Re:Eating for Peace: How cuisine bridges cultures
by tathougies on Friday July 06, 2018 @04:51PM
(#17474989)
Some religions consider root vegetables like onions not okay to eat, because harvesting an onion involves killing the whole plant. 'Really holy' men and women might avoid any root vegetable to further their spiritual development.
Re:Eating for Peace: How cuisine bridges cultures
by Mediterraneo10 on Saturday July 07, 2018 @08:25AM
(#17478193)
"Some religions consider root vegetables like onions not okay to eat, because harvesting an onion involves killing the whole plant."
That is only one explanation for the taboo. In certain Indian and Nepalese religious strains, it is said that the devout cannot eat onions (or garlic) because of a folk belief that these vegetables encourage lasciviousness.
Re:Eating for Peace: How cuisine bridges cultures
by gascan on Friday July 06, 2018 @03:04PM
(#17474226)
What is disgusting about tomatoes and onions? I can understand vitriol around meat, and I can imagine people who eat a lot of garlic being seen as smelly. But tomatoes and onions are healthy & fairly benign.
Re:Eating for Peace: How cuisine bridges cultures
by sithadmin on Friday July 06, 2018 @03:36PM
(#17474451)
Speaking only from experience as a third party observer to my Indian friends & colleagues eating habits: onions are often lumped into the same category of 'unpure' ingredients along with garlic. Hindu tradition holds that such things cannot be offered to Gods, and negatively impact spiritual activities. So a non-trivial number of Hindus avoid these foods. Similar lines of thinking apply to other root vegetables. Jain dietary practices also tend to avoid garlic, onion, potoato, and other root veggies for reasons that I definitely do not fully understand.
Aversion to tomato is not something I have encountered though. I suppose it's possible I just haven't noticed it.
Re:Eating for Peace: How cuisine bridges cultures
by hackujin on Friday July 06, 2018 @03:49PM
(#17474565)
Kosher Jews say the same about shellfish and pork. Calling those sources of protein quote "bottom feeders" and therefor unpure.
Re:Eating for Peace: How cuisine bridges cultures
by wavefunction on Friday July 06, 2018 @06:32PM
(#17475637)
I suspect that's a historical tradition made religious due to the fact that it's easy to get "poisonous" pork or shellfish that will kill you if not sourced or prepared correctly.
Sometimes it proves fatal when people get killed in racist attacks mainly because of their food habits.