Questioner: We have a question by Pooja. So people who try to become self-aware and you know knowledgeable of themselves. They usually became the black sheep of their families.
Question by Pooja is what can we do if our loved ones, that is spouse, parents, friends are not receptive to veganism or they do not show understanding towards animal welfare? So, what do we do?
Acharya Prashant: See, you cannot be vegan without being really spiritual. And this would ruffle a few feathers and probably hurt a few. But let me put this when you are spiritual, the first thing that you realize is that your family is not really your own.
You cannot be a vegan if you continue to be too attached to your family. You can either be a family man or really a vegan. It's a difficult choice and most people will not like the way I am putting it. They’ll say he’s turning it into an either or situation. Why can't we have both? Why must there always be this kind of conflict?
I know the arguments but I also know the truth. I see it everywhere, I see it in my own family. Just because you are a vegan that does not matter to people who will not listen. And those who won’t listen they just won’t listen and if you think too much about your family then forget about the wider family that you really belong to. Are you getting it?
There is no need to think of it as a heartbreak or something. It’s just a fact of life. You see, to be a vegan is to stand up stoutly against the pleasure principle. And if you think of the institution of family there it stands on the pleasure principle.
