V

Valuing Nature
In a provocative 1997 article for the journal Nature, Robert Costanza and 12 colleagues calculated that the Earths ecological systems and natural resources contributed ecological services valued at an average of U.S. $33 trillion per year. The calculations included all renewable ecosystem services but excluded non-renewable resources, such as fuels and minerals. In their valuing of nature, Costanza et al. attempted to be comprehensive, estimating and including values for ecological services that are excluded by market processes but nonetheless provide important benets. Their estimations of value even included aesthetic and spiritual services provided by nature. In their article, the Costanza group admitted there are many conceptual and empirical problems inherent in producing such an estimate (253). However, they also noted that whenever humans make decisions about ecosystems, we are inevitably making decisions about the value of nature, even if only implicitly. Thus, for Costanza et al., it is important to determine explicitly the monetary value of nature for public policy making, despite the difculties with such nancial calculations. Most contemporary religions also afrm the importance of valuing nature. Such perspectives from religions could also validate the work of Costanza et al. to ascertain nancial values for public policy making. Yet, from the perspective of contemporary religions, the assignment of nancial worth cannot adequately capture the full value of nature. For example, how is it possible to assign a nancial value for spiritual ecoservices provided by nature? Rather, nancial valuing of nature would be subsumed under a broader, overarching valuation. In the creation story of Genesis 1 which is shared as sacred scripture by the three Abrahamic traditions of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam God follows a pattern of creating, then seeing and judging that what has been created is good. The chapter concludes with Gods nal evaluation: God saw everything that he had made, and indeed, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day (Gen. 1:31, NRSV) Thus, from the perspective of the Abrahamic traditions, creation is valued because God has judged it good. Despite this scriptural warrant that nature is to be valued, Christianity especially the Western Christianity of Roman Catholicism and Protestantism has been harshly criticized for devaluing nature. Representative of this critical view is the essay, The Historical Roots of Our Ecologic Crisis, by Lynn White, Jr. In this 1967 essay, White acknowledges that, historically, humans have always modied their environment for their own benet. While this power was limited in the past, White argues that twentieth-century humans now have the scientic and technological power radically to transform ecological systems. This profound power appears to be out of control, and Christianity bears a huge burden of guilt for the ecological damage incurred, since it has been the dominant cultural paradigm where science and technology have experienced rapid advances. White bases his contention on the foundational assumption that humans attitudes toward nature derive from their religious beliefs and perspective. He observes: What people do about their ecology depends on what they think about themselves in relation to things around them . . . that is, by religion (19). As we have seen, the creation story in Genesis 1 appears to value nature highly. Yet, White observes that this creation story also elevates humans above the rest of creation in a monarchical role, when it claims that humans are created in the image of God.
Then God said, Let us make humankind in our image, according to our likeness; and let them have dominion over the sh of the sea, and over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the wild animals of the Earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps upon the Earth (Gen. 1:26, NRSV).

White claims that this elevation of humanity serves to devalue the rest of creation, thus giving humans an implicit permission to degrade the environment as they please. As White observes, Christianity . . . not only established a dualism of man and nature but also insisted that it is Gods will that man exploit nature for his proper ends (18). There are some obvious aws in the harsh critique of Christianity represented by White. For instance, if Western Christianity is the principal factor creating attitudes that devalue nature and lead to its degradation, then logically we would not expect ecological crises to occur in areas informed by other cultural paradigms. Unfortunately, this is not the case and other areas that are not predominantly Christian have also had ecological crises. Despite such aws in the position represented by White, many Christian thinkers have taken the broad criticism seriously. In his book, The Travail of Nature, Paul Santmire

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van der Post, Laurens earned him a knighthood and the honor of Commander of the British Empire. Sir Laurens spent the 1930s writing and farming in England and his rst book, In a Province, was pioneering in its dealing with the tragedy of apartheid. After the outbreak of World War II, he enlisted in the British Army and served until 1942 in Abyssinia, Syria and Southeast Asia, where he was then captured by the Japanese Army on the island of Java. During the ensuing three and a half years in a prisoner-of-war camp, he was instrumental in organizing extensive educational efforts among his fellow prisoners. The experiences of this camp were described in his two books, The Seed and the Sower (later made into the lm, Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence) and The Night of the New Moon. All told, Sir Laurens wrote more than two dozen novels, along with countless short stories, memoirs and essays dealing with psychology, the nature of prejudice and good and evil, the environment and the importance of story in our lives. One of his many talents was the ability to weave these themes together into one and the same character or work, for example in his telling of the Bushmen stories in ways that illustrate basic human psychology and inspire a love for nature. The best known of his books are The Lost World of the Kalahari and The Heart of the Hunter. He also made numerous lms for the BBC, including All Africa Within Us and Jung and the Story of our Time. His encounter and ensuing friendship with the Swiss psychiatrist Carl Gustav Jung shortly after his return from the war was decisive and marked the beginning of his striving to understand outer and inner nature, macrocosm and microcosm. He combined Jungs philosophy with his own that had been formed from his African and Asian jungle experiences, and shared it widely with readers, viewers and friends for the rest of his life.
As a result of talking to Jung about the Africa I had within myself, I was re-conrmed into a new area of the human spirit which had been singularly mine intuitively ever since I was born. Nothing seemed to me more wonderful than the prophetic observation by Sir Thomas Browne, the intuitive alchemist gure of Norwich in the Elizabethan age: We seek the wonders without that we carry within we have all Africa and its wonders within us (van der Post 1998: 311).

provides one of the most thoughtful treatments of Whites thesis. Santmire argues that there are two competing theological motifs present throughout the historical development of Christian thought. On the one hand, Santmire nds an ecological motif that grounds a strong stewardship ethic calling upon Christians to care for Gods creation. Yet, on the other hand, Santmire also nds evidence for a spiritual motif that emphasizes a spiritual salvation in such a manner that the physical environment becomes signicantly less important. If not properly balanced by the ecological motif, the spiritual motif could indeed justify a boundless exploitation and degradation of the environment as White claims for Western Christianity. Santmire argues that both of these theological motifs are present throughout the historical development of Christianity, and that they may even be simultaneously present in the same theologian or theological concept. Our rather close examination of Western Christianity suggests that there is a diversity of perspectives on the value of nature. Whereas most religions would afrm the importance of the ecological services provided by nature, many religions would assert that the value of nature extends beyond and subsumes a mere nancial accounting. For Christianity, the value of nature occurs because God created and saw that it was good. Yet within Western Christianity, there can be profound disagreement as to what the implications of valuing nature mean for faith and life. Richard O. Randolph Further Reading Costanza, Robert, et al. The Value of the Worlds Ecosystem Service and Natural Capital. Nature 387 (15 May 1997), 25360. Santmire, Paul. The Travail of Nature, The Ambiguous Ecological Promise of Christian Theology. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 1985. White, Jr., Lynn, The Historical Roots of Our Ecologic Crisis. Science 155 (1967), 12037. Reprinted in Louis P. Pojman, ed., Environmental Ethics, Readings in Theory and Application (2nd edn). Belmont, California: Wadsworth Publishing Company, 1998. See also: Christianity (various); Economics; Environmental Ethics; White, Lynn Thesis of.

van der Post, Laurens (19061996)

Sir Laurens Jan van der Post was born in the Orange Free State of South Africa on 13 December 1906 and he died shortly after his 90th birthday in London. His was a life of travel to the far reaches of the Earth, an Earth he loved and fought hard to preserve: his long and creative life as a soldier, journalist, author, explorer and conservationist

Sir Laurens lived his life with passion, and one of his greatest passions was the preservation of the Earth, our environment. Gifted storyteller that he was, he spent much of his time and energy in the last years of his life telling stories about the creatures of the Earth and pleading that more attention be given to our environment. He freely shared his views with gatherings of people large and small, in interviews and in his books and other writings. In an

Vegetarianism and Buddhism interview conducted for Earth Day in 1990, he responded to a question about why it is more important today than ever for people to experience nature and wildlife rsthand, a primary goal of an organization he championed, The Wilderness Foundation:
We are trying to conserve the spirit of the conservationist in people . . . If you keep the Earth as close to the initial blueprint of creation as you can, and you bring a person into contact with it, a person who is not whole, from a lopsided society, poof, that person changes. Ive never known it to fail. Problem children, all sorts of people who have lost their way in life, once theyve had this experience, theyre different (van der Post 1998: 311).

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In his 1985 essay entitled, Wilderness A Way of Truth, he wrote:

Some of our scientists talk about managing wilderness and this worries me a bit. It is like saying they want to control revelation. But the moment you try to control it, there is no revelation . . . We try to give it elaborate denitions, but we all know what wilderness really is, because we have it inside ourselves. We know it is a world in which every bit of nature counts and is important to us, and we know when it is not there (van der Post 1985: 47).

Sir Laurens spent the nal decades of his life not only continuing to write both ction and historical pieces, but also speaking widely throughout the world promoting the importance of nature and our environment. Robert Hinshaw Further Reading van der Post, Laurens. Introduction: A Word from Laurens van der Post. In Robert Hinshaw, ed. The Rock Rabbit and the Rainbow: Laurens van der Post Among Friends. Einsiedeln: Daimon, 1998. van der Post, Laurens. Wilderness A Way of Truth. In Robert Hinshaw, ed. A Testament to the Wilderness. Zurich: Daimon, 1985, 47. See also: Prince Charles; Wilderness Religion; World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF).

Vegetarianism and Buddhism

Buddhist outlooks toward the eating of meat vary by historical periods and traditions, and they often reect the inuence of local cultural practices and social ethoses. Generally speaking, Buddhist attitudes toward animals are shaped by the ethical principle of non-injury to others

(ahimsa), and by the virtues of compassion, respect, and love that extend toward all beings. The principle of noninjury was shared by Buddhism and other religious traditions in ancient India, and is a core ethical virtue of Indian religions. Its importance in Buddhism can be seen from the fact that the rst of the Five Precepts which dene the ethical foundation of Buddhist life and serve as the basis for other forms of spiritual cultivation is the injunction not to kill any living creatures. While Buddhist texts and leaders often try to discourage the killing of animals, in actual practice there is a wide range of attitudes toward the practice of vegetarianism among different Buddhist groups and traditions, ranging from strict adherence to vegetarian diets to conspicuous consumption of meat by the clergy. The texts of the monastic code of discipline, the Vinaya, indicate that the early monastic order did not adopt a strictly vegetarian diet. According to these sources Buddhist monks were allowed to eat meat provided it was pure by fullling three requirements: that a monk who is given a meat dish has not heard, seen, or become suspicious that the animal was specically killed for him. Monks were of course prohibited from killing animals, or even small creatures that might reside in water used by them. Because for their food they relied on alms received from the faithful, monks were supposed to eat whatever they were offered while practicing detachment from the sensual pleasures associated with eating. In the Vinaya there is also the story of the Buddhas refusal to make vegetarianism compulsory for all monks, when that was proposed by his evil cousin Devadatta as part of a request to institute a range of new rules initiated by him in order to create schism within the monastic community. While monks were absolved from any transgression if they consumed meat that fullled the three requirements, in early Buddhism, killing of animals was regarded as an unwholesome act and was proscribed by Buddhist moral values. It was believed that for lay people the killing of animals brought about negative karmic consequences, while the sparing of animal lives became a cherished Buddhist ideal. The positive regard of animals was reinforced by Jataka stories, which depict previous lives of the Buddha. In a number of these stories the Buddha is depicted as being reborn in a previous lifetime as an animal, and noble feelings and actions are attributed to wild animals such as elephants. A similar point of view was adopted by the famous Buddhist monarch Asoka (r. ca. 265238 B.C.E.), who recognized the sanctity of animal lives and instituted ofcial days when animals were not to be killed. In one of his inscriptions the Emperor states that he has conferred many boons to animals, birds, and sh, including the saving of their lives. Asoka himself abandoned hunting and eventually prohibited the killing of animals in order to supply food for the court and the imperial household. Asokas example was followed by a number of Buddhist

