Animals Quote by Will Tuttle
““Confronted with the problems that characterize our herding culture, we are perhaps like the metaphorical man wounded by an arrow that the Buddha discussed with his students. He said that the man would be foolish if he tried to discover who shot the arrow, why he shot it, where he was when he shot it, and so forth, before having the arrow removed and the wound treated, lest he bleed to death attempting to get his questions answered. We, likewise, can all remove the arrow and treat the wound of eating animal foods right now. We don't need to know the whole history. We can easily see it is cruel and that it is unnecessary; whatever people have done in the past, we are not obligated to imitate them if it is based on delusion. Perhaps in the past people thought they needed to enslave animals and people to survive, and that the cruelty involved in it was somehow allowed them. It's obviously not necessary for us today, as we can plainly see by walking into any grocery store, and the sooner we can awaken from the thrall of the obsolete mythos that we are predatory by nature, the sooner we'll be able to evolve spiritually and discover and fulfill our purpose on this earth.””
About This Quote
Source Speech: Vegan Ethics Talk, 2020
Focusing on immediate suffering of animal consumption is more urgent than debating historical origins; we can act now to reduce cruelty.
In simple terms: Act now against animal cruelty without needing full history.
Prioritize present compassion over past justifications.
Themes
Mood
Type
When to use this quote
- grocery shopping
- restaurant choices
- personal diet planning
- activism campaigns
Key Concepts
Questions to Reflect On
- What immediate steps can you take to reduce animal product consumption?
- How does focusing on present suffering change your ethical priorities?
Ignoring cultural traditions may cause resistance; change can be slow.