Or when the French eat horse.
It seems to me that one’s level of spiritual awareness, and our collective level of civilization, can be measured - or betrayed - through our treatment of animals.
I’ve got no problem with people eating meat - I eat meat myself. But I think there really are spiritual issues involved - and I believe that eventually Humans will probably, largely, stop eating warm-blooded meat, if only for health reasons.
But when it comes to horses and dogs: civilization was built upon the backs of horses; and dogs have been man’s partner in survival almost forever. We should honor these particular animals especially. Not eating them is a way of honoring them.
It’s not for the animals’ sakes, so much as for ourselves, and our own edification. It’s a sign of understanding, and a kind of aesthetic.
-JT