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Vegetarianism and Buddhism tarian diet often abstain from meat eating on certain observance days, such as festivals dedicated to popular bodhisattvas. Vegetarianism also had a broad effect on traditional Chinese society. Under Buddhist inuence, during the medieval period the imperial government issued decrees that restricted or prohibited the slaughter of animals on certain dates, and vegetarianism was also adopted by Daoist monastic orders. Vegetarianism continues to be a basic feature of Chinese Buddhism, which remains distinct among the Buddhist traditions by its stress on the injunction against the eating of meat. The practice of vegetarianism was also transmitted to other areas of Asia that adopted Chinese forms of Buddhism, viz. Korea, Japan, and Vietnam. In Japan that inuence extended until the onset of the modern period, as by and large in traditional Japanese society most people lived on a largely vegetarian diet (although they consumed sh). Meat eating became more prevalent from the late nineteenth century onward with the greater emphasis on modernization and the acceptance of Western mores. With the increased secularization of the Buddhist clergy, the various Buddhist sects abandoned the age-old prohibitions against meat eating, although training monasteries, especially ones belonging to the Zen sects, formally retain vegetarian diets for priests undergoing formal training. Among other Mahayana traditions, vegetarianism is not widely practiced in Tibetan Buddhism. Although compassion and love for all beings are regarded as cardinal virtues by the Tibetans, the widespread meat eating by the clergy is largely explained by the difculty of practicing a vegetarian diet in Tibets harsh climate. Although the prohibition against killing and the call to adopt attitudes of kindness toward animals are accepted as normative by the contemporary Theravada traditions, the practice of vegetarianism is a rare occurrence in all Theravadin countries. In Sri Lanka most Buddhists avoid killing animals (which often does not extend to sh), and most butchers are Muslims. The Buddhist concern with killing is also reected in the relatively low consumption of meat and the rarity of making offerings of red meat to the monks, although few Buddhists identify themselves as vegetarians. Meat eating is much more prevalent in other Theravada countries such as Thailand, where the vast majority of monks engage in conspicuous consumption of large quantities of meat. There vegetarianism is often frowned upon, although there are a few monks who are trying to promote the idea of vegetarianism. Vegetarianism is much more widespread among Western Buddhists. That seems to be inuenced by a number of disparate factors, including increased interest in vegetarianism by the general society, adoption of specic views about Buddhist values and lifestyles, and adherence of ethical principles informed by ecological concerns. Mario Poceski

monarchs, such as Sri Lankan kings who prohibited the slaughter of animals, and Emperor Wu of the Liang dynasty (r. 502549) in China, who practiced vegetarianism and issued decrees that restricted the killing of animals. Adoption of vegetarianism became more prevalent with the emergence of the Mahayana tradition. That was largely motivated by an increased emphasis on compassion as a prime Buddhist virtue, although external criticisms of Buddhist meat eating might have also played some part. Mahayana promoted universalistic ethics that was predicated on the notion that the pursuit of the bodhisattva path is to be undertaken for the sake of beneting all beings. Since animals, like all other creatures, were objects of the bodhisattvas compassionate regard and seless salvic acts, it was deemed improper for Mahayana practitioners to consume their esh. Explicit critiques of meat eating appear in a number of Mahayana scriptures and other texts composed by leading gures of the movement. Arguably the most trenchant critiques can be found in the Lankavatara Scripture, which presents a series of arguments that highlight the evils of meat eating and includes a call to disallow the practice. According to the scripture, eating of animal esh is disgusting, creates hindrances to spiritual progress, contributes to bad health, and leads to unpleasant rebirth. Conversely, in addition to being healthy, the adoption of a vegetarian diet accords with Buddhist values and ideals, aids spiritual cultivation, and helps one to avoid the negative karmic consequences of meat eating. The scripture also takes to task the permissive attitudes of earlier Buddhist texts and traditions, proclaiming that arguments made in support of meat eating, including the notion that meat is pure if it fullls the three requirements, are spurious. The text also states that the Buddha never permitted the eating of meat, and for good measure it also explicitly prohibits the eating of meat by all disciples of the Buddha under all circumstances. With the transmission of Mahayana forms of Buddhism to China, vegetarianism became a characteristic feature of Chinese Buddhism. From the medieval period onward meat eating was prohibited in Buddhist monasteries, and Chinese monks and nuns adopted a strict vegetarian diet that also precluded the consumption of eggs, diary products, and certain types of leeks (which more or less amounted to veganism). Vegetarianism was given additional canonical legitimacy by the Brahma Net Scripture, an apocryphal text composed in China, which contains a series of bodhisattva precepts that became accepted as normative by Chinese Buddhists. Since this text prohibits the eating of meat, abstinence became binding for all monks and nuns who received bodhisattva ordinations as part of their entry into the monastic order. Vegetarianism was, and still is, practiced by lay Buddhists as well. Vegetarian feasts are a common feature of Chinese Buddhist festivals, and lay devotees who have not adopted a vege-

Vegetarianism and Judaism Further Reading Harvey, Peter. An Introduction to Buddhist Ethics. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2000, 15670. Walters, Kerry S. and Lisa Portmess, eds. Religious Vegetarianism: From Hesiod to the Dalai Lama. Albany: State University of New York Press, 2000, 61 91. See also: Animals; Buddha; Islam, Animals, and Vegetarianism; Jataka Tales; Vegetarianism and Judaism.
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permitted to eat the esh of animals and fowl, but whoever does not engage in [the study of] the Law may not eat the esh of animals and fowl.

Vegetarianism and Judaism

In traditional Jewish thinking, not only are normative laws regarded as binding solely upon the authority of divine revelation, but ethical principles as well are regarded as endowed with validity and commended as goals of human aspiration only if they, too, are divinely revealed. Accordingly, the value of vegetarianism as a moral desideratum can be acknowledged only if support is found within the corpus of the Written or Oral Law. A proof-text often cited in support of vegetarianism as an ideal to which humans should aspire is a statement recorded in the Talmud (BT Sanhedrin 59b):
Rav Judah stated in the name of Rav, Adam was not permitted meat for purposes of eating as it is written, for you shall it be for food and to all beasts of the Earth (Gen. 1:29), but not beasts of the Earth for you. But when the sons of Noah came [He] permitted them [the beasts of the Earth] as it is said, as the green grass I have given you everything (Gen. 9:3).

Some writers have regarded this statement as reecting the notion that primeval humanity was denied the esh of animals because of its enhanced moral status. Permission to eat the esh of animals was granted only to Noah because, subsequent to Adams sin, mankind could no longer be held to such lofty moral standards. Nevertheless, they argue, people ought to aspire to the highest levels of moral conduct and eschew the esh of animals. In point of fact, this talmudic dictum is simply a terse statement of the relevant law prior to the time of Noah, but is silent with regard to any validating rationale. The classic biblical commentators found entirely divergent explanations for the change that occurred with regard to dietary regulations. An examination of the writings of rabbinic scholars reveals three distinct attitudes with regard to vegetarianism: 1) The Gemara (BT Pesachim 49b) declares that an ignoramus ought not to partake of meat:
This is the law of the animal . . . and the fowl (Lev. 11:46): whoever engages in [the study of] the Law is

This text should certainly not be construed as declaring that meat is permitted only to the scholar as a reward for his erudition or diligence. Maharsha (Rav Shmuel Eliezer Halevi Eidels, fteenth century) indicates that this text simply reects a concern for scrupulous observance of the minutiae of the dietary code. The ignoramus is not procient in the myriad rules and regulations governing the eating of meat, including the differentiation between kosher and non-kosher species, the purging of forbidden fat and veins, the soaking and salting of meat, etc. 2) A number of medieval scholars, including R. Isaac Abravanel (also spelled Abarbanel, 14371508) in his commentary to Genesis 9:3 and Isaiah 11:7, and R. Joseph Albo (c.13801444) in Sefer haIkarim, Book III, chapter 15, regard vegetarianism as a moral ideal, not because of a concern for the welfare of animals, but because of the fact that slaughter of animals might cause the individual who performs such acts to develop negative character traits, viz., meanness and cruelty. Their concern was with regard to possible untoward effect upon human character rather than with animal welfare. Indeed, R. Joseph Albo maintains that renunciation of the consumption of meat for reasons of concern for animal welfare is not only morally erroneous but even repugnant. Albo asserts that this was the intellectual error committed by Cain and that it was this error that was the root cause of Cains act of fratricide. Albo opines that Cain did not offer an animal sacrice because he regarded humans and animals as equals and, accordingly, felt that he had no right to take the life of an animal, even as an act of divine worship. Abel maintained that humans were superior to animals in that they possessed reason as demonstrated by his ability to use intellect in cultivating elds and in shepherding ocks. This, Abel believed, gave human beings limited rights over animals, including the right to use animals in the service of God, but it did not confer upon him the right to kill animals for his own needs. Abels error was not as profound as that of Cain, but it was an error nonetheless. And, declares Albo, because Abel shared the error of his brother, he was punished by being permitted to die at the hands of Cain. Cains error was egregious in the extreme. Hence he was so lacking in favor in the eyes of God that his sacrice was rejected. Although he was also guilty of error, Abels sacrice was accepted by God because his error was not as serious as that of his brother. According to Albo, Cain failed to understand the reason for the rejection of his sacrice and assumed that, in the eyes of God, animal sacrice was intrinsically superior to the offering of produce. Since Cain remained conrmed in his opinion that humans and animals are inherently equal, he was led to the even more grievous conclusion that just

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Vegetarianism and Judaism

Vegetarianism and Kabbalah Abstinence from the esh of animals is also the subject of scattered comments in kabbalistic writings. R. Moses Cordovero, Shiur Komah (Warsaw 1883: 84b), advises that a person seeking spiritual perfection should distance himself from eating meat. Accepting the principle of transmigration of souls, R. Moses Cordovero expresses the concern that the soul of a wicked human being may be present in a slaughtered animal and exert a deleterious inuence over the person who consumes its esh. In a footnote appended to that text, the editor remarks that, according to this thesis, one who is imbued with the Divine Spirit, and hence capable of determining that no such soul is incarnated in the animal he is about to eat, has no reason to refrain from eating meat. A similar position is attributed to R. Eliyahu de Vidas Reishit Chokhmah (sixteenth century) in Sdei Chemed (an encyclopedia of Jewish Law by R. Chayyim Chizkiyahu Medini, nineteenth century), Maarekhet Akhilah sec. 1. Reishit Chokhmah is cited as stating that one should not eat the esh of any living creature. The reference appears to be to the Amsterdam, 1908 edition of Reishit Chokhmah. However, an examination of pp. 129b30a of that edition reveals that, rather than advising total abstinence from the esh of living creatures, Reishit Chokhmah offers counsel with regard to the time of day most suitable for the partaking of meat. Opposition to the consumption of meat appears to be a narrowly held view even within the kabbalistic tradition. A number of kabbalistic sources indicate that, quite to the contrary, the doctrine of transmigration yields a positive view regarding the eating of meat. According to these sources, transmigrated souls present in the esh of animals may secure their release only

