Dear readers,
This will be my last blog post for now, but I will continue publishing stories on Medium, as inspired, on topics such as mental health, spirituality, healing, anxiety, grief, death, nonviolence, compassion for animals, war, social justice, and human rights…. (Follow me there: Teja Ray Shankara.)
October 2nd is Gandhi Jayanti (the birthdate of Mohandas K. Gandhi), and it is the World Day for Farmed Animals.
Mahatma Gandhi worked hard for human rights. Simultaneously he did regular spiritual practices like sitting meditation, chanting, and studying scriptures. And, simultaneously he cared about animals and spoke out for their rights as well.
In a wonderful Hip-Hop tribute song, MC Yogi raps, “a peaceful soldier who used his mind / to fight for the rights of humankind / but not just people, animals too”…. You can enjoy the video (with footage and voice recording of Gandhi-ji) right here: “Be the Change”.
World Day for Farmed Animals is held on Gandhi’s birthday: "Since 1983, October 2 has been a designated day of mourning for the countless animal lives lost to slaughter. WDFA is a day to remember and memorialize those senselessly slaughtered, innocent beings who end up on dinner plates."
Power to the people who eat plants, not animals. May their blessings increase, and may their compassion spread like wildfire to many other humans throughout this earthly sphere.
For the Animals,
Teja Ray
Image: Michelle Mirabell on Unsplash.
