Hindu Dietary Laws: Assessment

The religion of Hinduism carries many strict dietary laws, but these are likely to change when Hindu immigrants move to America. The most common change involves blending Hindu eating traditions with American eating traditions to form a new set of dietary laws. Most Hindu families in America will eat vegetarian and Indian food as much as possible, but a shift to American food or meat for a few meals a day is expected, especially among second-generation immigrants. The concept of pure and polluted foods is abandoned in favor of a more communal religion that celebrates Indian food in general. Although religious festival dates conform to the American calendar, the food served is still traditional, and prasad is a regular part of most temple ceremonies.