Sufism and Vegetarianism

Let's start this post with a disclaimer that I am no expert on Sufism (a Sufi would tell me it's impossible to be anyway). However, I am extremely interested in this spiritual path and how it relates to vegetarianism. I suppose I should start by saying, for those of you who are unfamiliar with the word, Sufism is a very old tradition (not religion) that is commonly confused with a branch of Islam. Sufis are not muslims, they can be any religion. Sufism embraces all paths to what they call the Beloved, or the Friend--what we in the West simply call God. Their traditions center on becoming one with the Beloved, recognizing the divine within yourself and other people. All created things are one being (as a fragment of the Friend) and therefore sacred beings of light.

That's a very brief introduction and I highly doubt I've done justice to the true beauty that I find within Sufism. But this post isn't about that, it's about how I imagine Sufis view the consumption of animals. Since there is no strict Sufi doctrine or text (although many refer to the writings of various dervishes and mystic poets for guidance) it is impossible to find what the actual Sufi stance is on vegetarianism. Sufis are not necessarily unified in any one thing, so there are bound to be multiple answers to this question.

However, after some research, I discovered that many well known Sufis or dervishes do not condone the consumption of meat. They say that it can promote animalistic behavior and that it is the least compassionate act. Many cite a quote from Muslim prophet Muhammad that says, "Do not allow your stomachs to become graveyards!" as their reason for choosing a vegetarian lifestyle. Some go as far as to say that eating meat is bad for the soul because it condones the act of killing for simple pleasure rather than necessity. A huge part of Sufism is purifying the body of worldly desires and allowing the heart to open. Sufis who do not consume meat say that holding to their vegetarian diet allows them to be cleansed physically as well as mentally.

There are as many Sufi views on vegetarianism as they are Sufis in the world, and there are quite a lot. I personally enjoy the way this spiritual path alligns itself to the value of compassion without being too preachy, and that's why I decide to follow the advice of Muhammad and avoid stomach graveyards.

My question for this blog is what religion do you think best describes the relationship that humans ought to have toward non-human animals?