Being a Vegan Is a Great Happiness | Thich Nhat Hanh (Vietnamese with English subtitles)

When we watch an animal documentary,

seeing a snake opening its mouth
to devour a frog,

we feel a lot of compassion
in our heart.

Or we see a bird

flying low
over a river's surface,

then with its two feet,

swooping up a big fish
and flying away.

Or we see a tiger chasing
after a fawn or a bunny.

It's clear that in life,
there are sufferings.

When we see a tiger
biting a fawn's neck,

the fawn is very gentle,

very beautiful,

we feel a lot of compassion
in our heart.

However, we know that

this lion or this tiger
has no choice

other than

biting the fawn's neck

because it also...

because it also needs to live.

If we have understanding,

not only do we have compassion
for the fate

of that gentle and beautiful fawn,

we also have compassion
for the tiger

because it's forced to kill this fawn
to eat and survive.

These animals,

these fierce animals,

they have to hunt.

But they have something
different than humans,

which is they only hunt
when they're hungry.

But humans hunt
even when they're not hungry.

They hunt for fun.

Even if we have already

had enough money
to feed ourselves and our family,

we still "hunt".

We want to get richer and richer.

And when we want a lot of riches,

we exploit.

We exploit more and more.

We exploit people.
We exploit the marketplace.

We inflict sufferings
on other living beings.

Because we humans
are not easily pleased,

not easily satisfied

like a tiger

or a lion.

When a tiger's or a lion's hunger
is satisfied,

they will let go of the rest of their meal
so other animals can polish it off.

But we humans don't let go.

We keep it all to ourselves.

Even when we're full and satisfied,
we still hunt.

But who are we?

We are traders.

We are businesspeople.

We never stop and rest on the path

of searching for profits and riches.

And for that reason,
the cruelty of humans,

compared to that
of a tiger or a lion,

is great.

If not a hundred
or a thousand times greater.

We're all...

We're all hunters.

We never grow tired of hunting.

And we've created hells
everywhere around the world.

We've caused oppression,
and injustice,

manipulated the society,
and ruined the environment

because we are insatiable hunters,

no holds barred.

But that tiger,
or that lion,

only hunts enough food
for the day.

So

while looking deeply,

we feel compassion towards that fawn,

that bunny,

or that fry.

But at the same time, we also feel compassion towards that snake

and

that lion

because

they have no choice

other than killing.

While sitting and eating,

say, a piece of carrot,

a piece of tomato,

or a string bean,

we feel overjoyed because

we don't have to hunt
like that tiger

having to sink its jaws
into the neck of a fawn

to satisfy our hunger.

We don't have to gulp a frog

down our stomach.

And more importantly,
we don't have to act like a hunter

of mankind

meaning businesspeople.

They hunt all night and day,
even in their sleep,

in search of more and more riches,

while creating more social injustice

and creating more pollution.

We have the happiness

of being a vegan.

If we know how to eat wisely, we'll have
enough nutrients with just little on our plate.

Eat in such a way

that we keep compassion
alive in our heart

and that we can allow our compassion
to grow every day.

While sitting and eating,
we can feel very happy.

Many want to be like us
but cannot.

Some people

they

have to cut the neck of a chicken.

And now,
as we sit here looking deeply,

around the world,

at this moment,

there are those who are securing chickens' heads
to cut their necks.

This has been happening
everywhere around the world.

At slaughterhouses,

they beat...

They are...

killing

cattle,

pigs,

and chickens.

If you have already
visited a slaughterhouse

and witnessed the way

people kill chickens

and cows,

perhaps

more than certainly,

you will no longer be able
to eat meat.

Some cows,

after being showered
and shoved into a tunnel,

can sense their death.

They know
they're entering their deathplace.

They don't want to move forward

but the one behind
pushes the one in front.

And some cows are seen crying
with two streams of tears running down.

They know their fate will end in just
a matter of seconds.

If we can see those tears,

we can no longer bring ourselves
to eat a piece of beef.

When we sit and eat
with the sangha,

if we can contemplate
and touch this reality,

seeing a snake

swallowing

a frog,

seeing a lion

sinking its teeth into a fawn,

we will immediately feel
very blessed

for being able to eat food

that's this simple

and yet this delicious.

It's such a great happiness.

And whom is that happiness for?

Is it a selfish kind of happiness?

If we cannot be nourished
with this kind of happiness,

what can we do for anyone else?

If we're not happy,

we can never share happiness
with anyone.

So happiness in the present moment
is very essential for us.

It's thanks to this kind of happiness

that we're propelled
to do something,

to avoid doing the things

that create more suffering
in the world.