In the USA today is the Thanksgiving holiday. It is a day when families gather together and eat huge meals of meat, especially turkey.  But for me this day is the anniversary of becoming a serious vegetarian.  That happened 43 years ago.

Prior to the Thanksgiving of 1970 I had dabbled in the vegetarian diet, and was “mostly vegetarian” but I was not strict vegetarian.  I would eat vegetarian meals but if a bit of meat was offered to me I would also eat it. However, during the week before Thanksgiving I was initiated into the Ananda Marga system of meditation. Vegetarianism was strongly advised for the meditators and I understood this but did not make an immediate commitment to this diet.

When Thanksgiving came, a week into my meditation practice, I was invited to a  dinner in which there was a mix of meat eaters and vegetarians. There was the customary turkey-centered dinner and there was also a vegetarian main dish, a soy loaf. When it came time for me to choose which I was going to take, I thought about it briefly.  I thought that now that I am doing meditation I should also be more strict with my diet.

I took the soy loaf, and this choice was not only for this particular meal but it continues right up till today.  I have not had any meat since then. I feel physically and mentally fit, so I have not regrets, and I also feel good about not taking the lives of innocent animals when I eat.

Today I offer thanks that I was able to walk on this path of spirituality and its accompanying vegetarian diet.