Dear all,
We hope that you are all experiencing a spiritually uplifting Paryushan, and are getting time to introspect, forgive and perform penance of some kind.
Fantastic response to the Jain Vegans paryushan campaign
So far, the response to the Jain Vegans campaign to encourage members of the Jain community to give up dairy products this paryushana has been fantastic, with many people pledging to give up dairy for the month, and the campaign spreading through social media all over the world. The Jain Samaj Ahimsa Magazine has put one of our infographics at the top of its latest newsletter (with a readership of 100,000 around the world), and the campaign has also gained the attention of the traditional print media - reaching yesterday's Hindustan Times Mumbai, allbeit with a couple of factual inaccuracies!
Opportunity to learn Jainism from Pravinbhai Shah (vegan for 17 years)
Those attending the Paryushana activities organised by Jain Network and Young Jains this week will have had the fortune to have listened to lectures on Jainism with Pravinbhai Shah. Pravinbhai is chair of the JAINA Education Committee and the Jain e-library project, and is very skilled at explaining complex topics in Jain dharma and answering difficult questions that young people often have. He has also been a vegan for over 17 years, and has done a great deal of work raising awareness about the cruelty inflicted on cows in dairy production, and published 'The Book of Compassion' along with Pramodaben Chitrabhanu.
There are still opportunities to see Pravinbhai Speak at the Jain Centre in Colindale, the current schedule is as follows:
On Saturday 07th Sept:-
3pm to 5pm - Lecture in English on "What is Karma?" Pravinbhai will talk about the philosophy of Karma - tattvas.
7pm to 8pm - Application of Karma philosophy in daily life On Sunday 08th Sept:-
3pm to 5pm - Lecture in English on Jain Cosmology
7pm to 8pm - "The 14 step ladder to liberation" Pravinbhai will talk about the 14 Gunsthanak
For the latest updates to the schedule, please check the Young Jain's Facebook Event Page.
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1. Presentation on health/nutrition with Dr. Jina Shah - Sunday 22 September The Jain Vegans Working Group is delighted to announce that Dr . Jina Shah, a california-based physician and vegan Jain (who also runs www . veganjains . com), is visiting the UK and has very kindly offered to advise the UK Jain community on issues related to vegan health and nutrition.
Jina will deliver a short presentation on important issues related to vegan/vegetarian health, which will be followed by a roundtable discussion where everyone attending will get the chance to ask questions, and a social dinner at Loving Hut in Edgware (see below)
In order to ensure the event is as effective as possible, we ask everyone attending to fills out a short survey, so that Jina understands the audience and the issues they wish to discuss.
Possible topics for discussion include:
- Is it possible to live a long and healthy live on a vegan diet?
- Is milk necessary for health?
- Where do vegans get their calcium from?
- Is soya good or bad for health?
- General tips for good health
- Vitamin D, Iodine and Vitamin B12
You can see some clips of Jina speaking on her Vegan Health Nutrition via the Vegan Jains website (Profile of Jina, Caclium, Protein and B12 and Talk on the Ahimsak Diet at the Jain Centre of Northern California).
The event will be free for members of the Vegan Society (membership only costs £21 a year and includes a subscription to the fantastic Vegan Society Magazine which is published 4 times a year), but we ask non-members to make a minimum £5 donation the Vegan Society when signing up. You can donate online via the Vegan Society website, or simply text 'VEGN44 £5' to 70070.
Spaces are very limited for the event, and spaces will be allocated on a first come first serve basis. To sign up, please click here to fill out the signup form / survey .
(Note: if you would like to sign up multiple individuals - please fill out a separate form for each person attending).
Date: Sunday 22 September
Time: 4pm - 6:30pm
Location: Edgware (details to be confirmed after signing up)
For further information about the event, please e-mail | | |
2. Jain Vegans Social Dinner - Sunday 22 September 7pm Following the health event with Dr. Jina Shah, we would like all members of the Jain Vegans community to attend a social dinner, most likely at the Loving Hut Vegan Restaurant in Edgware, starting at 7pm.
