Comments on: Why No Onions and Garlic

By: Ronald Collay

Ronald Collay — Sun, 30 Oct 2011 18:43:11 +0000

Fasting also produces an unpleasant odor, especially from the breath of an individual. The profound physical and spiritual benefits of fasting is well proven. The Holy Quran says that there is no smell sweeter to Allah’s nose than that of one who is fasting. From these comments too much emphasis is being placed on what is “called a foul odor”, then attaching negativity to onions and garlic based on smell. If we lived like that we would be in bad shape.

By: Dhanistha Devi Dasi

Dhanistha Devi Dasi — Sat, 27 Aug 2011 03:21:39 +0000

As a homeopath the reference to the symptoms produced are from “provings” of the substance. That is, what happens when a large amount is consumed. As with many substances, their greater value is at a more subtler level. However, as a practitioner of Yoga and Ayurveda for many years, garlic and onion pervade, the subtle bodies as well as the physical body and have an effect at that level. In other words, you smell bad there too. We note today that many foods and additives cause reactions. Consider many children and adults today as food as become more impure and more toxic. The cleaner the food, the more satvic the food, the greater the change at ever level. I notice this dramatically in my patients when they change diet.

By: Anton

Anton — Sat, 20 Aug 2011 14:42:27 +0000

what a load of bollocks!

By: Kandakumar Rattanam

Kandakumar Rattanam — Thu, 03 Jun 2010 05:48:51 +0000

Hare Krishna, ntya dham vrndavan Maharani ki,
although onion & garlics was detailed poisonous but yet we as a Marginal soul(part & parcel of Krishna) and Marginal energy
is it still will be conquered by this type of food,even lazzines,dizziness,passion,ignorance,goodness,beauty, non-beauty,sleepy,palatable dishes,nice juice,fruits,
handsome,non hansome,ugly,sweet,sour and etc22222 all this are the entities of Sri Krsna,and as Sri krsna is all pervading it’s emanates from this all type of entities, yes Krsna is sources of all being, because entites mind are so wicked, thus i belief that such food shall put down us to the mode of Ignorance & passion but another thing we as a part & parcel of Sri Krsna as marginal potency it’s possible that this entities bearing rajasic & tamasic shall conqured us,provided the mind control is OK,but what to do as bodily concept of live,this body was build from the five elements & etc, thus the consumption might put down the spiritual progress,but that individual soul it’s pure as Sri Krsna but due to the comsumption it’s will miss use of senses and uncontrolable.

This bodily concept of live is like a prison & punishment as regard to the entities karma. I’m very scared also even i’m pure vege yet i’m in the battle field fighting for for unwanted desires and struggled to control the senses.Only krsna shall help us.Will Sri krisna forgives all of souls ,untill when the four cycles of Yuga shall goes on, so tiring staying inside the wheel of Samsara Chakra, Hare Krsna

By: Dr V.Chandrika

Dr V.Chandrika — Mon, 03 May 2010 15:09:13 +0000

Without faecal matter of warm – blooded animals which is very rich in nitrogenic energy Onion & Garlic will not grow. Sages doing only prayers does’nt require much energy from notrogenous wastes If Onion & Garlic is consumed They cannot sit comfortably & do the Prayers with concentration Because they are full of energy. We are what we eat!
CHANDRIKA

By: swami bv tripurari

swami bv tripurari — Sun, 04 Apr 2010 16:52:17 +0000

I think your comment misses the point that religious dogma itself is based on a particular logic and that logic appeals to certain people. In other words it’s not just “God said don’t do this.” Perhaps “Don’t do this because I don’t like it, and I don’t like it becasue . . .” Take cow killing and eating for example.

By: Topogigio

Topogigio — Sun, 04 Apr 2010 14:57:19 +0000

“Ordinary people?” This whole thing is just religious dogma which helps create an us-them mentality. Oh, *they* eat onions, they are not on the right path. It is just an arbitrary set of rules based on thousands-year-old practices that have nothing to do with anything today. Most religions have dietary restrictions of some kind, all the religions claim their way is right, and all of them say it’s because of God. Please, God could not care less whether I put onions in my stir-fry.

