Originally posted by Chicken
if the wuseng ate meat i'm sure it wasnt on temple grounds. they must observe ten precepts and bodhisattva precepts when in the temple. though they are only ordained with five precepts, which means they can already eat meat and drink wine. just not kill.
so if eating meat, drinking wine, and taking life were allowed for them that means the emperor let them do it while in the temple- the place where it was strictly prohibited for them.
but i highly doubt any heshang of the past would take the word of an emperor over the buddha. those i have met in china still say the same. the heshang and wuseng are a different bunch. i dont think the heshang would let that slide in the temple.
bodhidharma taught from only one sutra, the lankavatara, where vegetarianism was huge and is a huge part in the bodhisattva path and in the bodhisattva precepts the chinese heshang must take to be ordained.
one reason i think they'd stick to the buddha over the emperor is:
heshang in the past, when they became monks, they took the family name of their teachers. often foreign. obviously showing they werent so deep with confucianism. but they later took the name of shakyamuni for monastics to avoid persecution. so, if they arent so concerned with even confucianism, leaving home (not to say they dont follow some confucian morals), i doubt they'd care too much more about ancestor worship or the mandate of heaven and all those other classical chinese goodies. (often referred to as mere superstition by the buddha, to be avoided) the emperor just runs the kingdom. the monastery though is all buddha's jurisdiction. no wuseng would be allowed to break the buddha's word because of the emperor.
but back to vegetarianism, i actually wouldnt be surprised if the number that didnt partake was greater than those that did. as shi decheng explained they are vegetarian in the temple and outside it is their choice. but usually they'll stick with vegetarianism. i remember shi xinghao in that documentary talking about first coming to usa and trying to eat hamburgers which was really difficult.
but still, even if they are allowed to eat meat just wonder how easy it would be to have it available. unless they went out and killed animals themselves for food. and i'm sure the only time they took life if they ever had to was in battle. not in finding food. vegetarianism is so much easier.
my mother-in-law almost starved to death growing up in southern china eating roaches and bark off the trees. and even recently, meat is very expensive for people living in small villages. she's pretty much vegetarian because she has to.
back again with the wuseng though, i think living in the temple and so not partaking in their "privilege" has made vegetarianism stick to some degree.
an even more solid example of wuseng sticking with vegetarianism despite any grant from the emperor is shi dejian and the school under his lineage. if you are a student there you must be vegetarian. thats a pretty tough rule.
here's a pretty interesting read on gongfu and vegetarianism from that site:
http://www.shaolinwugulun.org/xjy.asp?PID=107
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