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Image credits: Vegeology
VeggieWord is Europe's oldest and largest plant-based lifestyle exhibition, held in Wiesbaden, Germany, for the first time in 2011. With the development of plant-based products and lifestyle, VeggieWorld was held in 19 cities in 10 countries worldwide in 2019.
The demand for plant-based products is increasing in the Chinese market. Following the successful start in Hangzhou in May 2019 and the breakthrough in Beijing in November, VeggieWorld brought the exhibition to the Shanghai Exhibition Centre during 25th – 27th September 2020. It brought together nearly 100 top brands in the plant-based industry from 18 countries.
The "Future Food Forum" was held at the same time. It's a high-end forum focusing on plant foods' status, direction and trend at home and abroad. It would vigorously promote the development of China's plant-based industry in terms of standardisation, specialisation and scale.
The founder of Vegeology, Xiaohui Qu, was invited by VeggieWorld to give a keynote speech: Pure Diet, From Physical Health to Inner Peace.
Pure Diet, From Physical Health to Inner Peace
– A Keynote Speech at VeggieWorld 2020 Given by the Founder of Vegeology
I want to express my gratitude to everyone who has helped us grow Vegeology — the seniors, colleagues, friends, and families inside and outside the industry.
2020 has been an exceptional year.
Ten years make a decade, and a hundred years make a century. 2020 is the start of both a decade and a century. The pandemic has brought many changes and provided us with more opportunities to settle and reflect.
At the 92nd Academy Awards, Joaquin Phoenix won the Academy Award for Best Actor, thanks to his acclaimed performance in Joker.
In his acceptance speech, he said, "…we share the same love – that's the love of film. And this form of expression has given me the most extraordinary life. I don't know where I'd be without it. But I think the most incredible gift it's given me, and many people in [this industry] are the opportunity to use our voice for the voiceless. I've been thinking about some of the distressing issues that we've been facing collectively. I think, at times, we feel or are made to feel that we champion different causes. But for me, I see commonality. I think, whether we're talking about gender inequality or racism or queer rights or indigenous rights or animal rights, we're talking about the fight against injustice. We're talking about the argument against the belief that one nation, one people, one race, one gender, or one species has the right to dominate, use and control another with impunity.
"I think we've become very disconnected from the natural world. Many of us are guilty of an egocentric worldview, and we believe that we're the centre of the universe. We go into the natural world and plunder it for its resources. We feel entitled to artificially inseminate a cow and steal her baby, even though her cries of anguish are unmistakable. Then we take her milk intended for her calf and put it in our coffee and cereal.
"We fear the idea of personal change because we think we need to sacrifice something, to give something up. But human beings at our best are so creative and inventive, and we can create, develop and implement systems of change that benefit all sentient beings and the environment."
At the end of his speech, Phoenix choked up. He quoted his late brother's words, calling for people to make changes and live in harmony with nature and all beings:
"Run to the rescue with love, and peace will follow."
China launches campaign to order "N-1" dishes against food waste
*"N-1" refers to a newly implemented system called "N-1 ordering", whereby a group must order one dish fewer than the number of diners.
Humans have evolved in the food chain. However, I believe our benevolence and wisdom should grow, not just the position in this ranking where we might think we have the ability or right to take other species' lives. The government recently implemented a law to tackle the food crisis and called on the "N-1" model when ordering food. This is an example measure to reduce food waste.
Why did we start prioritising such problems after the coronavirus outbreak? There have been major climate changes after the pandemic. This year has witnessed many abnormal phenomena, including Australian bushfires, floods in southern China, and the highest temperature on record in Antarctica rising above 20 degrees Celsius. We all live under the same sky, and no one can escape climate change. Deep in our minds and soul, if we're aware of these problems, we will make changes to prevent them from happening. The animal agriculture industry has been feeding most of the plants to animals; these animals produce more greenhouse gases than the entire transportation industry.
The nine big pandemics in human history, within or beyond China, are all associated with animals — from the Black Death, Ebola, to SARS… Those diseases were all transmitted from animals to humans. Looking back in history, civilisation would usually evolve after a certain pandemic. For example, after the Black Death, there came the Renaissance that ended the dark Middle Ages.
