Primitive Buddhism did not stipulate that monks should be vegetarian, but follow fate. Therefore, there is no prohibition against eating fish in laws and regulations, so today's monks in Southern Buddhism, Tibetan Buddhism and Japanese monks spread in the north are allowed to eat fish. When Buddhism was introduced into China, it was too late to form the characteristics of China. The vegetarian diet of Han monks was first put forward by Xiao Yan, Liang Wudi in the Southern Dynasties, more than 1400 years ago, so vegetarian diet is a unique rule for monks in the Han nationality Buddhism.
Liang Wudi Xiao Yan believed in Buddhism and abandoned it three times. Because of his familiarity with Buddhist scriptures, according to the stipulation of "no killing" in Buddhist scriptures, during his ten years in prison in Tian Jian, that is, 5 1 1 year, Liang Wudi wrote four articles, and more than 1000 monks and nuns gathered at the Fengzhuang Gate of the Palace to sing this article. It was the first time that monks and nuns were forbidden to "eat all kinds of meat", and it was strictly controlled by the coercive measures of "Wang Fa", thus forming a vegetarian system for monks in the Han Dynasty, which has been adhered to ever since. At the same time, Liang Wudi advocated vegetarianism among his subjects, stipulating that the offerings offered to the ancestors of the God of Heaven and Earth should not be sacrificed with three pig heads, but with flour. Since Liang Wudi stipulated that monks must be vegetarian, Buddhism advocated vegetarianism as the most powerful thing. Many Mahayana Buddhist classics clearly stipulate that you can't eat the meat of all sentient beings, and demonstrate the fault of eating meat from the viewpoint of karma and reincarnation, so vegetarianism has a long history. In the past, vegetarianism was often associated with fasting and chanting Buddha, and Buddhist vegetarianism was the mainstream. With the popularization of the concepts of health, environmental protection, compassion and equality, folk vegetarianism has become a fashion, even a symbol of personal elegant taste, strong modern consciousness and a city's civilization and progress. Vegetarian raw materials used to be mainly vegetables and tofu; It has been developed into extracts of soybean protein, wheat protein, konjac, edible fungi and seaweed. Vegetarians mainly eat grains, beans, vegetables, fruits, dried fruits and seeds.
The popularity of vegetarianism is mainly manifested in the popularity of individual "vegetarianism" and the rise of vegetarian restaurants everywhere. Modern vegetarian restaurants combine palace vegetarian food, Buddhist vegetarian food and vegetarian food from major folk cuisines, and even introduce many western-style food practices. There are two main sects in vegetarian restaurants. One is to imitate meat, emphasizing vivid image and "delicious taste"; The second is vegan, but it is original and innovative, and it is not necessary to use semi-finished products as much as possible. In contrast, the latter seems to be more fashionable. In order to make pure and excellent vegetarian dishes, many vegetarian restaurants often hire Buddhist vegetarian chefs; Many shopkeepers are amateurs at home. The layout of the restaurant is elegant and dedicated to the Buddha. The name of the hall and the name of the dish will choose Buddhist allusions. Buddhist music will be used in the background music, and the artifacts will also reflect Buddhist characteristics. In short, they will be close to Buddhism in overall setting and details, and at the same time, they will often circulate and help print rare books of Buddhist culture.
Modern vegetarian dishes absorb Buddhist elements more actively, inherit the Buddhist dietary tradition and cultural connotation, and combine the delicacy of palace dishes, the naturalness of folk dishes and the purity of Buddhist dishes. They are rigorous in material selection, exquisite in production, elegant in name, rich in cooking techniques, and harmonious in color, fragrance, taste, shape, spirit, food, quality, nutrition, sound and environment, and can be called "new vegetarian dishes".
In a word, vegetarianism in China has experienced various changes in concepts, materials and forms of expression. However, the kinship between "new vegetarian diet" and Buddhist culture can still be seen. Traditional vegetarian food in China can be roughly divided into four categories, namely, Buddhist vegetarian food, Taoist vegetarian food, court vegetarian food and folk vegetarian food.
Buddhism, temple vegetarian, pays attention to true colors, lightness, ingenuity and convenience; Taoist elements, pay attention to yin and yang and five elements, pure and true; Palace vegetarian dishes are vegetarian dishes, rich and elegant; Su Min, mostly seasonal wild vegetables, is simple and simple. Buddhism is pure, that is, all-vegetarian, all-vegetarian, paying attention to materials, names, shapes and tastes; Palace vegetarian dishes are generally used by emperors on important occasions such as ancestor worship and birthdays. They pay attention to vegetarian food and the name, shape and taste of meat, that is, they imitate vegetarian food into meat dishes.
Buddhism forbids meat and fishy smell, which refers to onions, garlic, leeks and so on. The fishy smell refers to live chickens, ducks, fish, shrimps, eggs, etc. The word "meat" in Buddhist scriptures is pronounced "smoked" instead of "meat", which means "smoked vegetables" and "meat stinks of vegetables". The Sanskrit says, "If Buddha can't eat five spices. Garlic, onion, onion, green onion and apricot koji are five spices, and "meat" refers to these five vegetables. Buddhism believes that eating meat dissipates popularity, destroys sincerity, is difficult to communicate with the gods, and has a smell when giving lectures to others, so it is fasting.
The motivation of vegetarianism varies from person to person, which may be based on religious beliefs, health considerations, economic factors and ecological protection concepts. Different motives make vegetarians choose different vegetarian ways. Vegetarians are mainly divided into three categories: first, vegans, also known as "strict vegetarians", mean that there are only plant foods in the diet, no animal foods, and even honey is not eaten; 2. Milk-egg vegetarian diet, also known as "non-strict vegetarian diet", refers to a vegetarian diet based on milk-egg products and plant-based foods; The third is milk vegetarian diet, which refers to a vegetarian diet that can contain dairy products and plant foods.
The main ingredients of fosu can be vegetarian, milk and egg vegetarian and milk vegetarian, but at the same time, auxiliary materials should be avoided. Some folk vegetarians are more casual, just want to change their tastes, or occasionally become vegetarian for health, weight loss or beauty reasons.