thread
Animal Welfare
He questions whether eating animals aligns with Buddhist compassion.
- posts
- 13
- first seen
- 2007
- last seen
- 2026
what the thread reveals
machine-assisted · human-reviewed
Matthew Williamson's writings on animal welfare are scattered throughout his archive, but a thread of concern for the treatment of animals can be seen in posts such as It's Simple Really, Animals Are Not Food (2008) and Buddhist Vegetarian Reasons... (2010). In these posts, he expresses a desire to adopt a vegetarian lifestyle and highlights the harm done to sentient beings. The theme is also present in more narrative posts, like Atalanta's Quest, Part Two (2008), where animals are featured as characters, and Sri Garuda and the Tigress (2012), which suggests a reverence for animals. The evolution of this thread can be seen in the shift from fictional representations of animals to more direct discussions of animal welfare, as in Buddhist Vegetarian Reasons... (2010).
the thread through time
oldest first
2008
- It's Simple Really, Animals Are Not Food On January 3, 2007, the leader of the Karma Kagyu tradition of Tibetan Buddhism, His Holiness the 17th Gyalwa Karmapa, made a strong statement against eating me... Buddhist Philosophy · Personal Growth · Spirituality
- Atalanta's Quest, Part Two (This is part two in a three part story line. Atalanta's Quest Part One is here .) Atalanta stood alone on the beach, watching the ship sail from the shore, whe... Female Empowerment · Personal Growth
2026
- Beau: Chapter Nine — The Standing The cold comes for real, because the fire in this house has grown too bright to leave alone. Beau gathers himself at the foot of the bed, the threshold holds, and in the morning there is a cool place where he slept. Darkness Attraction · Compassion · Impermanence
- Beau: Chapter Five — The Before-Time Beau dreams, and the dream goes deeper than dreaming. A hill, a flat stone, a rain-bowl full of stars, and a guardian who does not yet know about toast. Consciousness · Nature
- Beau: Chapter Three — The Outside-Place Saturday walking is the muddy kind. Clementine and Beau go looking for the older thing at the edge of the valley, and the Grandmother says his name as though she has said it before. Nature · Childhood
- Beau: Chapter Two — The Gold-Hour An ordinary Thursday turns gold. Beau puts on a performance with a slipper, and afterward the thin corner by the coats is only a corner again. Family · Childhood
- Beau: Chapter One — The Three Names Beau comes to live with the Finch family on a Tuesday in October. The family gives him three names and thinks they are jokes. Clementine, who is seven and three-quarters, notices they are not. Family · Childhood