The Concise Oxford Dictionary of World Religions (799 page)

halal
(see
AL-HALAL
) meat. The
Gur
-k
-la
gar
is vegetarian. See also
ALCOHOL
;
N
MDH
R
.
Buddhism
The
Buddha's
advice concerning dietary habits is addressed primarily to those who have embraced the monastic life rather than to lay society. An important principle underlying Buddhist monasticism is that monks should be dependent upon the laity for alms and should go out daily into the local community to beg for food.
The general principle is that monks should accept with gratitude whatever they are given and not be selective in preferring or rejecting particular dishes. In
Therav
da
Buddhism there is no prohibition on eating meat, providing that the monk has not seen, heard, or suspected that the animal was slaughtered specifically on his behalf.
Under the influence of Mah
y
na Buddhism, which stressed the virtue of compassionate concern for all sentient beings, vegetarianism came to be regarded as the most appropriate diet. Beyond that, the Buddha had clear views on the importance of both psychic and material food (see
H
RA
), and urged moderation.
Judaism
In Judaism the fundamental division is between food that is
kasher
(see
DIETARY LAWS
), fit, and that which is
terefah
, unfit. The categories are defined in
Torah
, though they receive greater elaboration and definition in
Talmudic
writings.
There are rules concerning slaughter (
she
itah
). For meat to be
kasher
it must be slaughtered according to the prescribed ritual rules of she