Vegetarians: The
Conscious Eaters
In
today's world, many have heard of vegetarianism, yet not all understand what it
actually is. In a world where the number of vegetarians is increasing each
year, understanding them might become useful later. One might say that
vegetarians are people who do not eat meat, yet this would not even come close
to capturing the essence of the subculture. No matter what type of vegetarian
one is, they always make conscious diet choices, including what to eat, what to
wear, what to read, and so on. I will show that the vegetarian subculture’s
essence is conscious living through dietary choices.
The core
of vegetarianism is a conscious diet. As the saying goes, "we are what we
eat." However, if someone eats raw lettuce until they die, they
"might" come across multiple issues in their life. To actually live
like a vegetarian is to properly cook like one. It can be very difficult for
someone to cook in a new style, which is why many vegetarians have cookbooks.
In the past, recipes were passed generationally, from parent to child, but
today society’s culture has changed. Some conscious eaters wrote down the way
they cooked. Now there are countless books on vegetarian cooking. One such
cookbook that shows a wide variety of vegetarian food is The Complete
Vegetarian Cookbook by America's Test Kitchen, a large cooking organization.
The book contains many recipes for a vegetarian diet. America's Test Kitchen is
not a vegetarian-only organization; it also cooks many varieties of meat.
However, they still wanted to make a cookbook for the many vegetarians. Even
though they may not be vegetarians, they still have the same conscious thought
when cooking in unique ways.
Vegetarians
have a few symbols that represent them, depending on where in the world you
are. In most of the Western world, the symbol is the vegetarian V. There are
many variations of this symbol; some examples include yellow text on a green
background or just a green V with a leaf. Humans tend to perceive the color
green in relation to plants, life, and more. Where is this symbol actually
used? Most of the time, it is shown on food packaging, in restaurant menus, and
in store products. The symbol indicates that food items are vegetarian
worldwide. Wherever a vegetarian is, they can continue their conscious diet
with the help of this notification symbol, which shows which foods are good for
a vegetarian diet. As a vegetarian myself, this has come in handy, as many
products you would think are vegetarian are not, such as cheese, due to
additional additives. For many vegetarians, these recognizable symbols create
community and awareness when eating out or buying food in grocery stores. Some
places in the world don't use a V in their vegetarian symbol, such as India,
which uses a green box and circle to indicate that something is vegetarian. The
vegetarian V, or green circle, is like a beacon that shows vegetarians a choice
to eat. Although the exact details of the symbol are not always shared, a green
V, leaf, or box all mean the same thing: the item is vegetarian. It isn't
required everywhere to be placed on food, so whenever a restaurant or brand
places such a symbol on their food, they are showing their conscious support
for vegetarians.
In
recent times many have become vegetarians, even though the practice is
extremely old. In South Asia, the history of vegetarianism goes far back.
Religions such as Hinduism, Jainism, Buddhism, and other similar faiths teach
the practice of Ahimsa, or nonviolence. This practice and idea translated
into not harming any living being for human benefit, which became an early form
of vegetarianism. Many kings who followed Buddhism were vegetarians and
made laws that promoted the practice. These laws would usually contain a ban on
animal killing for any reason, sometimes with a few rare exceptions given. An
example of such a governing rule was presented by the Indian king Ashoka, a
Mauryan emperor, as follows. "Formerly, in the kitchen of the
beloved of the gods, king Piyadasi [Ashoka], hundreds of thousands of animals
were killed every day to make curry. But now with the writing of this dhamma
edict only three creatures, two peacocks and a deer are killed, and the deer
not always. And in time, not even these three creatures will be killed."[1]
What Ashoka said here is that previously, he ordered the killing of many
animals for food. He changed his ways and only ate fewer and fewer animals
until he stopped meat entirely. On a deeper level, he was promoting
vegetarianism. He objected to the killing of animals in most places and
enforced his rule, which made the conscious vegetarian diet much easier.
Religion or non-violent ideas made people think consciously about their actions
in the world, and this naturally translated to the dinner table. If you sought
to be non-violent in society, they believed you should do so when eating as
well.
