Ven. Tashi Nyima, Puerto Rico “Having abandoned the taking of life, refraining from the taking of life, we dwell without violence, with the knife laid down, scrupulous, full of mercy, trembling with compassion for all sentient beings.” ~ Buddha Shakyamuni When people think of Buddhist monks, they imagine that we dwell in clouds of incense, […] Read more
Rune Kjær Rasmussen, Odense, Denmark I have a T-shirt that says “I am vegan because I love life.” That is how simple it really is to me. I deeply love the idea that I can live as respectfully as possible by being vegan. I think of it as releasing as much empathy into every corner […] Read more
written by Andrew Knight, D.V.M. ~ United Kingdom Once on a hike in America someone asked me what I did, and I replied “I’m a vet”. She asked, in all seriousness, “What war were you in?” For a sun, sea and surf-loving creature from Australia, this was something of a shock. Wars are about as rare for […] Read more
The following was written by a Reddit user and posted to the r/vegan subreddit on February 20th. It is reprinted here with kind permission from the author, Nick Salamone. I’ve always thought being vegan was absurd, extreme, unhealthy, unnecessary, blah blah blah… I’ve spent the last six months transitioning to vegetarian and then vegan. I’ve […] Read more
Craig Cline, Salem, Oregon, USA I will always be vegan because “it’s the Golden Rule thing to do.” This moral and ethical precept teaches us that we should behave toward others as we would have others behave toward us. Non-vegans conveniently take the word “others” to mean other humans. Vegans consider others to include ALL […] Read more
written by Theresa Göttl Brightman ~ Akron, Ohio My faith dictates much of who I am and what I believe. While I recognize that the Catholic Church’s mention stirs up much baggage, anger, frustration, and even hate in some people, I love my faith and understand that those who feel that way don’t see it as I […] Read more
Salwa Maddad, Al-Sweida, As-Suwayda, Syria In 2010, a new awareness arose within me and guided me to be vegan. I am fully aware that a person’s actions and behavior can change the people around them. My daughters and 25 of my friends became vegan at that time. Now there are more than 100 persons that […] Read more
Clinton Vernieu, Brisbane, Australia Now that I am awake, I cannot go back to sleep. Awakened from a culturally induced slumber, I have made a pledge to myself—but, more important, I have taken an oath for other animals. I am now their caregiver, witness and companion—I will never be able to justify their exploitation. This […] Read more
Petra Sindelarova, Prague, Czech Republic I grew up as a “normal” child. I used to like other animals just like the people around me. They were cute and fun to play with. During the summer holidays, which I would spend at a cottage with my grandparents, we would be given rabbits, chickens, or geese. I […] Read more
Uday Bhobe, Mumbai, India It was New Year’s Day, 2013, a month after my 53rd birthday. On a whim, I made a resolution to go vegan, or so I thought; I now know it was merely a resolution to try a plant-based diet. (I make New Year’s resolutions every year. They usually last a couple […] Read more