If you would like to attend the event, please e-mail | | |
3. Upcoming UK / European based vegan-related events VegfestUK London, Saturday 5th & Sunday 6th October
Further details: www . vegfest . co . uk
Paris Vegan Day, Saturday 12th October
Further details: www . facebook . com/pages/Paris-Vegan-Days/174580412589850
East Midlands Vegan Festival (Lincoln), Saturday 12th October
Further details: www . eastmidlandsveganfestival . co . uk
Live A Better Life (Liverpool), Saturday 19th October
Further details: www . ethicsandhealth . org . uk/LABL_Fair_Liverpool.html
Animal Aid School Speaker Cookery Demonstration (London), Saturday 19 October
To book your place or further information, contact Animal Aid.
West Midlands Vegan Festival (Wolverhampton), Saturday 26th October
Further details: www . midlandsveganfestival . org . uk
North East Vegan Festival (Sunderland), Sunday 17th November
Further details: www . northeastveganfestival . co . uk
Animal Aid's Christmas Fayre (Kensington Town Hall, London), Sunday 8th December
Further details: www . animalaid . org . uk/h/n/NEWS/news_living//2724// | | |
4. It's not too late start giving up dairy products.... Paryushan, the Jain festival of penance and forgiveness will begin in a few weeks. During the festival, followers of the Jain faith traditionally fast, repent, and forgive. For lay members, fasting often entails avoiding activities that are traditionally thought to cause more himsa than others, such as eating root vegetables or eating after sunset. As someone who has come across the activities of the Jain Vegans Working Group, you will be aware of how our consumption of dairy (organic or conventional) leads to the immense suffering and murder of innocent cows. - Dairy cows are forcefully impregnated by means of artificial insemination to stimulate milk production.
- Calves are immediately separated from their mothers at birth.
- Male calves are slaughtered soon after birth or sold on to be reared for veal or beef (they are of no other value to a dairy farmer)
- Dairy cows will normally get slaughtered before the age of 7, even though they could live up to 20 years if given the chance. This is because her milk yield drop, and it is not does not make financial sense for a farmer to keep her alive when he is able to obtain milk from her younger (and more productive) daughters.
In light of this all, it seems reasonable that during Paryushan we as Jains should acknowledge and reflect on the suffering we have imposed on cows as a result of our consumption of dairy products. Paryushan offers a perfect time to reflect on the actions we undertake in our daily lives and to make changes to our dietary habits. So, in addition to the other activities you undertake, why not consider giving up dairy products this Paryushan?
If you believe giving up dairy products this Paryushan is a good idea, please help spread the word. Kindly forward this email on to friends and family, or spread this weblink via Facebook or Twitter. Please how you get along, and also consider making this image your Facebook cover picture. | | |
5. Alternatives to dairy to help you give up It is possible to get a range of dairy free alternatives to traditionally animal based products. Normally available from free-from sections of supermarkets and also from healthfood stores. - Cow milk with Soya/Rice/Almond/Coconut Milk (Supermarket ownbrands, Alpro, Provamel, Bonsoy, So Good, Ecomil, Koko)
- Yoghurt / Dahi with plant based curds (Provamel, Alpro, Sojade)
- Butter with vegetable spreads (Pure and Vitalite are commonly available from supermarkets. Note many margarines contain butter milk and thus are not suitable for vegans)
- Cheese / Paneer with Dairy Free Cheeses (Tofu, Redwoods Cheezly,Scheese,Tofutti, Vegusto, Vegourmet)
- Ice Creams with sorbets or dairy free ice creams (Rice Dream,Swedish Glace,Tofutti, Booja Booja, Worthenshaws)
- Chocolate with dark chocolate (Plamil and Organica do specialist dairy free ‘milk chocolate’ and many brands do vegan dark chocolate)
- Eggs with egg replacement powder (baking) or tofu (scrambled)
- Honey with fruit syrup or golden syrup
For further listings of animal free products, please see the Vegan Society Animal Free Shopper online database: http ://www . vegansociety . com/afssearch . aspx | | |
6. About Jain Vegans Jain Vegans (www . jainvegans . org) was established in 2008 to support Jains in the transition towards a low-himsa lifestyle, largely in response to the abuse and violation of cows in milk production. Though we are not formally established as an organisation, we organise regular events and workshops on a plant-based lifestyle | | |