India
may have been one of the oldest centers of vegetarianism, yet there are still
many other examples of vegetarians—or behavior similar to vegetarianism—in the
ancient world. Many Greek philosophers also considered vegetarianism a moral
way to live, including perhaps Pythagoras, a philosopher and mathematician.
The spread of these ideas formed much of the current form of vegetarianism.
And, with the rise of new ideas in Europe during the Age of Enlightenment,
ideas of vegetarianism also increased. These ideas that were pushed in the
past have led to the current viewpoint of vegetarians, which would not have
happened otherwise. In the far past, people became vegetarians mostly
because of moral or religious reasons; nowadays, they are vegetarians mostly
because of health and ethical reasons. Regardless of what type of vegetarian
someone is, the history and practice of their diet go back generations, to
people who made the conscious and difficult choice to live without meat.
Some
vegetarians' only contribution to their subculture is to follow the no-meat
rule, and this is true for the majority of them. Others want to make lasting
change by promoting the practice more or simply by cooking in a new way for
others to learn. Finally, there are some vegetarians who participate by
attending and setting up small or large festivals for vegetarians. These
festivals are places where people can showcase different types of vegetarian
cooking and learn about vegetarianism. At one of these festivals, you will be
able to taste many different types of vegetarian food. The amount of effort and
thought that is put into creating these foods is quite impressive. Sometimes
speakers talk about animal cruelty, and other times they give a cooking demo.
These types of festivals are a way for many vegetarians to gain a sense of
community. At home, their effort is just hard work they place into their own
diet, but at a festival, that changes. The effort becomes a community effort,
and the hard thinking that is placed into diets becomes shared. The conscious
effort put into their diet is evident among those attending these festivals.
Additionally, some vegetarians show their love for the diet through what they
buy and what they do not buy, such as leather wallets, purses, or clothes, to
show their dedication. They buy or read vegetarian magazines, attend clubs or
festivals that cater to vegetarians. They frequently visit vegetarian
restaurants, support political vegetarian organizations, or show support for compassionate
and sustainable living.
In
summary, vegetarians are a unique subculture that focuses on intentional living
and life through their diet and lifestyle. We all may be different, but
humanity binds us together, and one does not have to be a vegetarian to be part
of this subculture; one can make a conscious choice to eat vegetarian once a
week. We have learned their art through cookbooks, finding food through a
uniting symbol, joining together through festivals, and having a deep and
powerful history of conscious choices. I hope I have shown how vegetarians
embed the idea of a conscious diet in their lives. The choices our ancestors
made that led to vegetarianism existing today are invaluable. The ideas of
vegetarianism are far wider than just diet, as stated by Mahatma Gandhi, "The
greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its
animals are treated."[2]
If man does not treat animals with mercy, how will he treat another man? This
is but one way in which vegetarian ideology is used throughout the world to
make our home a better place, through conscious choices.
Works Cited: MLA Format
Jennie Richards, “Mahatma Gandhi, Our Moral
Progress is Judged By Our Treatment of Animals.” Humane Decisions. Updated
March 11, 2023. https://humanedecisions.com/mahatma-gandhi-our-moral-progress-is-judged-by-our-treatment-of-animals/ Accessed
10/17/2025
Ven S. Dhammika.
“The Edicts of King Ashoka.” Access to Insight. Last Revised for Access to
Insight, November 30, 2013. https://www.accesstoinsight.org/lib/authors/dhammika/wheel386.html#rock14
Accessed 10/16/202
[1] Ven
S. Dhammika. “The Edicts of King Ashoka.” Access to Insight. Last Revised for
Access to Insight, November 30, 2013. https://www.accesstoinsight.org/lib/authors/dhammika/wheel386.html#rock14 Accessed 10/16/202
[2] Jennie
Richards, “Mahatma Gandhi, Our Moral Progress is Judged By Our Treatment of
Animals.” Humane Decisions. Updated March 11, 2023. https://humanedecisions.com/mahatma-gandhi-our-moral-progress-is-judged-by-our-treatment-of-animals/
Accessed 10/17/2025
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