when the meat of the animal has been consumed by a man. The mitzvot performed in preparation and partaking of the meat and the blessings pronounced upon its consumption serve to perfect the transmigrated soul so that it may be released to enjoy eternal reward. See, for example, Shevet Musar (by R. Eliyahu Hakohen of Izmir, d. 1729), ch. 36 and R. Tzvi Elimelekh of Dinov (17831841, also spelled Elimelech), Bnei Yissaskhar, Maamarei haShabbatot, Maamar 10 sec. 4, and Sivan, Maamar 5, sec. 18. Scripture speaks of sh as gathered rather than as slaughtered and similarly speaks of the righteous as being gathered to their forebears rather than experiencing the throes of death. Righteous individuals who must undergo transmigration in expiation of minor infractions are incarnated in sh in order to spare them the pain of slaughter. See also R. Moshe Teitelbaum (17591841), Yismach Mosheh, Parshat Vayeira, s.v. vayikach chemah vchalav [Gen. 18:8]. R. Yechiel Mikhel Halevi Epstein (18291908), Kitzur Shlah (Jerusalem, 1960: 161) advises that particular effort be made to eat sh on Shabbat so that the souls of the righteous which may be incarnated in the sh be perfected through consumption of the sh by a righteous and observant Jew. R. Menachem Mendel Schneerson (the Lubavitcher rebbe, 19021994) is quoted as having expressed opposition to vegetarianism, at least tentatively, on kabbalistic grounds. He is reported by R. Shear-Yashuv Cohen (chief rabbi of Haifa and lifelong vegetarian) to have voiced the concern that refraining from consumption of meat will prevent the elevation of sparks, a goal that is central to the kabbalists view of the human purpose in life (Slae, Min hattai, Jerusalem, 1988).
J. David Bleich

as one is entitled to take the life of an animal so also he was entitled to take the life of a fellow human being. This position, Albo asserts, was adopted by succeeding generations as well. It was precisely the notion that humans and animals are equal that led, not to the renunciation of causing harm to animals and to concern for their welfare, but rather to the notion that violence against ones fellows was equally acceptable. The inevitable result was a total breakdown of the social order, which ultimately culminated in punishment by means of the Flood. Subsequent to the Flood, meat was permitted to Noah, Albo asserts, in order to impress upon humankind the superiority of human beings over members of the animal kingdom. Albo does not explain why the generations after the Flood drew the correct conclusion and were not prone again to commit the error of Cain. There is, however, a rabbinic text that effectively resolves the issue. Genesis 7:23 declares that during the period of the Flood God des-

troyed not only humans but also every living creature. The Gemara, BT Sanhedrin 108a, queries,
If man sinned, what was the sin of the animals? Rabbi Joshua the son of Korchah answered the question with a parable: A man made a nuptial canopy for his son and prepared elaborate foods for the wedding feast. In the interim his son died. The father arose and took apart the nuptial canopy declaring, I did nothing other than on behalf of my son. Now that he has died for what purpose do I need the nuptial canopy? Similarly, the Holy One, blessed be He, said, I did not create animals and beasts other than for man. Now that man has sinned for what purpose do I need animals and beasts?

Those comments serve to indicate that the extermination of innocent animals in the course of the Deluge must

Vegetarianism and Rabbi Abraham Isaac Kook be regarded as proof positive of the superiority of human beings over members of the animal kingdom. Animals could be destroyed by a righteous God only because the sole purpose of those creatures was to serve humanity. Hence, if humankind is to be destroyed, the continued existence of animal species is purposeless. Thus the basic principle (i.e., the superiority of humans over members of the animal kingdom) was amply demonstrated by the destruction of animals during the course of the ood. 3) One modern-day scholar who is often cited as looking upon vegetarianism with extreme favor is the late Rabbi Abraham Isaac Kook. It is indeed the case that in his writings Rabbi Kook speaks of vegetarianism as an ideal and points out that Adam did not partake of the esh of animals. In context, however, Rabbi Kook makes those comments in his portrayal of the eschatological era. He regards mans moral state in that period as being akin to that of Adam before his sin and does indeed view renunciation of enjoyment of animal esh as part of the heightened moral awareness which will be manifest at that time. But Rabbi Kook is emphatic, nay, vehement, in admonishing that vegetarianism dare not be adopted as a norm of human conduct prior to the advent of the eschatological era. Rabbi Kook advances what are, in effect, four distinct arguments in renunciation of vegetarianism as a goal toward which contemporary man ought to aspire: i) Rabbi Kook remarks almost facetiously that one might surmise that all problems of human welfare have been resolved and the sole remaining area of concern is animal welfare. In effect, his argument is that there ought to be a proper order of priorities. Rabbi Kook is quite explicit in stating that enmity between nations and racial discrimination should be of greater moral concern to humankind than the well-being of animals and that only when such matters have been rectied should attention be turned to questions of animal welfare. ii) Given the present nature of the human condition, maintains Rabbi Kook, it is impossible for humans to sublimate their desire for meat. The inevitable result of promoting vegetarianism as a normative standard of human conduct, argues Rabbi Kook, will be that humans will violate this norm in seeking selfgratication. Once taking the life of animals is regarded as being equal in abhorrence to taking the life of human beings, it will transpire, contends Rabbi Kook, that in pursuit of meat, people will regard cannibalism as no more heinous that the consumption of the esh of animals. The result will be, not enhanced respect for the life of animals, but rather debasement of human life. iii) Human beings were granted dominion over animals, including the right to take animal lives for their own benet, in order to impress upon human beings their

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spiritual superiority and heightened moral obligations. Were they to accord animals the same rights as human beings they would rapidly degenerate to the level of animals in assuming that humans are bound by standards of morality no different from those acted out by brute animals. iv) In an insightful psychological observation, Rabbi Kook remarks that even individuals who are morally degenerate seek to channel their natural moral instincts in some direction. Frequently, they seek to give expression to moral drives by becoming particularly scrupulous with regard to some specic aspect of moral behavior. With almost prescient knowledge of future events, Rabbi Kook argues that, were vegetarianism to become the norm, people might become quite callous with regard to human welfare and human life and express their instinctive moral feelings in an exaggerated concern for animal welfare. These comments summon to mind the spectacle of Germans watching with equanimity while their Jewish neighbors were dispatched to crematoria and immediately thereafter turning their attention to the welfare of the household pets that had been left behind. Despite the foregoing, vegetarianism is not rejected by Judaism as a valid lifestyle for at least some individuals. There are, to be sure, individuals who are repulsed by the prospect of consuming the esh of a living creature. It is not the case that an individual who declines to partake of meat is ipso facto guilty of violation of the moral code. On the contrary, Scripture states, and you will say: I will eat meat, because your soul desires to eat meat; with all the desire of your soul may you eat meat (Deut. 12:20). The implication is that meat may be consumed when there is desire and appetite for it as food, but may be eschewed when there is no desire and, a fortiori, when it is found to be repugnant. The question is one of perspective. Concern arises only when such conduct is elevated to the level of a moral norm. J. David Bleich Further Reading Bleich, J. David. Contemporary Halachic Problems, v. 3. New York: Ktav Publishing/Yeshiva University Press, 1989. Cohen, Alfred S. Vegetarianism from a Jewish Perspective. Journal of Halacha and Contemporary Society 1:2 (1981), 3863. Rosner, Fred. Biomedical Ethics and Jewish Law. Hoboken, NJ: Keav Publishing House, 2001. See also: Animal Rights in the Jewish Tradition; Judaism; Kabbalah and Eco-theology; Vegetarianism and Rabbi Abraham Isaac Kook; Vegetarianism, Judaism, and Gods Intention.

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Vegetarianism and Rabbi Abraham Isaac Kook the inherent goodness within all phenomena, he viewed secular atheism as a spiritually profound and ultimately benecial challenge to traditional religiosity. Modernist atheism would catalyze monotheisms nal purication. Similarly, Kook found in the theory of evolution an expression of the cosmic drive toward perfection that informs all created beings. Kooks writings on vegetarianism, collected in a pamphlet entitled Hazon HaTzimchonut vhaShalom miVkhinah Toranit (The Vision of Vegetarianism and Peace from a Torah Perspective), have been the subject of great interest and misunderstanding. On the one hand, Kook addressed the morality of human/animal relations in remarkably radical terms. Judaism has traditionally objected to unnecessary animal suffering and to the wanton destruction of nonhuman life. However, these are often regarded within Judaism as spiritually damaging to the human perpetrator, rather than genuinely evil in themselves. Kook went beyond such considerations to speak of human injustice toward animals. Not only is the slaughter of animals for food wrong, but also even the nonviolent exploitation of animal products such as wool and milk constitutes a form of theft! Kook was careful to explain that full moral consideration for animals should only be implemented when humanity achieves its highest spiritual development in the messianic era. His view is rooted in the ancient Jewish notion that while God originally forbade humans to eat meat (Behold I have given you every seed-bearing plant upon all the Earth, and every tree that has seed-bearing fruit; they shall be yours for food [Gen. 1:29]), after the Deluge God permitted it as a concession to human weakness (Every creature that lives shall be yours to eat; as with the green grasses, I give you all these [Gen. 9:3]). Kook claimed that while the earlier ban on meat would be reinstated in messianic times, a premature demand for vegetarianism and full justice toward animals would be spiritually destructive. In their present fallen state, people would understand such a demand as implying the essential equality of humans and animals. They would forget humanitys unique spiritual vocation and lapse into a brutish and purely corporeal existence. Tyrannical governments would use radical campaigns for animal protection as tools for the oppression of humans, and as a propagandistic distraction from the injustices they perpetrate against people. Kook argued that absolute justice for animals should be demanded only after inter-human relations are free of violence, oppression and injustice. For the time being, Kook taught, many biblical commandments serve to remind us of the present imperfect state of human attitudes toward animals. Jewish laws including careful ritual guidelines for humane slaughter, and the prohibition against eating blood (Deut. 13:23) serve to prepare us for the day when vegetarianism will be required of humans. The law stating, You shall not boil a

Vegetarianism and Rabbi Abraham Isaac Kook (18651935)

Rabbi Abraham Isaac Kook, often referred to by the Hebrew title Rav Kook, was the leading Orthodox Jewish thinker of the Zionist movement. Born in Griva, Latvia, Kook was a leading Talmudic scholar and expert in Jewish law, while also deeply inuenced by Jewish mysticism and Hasidism. After serving as rabbi to two Eastern European towns, in 1904 Kook immigrated to Palestine to serve as rabbi of Jaffa. While attending a convention in Europe in 1914, Kook found his return route to Palestine cut off by the outbreak of World War I. He spent the duration of the war in a temporary rabbinical position in London, and afterwards returned to Palestine to serve as Chief Rabbi of Jerusalem. In 1921 he was elected rst Ashkenazi (European) Chief Rabbi of Palestine. Kooks prolic writings meld traditional Jewish philosophical and mystical ideas with elements of modern European philosophy to create a comprehensive Jewish worldview. He viewed history as the dialectical unfolding of a cosmic drama of redemption, encompassing processes ranging from biological evolution to the spiritual advancement of humanity. At the center of this drama stands the Jewish people, whose own historical development serves as a catalyst for, and harbinger of, the perfection of humanity as a whole, bringing about, ultimately, the perfection of the entire universe both in its material and spiritual aspects. In this context, the return of the Jewish People to Palestine may be seen as aimed at achieving its rapprochement with physical nature. Kook taught that an unbalanced attachment to nature invites the dangers of idolatry and pantheism. The Jewish people had been exiled from their land in order to distance Judaism from nature and purify Jewish monotheism of idolatrous and pantheistic tendencies. Now that those dangers had been dealt with, the time had come for the Jewish People to return to its land. Immunized against idolatry and reestablished in its home soil, Judaism can safely engage with the physical world in order to perfect and bring to light the holiness implicit in all of reality, including inorganic matter. Building upon earlier traditions, Kook claimed that the Land of Israel (Palestine) is peculiarly endowed with a unique spiritual quality whose inuence is necessary for the Jewish People to fulll their spiritual quest. Reecting his belief that every part of the Jewish people plays an essential role in the redemptive process, Kook sought ties with people from all sections of the Jewish population, from the radically anti-religious socialistZionists, to the Ultra-orthodox anti-Zionist pietists of Jerusalem. He was something of a controversial gure, antagonizing modernists with his insistence on the absolute centrality of religion in Jewish life, and scandalizing traditionalists by embracing Zionism. True to his belief in

