Cannibalism
Cannibalism is the practice of eating others from the same species e.g. a snake eating another snake or a fish eating another fish. This practice is prevalent in many animal species e.g. sloth bear, salamander, hippos. Even some humans do it. Cannibalism is wide-spread on earth, in water, and air. Animals in every corner of the earth, eat others.
- Some animals eat their children. Some insects eat their mother either partially or as a whole, an act called Matriphagy. An embryo may eat other embryos or unfertilized eggs.
- In sexual cannibalism, the spider eats its mating partner during or after mating.
- There is sizewise cannibalism. Filial cannibalism is a practice of eating own's offsprings either live or dead.
- Eating someone from the community is endocannibalism. Exocannibalism is eating someone who is from another community.
- Ouroboros is a process in which an animal eats itself e.g. a snake starting to eat itself from its tail. Autocannibalism is the practice of eating someone's own body.
- Placentophagy is still in use in humans as well as animals.
- Herbivores may occasionally indulge in cannabilism.
Cannibalism may be a way to have fewer competitors, get better nutrition, and promote the survival of the fittest.
The practice of cannibalism can transfer diseases.
Some think that it can cure some diseases, increases immunity, and keeps souls of the dead in consumers.
Some animals have defense mechanisms against cannibalism e.g. vivipary.
Animals have an instinct to eat, defend themselves, and reproduce. I think they don't have an instinct to attack others or do violence. They eat when they're hungry. To eat, animals have to go out, find food, run after it, and make efforts to hold and kill it. They usually do not keep the remaining leftovers and do not hoard. They do not unnecessarily kill others. Some animals do fight with each other to get females or offsprings and to get power, but again their intention is not to kill. Self-cannibalism is an example that animals eat whatever they find and whenever they are hungry. They do not understand that they are eating themselves.
Humans raise plants and then eat their fruits, take their stems, leaves, etc. and then finally cut the whole plant.Humans plant trees to get food and other benefits. They raise animals to kill them. Here, the intention is to live and eat, but it has gone beyond what is needed to survive. Humans waste food. These days they do not even give leftovers to animals. They take the leftover food and throw it away.
Humans hunt for pleasure. They kill plants and animals to decorate their house and other public places. They kill to make luxuries like jackets, wallets, purses, furniture. Humans artificially enhance the growth of plants and animals for the final goal of killing. Is not all this adharmic? How is this more dharmic than what animals do? Is not Matsa Nyay, in which the strongest gets a chance to live and reproduce, better than this?
Bharti Raizada
