Silk

[Eastern Mind]

Vannakkam all: I (my wife moreso) have completely renounced silk because of the violation of ahimsa. We will not be tossing her saris out, but neither will we be buying any more, or accepting any as gifts. I would like to know other peoples' views on this custom. I may have posed this as amoral dilemma, but its not to me ... any more.. it's been resolved. No more hypocrisy for us.

I realise that in a sense, the act of living is himsa. But still we should do what we can, no?

Aum Namasivaya

[devotee]

Namaste EM,

Vannakkam all: I (my wife moreso) have completely renounced silk because of the violation of ahimsa. We will not be tossing her saris out, but neither will we be buying any more, or accepting any as gifts. I would like to know other peoples' views on this custom. I may have posed this as amoral dilemma, but its not to me ... any more.. it's been resolved. No more hypocrisy for us.

I realise that in a sense, the act of living is himsa. But still we should do what we can, no?

The way silk yarn is taken out by killing innocent worms in boiling water, every Hindu should discard Silk. If God is in all beings ... how can we kill simply to satisfy our taste buds or to satisfy our visual hunger ?

You have taken a noble vow. I never buy silk but can't stop my wife !

OM

[smaranam]

Namaste

I am Vegan , although not picky as rest of the family and world are not.

I don't use pearls ,silk or leather. Try to stay away from these wherever possible. I use vegan handbag/shoes kind of accessaries.

Diet is common sense, but these other things (silk, pearls) - I would not have noticed had someone not pointed them out. Hence education is necesssary.

Silk that I was gifted with love, I keep, and one day shall give it to someone, not discard it, but take every chance to talk about ahimsa.

I shall make it clear in advance to loved ones who may want to gift pearls/silk/leather in future , that I do not use these things and WHY.

The most important thing , obviously , is gentle reminder-like information.
If we have a good argument on ahimsa, people in whose karma it is to listen, will understand and spread the message.

I think the role of silk is so deep rooted in Indian culture, traditions and fashion trends , that one has to be a totally dettached person to stand up to people and go against the trend and flow, setting an example in the process.

Oh yes, and as long as I cannot forgive 'myself' for accidentally hurting the ants, I am attached to BMI. The Self does not judge, yet a reminder to be careful next time.

PraNAm

[Eastern Mind]

I think the role of silk is so deep rooted in Indian culture, traditions and fashion trends , that one has to be a totally dettached person to stand up to people and go against the trend and flow, setting an example in the process.

PraNAm

Absolutely! But a few of us will stand up and be counted! Thanks for being one. BTW, I believe weddings are the worst (best) examples of the above.

Aum Namasivaya

[smaranam]

Vannakam

I could not attend my cousin's wedding or else my aunt would insist I accept her gift - made of some kind of silk of course, which she would take efforts to select for each one of us. It would have been hard to refuse.

[NetiNeti]

I agree and applaud you. Silk comes from violence and goes deeply against ahimsa. When we take the time to analyze the aspects of our lives that may seem small we are showing God our devotion to his rule. Making changes like this will help mankind evolve as a whole. Good for you and I hope many will follow.

[ScottMalaysia]

I never knew that silk involved the killing of silkworms. I thought that they spun themselves a cocoon and that the silk came from the cocoon.

A Hindu on another forum told me that silk is always considered pure in Hinduism and cannot be made unclean (muci).

My wife has a sari which I assume is made from silk, and I have a kurta shalwar made from synthetic silk. I didn't know that there was anything wrong with it. However, I don't use leather - when I bought my wallet and my shoes, I specifically made sure that they weren't real leather.

[ScottMalaysia]

I just looked up Wikipedia, and there is such a thing as ahimsa silk, which is wild silk that comes from the cocoons of wild and semi-wild silk moths. It is promoted in parts of southern India.

[Eastern Mind]

I never knew that silk involved the killing of silkworms. I thought that they spun themselves a cocoon and that the silk came from the cocoon.

A Hindu on another forum told me that silk is always considered pure in Hinduism and cannot be made unclean (muci).

My wife has a sari which I assume is made from silk, and I have a kurta shalwar made from synthetic silk. I didn't know that there was anything wrong with it. However, I don't use leather - when I bought my wallet and my shoes, I specifically made sure that they weren't real leather.

Scott: This is from an article from the latest edition of Hinduism Today.

When they are ready to spin their cocoons, the worms are transferred to a fresh set of bamboo trays. Silkworms possess a pair of specially modified salivary glands called sericteries, which are used for the production of a clear, viscous, proteinaceous fluid that is forced through openings called spinnerets on the mouthpart of the larva. As the fluid comes into contact with the air, it hardens into thread which the worm uses to spin the cocoon. The diameter of the spinneret determines the thickness of the thread, which emerges as a long, continuous filament.
After several days in the cocoon, it is harvest time. To unravel the thread as one single strand, the cocoon must be harvested before the pupa matures and emerges as a moth. If the moth naturally emerges from the cocoon, it cuts the filament, just as you might take a pair of scissors and cut up a ball of yarn.
To prevent this, the pupae are killed by a process euphemistically called "stifling." This is generally done by boiling, steaming or baking. If water or steam is used, the cocoon must be worked immediately; otherwise, the pupae inside will putrify during storage and contaminate the filament. If baked and dried, the cocoons can be stored for later use.

So I think we should all move to synthetic.

Aum Namasivaya

[Arjuni]

Namast�, all,

I haven't (knowingly) bought new silk in years, since learning how it is made, though I don't eschew silk-containing clothing from vintage or second-hand shops.

However, I remembered ScottMalaysia's post when I read this article today, and thought I'd update the thread. (Update the thread! Cause it's a new kind of silk, hahaha! Haha! Ha...)

http://www.theweekendleader.com/page.php?id=299&title=Silk-sans-guilt

Indraneela
===
Oṁ Indrāya Namaḥ.
Oṁ Namaḥ Śivāya.