Vegetarianism, Judaism, and Gods Intention kid in its mothers milk (Ex. 23:19) reminds us that by right the milk belongs to the kid. The prohibition against wearing cloth combining wool and linen (Deut. 22:11) reminds us that, in terms of absolute justice, each sheep is the genuinely legitimate owner of its own wool. Berel Dov Lerner Further Reading Agus, Jacob B. Banner of Jerusalem. New York: Bloch Publishers, 1949. Reprinted in 1972 under the title High Priest of Rebirth. Ben Shlomo, Yosef. Poetry of Being: Lectures on the Philosophy of Rabbi Kook. Shmuel Himelstein, tr. Tel-Aviv: MOD Books, 1990. Ish-Shalom, Benjamin. Rav Avraham Itzhak HaCohen Kook: Between Rationalism and Mysticism. Ora Wiskind-Elper, tr. Albany: SUNY Press, 1993. Kook, Abraham Isaac. Rav A.Y. Kook: Selected Letters. Tzvi Feldman, tr., ed. Maaleh Adumim, Israel: Maaliot Publications of Yeshivat Birkat Moshe, 1986. Kook, Abraham Isaac. Hazon HaTzimhonut vHaShalom miVekhina Toranit (The Vision of Vegetarianism and Peace from a Torah Perspective, Hebrew). Rabbi David Cohen, ed. Jerusalem: Nezer David Publications, 1983. Kook, Abraham Isaac. Abraham Isaac Kook: The Lights of Penitence, The Moral Principle, Lights of Holiness, Essay, Letters, and Poems. Ben Zion Bokser, tr. New York: Paulist Press, 1978. This book includes the essay Fragments of Light, which constitutes the nal section of Hazon HaTzimhonut, and which summarizes much of its content. See also: Animal Rights in the Jewish Tradition; Judaism; Kabbalah and Eco-theology; Paganism and Judaism; Paganism A Jewish Perspective; Vegetarianism and Judaism (and adjacent, Vegetarianism and Kabbalah); Vegetarianism, Judaism, and Gods Intention.

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The Talmud also asserts that people were initially vegetarians: Adam was not permitted meat for purposes of eating (BT Sanhedrin 59b). The great thirteenth-century Jewish commentator Nachmanides indicates that one reason behind this initial human diet is the kinship between all sentient beings:
Living creatures possess a soul and a certain spiritual superiority [to non-human creation] which in this respect make them similar to the possessors of intellect [human beings] and they have the power of affecting their own welfare and their food, and they ee from pain and death (commentary on Gen. 1:29).

SP

Vegetarianism, Judaism, and Gods Intention

And God said: Behold, I have given you every herb yielding seed which is upon the face of all the Earth, and every tree that has seed-yielding fruit to you it shall be for food (Gen. 1:29).

Gods initial intention was that people be vegetarians. The foremost Jewish Torah commentator Rashi states the following about Gods rst dietary regime: God did not permit Adam and his wife to kill a creature to eat its esh. Only every green herb were they to all eat together (Rashis commentary on Gen. 1:29). Most Torah commentators, including Rabbi Abraham Ibn Ezra, Maimonides, Nachmanides, and Rabbi Joseph Albo, agree with Rashi.

Gods original dietary plan represents a unique statement in humanitys spiritual history. It is a divine blueprint for a vegetarian world order. Yet millions of people have read this Torah verse and passed it by without considering its meaning. After indicating that people should consume only plant-based foods, God saw everything that he had made and behold, it was very good (Gen. 1:31). Everything in the universe was as God wanted it, in complete harmony, with nothing superuous or lacking. The vegetarian diet was a central part of Gods initial plan. The strongest support for vegetarianism as a positive ideal in Torah literature is in the writing of Rabbi Abraham Isaac HaKohen Kook (18651935). Rav Kook was the rst Ashkenazic Chief Rabbi (Rav) of pre-state Israel and a highly respected and beloved Jewish spiritual leader and thinker. He was a writer on Jewish mysticism and an outstanding scholar of Jewish law. In the early twentieth century he spoke powerfully for vegetarianism, as eventually recorded in A Vision of Vegetarianism and Peace (1961). Rav Kook believed that the permission to eat meat was only a temporary concession to the practices of the times, because a God who is merciful to his creatures would not institute an everlasting law permitting the killing of animals for food. People are not always ready to live up to Gods will. By the time of Noah, humanity had morally degenerated. And God saw the Earth, and behold it was corrupt, for all esh had corrupted their way upon the Earth (Gen. 6:12). People had degenerated to such an extent that they would eat a limb torn from a living animal. So, as a concession to peoples weakness, God granted permission for people to eat meat: Every moving thing that lives shall be food for you; as the green herb have I given you all (Gen. 9:3). According to Rav Kook, because people had descended to such an extremely low spiritual level, it was necessary that they be taught to value human life above that of animals, and that they concentrate their efforts on rst working to improve relations between people. He writes that if people had been denied the right to eat meat some might

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Vegetarianism, Judaism, and Gods Intention Rabbinic tradition understands the Torah as acknowledging peoples desire to eat esh and permitting it under proper circumstances, but not as requiring the consumption of meat. Even while arguing against vegetarianism as a moral cause, Rabbi Elijah Judah Schochet, author of Animal Life in Jewish Tradition, concedes that Scripture does not command the Israelite to eat meat, but rather permits this diet as a concession to lust (1984: 300). Similarly, another critic of vegetarian activism, Rabbi J. David Bleich, a noted contemporary Torah scholar and professor at Yeshiva University, states, The implication is that meat may be consumed when there is desire and appetite for it as food, but it may be eschewed when there is not desire and, a fortiori, when it is found to be repugnant (1987: 245). According to Bleich, Jewish tradition does not command carnivorous behavior . . . (1987: 245). The Talmud expresses this negative connotation associated with the consumption of meat:
The Torah teaches a lesson in moral conduct, that man shall not eat meat unless he has a special craving for it . . . and shall eat it only occasionally and sparingly. The sages also felt that eating meat was not for everyone: Only a scholar of Torah may eat meat, but one who is ignorant of Torah is forbidden to eat meat (BT Pesachim 49b).

eat the esh of human beings instead, due to their inability to control their lust for esh. Rav Kook regards the permission to slaughter animals for food as a transitional tax, or temporary dispensation, until a brighter era can be reached, when people will return to vegetarian diets. Just prior to granting Noah and his family permission to eat meat, God states:
And the fear of you and the dread of you shall be upon every beast of the Earth, and upon every fowl of the air, and upon all wherewith the ground teems, and upon all the sh of the sea; into your hands are they delivered (Gen. 9:2).

Now that there is permission to eat animals, the previous harmony between people and animals no longer exists. Rabbi Samson Raphael Hirsch argues that the attachment between people and animals was broken after the ood, which led to a change in the relationship of people to the world. The permission given to Noah to eat meat is not unconditional. There is an immediate prohibition against eating blood: Only esh with the life thereof, which is the blood thereof, shall you not eat (Gen. 9:4). Similar commands are given in Leviticus 19:26, 17:10 and 12, and Deuteronomy 12:16, 23 and 25, and 15:23. The Torah identies blood with life: for the blood is the life (Deut. 12:23). Life must be removed from the animal before it can be eaten, and the Talmud details an elaborate process for doing so. When the Israelites were in the wilderness, animals could only be slaughtered and eaten as part of the sacricial service in the sanctuary (Lev. 17:35). The eating of unconsecrated meat, meat from animals slaughtered for private consumption, was not permitted. All meat which was permitted to be eaten had to be an integral part of a sacricial rite. Maimonides states that the biblical sacrices were a concession to the primitive practices of the nations at that time: people (including the Israelites) were not then ready for forms of divine service which did not include sacrice and death (as did those of all the heathens); at least the Torah, as a major advance, prohibited human sacrice. God later permitted people to eat meat even if it was not part of a sacricial offering:
When the Lord your God shall enlarge your border as He has promised you, and you shall say: I will eat esh, because your soul desires to eat esh; you may eat esh, after all the desire of your soul (Deut. 12:20).

This newly permitted meat was called basar taavah, meat of lust, so named because rabbinic teachings indicate that meat is not considered a necessity for life. The above verse does not command people to eat meat.

Some authorities explain this restriction in practical terms: only a Torah scholar can properly observe all the laws of animal slaughter and meat preparation. While there are few conditions on the consumption of vegetarian foods, only a diligent Torah scholar can fully comprehend the many regulations governing the preparation and consumption of meat. However, master kabbalist Rabbi Isaac Luria explains it in spiritual terms: only a Torah scholar can elevate the holy sparks trapped in the animal. How many Jews today can consider themselves so scholarly and spiritually advanced to be able to eat meat? Those who do diligently study the Torah and are aware of conditions related to the production and slaughter of meat would, I believe, reject meat eating. Rav Kook writes that the permission to eat meat after all the desire of your soul contains a concealed reproach and an implied reprimand. He states that a day will come (the Messianic Period) when people will detest the eating of the esh of animals because of a moral loathing, and then people will not eat meat because their soul will not have the urge to eat it. In contrast to the lust associated with esh foods, the Torah looks favorably on plant foods. In the Song of Songs, the divine bounty is poetically described in references to fruits, vegetables, nuts, and vines. There is no special brakhah (blessing) recited before eating meat or sh, as there is for other foods such as bread, cake, wine, fruits, and vegetables. The blessing for meat is a general

Venda Religion and the Land one, the same as that over water or any other undifferentiated food. Typical of the Torahs positive depiction of many nonesh foods is the following evocation of the produce of the Land of Israel:
For the Lord your God brings you into a good land, a land of brooks of water, of fountains and depths, springing forth in valleys and hills; a land of wheat and barley, of vines and g trees and pomegranates; a land of olive oil and date honey; a land wherein you shall eat bread without scarceness, you shall not lack anything in it. . . . And you shall eat and be satised, and bless the Lord your God for the good land that He has given you (Deut. 8: 710).

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resources, help feed hungry people, and pursue peace, Jewish vegetarians believe that Jews (and others) should sharply reduce or eliminate their consumption of animal products. Richard Schwartz Further Reading Berman, Louis. Vegetarianism and the Jewish Tradition. New York: Ktav, 1982. Bleich, Rabbi J. David. Vegetarianism and Judaism. Contemporary Halakhic Problems. Volume III. Ktav/ Yeshiva University: New York 1987, 23750. Cohen, Alfred S. Vegetarianism from a Jewish Perspective. In Alfred S. Cohen, ed. Halacha and Contemporary Society. New York: Ktav, 1984, 292 317. Cohen, Noah J. Tsaar Baalei Chayim The Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, Its Bases, Development, and Legislation in Hebrew Literature. New York: Feldheim, 1979. Kalechofsky, Roberta. Vegetarian Judaism. Marblehead, Massachusetts: Micah Publications, 1998. Kalechofsky, Roberta, ed. Rabbis and Vegetarianism: An Evolving Tradition. Marblehead, Massachusetts: Micah Publications, 1995. Kook, Abraham Isaac HaKohen. A Vision of Vegetarianism and Peace. In David Cohen, ed. Lachai Roi. Jerusalem: Merkaz HaRav, 1961. Robbins, John. Diet for a New America. Walpole, New Hampshire: Stillpoint, 1987. Schochet, Elijah J. Animal Life in Jewish Tradition. New York: Ktav, 1984. Schwartz, Richard H. Judaism and Vegetarianism. New York: Lantern Books, 2001. Sears, Dovid. The Vision of Eden: Animal Welfare and Vegetarianism in Jewish Law and Mysticism. Spring Valley, NY: Orot, Inc., 2003. See also: Animal Rights in the Jewish Tradition; Animals in the Bible and Quran; Judaism; Kabbalah and Ecotheology; Jewish Environmentalism in North America; Maimonides; Vegetarianism and Judaism; Vegetarianism and Rabbi Abraham Isaac Kook.

