The Buddha: Garlic is Bad for Yogis on Meditation!

Discussion of meditation in the Mahayana and Vajrayana traditions.
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Jechan
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Location: Osaka, Japan.

Re: The Buddha: Garlic is Bad for Yogis on Meditation!

Post by Jechan »

Here is an excerpt from the chapter "Bodhisattva Development into Buddhahood" from the Surangama Sutra on consuming the 5 pungent roots. :popcorn:

‘
ânanda, all beings live if they eat wholesome food and
die if they take poison. In their search for Samàdhi, they
should abstain from eating five kinds of pungent roots (i.e.
garlic, the three kinds of onions and leeks); if eaten cooked,
they are aphrodisiac and if raw, they cause irritability.
Although those who eat them may read the twelve divisions
of the Mahàyàna canon, they drive away seers (çùi) in the ten
directions who abhor the bad odour, and attract hungry
ghosts who lick their lips. They are always surrounded by
ghosts, and their good fortune will fade away day by day to
their own detriment. When these eaters of pungent roots
practise Samàdhi, none of the Bodhisattvas, seers and good
spirits come to protect them, while the mighty king of
demons takes advantage of the occasion to appear as a
Buddha as if to teach them the Dharma, defaming and
breaking the precepts and praising carnality, anger and stupidity;
at their death, they will join his retinue, and at the end
of their time in his realm, they will fall into the unintermittent
hell. ânanda, practisers of Samàdhi should never eat these
five pungent roots.
Full text here. Above excerpt taken from page 230. :reading:
http://www.buddhanet.net/pdf_file/surangama.pdf
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Dana
Posts: 35
Joined: Tue Nov 03, 2009 5:02 pm

Re: The Buddha: Garlic is Bad for Yogis on Meditation!

Post by Dana »

Jechan wrote:Here is an excerpt from the chapter "Bodhisattva Development into Buddhahood" from the Surangama Sutra on consuming the 5 pungent roots. :popcorn:

‘
ânanda, all beings live if they eat wholesome food and
die if they take poison. In their search for Samàdhi, they
should abstain from eating five kinds of pungent roots (i.e.
garlic, the three kinds of onions and leeks); if eaten cooked,
they are aphrodisiac and if raw, they cause irritability.
Although those who eat them may read the twelve divisions
of the Mahàyàna canon, they drive away seers (çùi) in the ten
directions who abhor the bad odour, and attract hungry
ghosts who lick their lips. They are always surrounded by
ghosts, and their good fortune will fade away day by day to
their own detriment. When these eaters of pungent roots
practise Samàdhi, none of the Bodhisattvas, seers and good
spirits come to protect them, while the mighty king of
demons takes advantage of the occasion to appear as a
Buddha as if to teach them the Dharma, defaming and
breaking the precepts and praising carnality, anger and stupidity;
at their death, they will join his retinue, and at the end
of their time in his realm, they will fall into the unintermittent
hell. ânanda, practisers of Samàdhi should never eat these
five pungent roots.
Full text here. Above excerpt taken from page 230. :reading:
http://www.buddhanet.net/pdf_file/surangama.pdf
Good Heavens, I is doomed, in any case but surely done for now, as I need to eat the aliums for varicose veins and need ginger for the elder stomach......
I do make offerings to the beings in all the realms and if hungry ghosts need to lick my lips, so be it and i will offer this to them gladly with this miserable human body, if that is all it's good for. ;)
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catmoon
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Re: The Buddha: Garlic is Bad for Yogis on Meditation!

Post by catmoon »

Dana wrote: Good Heavens, I is doomed, in any case but surely done for now, as I need to eat the aliums for varicose veins and need ginger for the elder stomach......
I do make offerings to the beings in all the realms and if hungry ghosts need to lick my lips, so be it and i will offer this to them gladly with this miserable human body, if that is all it's good for. ;)
I think I is doomed too.

You see I have this affection for kimchi, which is a mix of pickled cabbage, garlic, ginger, chilis, green onions and the odd bit of chinese radish. I do not think Buddha would approve!
Sergeant Schultz knew everything there was to know.
shrtyp1
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Joined: Thu Jun 30, 2011 11:39 pm

Re: The Buddha: Garlic is Bad for Yogis on Meditation!

Post by shrtyp1 »

Yes, I've experience a hungry ghost telling me sarang hamnida buddha when I woke up 2 hours before sunrise to make some rice and I used garlic in it.It just happened so that while I layed the garlic out to get ready to cook I had to run to the bathroom and I had to run through a dark hallway with my wooden closet and I saw a korean girl hungry ghost warn me to love buddha in korean, and I am american.I knew I shouldn't laugh at it because it can happen to anybody, so I felt sorrow and I have decided to not eat any garlic in front of my buddha statue because I heard they can haunt you.So that would be the last time eating pungeant spice around the dark hours.
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Adamantine
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Re: The Buddha: Garlic is Bad for Yogis on Meditation!

Post by Adamantine »

garlic is one of the foods that is generally said to hinder the efficacy of mantra practice..
in old tibet you wouldn't be allowed into a monastery if you'd had garlic until three days later once it left your system..
however there are some vajrayana practices that may call for using it..
Contentment is the ultimate wealth;
Detachment is the final happiness. ~Sri Saraha
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Thug4lyfe
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Re: The Buddha: Garlic is Bad for Yogis on Meditation!

Post by Thug4lyfe »

Argh!!! I didn't know ginger is apart of it too :(
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nirmal
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Re: The Buddha: Garlic is Bad for Yogis on Meditation!

Post by nirmal »

Go Middle, a little bit of garlic should be okay
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