The meat of the matter as a modern vegetarian

The meat of the matter as a modern vegetarian

T. Sima Gunawan, Contributor, Jakarta

Most of the time, Mary brings her own lunch to the office. It's
not so much a choice as a requirement -- she is a vegetarian and
there is no nearby food outlet offering something she can eat.

"I don't want to eat ketoprak (fried bean curd mixed with bean
sprouts and rice vermicelli in peanut sauce), and gado-gado
(vegetable salad with peanut sauce) all the time," she said.

When she does not bring her own lunchbox, she will go out with
her colleagues, who agree to compromise by eating at a restaurant
where there are some vegetarian choices.

"In the beginning, they were very surprised to know that I am
vegetarian, but they could understand," she said.

Mary, 34, decided to become a vegetarian in 1996 after a
friend gave her a book about vegetarianism, which she found
really "made sense".

She had read a lot of news about the connection between diets
high in animal products and many "modern" diseases.

Determined to become healthier, Mary, who lives with her
parents, decided to adopt vegetarianism.

"My parents, especially my mother, strongly opposed my
decision. They were afraid that in being a vegetarian, I would
suffer from nutritional deficiency."

She has felt many positive changes in her life since becoming
a vegetarian. Not only does she feel that she is more resistant
to common diseases, but she also has more compassion to animals
and people in going about her life.

Still, she also has to battle common misconceptions about
vegetarians -- that they are strange, weak, overly sensitive
individuals who have latched onto an "alternative" lifestyle to
somehow make themselves feel superior to others.

"I have to show others that being vegetarian, I can also
achieve more," she said about her work performance.

Lacto-ovo vegetarians do not eat meat but include milk and
eggs, with beans, tempeh and other legumes recommended as protein
substitutes. Vegans cut out eggs and other animal products, while
fruitarians -- the strictest of all -- eat a diet primarily
focused on fruit and vegetables.

It used to be that people became vegetarian due to religous
proscriptions or spiritual reasons, such as for Buddhists to
develop greater compassion for the world, but an increasing
number of "converts" are concerned about their health and the
environment.

Suwandi, 28, who works in an IT consultancy on Jl. Gatot
Subroto, Central Jakarta, acknowledged it was difficult being a
vegetarian due to temptations in the immediate environment and
the lack of vegetarian choices.

"I am the only one in the family and also in the office who is
vegetarian. My friends often joke that why did I become a
vegetarian while there are so many delicious foods out there,"
said Suwandi, who leads a vegetarian life for both health and
spiritual reasons.

"Vegetarian food can also be delicious, depending on how you
prepare it," he said, adding that his favorites were vegetarian
meals made from gluten but cooked to resemble rendang (sauteed
beef), beef steak, fried chicken and shark's fin soup.

Like Mary, he usually opts to bring his own meals to work.

"This morning I had cereal, cornflakes and some bread at home.
For lunch, today's menu is ham, potatoes and tuna fish. Sounds
delicious, doesn't it?" he said with a laugh.

Unlike Mary, who went cold turkey in switching to
vegetarianism, it took Suwandi three months to gradually
eliminate meat from his diet.

All agreed that vegetarianism has to be a personal choice, and
cannot be imposed or influenced by others.

Willy Wibowo, 27, the operational manager of a vegetarian
restaurant in the city, said that it took him a couple of years
before he could follow his parents and elder brother into pure
vegetarianism.

"I used to eat anything. I only ate vegetarian food
occasionally because even though I am a Buddhist, not all
Buddhist sects require the followers to become one," he said.

About four years ago, he tried to regularly eat vegetarian
food, and he found that he felt healthier and did not suffer
gastric problems as often as before. He ate more vegetarian food,
but did not completely exclude "normal" food.

"Starting last year, I have become a pure vegetarian," he said
proudly.

Links: International Vegetarian Union (http://www.ivu.org),
which was established in 1908 in Dresden, Germany; Supreme Master
Chinghai Indonesia, a member of the Taiwan-based Supreme Master
Chinghai (http://www.chinghai.com).