From India to China - and beyond

Although, in the minds of many, vegetarianism is commonly associated with Buddhism, the link is far from absolute.

Of the two major lines of Buddhist practice, Mahayana (practiced chiefly in Bhutan, China, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Singapore, Taiwan, and Tibet) and Theravada (practiced in Cambodia, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, and Thailand), only Mahayana scriptures expressly forbid the eating of flesh. Also, vegetarianism is not a standard practice in Tantric Buddhism, which includes Vajrayana Buddhism practised by Tibetans (Up until the early years of the 21st century, H.H. the Dalai Lama did not practice vegetarianism).

The new Buddhist emphasis on vegetarianism arose in 3rd century India under the Gupta kings, who were worshippers of the Hindu deity Vishnu. Ascetics following Vishnu were required to abstain from animal food of any kind. Thus, Buddhist scriptures of that time presented a sort of 'moral parity' argument: if those on a lesser path forbid meat, shouldn't we?

When the Chinese Buddhist monk Faxian (formerly written as Fa-Hien or Fa-hsien) visited India early in the 5th century, he found that in the whole of the Middle Country:

the people abstain from taking life. They drink no wine nor do they eat onions or garlic...they do not breed pigs or poultry or sell any animal food

The earliest prohibition against meat is found in the Mahaparinirvana sutra (3rd century). The theme is expanded in the Lankavatara sutra. Faxian returned to China with these scriptures, which were then translated to Chinese.

In 507, the Buddhist Emperor Wu of the Liang dynasty convened a conference to discuss the question of meat-eating. He also, wrote an essay entitled "Forsake Alcohol and Meat" in which he urged Buddhists to become vegetarians. Emperor Wu is traditionally said to be responsible for the institutionalization of vegetarianism in Chinese Buddhism.

Today in Hong Kong and Singapore, though full-time vegetarianism is not common, vegetarian restaurants are often full on "prayer days" - the first and fifteenth of the Chinese month (usually corresponding to the dates of the new and full moons, respectively).

Taiwan hosts a number of Buddhist sects that emphasize vegetarianism and run vegetarian eateries (the most well-known is The International Supreme Master Ching Hai Meditation Association). These groups have found recruits throughout Southeast Asia.