A Vegan Evolution: 40 Years without Meat
By Cynthia Sweeney
It’s easy to dismiss peace of mind and peace on planet Earth as utopian ideals. However, a visit with our vegan friends, with 40 years of a truly peaceful lifestyle under their belts, gives us tangible proof that we are actually evolving in that direction. (Disclaimer: this writer is a carnivore.)
Gentle World is a 30-year-old nonprofit organization based in Kohala, dedicated to the vegan way of life and helping create a more peaceful society by educating people about the reasons for being vegan, the benefits of a plant-based life, and how to go about making that transition.
“The only thing to live for is what you believe in,” said Sun, one of Gentle World’s founders. “When your conscience is at peace, your body is at peace.”
The Transition
Things weren’t always so peaceful, however.
Forty-one years ago, Sun and her husband Light were witness to a graphic film that depicted how animals are slaughtered. That bloody carnage motivated them to change their carnivorous lifestyle.
“We were idealistic, we were going to find the truth. It was a very powerful time and going vegan felt right,” said Sun, who chose her name. Like her husband Light and other Gentle World members, Summer and Sky, they select a single moniker, believing that names are powerful. You associate yourself with that identity, and so they chose something associated with nature, and perhaps something to reach for.
“I felt liberated. It was a different kind of freedom,” she said.
But back then, they didn’t even know there was a word for non-carnivores. There were no vegan cookies or vegan pizza, let alone a health food store. About the only thing they knew was safe to eat was spaghetti. So, they started to grow their own food and gradually stopped eating and using any animal products whatsoever.
“People told us we were going to die. They said ‘What are you going to eat?’” said Light. “It was a big thing for us back then.”
Hard-core vegans eat nothing that has to do with animals or their by-products. This includes meat, dairy, and byproducts like honey. Their diet is entirely plant-based and they do not wear leather, wool or silk.
The origin of the word ‘vegan’ is largely credited to Donald Watson, who, in 1944 created the first Vegan Society to promote a philosophy that aims to exclude all forms of animal cruelty, exploitation and animal products.
Extreme, yes. The Vegan philosophy is one based in an intrinsic belief that doing harm, any harm, is the root of all that is wrong with the world. It promotes a life based in kindness.
As you can imagine, living your life by this conviction is at odds with what most of the rest of the world is doing. So, when Sun and Light began this journey 40 years ago, they sought out like-minded people for support and a sense of community. They formed Gentle World as a way to educate.
“People know why, but not how,” Sun said. “So we teach people the basics, step by step, what to buy and how to replace the foods they love with plant-based food.”
The original members of Gentle World started experimenting and trying to re-create the foods they loved with plant-based ingredients. Things like lasagna and carrot cake. The results were so successful they wrote the first vegan cookbook, Incredibly Delicious; The Vegan Paradigm Cookbook, published in 1980.
“We make everything taste like something else. And that’s the point. You don’t have to be without,” Sun said.
A lot of the meat and dairy substitutions are soy- or wheat-based. Milk is made from rice, almonds or sunflower seeds; eggs are replaced with a soy-based product. Tofu and seitan, another wheat-based product, serve as meat replacements, and nutritional yeast is used like cheese. Nutritionally, tahini is high in calcium, dark greens such as kale and spinach are high in magnesium, and nutritional yeast is high in vitamin B12.
Sun admits that getting people to change their eating habits can be difficult.
“We had to give up our comfort foods. But once the transition is made, it’s better all around,” she said. “Now, there is not enough time in the day to eat all I want, and I don’t have to worry about gaining weight.”
Initially, learning new techniques takes effort, as does getting past addictions, one of the most difficult of which is cheese. Unnatural to begin with — what other animal drinks the milk of another? — research has found a molecule in cheese called “casein” that has similar properties to morphine, which is why it is one of the hardest foods to give up. (More can be found by googling Dr. Campbell the China study, and casein.)
“People look at it as a challenge, and overlook the rewards of being vegan. The rewards are so far beyond anything you might give up,” Sun said.
Indeed, studies have shown the vegan diet to be more than nutritionally adequate, with less chance of heart attacks and cancer. At a recent routine check-up, the nurse was astonished that 74-year-old Light is on no medications.
