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Summary of Question:	Eating Meat
Category:	Sikh Practices
Date Posted:	Friday, 8/05/2005 5:13 PM MDT

Hi, a question has been nagging me for some time and I've been unable to find anyone to answer it. To gain further knowledge on Sikhi and related subjects, I read books and research - however one thing puzzles me.

One story concerning Guru Nanak Ji is that the Guru Ji, accompanied by Mardana went to Kurukshetra and at that time a fair was being held at the holy tank on account of a solar eclipse, which meant large number of pilgrims had gathered from all over the country. On his arrival at the fair, Guru Ji asked Mardana to cook meat for them (a deer they had been presented with) Having found a pilgrim cooking meat on their holy premises, the yogis collected for the fair weren't happy and thus shouted at Guru Ji, who sang:
Implanted by flesh, conceived in flesh,
Born in flesh, with mouth, bones, skin, and body made of flesh,
He grows and marries flesh, bringing flesh to his house,
Flesh is born of flesh.
Fools fight over flesh.
They don't understand truth nor do they meditate on it.
What is flesh? What is vegetable?
What is evil? What is not?
Pandit! You know not how flesh is made.
It's from water.
The source of corn, sugarcane and cotton,
In fact, of all three worlds.

I've also discovered that Guru Gobind Singh Ji also ate meat, and therefore I am confused over the issue of meat-eating. Could you please help to shed some light on this matter?

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You say that since the Gurus ate meat, then eating meat is ok. But you fail to realize the REASON behind what the Gurus do. The point is that we are not supposed to mimick every action the Gurus take, but instead FOLLOW WHAT THEY SAY TO US, through the Guru Granth Sahib ji. That is, follow their teachings, not their actions. Why? Since they were at such an attained level, we can not understand everything they did.

If we say that since the Gurus did it, then it is okay, then how about the time Guru Nanak Ji went the river and saw people throwing water to the sun? He asked what they were doing and they said that they were offering water to the sun by throwing it up towards it. Guru Nanak then started throwing water the other way, and the people asked what he was doing. He said that if by throwing water it can reach the sun which is millions of miles away, then surely throwing water towards my fields in Punjab will work since it is much closer.

Does that mean that we're going to start throwing water now, just because Guru Nanak Dev Ji did it? Of course not.

End story, follow the TEACHINGS of the Gurus, not their actions.