Rav Kook believes that there is a reprimand implicit in the many laws and restrictions over the preparing, combining, and eating of animal products (the laws of kashrut), because they are meant to provide an elaborate apparatus designed to keep alive a sense of reverence for life, with the aim of eventually leading people away from meat eating. He also believes that the high moral level involved in the vegetarianism of the generations before Noah was a virtue of such great value that it cannot be lost forever. In the future ideal time (the Messianic age), people and animals will again not eat each others esh. Peoples lives will not be supported at the expense of animals lives. Rav Kook based these views on the prophecy of Isaiah:
And the wolf shall dwell with the lamb, And the leopard shall lie down with the kid; And the calf and the young lion and the fatling together; And a little child shall lead them And the cow and the bear shall feed; Their young ones shall lie down together, And the lion shall eat straw like the ox . . . They shall not hurt nor destroy in all My holy mountain . . . (Isaiah 11:69).

In a booklet which summarizes many of Rav Kooks teachings, Joseph Green, a twentieth-century South African Jewish vegetarian writer, concluded that Jewish religious ethical vegetarians are pioneers of the Messianic era; they are leading lives that prepare for and potentially hasten the coming of the Messiah. Although most Jews eat meat today, Gods high ideal the initial vegetarian dietary law stands supreme in the Torah for Jews and the whole world to see. Based on the above Torah teachings, and because animal-centered diets violate and contradict important Jewish mandates to preserve human health, attend to the welfare of animals, protect the environment, conserve

Venda Religion and the Land (Southern Africa)

By the combined use of oral traditions and archeology, the oldest Venda clans (mitupo) of the Soutpansberg Mountains area between South Africa and Zimbabwe can be traced back roughly 600 years. More recent clans from Zimbabwe settled in the Soutpansberg area roughly 500 years ago and again some 250 years ago. As settled agriculturists and specialized long-distance traders ruled by

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Venda Religion and the Land political misfortunes were eventually ostracized from the recognized political system. Those in power viewed the formerly inuential chiefs on the periphery of the status quo as a threat and conveniently branded them as witches. Yet, since the most current chiefs and their ritual functionaries respected the intimate and long-lasting spiritual connection of the rst chiey dynasty to the land, they did not kill their descendants. It was believed that elimination of these ancient people might upset the original spirits of the land. Instead of elimination, the most recent ruling dynasty normally avoided contact with descendants of the original rulers. This process explains the historic distinction between the Singo rulers with their mountain status, the Mbedzi with their pool status, and the Dzhivhani dry-ones. According to oral traditions and radiocarbon dates from associated settlements, we know that the Dzhivhani lived in the Soutpansberg at least 600 years ago when they enjoyed mountain status, but possibly also enjoyed prestige as being responsible for fertility and rain. Mbedzi immigrants from southern Zimbabwe subjugated the Dzhivhani chiefs some 500 years ago. The Mbedzi immigrants stripped the Dzhivhani of their political powers, but respected their abilities as pool people, particularly as rainmakers. Approximately 250 years ago the Singo from central Zimbabwe in turn conquered the Soutpansberg. Since that time, the Mbedzi became the ofcial rainmakers, while the Dzhivhani lost their pool status. The different status categories are expressed by the distinctive burial practices of the various clans. Typically, Singo chiefs are buried in mountains, Mbedzi chiefs in pools, whereas Dzhivhani chiefs have no particular burial mode any more. But the importance of the original rulers, such as the Dzhivhani, still resonates in the Soutpansberg Mountains. Various noticeable locations on the landscape, in particular old stone-walled ruins of royal settlements, pools, mountains, caves, and boulders, are either avoided or treated with respect. These are the locations believed to be portals to the underworld where ancestral spirits reside. Venda people believe that ancestors send messengers, in the form of dangerous animals and/or distorted mountain and water creatures, to scare disrespectful trespassers. At certain unusual locations, including San rock-art sites, Venda still leave trinkets to appease the original spirits of the land. Another reason for leaving gifts at sacred spots is to obtain fertility from the very old spirits. Although the political clout of the ancient Venda dynasties is long gone, their religious legacy lives on in unusual landscape features and in the old ruins. This legacy prohibits Venda people from altering the landscape too much. Very old rock art, for instance, is not to be tampered with. Unlike their Sotho-speaking neighbors to the south, Venda people tend not to repaint or scratch the

powerful chiefs, the various Venda clans were intimately tied to the land and its features. Chiefs enjoyed both political control over decision making and access to high status ancestral spirits. These dual powers of a chief were metaphorically expressed by reference to prominent features on the landscape. The Venda likened a chiefs political power to a mountain, whereas they likened his spiritual abilities, such as being responsible for soil fertility and rain, as a pool. The organization of royal Venda living space also expressed this dichotomy between politics and religion. Stone-walled royal settlements were divided between a low-lying assembly area, or pool, and a higher royal living area, or mountain. The assembly area was the venue for various fertility rituals, including rainmaking, renewal of the Earth, and pre-marital rites. Various Venda clans recall that they originally came from a fertile pool in a mountain, so the rituals within the assembly area actually reenact the creation stories. The royal living area inhabited by the chief, his councilors, and wives, was the arena of political decision making and maneuvering. Reference to this area as a mountain is metaphorically expressed in oral traditions as a conquering chief stepping from mountain to mountain. In the same vein, when a chief dies, it is said, The Mountain has fallen. Medicines buried at the entrance to the assembly area, or pool, were intended to protect the royal settlement from invaders. Venda people believed that if invaders crossed this protective threshold, then the assembly area turned into an actual pool. This pool returns to normal once the enemy has been frightened away or drowned. However, if the invaders medicines proved too strong, then the assembly area permanently turned into a pool, inundating the royal mountain portion of the settlement. As mentioned above, this is a metaphorical expression of the demise of the chiefs political power. It is abundantly clear from various oral traditions, however, that a new chief respected or even feared a subjugated chiefs intricate spiritual link to the land and its associated ancestors. Accordingly, the new chief almost invariably recognized the spiritual potency, or pool status, of his predecessor. Even though the subjugated chief lost his political power, or mountain status, he normally retained his spiritual potency to make rain and inuence soil fertility, or pool status. In some instances the subjugated chief actually became a ritual specialist to the incoming chief and so increased his prestige as ritual rainmaker. But shifting political fortunes did not end here as subsequent chiefs in turn established their hegemony. A new chief became the mountain, his immediate predecessor became the pool, and the original chief became a socalled dry-one (i.e., his pool status has dried up). The dry-one label applies to those chiefs who came from a line that formerly had great powers, but due to repeated

Venda Witch Beliefs rock paintings of their San predecessors, to cite one example. Also, traditional Venda farm laborers discourage their European masters from installing mechanical pumps at sacred pools in fear that such alterations might anger the spirits and make them hot. Sheet metal roofs and fences are similarly believed to cause spirits to become hot and vengeful. In other words, there is a deeply felt and widely shared belief among Venda people that any alterations or modications at sacred locales would upset the spirits of the land and result in misfortune. Supernatural sanction against killing animals residing in old ruins or in sacred pools can also be linked to respect for the original occupants of the land. In this sense then, the Venda-speaking people from the Soutpansberg can be considered to be conserving the land, irrespective of the fact that their intensive farming and overgrazing practices have resulted in damaging soil erosion. Even those Venda clans that were specialist copper miners or elephant hunters did not exploit the available copper ore deposits or elephant herds to their fullest. Whereas technological inability to exhaust such resources no doubt was a contributing factor, supernatural sanction against overexploitation might have been another. For example, abandoned copper mine shafts in the Limpopo River valley were supposedly haunted by spirits of the Musina clan and considered off-limits to trespassers. Whereas conservation among the Venda was almost certainly not an end in itself, their worldview contributed to the preservation of unusual cultural and natural features of the Soutpansberg. Johannes Loubser Further Reading Beach, D.N. The Shona and Zimbabwe 19001850. Gwelo: Mambo Press, 1980. Blacking, J. Songs, Dances, Mimes and Symbolism of Venda Girls Initiation Schools: Part 1, Vhushsa; Part 2, Milayo; Part 3, Domba; Part 4, The Great Domba Song. African Studies 28 (1969), 2835, 69118, 14999, 21566. Loubser, J.H.N. Oral Traditions, Archaeology and the History of the Venda Mitupo. African Studies (1990), 1342. Ralushai, V.N.M.N. and J.R. Gray. Ruins and Traditions of the Ngona and Mbedzi among the Venda of the Northern Transvaal. Rhodesian History 9 (1977), 112. Stayt, H. The Bavenda. London: Oxford University Press, 1931. Van Warmelo, N.J. The Copper Miners of Musina and the Early History of the Soutpansberg. Ethnological Publication 8. Pretoria: Government Printer, 1940. See also: San (Bushmen) Apocalpytic Rock Art; San (Bushmen) Religion (and adjacent, San (Bushmen) Rainmaking); Venda Witch Beliefs (Southern Africa).

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Venda Witch Beliefs (Southern Africa)

The Venda people inhabit the far northern area of the Republic of South Africa as well as the extreme south of Zimbabwe, bordering on either side of the Limpopo River. In South Africa, they occupy the fertile Soutpansberg mountain range where they were traditionally horticulturalists and pastoral cattle-keepers, until the discovery of diamonds and gold in the nineteenth century introduced migrant labor as a way of life for the menfolk. The Soutpansberg mountain range is a richly forested area whose trees provide wood for ritual, ceremonial, and utilitarian purposes, as well as fruits that are an important source of food. The rivers of Vendaland and especially the sacred lake Fundudzi have a religious and mystical signicance for the Venda people. Rivers owing through forested areas, such as the famous Phiphidi falls, are associated with the spirits of the VhaNgona, the original inhabitants of Venda at the time of the early Iron Age, ca. 200. To propitiate these spirits, everyone crossing the falls must contribute an offering: a bracelet or piece of broken pot for a woman, a tuft of hair for a man. Cattle are not excluded and some cow hairs must be offered if the animal is not to incur misfortune. The Venda people are made up of various tribal clusters who migrated to the area at different times; some came from Zimbabwe to the north and others from the Sothospeaking areas to the south and east. The Venda language is unique among South African languages in having links to the early Iron Age (200800) inhabitants of Southern Africa. Among the important migrations from the Karanga area of southern Zimbabwe were the Vhathavhatsinde people, so called because many families in this group were great medicine men (diviners) who supplied a powerful antidote to evil from the mutavhatsinde tree. The name is said to derive from the word muta, referring to the small enclosure surrounding womens huts and tsinde, meaning the stem or trunk of a tree. Medicine men or diviners from the Vhathavatsinde still erect poles in the yards of their homesteads to indicate their avocation. I was able to photograph the pole erected by well-known diviner and herbalist, Mr. Nelson Shonisani, at his home in Kubvhi, central Venda in 1988. Much of the work of herbalists (nanga) and diviners (maine, pl. mingoma) among the Venda has to do with protecting people from the machinations of witches (sg. muloi, pl. vhaloi) who seek to kill or harm their fellows, as well as providing charms to protect people against misfortune. A simple charm might be a piece of wood taken from a branch of a tree overhanging a well-used pathway. The charm is believed to contain strength given to it by travelers who trod that path without coming to any harm. Most medicine people among the Venda are herbalists who specialize in curing diseases and who are consulted often about ordinary ailments. The mungoma or diviner is

