Garlic and Onion in diet?

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un8-
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Re: Garlic and Onion in diet?

Post by un8- »

Could be because garlic and onion are natural antibiotics, you don't always want to eat them, and better to save them for medicinal purposes.
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Inedible
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Re: Garlic and Onion in diet?

Post by Inedible »

In Hatha Yoga you have the three gunas. They are rajas, sattvas, and tamas. Rajas are stimulating and include garlic and onions. Tamas are sedating and include heavy foods, fried foods, and fermented foods. Sattvas are balanced and the goal is to eat mostly from this category. Later on, however, if your mind is already strong and balanced and we'll established in concentration then any food you eat becomes sattvas.
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Re: Garlic and Onion in diet?

Post by JohnSo »

According to the Sutta there are no prohibition at all. Even the Buddha himself eat everything. Some sects have their own rules. Please do not mix it up.

As for Garlic/Onion, maybe it is prohibited because both increase appetite. And appetite mean a feeling. A worldly lust which increase our appetite to eat.
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Re: Garlic and Onion in diet?

Post by DNS »

“Garlic should not be eaten. Whoever should eat it: an offense of wrong doing.”—Cv.V.34.1

“I allow that garlic be eaten in the event of illness.”—Cv.V.34.2

https://www.dhammatalks.org/Archive/Wri ... 200611.pdf
Since this is in the wellness and fitness section, I'll mention that this also fits with Ayurveda and some current findings in science.

According to some studies, garlic can kill brain cells.

https://www.biocybernaut.com/garlic-a-brain-poison/

However, that can be an advantage and helpful for those suffering with brain cancers and tumors.

Therefore, not too good if you're healthy, but when one is ill, it can be helpful, just as it states in the Vinaya.
Inedible
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Re: Garlic and Onion in diet?

Post by Inedible »

I think the prohibitions against garlic and onions are cultural rather than something that originated with Buddha.
denise
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Re: Garlic and Onion in diet?

Post by denise »

was there something in ancient Egypt about a slave revolt because garlic rations were cut ? :thinking:
TRobinson465
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Re: Garlic and Onion in diet?

Post by TRobinson465 »

I never heard about the onions thing only garlic.
The nuns heard the complaints of that field-keeper, and the nuns of few desires complained and criticized her, “How could Venerable Thullanandā not have any sense of moderation and take a large amount of garlic?” … “Is it true, monks, that the nun Thullanandā did this?”

“It’s true, Sir.”

The Buddha criticized her, “How could the nun Thullanandā not have any sense of moderation and take a large amount of garlic? This will affect people’s confidence …” … and after giving a teaching he addressed the monks:

Jataka
“Once upon a time, monks, Thullanandā was the wife of a brahmin. They had three daughters, Nandā, Nandavatī, and Sundarīnandā. When that brahmin eventually died, he was reborn as a goose, whose feathers were all made of gold. And he gave his former family members one feather at the time. Thullanandā considered this. She then grabbed hold of that king of geese and plucked him. But when his feathers regrew they were white. At that time too, monks, Thullanandā lost her gold because she was too greedy. Now she will lose her garlic.”

“One should be content with what one gets,
Because excessive greed is bad.
After grabbing hold of the king of geese,
The gold came to an end.”

Then, after criticizing the nun Thullanandā in many ways, the Buddha spoke in dispraise of being difficult to support … “And, monks, the nuns should recite this training rule like this:

Final ruling
‘If a nun eats garlic, she commits an offense entailing confession.’”

https://suttacentral.net/pli-tv-bi-vb-p ... ript=latin


At least for the bhikkhuni, it seems to be because of one nun taking too much. I actually thought it mightve been like that monks can't say 6 consecutive words of dhamma to a woman rule or somethinng where the rule says you cant do that but the follow up story clearly indicated the rule was actually monks cant say 6 words of Dhamma to a woman (without an understanding man present). So maybe he just meant taking too much garlic and not no garlic at all. Although given there is apparently a story about that for bhikkhus too it looks like that reasoning doenst hold up.