In fact, no one at Gentle World has any health issues. Any health issues they did have, previous to switching to a plant-based diet, have completely disappeared. For example, Angel had asthma and skin problems, Sun had colitis and chronic bladder infections.
Young people are still in touch with their right and wrong buttons, and they trust their motivations, Sun explained. For older people, the switch to a plant-based diet usually happens because of health issues.
“They (older people) all have something wrong with them,” Sun stated. “The profound thing is, veganism helps all of it. We don’t worry (about our health) the way others do.”
Gentle World even extends the vegan diet to their pets, with the help of supplements. Their rescued dog, Valiant, stands tall with a shiny coat, bright eyes and a clean bill of health from the veterinarian.
The Global Evolution
New Zealand is a place largely known for its meat and dairy. Gentle World also has a sister site there. They have a farm with over 450 acres on the Northern Island, with several vegan-organic gardens including large watermelon patches and a wide variety of vegetables, fruit and ornamental trees.
“Ten years ago, when we first started the center there, ‘vegan’ was a bad word,” Sun confided.
Today, health and vitality is more than enough reward for the choice they made 40 years ago. The fact that the rest of the world seems to be catching on, is icing on the carrot cake, so to speak.
“For many years we spoke to people who were not interested,” Light observed. “Now there are more than ever.”
Indeed, former president Bill Clinton, in a widely documented effort, recently went on a plant-based diet to lose weight for his daughter, Chelsea’s wedding. Dr. Oz, Oprah’s health guru, is now touting the benefits of eating vegan. And, even more exciting, there is a cornucopia of new products on the market including vegan ice cream and vegan pizza.
“Things we dreamed of,” Sun said. “You can pretty much have it all. The truth is out. People are evolving and becoming more aware.”
While Gentle World is a living testament to the health benefits from a plant-based diet, their philosophy extends to environmental and spiritual issues as well. As Sun said, the lifestyle is almost a religion, and the awareness of not killing animals can extend to regard for human life as well.
“To say it is a diet does it such a disservice,” said Sun. “It’s not just a diet. I really feel that vegan evolution is the greatest hope we have for peace on earth.” ❖
Banini (Vanilla Malted Shake)
4 cups ice cold water (but don’t add ice to the blender)
4 bananas, peeled & frozen
1 fresh banana
1/4 cup tahini
1 tsp. vanilla
Slice frozen bananas. In a blender or Vita-Mix, start with three cups of ice cold water. Add the remaining ingredients and blend. Slowly add more water until it reaches desired consistency.
Optional: Add 1 Tbsp maple syrup or ¼ cup vanilla soy milk (or other non-dairy milk)
Variation: Add fresh strawberry, carob, mint or peanut butter
Zucchini Mushroom Baked Omelette
Serves 4
1 onion, diced
8-9 mushrooms, sliced
2 medium-sized zucchini, diced
dash of tamari or substitute
1/2 t. dried dill weed
Dash of garlic and onion powder
Nutritional yeast (to taste)
2 lbs. (4 C.) medium-firm organic tofu, rinsed & drained
2 T. tahini
1 t. turmeric
2 T. nutritional yeast
2 T. tamari or substitute
1/2-1 T. herb seasoning (such as Herbamare)
- Sauté onion in oil or water until translucent. Add mushrooms and zucchini with a little tamari, dill, garlic and onion powder and a sprinkle of nutritional yeast. Cook until soft.
- Mash tofu in a bowl. Add remaining ingredients and mix.
- Add sauté to the tofu batter and mix well.
- Flatten batter onto a baking sheet lined with baking paper (batter should be about one inch high). Bake in a pre-heated oven at 350° for 30 minutes or until golden-brown.
These recipes have been reproduced from Incredibly Delicious: Recipes for a New Paradigm by Gentle World, which includes over 500 recipes and all sorts of tips to help make the transition to veganism easy and delicious.
For more details, go to gentleworld.org. Sign up for their newsletter or check them out on Facebook.
Contact writer Cynthia Sweeney at sweeneywrites@yahoo.com