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Venda Witch Beliefs up of parts of all the witchs familiars, it is considered especially powerful in making the wearer invulnerable to attack by witches. The second type of witch, the sorcerer, uses black magic to kill her or his enemies. This magic is known as madambi. Herbalists (nanga) are sometimes suspected of assisting a muloi to work harm in this way. Madambi usually works by the witch getting hold of an object belonging to her/his enemy and using it to destroy the person. Thus, nail and hair clippings are carefully hidden. Stayt notes that the most popular madambi is made of sand from an enemys footprint, which is mixed with poisonous herbs and through sympathetic magic the owner of the footprint dies from poisoning. Sometimes the evil powder will be blown on, or toward, a hare. The animal will run to the intended victim and look him or her in the eyes and then vanish. The victim is believed to die soon after while the hare vanishes. The herbalist can provide a protective charm against this sorcery, a magic powder mixed with fat, which, when rubbed over the body, envelopes the wearer in a kind of magic coat. Herbalists provide many other charms made from powdered roots or bark that act as antidotes to evil, as spells, or as protective amulets. For instance, the powdered roots of the mpeta (Royena pallens) protect against ordinary diseases and keep the ancestral spirits from worrying the wearer. Witch beliefs in Venda are similar to those in other Bantu-speaking societies in Africa, especially those of their neighbors, the Lovedu, who live in a deeply forested area to the southeast of the Venda, and who are famous for their rain-queen, Modjadji. These witch beliefs tend to reect social strains in predominantly kin-based cultures. That is, those most likely to be accused of being witches are often neighbors or co-wives, in polygamous homesteads. Nowadays, a successful business entrepreneur may nd himself the target of malicious accusations, as happened to Isaac Ramakulukusha, a Zionist bishop who owned numerous business enterprises, including butcheries and lling stations in Venda. In 1975, he sued the Commander of the Venda National Force for wrongful arrest and defamation. He was accused of being a ritual murderer (mavia vhatu slaughterer of human beings) after the body of a four year-old girl was found in the Nzehele River in Venda. Forensic science came to the aid of the bishop when the child was found to have drowned and crabs had eaten part of her body. Accusations of witchcraft also have increased in recent years with the change to a democratic majority rule in South Africa. With the power of chiefs and headmen waning, some have resorted to devices like the murder of young children (so-called muti [medicine] murders) to prop up their waning inuence. Gina Buijs

believed to have occult powers and is always consulted after someone has died so that the family of the deceased can discover who the evil person was who caused the death. Like many other African peoples, the Venda believe that death (except in the case of the very old) is not a natural occurrence. Most diviners are maine vha lufhali, diviners who discover the identity of witches who are responsible for most misfortunes and deaths, which are often believed due to the use of sorcery in the form of poisons obtained from plants and added to the victims food. Among the Venda, a diviner or herbalist may be male or female. A man inherits his knowledge from his father and a woman from her mother. Witches (vhaloi) are believed to be of either gender but are more generally women. They operate at night, sometimes traveling long distances on the back of a hyena or other animal, and they may send snakes, owls or, particularly, a turi (stoat) into the victims home to bite him or her and cause disease or death. Wild animals such as snakes, owls, hyenas, and stoats are creatures of dark places or the night, like witches, and are known to cause harm either by biting humans and animals as snakes do, or by attacking small stock, like hyenas, or sucking the udders of cows, as stoats are believed to do. Stayt comments that the turi is especially feared, as it is believed the animal can become invisible and in that way enter the body of its human victim and cause a mortal illness (Stayt 1931: 278). There are two distinct types of witch in Venda that correspond to the famous distinction made by E.E. EvansPritchard for the Azande of Central Africa. The rst type are witches who act unconsciously. They are unaware of their evil-doing. The second type corresponds to the sorcerer among the Azande. This witch uses material means such as spells made from powdered roots and bark or magic, to cause harm. The rst type of witch is believed to act during sleep. It is at this time that the witch spirit leaves the body of its innocent human victim and goes out on its evil mission. Other persons sleeping with the muloi are believed to be put into a deep sleep so the witch is never seen, except by the herbalist or diviner. Apart from killing people, the witch also is believed to be very fond of milk and may force a cattle owner, while asleep, to go into his cattle enclosure, milk his animals, and give the milk to the witch. Alternatively, the muloi may send a turi (stoat), well known as a witch familiar, a creature that carries out the bidding of a witch and operates usually at night, to suck the milk from the cows. Protection against witches comes from the mothers ancestors, and if these spirits are angry with the victim, they may withdraw their protection and allow the witches evil work to proceed. Remedies against the work of witches consist of charms, made, for instance, from the powdered root of the mukundulela tree (Niebuhria triphylla) which translates as the way of force, mixed with the powdered bones of a snake, owl, bats wing, and stoat. As this mixture is made

Virgin of Guadalupe Further Reading Evans-Pritchard, Edward. Witchcraft, Oracles and Magic among the Azande. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1937. Krige, Eileen Jensen and J.D Krige. The Realm of a Rain Queen. Cape Town: Juta & Co., 1980. Stayt, Hugh. The BaVenda. London: Oxford University Press, 1931. See also: Muti and African Healing; Muti Killings; Venda Religion and the Land (Southern Africa).

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Virgin of Guadalupe
On 8 December 1531, the legend goes, the apparition of the Virgin of Guadalupe appeared to Juan Diego on the hill of Tepeyac north of Mexico City. In 1999, Pope John Paul II proclaimed Our Lady of Guadalupe the Patron Saint of the Americas. Devotion to the tradition of Guadalupe has been sustained for nearly 500 years and has played a signicant role in Mexican history, whether as a symbol for independence, the Churchs resistance to political intervention, the rights of native populations, or for social conservatism and control. Although contentious debates over the historical credibility of the apparition-narrative mark the Guadalupan tradition, the image and legend of the Virgin of Guadalupe has provided a powerful symbol for Mexican nationalism, and by the twentieth century, a symbol of freedom for oppressed native peoples and agrarian reform. As a symbol fusing religion and politics, native and Christian images, the Virgin of Guadalupe, patron saint of the Americas, remains a complicated symbol embodying conquest, pre-Colombian Earth goddesses, nature, the modern nation, and various, complicated social relations. The rst account of the appearance of the Virgin of Guadalupe was not published until the mid-seventeenth century. This account tells the story of Guadalupes appearance in December 1531 to Juan Diego, a poor Christianized native. Speaking to him in the Aztec language of Nahuatl, she asks Juan Diego to tell the bishop of Mexico, Juan de Zumrraga, to build a chapel in her honor at Tepeyac. After two unsuccessful visits, Zumrraga instructs Juan Diego to return with signs from the apparition. Disconsolate, Juan Diego meets the apparition of the Virgin of Guadalupe for the third time. Guadalupe tells Juan Diego to climb the hill of Tepeyac and gather roses and owers as signs for the bishop. When Juan Diego opens his cloak in front of the bishop, the roses tumble out, revealing a life-size image of Guadalupe found miraculously imprinted on the cactus-ber cloth of his cloak. Realizing that a miracle had taken place, the bishop places the image in the cathedral for public devotion and later brings it to Tepeyac. The painted icon on what is alleged to be Juan Diegos cloak remains the heart of the cult and tradition of the Virgin of Guadalupe, on display

today in the twentieth-century basilica in Mexico City that serves as the central locus for Guadalupan devotion. Scholars nd it signicant that the Guadalupan tradition was introduced 35 years after the conquest. Native peoples understandably resisted domination, sometimes overtly through resistance, but more commonly through ongoing practice of traditional religious beliefs and lifeways. Syncretic practices that merged Christian images and ideas with local beliefs and rituals were employed as methods of proselytizing native peoples. In the case of Guadalupe, cults of Mary imported by the Spaniards merged with pre-Colombian Earth deities. Tepeyac had long served as a pilgrimage site for various Earth goddesses referred to collectively as Tonantzin, our revered mother. Early veneration of Guadalupe and pilgrimages to Tepeyac, some sixteenth-century priests complained, only continued pre-Christian practices since native worshipers still associated her with sacred space and power coming from the Earth. Although Guadalupe may have had an early following among native peoples and been used as a means of evangelization by the Catholic Church, by the seventeenth century Guadalupe became associated with the interests of Mexican-born Spaniards or Creoles. Guadalupe became championed as the American Mary, thus serving Mexican patriotism and nationalism, but also justifying the conquest. After Mexico City and Puebla were devastated by the plague in 1737, Mexico City claimed the Virgin of Guadalupe as its patron saint, and by 1754 the Pope named her patroness of Mexico. In 1895 the Virgin of Guadalupe was crowned Queen of the Americas. During these centuries of merging religion and patriotism, it should be noted that the image of Guadalupe was not explicitly employed to champion native peoples. The Virgin of Guadalupe was important for the Catholic Church and its position in Mexican society, as well as for patriots who employed it to champion Mexican identity. In relation to policies and practices concerning native peoples and their lands however, the cult of Guadalupe was used primarily as a conservative, paternalistic, and exclusionary mechanism. It was not until the twentieth century that the image and tradition of the Virgin of Guadalupe became explicitly associated with the rights of native peoples, disenfranchised populations, and the land. Pancho Villa and Emiliano Zapata both used the symbol of Guadalupe during their revolutionary struggles, thus associating Guadalupe with social and agrarian reform. Peasant followers of Emiliano Zapata carried banners of Guadalupe through Mexico City following the defeat of General Victoriano Huerta in 1914. These indigenous peasants also visited Tepeyac to venerate Guadalupe who, as both Earth goddess and patron saint, came to symbolize the protector of damaged land and oppressed peoples. Banners of Guadalupe regularly appeared in marches organized by Cesar

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Virtues and Ecology in World Religions

Chavez and the United Farm Workers beginning in the 1960s. Numerous contemporary Chicana artists now depict Guadalupe in ways that link her to pre-Colombian Earth goddesses, thus championing both native peoples and the land. Contemporary Latina/o theologians claim that both images and estas demonstrate Guadalupes clear connection to nature. In popular religious images, the sun, stars, moon, and nature surround Guadalupe. Daybreak on December 12, the time of new beginnings and the rebirth of the sun is the time of Guadalupes feast and celebration and a dawn song, Las Maanitas is sung to her (Rodriguez 1994: 147). Our Lady of Guadalupe remains a contested symbol standing at different points in history for conquest as well as indigenous rights; for Earth goddesses and nature as well as the power of the nation-state. Lois Ann Lorentzen Further Reading Brading, D.A. Mexican Phoenix: Our Lady of Guadalupe: Image and Tradition Across Five Centuries. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 2001. Poole, Stafford. Our Lady of Guadalupe: The Origins and Sources of a Mexican National Symbol, 15311797. Tucson, AZ: University of Arizona Press, 1995. Rodriguez, Jeanette. Our Lady of Guadalupe: Faith and Empowerment among Mexican-American Women. Austin, TX: University of Texas Press, 1994. See also: Ecofeminism (various); Goddesses History of; Mary in Latin America; Maya Religion (Central America); Mayan Catholicism; Mayan Protestantism; Mesoamerican Deities.

Virtues and Ecology in World Religions

Virtues (commonly understood as excellences of character acquired through self-cultivation) play a role in all major world religions even as ideals of personal cultivation differ signicantly from tradition to tradition. Recent adaptations in religious attitudes toward nature to a large degree involve changes in the perception and cultivation of virtues as well. Across the board, religious environmentalists highlight the ecological import of traditional traits of character, such as moderation, humility, and compassion. However, to speak of a uniform green religious virtue ethic would be to deny the varied contexts of religious belief and practice that continue to give these virtues their full meaning. By examining relationships between the virtues and ecological awareness in Christianity, Judaism, Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, and Confucianism we can see the various types of green virtue ethics.

