It is not those that who defile nature, it is those that decry that which has perpetuated the species for so long that defy nature. If you hate you species so much you are more than welcome to to take yourself out of the pool of humanity.
If killing animals,
Submitted by Unregistered user (not verified) on Mon, 30/11/2009 - 01:25.If killing animals, including other animals like us, is so natural to humans in its evolution, the next steps in our evolution is to learn how to respect life, whether it's a worm, or a rat, or a bee, or whatever life is brought to the world. This is wisdom in its best and rare expression. While the killing of humans is regarded now as evil in most societies, the killing of billions of defenseless and feeling creatures remains largely unproblematic. What logic or rationality can support that sombre reality? In my view, none. Slaughterhouses, like battlefields or Nazi concentration camps, are perfect examples of man's barbarity.
Did you read this article? Or are you commenting on another one?
Submitted by Unregistered user (not verified) on Sun, 29/11/2009 - 22:19.Look,
What you're saying is so moronic, because most of the people posting here are not even mentioning vegetarian!
I haven't done so. not even one time, and I've been posting alot!
Everyone is saying, just don't be so retardedly cruel to weak, innocent, defensless animals, that are by the way your personal servants/friends, and valuable resource!
For some rediculous, blasphemous, corrupt, absolutely fruitless, and undeniably devaststatingly self destructive custom, that is by the way, absolutely prohibited by the legitamate and official hindu religeon!
These Nepalis are Hindus, right? So why are they going against their own religeon and defiling themselves with these wild animalistic, barbaric, sadistic, and heinous criminal activites and behavior?
If they need the food why don't they just cut out all the insane ritual freakshow stuff and just do it in a more normal way.
It's moronic the way you make it sound, as if the Nepalese have to be really fierce hunting warriors,
to carry out this daunting marathon task, and that people shouldn't complain, because this hunting expedition/ festival is the only way for the Nepalese to get their food supply!
But these are farmn animals you nut case!
They already have the animals captured and they're not fighting back at all!
That's why everyone is saying that you're all a bunch of insane drunkards, by engaging in such cruel, inhumane, deranged, depraved, psychotic, sociopathic, and by the way incredibly self destructive behavior,
and actually saying before, during, and after the phony and corrupt non-festival that this is some noble activity that will bring great blessings on our people!
Oh really? How pathetically drunken retarded can you get!
Your culture is below the lowest creatures species because of your stupid, ignorant, time wasting, destructive actions, and behavior!
Eat what you want, but don't cause any, and that means as close to zero suffering for the animal as you can get!
If you can prevent it you must prevent unnessesary suffering for innocent farm animals, who are just sitting there, and waiting to serve you, in any way you train or force them to,
You should be grateful to them, not ungrateful to them, by unnecessarily and needlessly abusing them!
It's time for you and all of the other animal abuser morons out there, to wake up and change their evil ways in regards to this easy to understand subject!
Eat what you want, just do it in the kindest, fairest, most humane, and right way that you can!
And yes, any kind of cruel type hunting activity that is not absolutely necessary for anyones survival is an abhorrent abomination.
Because animal farming has been around for so long, and is a widely available alternative to doing your own hunting,
and it's available to everyone everywhere, because there are food markets and supermarkets everywhere where the animal farms ship the food to!
If you want to hunt, just make sure that it is done humanely, and that no hard to kill, endangered, or exotic animals are involved such as whales, elephants, lions, tigers, and other big cats etc
People who eat dogs, cats, monkeys, bears, lions, and tigers, etc, are the true freaks and lowest form of humans on the planet, to put it very mildly!
Sorry, but people should not be eating rabbits!
If you eat turtles, snails, snakes, or weird types of fish, you are engaging in truly freakish and unnatural behavior.
To those who will eat anything that moves or crawls around, you are sick beyond repair!
If there is a dangerous animal showing up and being aggressive near people that's a different story,
you can protect yourself and other people from these dangers if they really are gettimg to close to peoples homes,
and you can't succesfully fence them out and keep them away from your property!
Get it Sherlock?
Change and Repent!
Submitted by Unregistered user (not verified) on Sun, 29/11/2009 - 23:36.People who eat dogs, cats, and monkeys,
exotic birds, vultures, hawks, eagles, owls, all birds of prey, or or any kind of non game birds in general, etc,
any manner of, racoons, badgers, mongoose, squirels etc,
and any manner of odd or strange type animals or creatures, such as aligators, lizards, snakes, turtles, frogs, snails, or weird types of fish and sea creatures, etc,
bears, lions, tigers, hippos, rhinos etc,
or any manner of exotic or unusual
animals, such as anteaters, porcupines, armadillos, and the list goes on, etc,
you are, engaging in truly sick, weird, disgusting, freakish, filthy, deranged, depraved, criminally psychotic, sociopathic, and totally unnatural, lowlife, subhuman, wild animalistic like behavior,
and you are by your own hand and choice of action, making yourself utterly defiled, the true freaks and lowest form of humans on the planet, to put it very mildly!
You are way lower than the any of the large animals listed above for doing such weird and unnatural acts of self defilement!
Sorry, but people should not be eating rabbits!
To those who will eat anything that moves or crawls around, you are sick beyond repair!
I ask you for yours and everyone elses sake, to strictly enforce a ban
on these sick, weird, filthy, freakish, disgusting, deranged, depraved, criminaly psychotic, sociopathic, totally unnatural, lowlife, subhuman, wild animalistic like eating practices and habits, in all the countries and regions where they are taking place!
And you will be forgiven someday for what has already occurred!
All say we,
Amen!