Based on the story for bhikkhus id argue the reasoning was that it was distracting for the people around them if they ate garlic (probably due to garlic breath), and if there is a story about this on onions i guess that same logic would hold up as well.
On one occasion when the Buddha was seated teaching a large gathering, there was a monk who had eaten garlic. Not to annoy the other monks, he had sat down at a distance. The Buddha saw him and asked the monks why he was sitting there. The monks told him and the Buddha said,

“Monks, should one eat anything that would stop one from hearing a teaching such as this?”

“Certainly not.”

“You should not eat garlic. If you do, you commit an offense of wrong conduct.”
https://suttacentral.net/pli-tv-kd15/en ... ript=latin
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Mahabrahma
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Re: Garlic and Onion in diet?

Post by Mahabrahma »

DNS wrote: Thu Apr 07, 2022 3:37 pm According to some studies, garlic can kill brain cells.
Why you guys putting your brain[s] in cells? :rofl:
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that’s who I call a brahmin.

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KeepCalm
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Re: Garlic and Onion in diet?

Post by KeepCalm »

DNS wrote: Thu Apr 07, 2022 3:37 pm
“Garlic should not be eaten. Whoever should eat it: an offense of wrong doing.”—Cv.V.34.1

“I allow that garlic be eaten in the event of illness.”—Cv.V.34.2

https://www.dhammatalks.org/Archive/Wri ... 200611.pdf
Since this is in the wellness and fitness section, I'll mention that this also fits with Ayurveda and some current findings in science.

According to some studies, garlic can kill brain cells.

https://www.biocybernaut.com/garlic-a-brain-poison/

However, that can be an advantage and helpful for those suffering with brain cancers and tumors.

Therefore, not too good if you're healthy, but when one is ill, it can be helpful, just as it states in the Vinaya.
The above link appears to be broken. Perhaps it was taken down by a Bhikkhunī with a particular penchant for Tarka Dal?..

(Just to clarify this only applies to Bhikkhunī (Females) who some say no longer even exist)?

Nexus Magazine is hardly the pinnacle of peer reviewed Medical Science! https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nexus_(magazine)


It also appears you are getting mixed up with your notion about it not fitting with Ayurveda: https://www.elephantjournal.com/2016/03 ... rohibited/

It is interesting though. Perhaps best not to use garlic if serving Nuns I guess? I dunno seems kinda sexist but who am I to project my Western sensibilities onto the word of the Buddha. I guess there could be a reason? Who knows?
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Re: Garlic and Onion in diet?

Post by DNS »

The first set of quotes is from the Vinaya. Yes, that link is broken, but those references could be found at another source with Vinaya translations. What do bhikkhunis have to do with this? It's just a quote from the Vinaya.
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KeepCalm
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Re: Garlic and Onion in diet?

Post by KeepCalm »

DNS wrote: Sun Apr 10, 2022 3:47 pm The first set of quotes is from the Vinaya. Yes, that link is broken, but those references could be found at another source with Vinaya translations. What do bhikkhunis have to do with this? It's just a quote from the Vinaya.
Apologies I thought that the rule only applied to bhikkhunī's for some reason in my addled brain. It seams the rule applies to both bhikkhunīs and bhikkhus.

Wow I can't count the amount of times I have used garlic when cooking for Monks.. oh well, what to do?
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Re: Garlic and Onion in diet?

Post by DNS »

Tangent-Man wrote: Mon Apr 11, 2022 7:25 pm
DNS wrote: Sun Apr 10, 2022 3:47 pm The first set of quotes is from the Vinaya. Yes, that link is broken, but those references could be found at another source with Vinaya translations. What do bhikkhunis have to do with this? It's just a quote from the Vinaya.
Apologies I thought that the rule only applied to bhikkhunī's for some reason in my addled brain. It seams the rule applies to both bhikkhunīs and bhikkhus.

Wow I can't count the amount of times I have used garlic when cooking for Monks.. oh well, what to do?
I imagine it may not be a transgression as others have noted above; it's not a garlic by itself, but cooked into other foods. Or the merit of offering lunch dana outweighs any transgression (if any).
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