Frugality Under a number of names, frugality has been a prominent moral norm and practice in all the great religious traditions, including Buddhism, Christianity, Confucianism, Hinduism, Islam, Judaism, and Daoism. These traditions often have interpreted frugality as an expression of love or its equivalent that is, seeking the good of others in response to their needs. Frugality is the virtue of economic constraint a standard of excellence for both character formation and social transformation in necessary interaction. It connotes moderation, thrift, sufciency, and temperance. It demands careful conservation, comprehensive recycling, minimal harm, material efciency, and product durability. Frugality is a middle way that struggles against both overconsumption by the afuent and underconsumption by the poor. Frugality, according to its advocates, is an antidote to a cardinal vice of the age, prodigality or excess in the goods humans take from the Earth, and excess in the wastes and contaminants we return to it. These excesses are unfair and unsustainable. The proigate take more than their due, and thereby deprive others poor people, other species, and future generations of their due. In this setting, frugality is a necessary condition of justice and sustainability, seeking a greater thriving of all life together by sparing and sharing global goods. Contrary to some stereotypes, frugality is not generally a world-denying asceticism. On the contrary, the words Latin root, frux, denes its essential character: fruitfulness and joyfulness. Frugality is an Earthafrming and enriching norm that delights in the lessconsumptive joys of the mind and esh, especially the enhanced lives for human communities and other creatures that only constrained production and consumption can make possible on a nite planet. Frugality is regularly defended as a universal norm, not bound to particular religious confessions. Interpreters argue that it can be ethically justied, apart from appeals to privileged revelations, as a rational response to economic maldistribution and ecological degradation. For its fans, frugality is the subversive virtue, in rebellion against the ethos of excess.
James A. Nash

Further Reading Nash, James. A. Toward the Revival and Reform of the Subversive Virtue: Frugality. The Annual of the Society of Christian Ethics (1995). Westra, Laura and Patricia H. Werhan, eds. The Business of Consumption: Environmental Ethics and the Global Economy. Lanham, MD: Rowman and Littleeld, 1998. See also: Dirt.

Virtues and Ecology in World Religions Virtue and Ecology in Christianity In 1976, historian Lynn White charged that the environmental crisis will only be reverted if Christians exchange their arrogant attitudes toward nature for St. Francis model of humility. Since then, virtues have played a major role in the greening of Christianity. From qualities of character marking a persons journey to an other-worldly salvation, they changed into qualities of character tting the ourishing of persons-within-ecocommunities in which the immanent Spirit of God is made manifest. As a result, a thoroughly reinterpreted and reshufed catalogue of desirable traits is emerging. Changes range from simple extensions to radical innovations of meaning. Rather than hope for the salvation of human souls only, Christians may now hope (even against all odds) for the liberation of all creation. Rather than humbly consider themselves at the bottom of an ontological ladder, they may humbly accept their place in the web of earthly relations. Rather than practice vigilant control of emotions, they may try to relearn spontaneity. And rather than divert their attention away from the physical details of this world (contemptus mundi), they may practice sensuousness in order to attend properly to this world following a recast model of Jesus as a teacher with an eye for illustrations drawn from animal and plant life. Some observers doubt whether such attitudinal changes go far enough in addressing ecological problems. They stress the need for complementary social analysis and organized efforts to transform institutions (e.g., Dieter Hessel). Others question whether personal transformation can be thorough enough as long as Christians continue to see themselves as managers of creation (e.g., Elizabeth Dodson Gray). The most radical critics suggest that Christians look outside their tradition toward Eastern and indigenous religions for alternative models of ecological self-cultivation (e.g., Joanna Macy). Christian scholars typically respond to this last charge with a warning against the vice of romanticism. Virtue and Ecology in Judaism From the rich array of Jewish scripture, legal traditions, stories, rituals, and cultural practices, virtues emerge as those personal character traits that renew and sustain the chosen peoples covenant relationship with God. The Jewish community has received many blessings from the transcendent Creator of the universe; in return, it must look after creation, following the commandments of the Torah. This covenant bond is especially served by gratitude, responsibility, and repentance for failure. Today, those who interpret the environmental crisis as a sign of covenantal breakdown nd new signicance in these traditional virtues (e.g., Eric Katz). Ancient blessings for food, natural beauty, and seasonal renewal continue to express appropriate gratitude for the gifts of creation. Entrusted with those gifts, respon-

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sible stewards will be caring and compassionate, keeping in mind the suffering of all living beings (tzaar baalei chayim). They will also be in the habit of exercising personal restraint, demonstrated every Sabbath by refraining from nature-altering activities. Following the commandment not to destroy (bal tashchit), they will be averse to vandalism (including specically the wanton destruction of fruit trees), cruelty (including animal abuse), and wastefulness. Conicts of interest they will approach with prudence, new environmental challenges with love of learning. Even responsible stewards may fail, however. They must be able to admit mistakes and repent for their shortcomings. Like Christianity, Judaism has been charged with promoting arrogance by putting humans in charge of the Earth. Critics also say that Jewish anti-paganism prevents appropriate reverence for nature. Jewish scholars typically respond that a covenantal life actually inspires humility and awe before Gods marvelous works. Some go further and draw on Jewish mystical traditions (Kabbalah) that do allow full-blown reverence for the Divine Presence in creation (e.g., Arthur Green). Virtue and Ecology in Islam Although Islamic ethics is especially known for its tradition of law (Shari ah), the life of a Muslim should in all aspects be marked by the cultivation of one main virtue: surrender (islam) to God (Allah). Each other virtue (fadilah), either leads up to, belongs to, follows from, or is perfected by the Muslims singular commitment to the transcendent Creator and Sustainer of the universe. While largely remaining within this traditional framework, which is based on scripture (Quran), the example and teachings of the Prophet Mohammed (Hadith), and the work of great thinkers such as Al-Ghazali (10581111), modern scholars of Islam have begun to identify ecologically relevant virtues. Muslims look upon creation as the extended family of God, in which each species forms a community designed to live harmoniously with all other communities. Thus, benecence toward any creature takes on meaning as an act of devotion by which the believer treats Gods family well. Planting and sowing, insofar as they benet human and nonhuman communities, are concrete instances of such charity. Respect for the basic needs of others requires vigilant control (jihad) over destructive lower desires, especially greed, aggression, and jealousy. The willingness to make such personal sacrices for the common good, strengthened annually during the fasting month of Ramadan, again ultimately underscores the believers respect for God. Ecofeminists and those who follow Lynn Whites line of reasoning have leveled the same criticism against Islam as against Christianity and Judaism: its belief in a transcendent God and its elevation of humans as the viceregents of

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Virtues and Ecology in World Religions Virtue and Ecology in Buddhism Buddhist virtue ethics takes its shape from the earliest teachings of the Buddhist monastic community: the universality and inevitability of suffering (dukkha), the impermanence of everything (anitya), the dependence of everything on everything else (pratitya-samutpada), and the absence of an enduring self or soul (anatman). Insofar as Buddhists deny the existence of a self, their efforts at being virtuous cannot be understood in any strict sense as self-cultivation. Yet Buddhist practitioners do cultivate their minds and seek emotional equanimity. Theravada Buddhists tend to do so primarily in expectation of personal release from the suffering inherent in the cycle of life and death (nirvana). Mahayana Buddhists may also focus on relieving the suffering of others, an aim perfected in the life of the bodhisattva. In either case, however, mind and emotions are channeled to enable adaptability to change (impermanence) and awareness of mutual dependence (dependent arising). Many observers have noted the remarkable t between these basic Buddhist attitudes and an ecological worldview (e.g., Stephanie Kaza). Buddhists have long held that those who are mindful of the suffering around them will see the appropriateness of showing compassion to human and nonhuman alike. The Indian emperor Asoka (270232 B.C.E.), for example, is famous for constructing hospitals for both people and animals. In addition to seeking relief of suffering, Buddhists also teach the need for prevention through an attitude of non-injury (pranatipata-virmana). The effects (karma) of a nonviolent lifestyle again extend beyond the human community. For example, one will as far as possible avoid slaughtering animals and cutting trees. Moreover, by overcoming ones greed, anger, and delusions through understanding their source in self-clinging, one can avoid the ecologically harmful effects of these vices. Both external and internal critics nd a relative neglect of social ethics in some or all Buddhist traditions. However, Buddhism does offer an explicit and scientically compatible theory of how the personal practice of virtues affects social and indeed ecological systems. According to the doctrine of dependent arising, each persons way of being and acting in the world affects every other aspect of the world. Thus, the cumulative effects of human virtuous agency should be understood not as a matter of simple addition, but rather as following the mathematics of complexity (cf. Stuart Kauffman). Beyond a certain threshold of virtuous people, a web of new social and ecological connections will emerge. Virtue and Ecology in Confucianism Virtue (de), understood as self-cultivation following the dao (the Way), is the main pillar of Confucian ethics. From the days of classical Confucianism, character formation has been understood in relation to the natural world as an attempt to live in harmony with the ever-changing

creation are likely to engender exploitative attitudes toward nature. Two types of Islamic responses are emerging. Most scholars stress that a viceregent (khalifa) should be responsible. They also qualify the implications of divine transcendence (e.g., Al-Haz Masri). For example, they highlight scriptural texts that depict creation as a mosque, or as bearing many signs (ayat) of divine grace, and argue that such a sacramental world demands human respect. Some scholars, however, contend that an other-worldly focus on a transcendent and allpowerful God should in fact benet the environment, insofar as it encourages frugality and deep humility (e.g., Seyyed Nasr). Virtue and Ecology in Hinduism Within the multifaceted spectrum of Hindu traditions, the ideal of living in mental and bodily harmony with all beings, seen as a divine unity (Vasudeva/Brahman), stands in creative tension with the ideal of self-transcendence. Both ideals require self-cultivation through various forms of meditation and discipline (yoga). However, Hindus seeking self-transcendence must ultimately renounce all aspects of the natural world as illusory (maya) to attain an entirely other-wordly liberation (moksha) from the cycle of life and death. Because of these distinct (though complexly intertwined) foci, Hindu traditions offer both rich resources and signicant challenges for a this-worldly, ecological virtue ethic. Ancient Hindu texts, such as the Gautama Dharmasutra, already stress the importance of compassion for all creatures. Today, against the backdrop of Indias serious environmental problems, other traditional virtues are reinterpreted within an expanded doctrine of dharma as the duty to act for the entire ecological community (e.g., Christopher Chapple). Those who practice universal veneration (mindful of the interconnectedness and divinity of all things, as well as the transmigration of souls) will tend to cultivate an attitude of non-injury (ahimsa) toward other living beings, indeed toward all species, ecosystems, and elements that adorn the divine Mother Earth (Devi Vasundhara). Living a life of nonviolence in turn requires simplicity (restraint of greed), tranquility (restraint of anger and envy), and truthfulness (satyagraha). Through such personal sacrice (yajna) the environment can be puried just as, conversely, the vices of selshness and willful ignorance cause (karma) environmental ravage (e.g., Seshagiri Rao). Despite Lynn Whites doubt whether Eastern traditions could change Western attitudes toward nature, Hindu teachings have helped to shape ecological consciousness in the rst industrialized nations. Virtues such as universal respect and ahimsa, as well as the ideal of self-realization (atman moksha) within the context of the oneness of all beings, now also guide many Western people of nonIndian descent.

