“They are poisoning the dogs !!! Hurry up !!!” the shouts tore through the serene and quiet grounds of the spiritual institution. A rush of robed youth and boys with shaven heads ran out towards the football field below the prayer building.

One of the stray dogs had just gotten a piece of poisoned meat between his fangs. A young monk without hesitation, gripped the dog’s body between his legs and struggled to snatch away the meat from the snarling dog. The determined youth managed to get the meat out and threw it down the steep slope away from reach.

The risk he had taken of being attacked by the infuriated stray dog hit the young monk only much later. He had been too focused on saving the dog from an insufferable death.

This is the enlightened spirit that we all possess within each of us which makes us “human” beings. There was an article that dealt with what makes heroes – what special qualities do “heroes” possess” – according to all major spiritual traditions we “all” have this “humane-ness” within us – we are all capable of being heroes.

The Happiness of Others
We dream of a world where all children grow up with love and respect for all living beings; a world where human beings realize that genuine happiness is based on the happiness of others, not on the suffering of others.

Similarly the happiness of others does not mean that we have to lead a spartan or miserable lives ourselves – the key words are “wise selfishness”. Be selfish in the sense that we have a duty to think of our own happiness alongside that of others. But be wisely selfish, so that everybody comes out a winner.

Animal Lovers’ Planet

We dream of Animal Lovers’ Planet Centers around the world. Such centers will be parks with plenty of greenery around, a pond with fish, birds and may be some animals (depending on space availability).

In each Animal Lovers’ Planet, there will be a vegetarian food court, a training center and a museum. The food court will provide clean, hygienic and delicious variety of vegetarian dishes from various countries. There will also be dishes that are created specially by the Veggie Mamas. These will include dishes that Veggie Mamas and/or friends enjoyed during our childhood. There will be “friendship dishes” promoting peace and friendship among warring countries.

The museum will have exhibits which show the interconnectedness and interdependent nature of the universe. The exhibits will include works of art by adults and children. There will be a variety representing different cultures and countries.

The training center will include production of lively and creative books including recipes, games, magazines, posters and audio visual material for raising awareness about the importance of peaceful and happy coexistence between nature and human beings. Information material will also include what is gathered from other like minded organizations. Activities at the training center will include fun ways of learning about the importance of the concept of “our world” and how we can practice this in our everyday life. The training center will include vegetarian cookery class.

A vegetarian movement will be initiated among children and youth. We will hold interaction sessions at schools and college campus. They will be encouraged to form vegetarian clubs which can be affiliated with existing international organizations. We will have vegetarian food stalls at school/college and other events. Our vegetarian stalls/centers will always have promotional materials as hand outs (posters, cards, pamphlets) from various organizations (vegetarian and animal protection). The Veggie Mamas will also support students if they are interested in making their school cafeteria/canteen vegetarian.

More Veggie Mama Stories:
- Losing a bit of compassion
- No Mashpo Momos!!!
- The Veggie Mamas’ Dream
- My First Shot at Becoming - Vegetarian
- Mashpo Momo on the Go!
- Thank you my son
- About Veggie Mamas

Try the Mashpo Momo Recipe tonight!