Pics: Dayanand Kukkaje
Daijiworld Media Network - Mangaluru

Mangaluru, Oct 28: Dr Will Tuttle from the USA is the author of the bestselling book "The World Peace Diet". He is also an accomplished pianist who composes and presents original uplifting piano music to affirm and co-create world peace, for celebrating the beauty of the earth and human potential. Mangalureans were on Friday October 27 treated to a multiple display of his gifts at the event "The Speaking Piano", which in the words of the host Giselle Mehta, would combine "the melodious with the meaningful". The evening highlighted popular musical compositions of Dr Tuttle, as also key themes from his book that is currently in its 10th edition.

In her welcome address, Giselle Mehta gave a brief overview of the book, appreciating that the diverse issues of health, climate change, interpersonal conflict and public violence meet up in its pages to explain what ails us as individuals and as a species. Unlike motivational gurus who urge us to obsess about oneself, it is unique to have a human potential educator who urges us to set right the disequilibrium within ourselves, she said. His message may be tough for those possessive of their freedom to consume animal products, but a necessary one to save a planet in peril as also to set right our ailments and afflictions as individuals. She appreciated the employment of music to expand the mindset to a higher consciousness and power the journey to significant change for individual and collective well being.

In sharing highlights from his book, Dr Tuttle acknowledged the role of Indian spiritual thought in shaping his compassionate mindset, that enabled him to move away from the standard meat eating norms of his American upbringing to a plant based vegan diet. He critiqued the "animal agriculture" industry whose products of meat, milk, eggs and fish involve the cruel abuse and enslavement of animals, while also contributing to deforestation, pollution and climate change. It is an industry that perpetuates injustice, he said, because the grains that can be used to directly satisfy human hunger are instead diverted to cultivate feedstock for animals. By disconnecting us from the source of our food and converting living beings into commodities, we are disconnected from our fellow beings and the earth, thus fuelling our various conflicts, he opined. His experience is that the plant based diet is ideal to reconnect with ourselves and fellow living beings, while promoting personal peace, holistic health and social harmony.

Drawing from a repertoire of his original compositions, some of the pieces performed by Dr Tuttle were "Arctic Moon", "Benediction of Light", "Bright Lights" and "Pelicans". He was accompanied in some of them by his wife Madeleine Tuttle on the silver flute who is also an artist focusing on nature and animals.

Philip Nicozisis of the Hippocrates Health Institute in the USA, who is also a published songwriter, spoke of the benefits of a vegan diet to maintain a healthy immune system.

Shanker Narayan, president of the Satvik Vegan Society, in his concluding remarks observed that we get back the happiness we give, and this is a likely outcome while following a humane plant based diet.

Dharmendra Mehta spoke of how the vegan diet has been helpful to his health and energy profile.

The evening concluded with the formation of a Vegan Potluck group to facilitate sharing knowledge of the plant based lifestyle.