Manasa, is my conscience keeper. I would shudder at the thought of confronting her. This 18 year old, N.I.T (National Institute of Technology) student is a vegan.
She would rattle out facts of how 50 billion livestock are butchered every year, to feed this rapacious planet. It included 25 million buffaloes & 4 million horses.

I too had a lot of counterpoints up my arsenal. Sushruta, the father of Ayurveda had suggested pigs roasted in rock salt and pepper with a dash of lemon. This was a remedy for various ailments.

Brahmin priests of the Sangam age feasted on liquor & meat. Buddha allowed consumption of meat with strings attached. In fact, he died consuming raw pork.
The Mahabaharat & Ramayana mention numerous instances of meat consumption. Some proponents state that Sita wanted deer meat which led to the Ravana episode.

During the Rigveda, animals were sacrificed on fire. Agni craved for bulls, Rudra (version1.0 of Shiva) for red cows & Vishnu for dwarf oxen. Inhabitants of the Indus civilization had markets for alligators & tortoises (giddabuddaka).

Just when I thought I had outwitted Manasa, she would pour out facts on carbon footprint, Sinclair and the dangers of consuming milk.
I have reversed my diabetes 3years ago. My HbA1C has remained under 5.5. The main reason is reduced intake of carbohydrates & increased intake of fats & proteins which include meat & eggs.

‘Then why should I be a proponent for avoiding meat during the Ayyappa Challenge?’
Here are a few of my arguments in defense of the above statement.

First line of Defense:
“One by one with a swift stroke they slit their throats. There was a long line of hogs, with squeals and life-blood ebbing away together; until at last each started again, and vanished with a splash into a huge vat of boiling water. It was all so very businesslike that one watched it fascinated. It was pork-making by machinery, pork-making by applied mathematics. And yet somehow the most matter-of-fact person could not help thinking of the hogs; they were so innocent, they came so very trustingly; and they were so very human in their protests–and so perfectly within their rights!
They had done nothing to deserve it; and it was adding insult to injury, as the thing was done here, swinging them up in this cold-blooded, impersonal way, without a pretense at apology, without the homage of a tear. Now and then a visitor wept, to be sure; but this slaughtering-machine ran on. – From Upton Sinclair’s book, The Jungle.

Daaji, a spiritualist says that moment an animal panics, the thought is transmitted throughout its endocrine system. These vibrations then get transmitted into our bodies when we consume them.
Just give it a moment of thought; why do have no vegetarian terrorists? Why is there no Jain, Buddhists or Brahmin terrorist?
Could this be a way to make us a conduit for the higher realms?

Second Line of Defense:
Another evidence in support of the ‘no killing’ (vegetarian challenge) is the China study.
367 variables, 65 counties in China and 6500 adults were studied. 8000 statistically significant association between lifestyle & diet were found. All the findings were put in a book called the CHINA STUDY, written by Dr.Campbell.

His findings ‘People who ate the most animal based foods got the most chronic diseases. People who ate the most plant foods were the healthiest’.

Why is this so? Could those who are in favor of more protein intake in the body, explain how elephants get their strength though they are pure vegetarians?

Third Line of Defense:
We are puppets controlled by gut bacteria. Two of them – firmicutes and bacterocides rule the roost. They decide on the amount of serotonin & dopamine that we should secrete. They decide our moods. They decide whether actor Sushant should take his life or not.
Sounds weird! Isn’t it?

Schizophrenics have a good gut. Schizophrenia usually shows up between the age of 25 to 40 years. A finding (source: Stanford Lectures on Psychology) states that a certain virus (Toxoplasma Gondii) finds its way from cat faeces to the patients gut. Finding the environment conducive, T.Gondii decides to settle there. The gut being the second brain, now pulls the strings and creates Schizophrenics.

How did cat faeces travel all the way to the gut? Meat! Of course!

Could man take up the 41 day Challenge to stop this strong urge to devour the animal kingdom? This could have helped Wuhan & perhaps saved the world.

Mystics talk about the 5 koshas. They can only be perceived by the Yogic mind. Taitreya Upanishad talks about it.
The first Kosha (sheath) is Anamaya Kosha i.e. subtle sathvik & less energy dense food opens up the door to the next sheath;
Pranamaya Kosha i.e. subtle prana (air) is the key to the next lock
Manomaya Kosha, i.e. Your Mind is made up of the food you eat. Manomaya opens doors to Viganamaya Kosha i.e. Wisdom which gives us the power of discernment.
Viganamaya Kosha is the doorway to universal energy (Anandamaya Kosha).

The video, The Secrets talks about aligning with the universe just by asking, believing and receiving. There are no strings attached.

For reaching AYYAPPA, you have to go through the 5 doors – terms & conditions apply.
The choice is yours to make?
Could you invest 41days of your life towards this journey?
Those who have already traversed this path, could you share your experiences?

This is Shiv signing off from S & S Family First.