In China, we have a law that bans the eating of wild animals. One day when we remove the word "wild", our civilisation will progress to another level.
Global development of plant-based diet
Plant-based food has become the new highest standard of feasts in hospitality. For example, the 2020 Oscars' menu was 70% plant-based, while the 2020 Golden Globes' was 100%. Also, the German environment ministry decided to ban meat and fish from being served at official government functions in 2017.
In Brussels, Belgium, the traffic lights display "STOP MEAT" for red; "GO VEGAN" for green.
In the UK, the vegetarian restaurant chain Mildreds, founded more than 30 years ago, has started to pay attention to the pure diet. They now have a dedicated onion and garlic-free vegan menu.
Black Lives Matter Movement
Earlier this year, some police officers arrested a black man in Minnesota, US. They kneeled on his neck for 7 minutes, ignoring his beg for help and the fact that he was suffocated. Later, the man was pronounced dead in the hospital.
The Minneapolis Police Department and Mayor Frey said, "… the emotion-ridden conflict … is the result of so much built-up anger and sadness. Anger and sadness that has been ingrained in our Black community not just because of five minutes of horror, but 400 years." The voices of "Black Lives Matter" started to rise worldwide, protesting against racism and injustice. More than 150 years ago, Lincoln liberated the enslaved Black people; today, what should we liberate? It's a question that's worth everyone's reflection. The civilisation of modern society can only be progressed with our collective contribution. There are not only humans in our world but also nature and other living beings. Black lives matter. All lives matter. Every living creature has a spirit.
Those who practice equality will be treated equally; those who respect others will be appreciated by others. Grow respect and equality in the land of your mind, and let the flowers of civilisation blossom.
Chinese characters are embedded with ancient and profound wisdom. There are secret codes behind each character that surpass our knowledge:
"Su" (素, the Chinese character for "plant-based") has the meaning of "original" and "the source". In Chinese, you use this character to describe someone who wears no makeup and shows the original appearance (素颜); you also use it to refer to plant-based food (素食), which human beings initially consume. The character is also used in words regarding nature and one's self-cultivation, which implies their original qualities and virtues (素质，素养). "Shi" (食, the Chinese character for "food") consists of two parts; "human" (人) and "conscience" (良知). The old Chinese saying goes, "Food is fundamental for the people; safety is fundamental for the food."
Before I started the pure diet, I had never imagined that I would do so one day. I grew up by the seaside and used to eat seafood every day. I never knew there was a better alternative.
In 2016, I went to study in the US. Everyone around me seemed tense and rushed as I walked on the streets of New York City. Life in a fast-paced environment like that was filled with competition and anxiety. Some young professionals may queue up in front of superfood eateries during the day and get wasted in pubs and clubs at night.
Have you ever felt this way? You are so occupied physically, but mentally you feel so hollow. I kept asking myself, "Do I want to repeat such a life every day?" Why do we not feel happier as our material possessions grow and technologies advance? Why is everything so contradictory? I lived in a country where the Statue of Liberty stands, but I can't see my liberation.
Who am I? What kind of people does our society need?
Compared with the external labels we're given, it's more critical for us to find our mission in this life, our position and our sense of responsibility in this society.
Confucius said, "At thirty, I stood firm." It's more about one's independent mind, not age. It doesn't refer to the literal meaning of being well-established. Instead, it means that when we're thirty, we should know how to stand firm on our aspirations and find life's direction.
Lu Xun said, "Infinite faraway and countless people are all connected to me." A human is infinite yet small, as one cannot fight against destiny – the ultimate director. Perhaps the calling inside me has been heard. (Click the link to read more about my personal story in Chinese.)
Definition of various types of plant-based diets:
Vegetarian Diet – consumes dairy foods and eggs but no meat, poultry or seafood.
Ovo-vegetarian Diet – consumes eggs but avoids all other animal foods, including dairy.
Lacto-vegetarian Diet – consumes dairy but excludes eggs, meat, poultry and seafood.
Vegan Diet – does not consume animal products, including honey, dairy and eggs.
