kyburg: (Default)
[personal profile] kyburg
I work with a number of native Indian people who belong to the Jain religious group - one of them being very active in his community (you can see his work for their website at http://www.jaincenter.net).

He told me yesterday that their temple provides a very useful, free resource every weekend - they provide a free clinic, staffed by their members every Sunday. Most weekends, there is only one or two doctors there, but on April 2nd, they are hosting a fair and will have just about every practice represented. Dentists, physicians, etc. and they will have mammography, x-ray, blood testing available - ALL FREE.

To put your mind at ease, these are licensed, board-certified professionals who are simply donating their time.

(I need to talk to Narendra about the http://www.jainclinic.org site - it's present, but too sketchy to be of much use. It does provide the address and phone number - 8072, Commonwealth Ave, Buena Park CA 90621, but does not give many other details.)

To be short, Jainism is a religion that grew out of Hinduism shortly after Buddhism began, and shares many of the same characteristics - they are very strict vegans, with some additional modifications. They are so pro-life, they won't crack an egg to feed themselves! They are also some of the sweetest people I've ever met.

Immunizations, just about anything you think you might need and might have been putting off - April 2nd is only the big fair, but they can schedule when someone is present any weekend in the clinic.

Date: 2005-03-30 04:14 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] odiedragon.livejournal.com
Man I need something like that right now :(

Date: 2005-03-30 07:45 pm (UTC)
ext_20420: (Default)
From: [identity profile] kyburg.livejournal.com
Yanno, you could drop them an email and ask them for someone local. If they know of any resources close to you, I think they'd tell you -

Strict veganism

Date: 2005-03-30 04:19 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] cyclometh.livejournal.com
How do they reconcile the fact that as medical professionals, much of the work they do and the medications they presribe are based on animal research or were tested upon animals? That seems at odds with the idea of being extremely pro-life.

I've never understood the idea of veganism, to be honest. Vegetarianism is one thing, but veganism has never seemed supportable to me.

Re: Strict veganism

Date: 2005-03-30 07:39 pm (UTC)
ext_20420: (Default)
From: [identity profile] kyburg.livejournal.com
I would imagine they pray about it. These folks pray a LOT.

Every Thanksgiving? Massive prayer events at temples for all the turkeys served as dinner that day. No joke.
ext_20420: (hungry)
From: [identity profile] kyburg.livejournal.com
Jains are also proscribed from eating broccoli and calliflower - because in its original culture, those vegetables harbored insects as a matter of course, and to eat them, one would either kill or eat many of them.

They are also proscribed from eating onions or garlic - too intense. And for some reason, potatoes are also off the list.

I was once told that if you swallowed an amoeba in water, you couldn't help it, so it was a given - but they're pretty strict. REALLY.
From: [identity profile] cyclometh.livejournal.com
Wild. Of course, our bodies destroy all kinds of living things, including stuff produced by or eaten.

The influenza virus and the e. coli bacteria are both "alive".

Ah well. It sounds like a decent philosophy, assuming they can reconcile their heavily pro-life stance with reality. Goodness knows we could use some more respect for life in general around this planet.
From: [identity profile] poetpaladin.livejournal.com
They reconcile quite well. It's more about avoiding causing unnecessary suffering. Certainly the car they are driving could possibly run over a cockroach, or a bug hit a windshield.
ext_20420: (Default)
From: [identity profile] kyburg.livejournal.com
Even so. Narendra told me the other day they do not even have meals after dark because of the insects it would draw - and could possibly affect.

That's also why his house does not have any - ANY - exterior lighting. Not even a porchlight.

It's impressive - even thought I don't think I could meet all the criteria.
From: [identity profile] poetpaladin.livejournal.com
There are levels and levels of observance. Just as I know of Muslims who drink alcohol and Jews who eat pork. :)

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