Since we learned about food this week I thought I would make the new blog post about what kind of food one would expect to find at a Buddhist Temple.
As is known, 仏教徒 (Buddhists) はにくをたべません, as it is believed that killing sentient beings (even for food) is a violation of the Vinaya (Buddhist precepts). それから、over the centuries a lot of dishes have gained popularity amongst そうりょ (monks) and あま (nuns)。このごばんはやさいとくだものをありますよう、たまごとにくとさかなをありません。Most of these ごばん contain tofu for its nutritional value and various seasonings.
Buddhist cuisine also differs from one おくに to another, and each Buddhist sect also has different ingredients they would (or would not) use in a dish. Some Buddhist traditions that follow the Vinaya more strictly forbid the use of root vegetables (such as きゅうりandじゃがいもandたんじん) as the vegetable does not survive after its harvested and dies. It is also common to eat only one meal a day, and take the meal promptly at じゅにじ, when the sun does not cast a shadow.
Here are some examples of Buddhist dishes:
Buddha's Delight 羅漢菜
Shōjin-Ryōri しょうじんりょうり
そうりょ (monks) and あま (nuns) at a meal.
One small critique: when you give new kanji (which I really like), could you provide the hiragana pronunciation? Otherwise it's a bit hard to read (Japanese Japanese Japanese Kanji-I-can't-pronounce Japanese Japanese).
ReplyDeleteAlso, in your sentence about that ends ありますよう: are you meaning the よう to be the end particle that provides new information and/or corrects misunderstandings? If so, I'm pretty sure that's a short よ, without the う.
Other than those minor things, I really like your post! Great information! And very nice pictures; I especially like the picture of the monks.