Economy is the foundation of human prosperity. The
spendthrift is always in trouble. Prodigality on the part of
any person is an unpardonable sin. We must never live on
others like a parasitic plant. Every person must have a
profession, whether it be literary or manual, and must live
a clean, manly, honest life, an example of purity to be
imitated by others. It is more kingly to be satisfied with a
crust of stale bread than to enjoy a sumptuous dinner of
many courses, the money for which comes out of the
pockets of others. The mind of a contented person is always
peaceful and his heart at rest.—Bahá’í Scriptures,
p. 453.
Animal food is not forbidden, but ‘Abdu’l-Bahá says:—“Fruits and grains [will be the foods of the future]. The time
will come when meat will no longer be eaten. Medical science
is only in its infancy, yet it has shown that our natural diet is
that which grows out of the ground.”—Ten Days in the Light of
‘Akká, by Julie M. Grundy.