By: Karuna-sindhu

Karuna-sindhu — Wed, 17 Mar 2010 17:20:15 +0000

The only “scientific proof” that we need to care about garlic and onions is one showing that someone eating garlic and onions ABSOLUTELY CANNOT develop love of Godhead. Everything else is a distraction.

In our great enthusiasm to market and make the superficialities of Krishna consciousness acceptable to everyone, we get further and further away from where we are strong: the core of Krishna consciousness.

It is in the best interest for devotees to make arguments from where they are strong, even though it may not be acceptable to everyone. As Jayadvaita Maharaj says, “We need to serve beer if we want to make Krishna consciousness acceptable to everyone.”

In the story of Gajendra, in the Srimad Bhagavatam, Srila Prabhupada makes the point that Gajendra the elephant was strong on land. The crocodile was strong in water. When Gajendra went where he was weak, in the water, his safety was compromised.

I feel that devotees would do best in sticking with what they know best: spirituality, than to make a psuedo attempt into trying to defend their lifestyle and beliefs where they are weak. They quote science to defend their religious stance, but have no intention of changing their stance if the arguments from science are NOT in favour of their religion. As some of the above posted links go, there are as many posies for garlic and onion as there are neggies.

It is always interesting to read these articles coming from ‘devotee-ville.’ Though this article reads like the findings of ‘scientific research,’ it is far from that. The fact is that the author has taken a religious stance against garlic and onion. It is not as if discovering scientific harms of onion and garlic would not deter people of the author’s faith to stop eating garlic and onions because of their religious convictions. Their decision to not eat garlic and onions have practically nothing to do with science.

Why do we write articles such as tehse?
Well, since the religious argument of ‘do not eat garlic and onions because they are rajasic and tamasic and cannot be offered to Krishna’ do not work on people who do not cater to the faith, we find more ‘acceptable’ ways to strengthen our arguments…which seems to be the attempt of this article. I suppose it is an attempt, by hook or by crook, to promote our devotee lifestyle.

The author seems determined to defend his choice of diet on ‘socially acceptable’ (scientific) terms.

I understand that there are millions of people trying to discover the absolute truth. I’m sure the author was one of those people.
These people try to ‘objectively’ discover the absolute truth untill they accept a Vaishnava or Christian identity. Once they accept the identity, then they decide to defend the Vaishnava truth or the Christian truth as the absolute truth, using any and every argument they can find. This article seems to come from there.

By: Syamasundara Dasa

Syamasundara Dasa — Tue, 16 Mar 2010 21:57:44 +0000

Without going into transcendental disquisitions, sattvik food usually attracts sattvik people, and sattvik people know how to moderate themselves. One of the best (and yes, very sattvik-feeling) offerings I made for our Dauji-Gopala consisted in mango slices, curd with sugar, and almonds. Sattva entails simplicity and fosters happiness. Many temples in India make elaborate and rich offerings to their deities, but then the larger congregation will just eat rice and dal (cooked in larger quantities).

Having said that… I’m off to making banana coconut samosas for Dauji-Gopala

By: Syamasundara Dasa

Syamasundara Dasa — Tue, 16 Mar 2010 21:46:25 +0000

When I want gaudiya food… gaudiya means “related to gauda-desa”, the land of guda (jaggery), or in modern terms, Bengal.
When you have such cravings, I think you should go to an Indian restaurant and ask for Bengali dishes.

However, should you realize that the maha-prasada of the Lord or his devotees is capable of changing your consciousness radically and purifying you of all the layers that make you think, speak and act in a certain way (anything other than pure devotion), and that it is an immense privilege to receive any, then you could go to a gaudiya vaishnava temple and beg for (not want) some of it, and hope that the Supreme Sweet will give you anything that has been in contact with him/her; even a drop of water.
Prasada is nothing but condensed love: love offered, love returned, love shared and love awakened.
I may agree on the strong love of tradition of many jews, but a real Gaudiya is ready to forgo any tradition in the name of preserving that love that can indeed have many expressions.
Unless and until the regulations about onion and garlic get in the way of that torrent of love, the gaudiyas will keep abstaining from offering certain foods (and therefore eating them), just because their beloved doesn’t like them. What does science (or proto-science) have to do with love exchanges?