Would you consider bird's nest vegetarian?
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Hi folks. I had a discussion with a friend today regarding whether or not to consider bird's nest ( 燕� ) a vegetarian food.
For those who are not familiar with this food that many Chinese consider a delicacy and health tonic, I shall simply explain that it is the solidified saliva of swallows, which is formed when they build nests.
We disagreed that it is vegetarian for the following reasons:
1. It comes from the saliva of swallows that eat worms and insects. My friend's opinion is that the saliva regurgitated is far from "pure" and scarcely vegetarian for this reason.
2. I feel that it is cruel to snatch from the birds what was meant to be their nest. By "harvesting" bird's nest, we are effectively robbing them of their home and the place wherein they were meant to lay eggs and procreate.
3. When the swallows are depleted of their saliva, they start to spit out even their blood to build nests. They are in effect forced to spit blood because all their previous nests were taken away by humans, and by then they already have very little saliva left. If even this nest is taken away, death is certain for them after they make one final attempt to reconstruct a place for nesting. Yet, many consider this variety of bloody bird's nest 血燕 the most prized.
Then, my friend actually rang up some local vegetarian restaurants to seek their opinion (yes, yes... very serious discussion
) and was in no uncertain terms told that bird's nest cannot be considered a vegetarian food. What do you think? Any further thoughts/opinions on this?
Can bird's nest be made as an offering to monks who have taken the precept to maintain a vegetarian diet?
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solid... I agreed with your points. I don't think it is appropriate to offer the Sangha bird nest too.
The same goes to harvesting honey from bees. It hurts the bee colonies. e.g. depriving them of sufficient honey etc..
There's a simple guideline which I find it useful for me. If you cannot protect a sentient being, at least don't hurt it
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I see. I also think that bird's nest is not vegetarian. Just like cordyseps which is not vegetarian. I'd heard from friends that it is better not to consume milk as it is also not "not very vegetarian" but I take milk during those days when I'm a vegetarian.