How to reply to arguments that non-vegetarian food is consumed in some places due to the lack of vegetation?

[Smt. Priyanka asked: Padanamaskaram Swami, When a situation came where I had to talk about animal sacrifices in rituals and how people must kill the animal nature within them and not the animal itself, I was told by my friend that in countries like the middle east, they are supposed to kill the animal in front of everyone and cook fresh meat as an offering during rituals. It cannot be considered sinful because in those desert climates, vegetables could not be grown in their climatic and soil conditions. People had to survive with animals only as their livelihood and food. Therefore, their whole culture evolved as a heavy meat-eating culture and rituals had animal sacrifices. Swami, can You please advise me on how should I reply to such arguments in the future. At Your Divine lotus feet, Priyanka]

Swami replied:- This point is told as the climax of Pravrutti-ethics. “Ahiṃsā Paramo Dharmaḥ” meaning that non-violence is the highest justice and violence is the highest injustice. In view of such climax importance given to non-violence, it is very difficult to find out an amicable solution for the problem presented by you. You have to examine whether things are so tightly closed from all sides without any trace of alternatives. If the situation is such, we can only say that their cycle of lives is nothing but the cycle of wild animals living in the forest. If one enters such a wild-animal like cycle, the cycle continues forever and there is no salvation for such births. Even in the case of wild animals in forests, alternative vegetable food is provided by God if the souls wish to reform themselves. There must have been such alternatives in the case of these human beings, who are far far advanced than wild animals. If such alternatives are absent, we have to think that it is a part of hell on earth. Both hell and heaven exist on earth also to give the fruits of intensive bad and good deeds. Please don’t misunderstand Me that I am very rigid here about the authority of the scripture. If you stand in the place of the animal that is killed for food, you will understand the pain received by the innocent animal, thereby you can realize how much sinful the deed is.

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