Vodou dynamism (qi) of Heaven and Earth. Mountains, plants and animals provide helpful analogies for self-cultivation, and the four main human virtues of humaneness (ren), righteousness (yi), propriety (li), and wisdom (zhi) all have cosmological components. Accordingly, various modern scholars (e.g., Tu Weiming, Mary Evelyn Tucker) have identied Confucian tradition as a rich resource for environmental ethics. While the four main virtues and their derivatives are rst and foremost understood to guide ve spheres of human relationships (parentchild, husbandwife, older younger siblings, friendfriend, rulerminister), their implications reach into the nonhuman world as well. NeoConfucian thinkers of the Song and Ming dynasties already suggested that humaneness (ren) includes consideration (shu) for animals, plants and even stones, as all are one body sharing the vitality of qi. And insofar as people are children of Heaven and Earth, it is tting for them to show liality and self-restraint toward nature. All in all, the exercise of proper reciprocal relations with the myriad things is central to the Confucian conception of the exemplary person (junzi), who seeks to live in accordance with the Mandate of Heaven (tian-ming). Critical observers have wondered whether Confucian virtue ethics (like any other religious virtue ethics) may be greener on paper than in practice a question complicated by the current absence of recognizable institutions to facilitate and represent such practice. Some note the many uneasy compromises within Confucianism between general teachings and specic (often pre-Confucian ritual) cultural practices (e.g., Donald Blakeley). Confucian hierarchalism may also conict with ecologically attuned self-cultivation. However, many observers agree that, considering the traditions deep-seated holism, the dynamism of yin-yang cosmology, and the appreciation for spontaneity, deference, and adeptness in living, it contains signicant potential for guiding people toward more ecological ways of being. Concluding Observations The following general patterns characterize the relationship between the cultivation of virtue and ecological awareness in Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, and Confucianism. 1) Across the spectrum, the ecological import of traditional virtues is assessed and highlighted. 2) Adjustments often involve extending the reach of virtuous acts to nonhuman entities. 3) Radical changes (e.g., a traditional vice, such as sensuousness, being reassessed as a virtue, and vice versa) are rare and most likely to occur in Christian circles. 4) Certain virtues emerge so frequently and universally that they may be considered part of a crosscultural catalogue of ecological virtues, namely: gratitude, respect, humility, caring, compassion, generosity, gentleness, frugality, and wisdom. 5) Across the world religions, these virtues are more similar

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in their outward effects on the environment than in their broader signicance, which depends heavily on specic contexts of belief. Louke van Wensveen Further Reading Blakeley, Donald N. Neo-Confucian Cosmology, Virtue Ethics, and Environmental Philosophy. Philosophy in the Contemporary World 8:2 (FallWinter 2001), 3749. Bretzke, James T. Bibliography on East Asian Religion and Philosophy. Lewiston, NY: Edwin Mellen Press, 2001. Nash, James A. Loving Nature: Ecological Integrity and Christian Responsibility. Nashville, TN: Abingdon Press, 1991. Pedersen, Kusumita P. Environmental Ethics in Interreligious Perspective. In Sumner B. Twiss and Bruce Grelle, eds. Explorations in Global Ethics: Comparative Religious Ethics and Interreligious Dialogue. Boulder, CO: Westview Press, 1998. Swearer, Donald K. Buddhist Virtue, Voluntary Poverty, and Extensive Benevolence. Journal of Religious Ethics 26:1 (1998), 71103. Tucker, Mary Evelyn and John Grim, eds. Religions of the World and Ecology [Series]. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 19972004. World Wide Fund for Nature. World Religions and Ecology Series. Cassell Publishers, 1992. See also: Environmental Ethics; Religious Environmentalist Paradigm; Religious Studies and Environmental Concern; White, Lynn Thesis of.

Vodou

See Drumming; Indigenous Religious and Cultural Borrowing; Trees in Haitian Vodou; Umbanda.

Volcanoes
One aspect of the cultural appropriation of nature is the religious appropriation of volcanoes. As part of nature, volcanoes provide various metaphors for religion. The colossal threats and blessings emerging from volcanic activities are made meaningful through cognition and active processes of practical engagement, often by ritual means and sacrices. Ideas that attribute sacred qualities to mountains, and especially to the peaks of volcanoes, are familiar to many cultures worldwide. This is illustrated in textual and visual imagery; it can be traced in myths and oral traditions and can be observed in ritual practices. Frequently the (cosmic, mythological) mountain is the chosen image of analogy between the macro and the micro per-

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Volcanoes often accompanied by local dances, prayers and all kinds of ritual activities. In some regions human sacrice was practiced, such as in Nigeria or Indonesia where some clans sacriced boys or girls aged around 15 to the mountain spirits. Their blood was poured into the volcanoes, whilst their corpses were buried normally. In Tanzania the Maasai at Oldonyo Lengai worship the god Engai (the last elaborate ceremony with about 100 participants took place during an eruption in 1983) in offering him sheep and goats. At the volcano Lewotobi laki-laki (the last extensive ceremony took place during the eruption in 1992), a small goat is ripped apart with bare hands. The Chagga in Tanzania used to hold great ceremonies on the top of the mountain Kifunika, close to Kilimanjaro, during which they offered some pieces of meat and the blood of a cow, goat or sheep, mixed with mbege (local beer) and sale (holy yukka plant leaf ) for the mizimu (spirits). Like in many other regions, the practice of sacrice did not disappear completely after Christianization, but occurs rarely and only in secret. Beyond that, volcanoes are, in almost all regions, considered in gender categories. Sometimes they are determined, either male or female, according to the kinship and political organization of the local population. Occasionally women or witches are treated as equivalent to volcanoes and are seen as responsible for an eruption. There are many stories in the large collection of Icelandic folktales concerning volcanoes. One story in the Icelandic Eyrbyggja Saga tells of Katla, a volcano located in Southern Iceland, and a wicked female cook in the monastery of ykkvabjarklaustur. After killing a shepherd who had stolen some of her magic trousers, she ung herself into a dark crevasse in the ice cap. Ever since, according to tales, she avenges her fate by pouring re and water onto the nearby regions. If there are two or more volcanoes located next to each other, the mythology of their origin is often connected with love or war stories, such as the myth about Popocatepetl and Iztaccihuatl in Mexico. Popocatepetl was an Aztec warrior who was in love with Iztaccihuatl, the emperors daughter. While Popocatepetl was at war, Iztaccihuatl was mistakenly informed that Popocatepetl had been killed. In despair she killed herself. When Popocatepetl returned and found Itzaccihuatl dead, he was overcome with grief. He built a mound and laid her body on it and vowed that he would never leave her again. Examining the two volcanoes one will notice in Iztaccihuatl the shape of a woman, lying on her back, covered with a white sheet of snow. At her feet stands Popocatepetl, eternally watching over her. Today the people of Pueblo worship the saint San Gregoria Chino by bringing their offerings such as owers and fruits to the slopes of Popocatepetl. At times, there are almost exactly the same stories told by people in different parts of the globe that create parallel worlds. This is the case for reports about giants or ghosts,

spective. Volcanoes are believed to be the foci of magical power and supernatural forces. They are considered spiritually endowed as they are seen as sites where gods and ancestor spirits dwell. These gods and spirits take active part in human affairs. Either they give blessing and fertility or they destroy by volcanic eruptions. This expresses ambivalent experiences as people feel life-giving qualities in volcanoes as well as powerful, awe-inspiring and destructive forces. In most studies of contemporary natural disasters, research includes neither the interpretations of the affected people nor the symbolic and religious meanings in the context of their lives and worldviews. But disasters like volcanic eruptions must also be seen in terms of how they are perceived and estimated by those affected, including the symbolic basis of human perceptions of nature and natural disasters. Although it is important to note that volcanic eruptions are conceptualized, structured and negotiated in multiple, changeable contexts, there are certain similarities in the ways in which nature is constructed as parallel to human society. Frequently volcanoes are anthropomorphized, and there are close associations between cosmos, morality and social conduct. Due to such analogies of nature and societies, seen as mutually constitutive, in Africa, Asia and Latin America, natural disasters often are not explained by natural causes alone but are traced back to incorrect conduct of human beings. Thus, in many regions of the world volcanoes are seen, among other things, as natural seismographs for social harmony or disharmony. They are sometimes considered as a sign of dissent or conict between the native people or particular clans that provoke the tempers of the ancestors or of the gods. Based on the idea that the structure of the cosmos is mirrored in the religio-political realm, rulers of ancient Southeast Asian kingdoms constructed their legitimization through mystical connections with volcanoes. The mandate for political authority was connected with the role of the ruler as divine mediator with the whole living universe. But once there were calamities, these were seen as signs for social injustice and connected to political revolts and upheavals, and as a consequence the ruler lost his power. In this context it is important to note that supernatural explanations of natural events do not only legitimize but can also delegitimize political power. In the Vesuv region, the Roman people celebrated every year on 23 August a festival called Volcania, where they threw living sh caught in the river Tiber in the re to calm down Vulcanus, the god of the re, who was later treated as equivalent to Hephaistos, the god of the smiths. Fish sacrices are still today a usual practice at the volcano Lewotobi perempuan on the Island Flores in Indonesia. In general, the more active and dangerous a volcano is, the more elaborate are the sacricial ceremonies. The offerings sacriced vary from region to region and are

Volcanoes sitting inside the volcano and cooking meals for the neighbor mountains, their lovers or husbands, as in Indonesia on the Island Flores at the volcano Inerie, and in Iceland on the Island Heimaey at the volcano Hekla. There are numerous stories about Pele who has long been the re-goddess of the Hawaiians. Her home was in the great re-pit of the volcano of Kilauea on the island of Hawaii. The word Pele has been used with three distinct denitions by the old Hawaiians: Pele, the re goddess; Pele, a volcano or re-pit in any land; Pele, an eruption of lava. The Kelimutu in East Indonesia is a complex volcano with three crater lakes of different colors. The frequent color changes of the crater lakes are caused by mineral reactions, primarily by iron oxidization. Schooling throughout Indonesia including the outer islands has disseminated a knowledge of volcanoes that is indeed limited, yet comparable in part to the European standard. Old Indonesian religious concepts remain nonetheless extremely signicant. For inhabitants of the volcanos vicinity, the Kelimutu is the home of the ebu nusi (ancestral spirits) and nitu (natural spirits). The ruler of the Kelimutu is the volcanic spirit Konde, who is the grandchild of Rongge and Ranggo the ancient ancestors of the village Moni. This explanation of their descent from spirits of the volcano is common to inhabitants of many regions in the world. Konde lives on Kelimutu in a village that looks like Moni. He regularly holds big parties there and tries to take human women as prisoners. The rst lake of Kelimutu is called tiwu ata polo (lake of the evil demon) and is the lake in which the souls of thieves, murderers and practitioners of black magic land after their death, also sometimes called api nereka (res of damnation). The second lake tiwu ko fai (lake in perpetual motion) is the lake in which the souls of deceased children land, and the third lake tiwu ata bupu (lake of very old men) is the lake in which the souls of elderly people land after their death. The reactions of the volcanoes be these eruptions or color changes are interpreted by the Florinese as emotional gestures as expressions of sadness or anger about social events and as a coded symbolism which is of social interest.

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Occasions of political and social conict in Indonesia are often accompanied by debates about volcanic activity. This religio-political meaning is well known for the very active high risk volcano Mount Merapi in Central Java. Every year a ceremony is conducted by the members of the Sultans palace in order to pacify the destructive power of the spirits residing in the crater. The ceremony acts as a reminder about a mythological promise that the country will always be protected against Merapis eruptions because the ruler of the volcano realm will never send the lava toward the Sultans palace in the nearby city of Yogyakarta. But in 1994 for the rst time an eruption turned to the south, in the direction of Yogyakarta. Many people saw this as a sign that the spirits disapproved of the behavior of Indonesias ruling elite. Thus, the symbolic discourse on the Merapi can be instrumentalized not only by the rulers to justify themselves, but also by the oppressed. Judith Schlehe Urte Undine Frmming Further Reading Forth, Gregory L. Beneath the Volcano: Religion, Cosmology and Spirit Classication Among the Nage of Eastern Indonesia. Leiden: KITLV Press 1998. Frmming, Urte Undine. Volcanoes: Symbolic Places of Resistance. Political Appropriation of Nature in Flores, Indonesia. In Ingrid Wessel and Georgia Wimhfer, eds. Violence in Indonesia. Hamburg: Abera, 2001, 27081. Schlehe, Judith. Reinterpretations of Mystical Traditions: Explanations of a Volcanic Eruption in Java. Anthropos 91 (1996), 391409. Trausti, Ari. Volcanoes in Iceland. Reykjavik: VakaHelgafell, 1996. Westervelt, William D. Hawaiian Legends of Volcanoes. Rutland, VT: C.E. Tuttle, 1963. See also: Aztec Religion pre-Colombian; Delphic Oracle; Hawaii; Maasai (Tanzania); Mayan Spirituality and Conservation; Sacred Mountains.