Pure Diet — does not consume animal products, asafoetida, allium vegetables (e.g. spring onion, chives, onion, garlic, shallot, leeks) or alcohol.
Why Pure Diet?
Protect inner environment
We care more and more about protecting the environment. We call for taking care of our planet, watching the ocean and doing litter-pick volunteer work. But have you ever thought about where the litters come from? Where does the pollution come from?
Why do we protect the external environment? Because we hope to live in a clean and tidy place.
Similarly, have you realised that we should protect our internal environment from pollution? With an inner world that's clean and peaceful, it feels like seeing through the water of a clear lake – we will be able to see the bottom more clearly. If you've lived in a quiet and comfortable place for a long time, you'll be sensitive to every tiny noise or unpleasant smell. The pure diet is to help sharpen our senses and make our mind clearer so that we can be more sensitive to the changes in the world around and inside us.
Stabilise emotions
When our emotions take over, our thoughts are disturbed. This may directly affect our decisions and directions and may cause potential dangers and risks to our future. In the past, we did a lot of things without knowing why we did them. When we experience mood swings, we can't do much about them. The pure diet brings us a peaceful mindset and energy to be more mindful and aware of what we're doing now and what should be done next.
Increase mental power
Have you ever had such experiences? For example, you bought a book that you always wanted to read, but you only read the first three pages and never managed to finish it; you wanted to work out frequently, so you joined a few "check-in" groups, but you still couldn't keep up with the routine; you tried to solve a challenge at work, but you kept delaying it and had to give up at the end; you tried to improve an intimate relationship, but you were not willing to face it, so eventually you became numb and could only passively adapted to the pain. We expect to make many changes in life, but we have no power to do so.
The lack of mental power is the underlying anxiety that many of us have nowadays. When we say "we feel exhausted" or "we're worn out, "our mind lacks energy. But why is there a lack of mental power? Take an electric car, for example; you want to start it, but the battery is low. The fact that we don't yet know about our mental power is like we possess a car but not using it. Obtaining our mental energy is like starting a car; the emphasis will be generated automatically once the vehicle is started.
How to increase mental power? There are some primary conditions. First, our mind requires pure energy sources, just like a car does. The higher configuration a vehicle has, the more refined energies it requires. Think about this – isn't a human being's configuration more precisely designed than a car's? As for our energy sources, food is one of them. When we eat animals, we absorb their negative energies of fear and hatred accumulated throughout their life from being raised to being slaughtered.
Comparatively, plants, fruits, nuts and grains are sources of purer energy – they are all gifts of nature. They grow and accumulate the natural energies from the sun, rain and the soil. Energies of nature are magical, allowing lives to grow and thrive. Even just by the street can a small flower bloom beautifully; grass can grow from the crack of rocks.
After I started the pure diet, I could feel that my mental powers had increased. It felt like a car's engine had started; endless light and positive energy entered my life. This has enabled me to surpass many difficulties in life and obtain confidence and happiness by going beyond myself.
Why are asafetida, allium vegetables and alcohol excluded from the pure diet?
This is a critical topic. Understanding this will help us get a better idea of the pure diet.
The pure diet is not the same as the vegan diet. It is not simply a diet but also a mental model with a goal and a direction.
Two significant differences between the pure diet and the common way of eating:
Firstly, the pure diet excludes animal products.
Secondly, the pure diet excludes asafetida, allium vegetables and alcohol.
It might seem to be two minor changes, but this will lead to a fundamental shift in our mental model.
The pure diet excludes animal products to awaken our conscience.
The pure diet excludes asafetida, allium vegetables and alcohol to sharpen our awareness.
Traditional Chinese Medicine says allium vegetables are harmful to our internal organs. Buddhist literature also says that they disturb our emotional stability. Meanwhile, alcohol not only does harm to our bodies but also deteriorates our consciousness. As the proverb goes, "When the wine is in, the wit is out."
Why can't most people feel the impacts of allium vegetables?
For instance, when you first step into a noisy pub, you'd feel uncomfortable about the noises, and your heart rate might start to increase, but after a few hours in there, you'd be very used to it. You might somewhat forget how quiet the outside world is until you walk out of the pub. Another example would be when you enter a newly painted house; you will sense the paint's strong and unpleasant smell. However, after a while, you'd get used to it, too. You wouldn't smell anything weird anymore unless you left the place and went back in again.
