Question: Some friends said Buddhists should refrain from playing badminton as shuttlecocks are made from bird feathers. What is your opinion, of badminton as an exercise?
Answer: As a vegan (a vegetarian who also does not use any animal products, as they are derived from animal suffering), I happen to agree with that. Haven’t played badminton for a long time, but I used to use shuttercocks made of synthetic materials!
Question: Seems very extreme. I didn’t notice what shuttercocks were made from although I’m a vegetarian now.
Answer: It’s not extreme at all. To 将心比心 (put yourself in the position of the other), if an alien plucks your hair to make, say, some sports equipment, you will see the alien to be extreme, and the aliens who refrain as being kind. Non-vegan shuttercocks are made to profit off animal suffering. Birds DO die to have feathers made into shuttercocks: https://facebook.com/synthetic.badminton
It just came to mind. What if somehow you find some feathers in a place where birds usually fly? Then you use those feathers for your own purposes. You are not plucking the feathers, but just find some lying on the floor or something. Is that still considered as being vegan?
That would be alright methinks. Technically not vegan yet with the vegan spirit of harmlessness.
(Y)