One's choice of the pure diet indicates that they have an attentive mind and seek comprehensive development of the body, mind and soul. One chooses to exclude traces of asafetida, allium vegetables and alcohol to protect the pure energies in the body and mind and the clarity of consciousness. In that way, one will obtain the opportunity to improve mindfulness.
In my speech last year, I shared a story called Autobiography in Five Short Chapters. Which chapter are you in now?
Chapter One: I walk down the street. There is a deep hole in the sidewalk. I fall in. I am lost ... I am helpless. It isn't my fault. It takes me forever to find a way out.
Chapter Two: I walk down the same street. There is a deep hole in the sidewalk. I pretend I don't see it. I fall in again. I can't believe I am in the same place, but it isn't my fault. It still takes a long time to get out.
Chapter Three: I walk down the same street. There is a deep hole in the sidewalk. I see it is there. I still fall in ... it's a habit. My eyes are open. I know where I am. It is my fault. I get out immediately.
Chapter Four: I walk down the same street. There is a deep hole in the sidewalk. I walk around it.
Chapter Five: I walk down another street.
I believe our life journey is just like the story.
This is a story about a person or a group of people improving their cognition and state of mind. A life journey is explained by the analogy of walking down a street. The deep hole is like the obstacles, difficulties or traps we encounter. But today, when we face the deep hole of the coronavirus, which chapter are we in? No matter which stage of life or path we take, there will always be deep holes. However, when different people face them, they'd have five different feelings, leading to five types of life, creating five levels of the world.
Life is a process of encountering one deep hole after another. People stay in different chapters due to different understandings.
We fell into the hole for the first time because we didn't see it.
We fell again the second time because we pretended we hadn't seen it.
Then again, we fell the third time, even with our eyes wide open, and we knew we had seen it.
We might say it wasn't our fault the first two times, but for the third time, we had no other choice but to accept that it was our fault. Hence, it is the chapter in which we can start to change our destiny.
As we all know, the disease is usually a warning sign of a specific neglected problem in life. If we pay enough attention to such warning signs, we might be able to change the direction of life or even our destiny.
Here comes the question: If SARS was our first chapter and the bird flu the second, would COVID-19 be the third?
Have we carefully reflected on ourselves in the first three chapters and sought enlightenment from them? Can we not neglect the deep hole this time and progress to the fourth and the fifth chapters by choosing another path?
Or, do we want to still linger in the first and the second chapters without doing self-reflection, and never moving on to the following chapters?
Or, maybe we've repeated the first two chapters countless times, and we did reflect on ourselves every time we fell into the hole, but why do we still fall even when we're conscious?
My answer is: even though we see the holes, we don't see our habits.
So what is the habit that we don't see? I believe for this time, the pattern we have to face is — the most ancient and strong addiction in the world — eating animals. It's not only about wild animals but all animals, no matter whether they're raised domesticated or wild; no matter whether they're fish, birds, reptiles, amphibians or mammals; no matter in which part of the world they live; and no matter which species, genus, family, order, class, phylum, kingdom they belong… In essence, they're all the same.
Nevertheless, people still tend to focus on minor details only, trying to avoid the core of the problems, burying heads in the sand. This may be because people are unable to change, unwilling to change, or do not know they can change.
The first two chapters describe a dark journey going downward;
The third chapter tells a halfway journey indicating a possible better future;
The last two chapters describe the right path that leads to actual upgrades.
From feeling lost and helpless in the first chapter to making the same mistake in the second;
From repeating the mistake in the second chapter to realising it in the third;
From realising the mistake in the third chapter to facing the truth and making changes in the fourth;
From making changes in the fourth chapter to upgrading the destiny in the fifth.
The Covid-19 pandemic is yet another deep hole of diseases transmitted from animals to humans. I sincerely hope this is the last one; if we ever reencounter it, we can walk around it or opt for an alternative path.
I wish we could all start a new chapter of life by getting through this challenging time. I wish we could all step towards a brighter and more civilised life path.
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