I've always wondered why...

“[Some] Buddhist monks are prohibited from eating the ‘five hots’ or five pungent roots: garlic, shallots, chives, onion and leeks, because they are known to heat the blood and cause anger and lust.”

Footnote, p 95 Charles Luk in Empty Cloud

I’ve never had it explained why some Chinese monks don’t take certain foods. I saw "Buddhist friendly" on a product and I wondered what they meant.

My thought was spicy vegan food was one thing you could enjoy. Kiss the joys as they pass. Just don't reinforce clinging, notice how the mind sort of reactively clings to positive experience, wants more.

Avoiding anger and lust was about feeding those feelings and thoughts, or not. Feels like a superstition. This unique cultural belief that wasn’t obvious in my part of the world, but what do I know, maybe there is wisdom in the ascetic practices. I also believe in the placebo effect, perhaps thinking something partly makes it true as a self fulfilling prophecy. I'm not going to be angry or lustful because I've avoided shallots and leeks. 

I’m a little kinder and gentle with anger and lust these days when it arises, panic doesn’t make it go away, and really wanting unwanted thoughts to not be present doesn't work either. For me the warmth of compassion is my best approach to unwanted and intrusive thoughts. Sort of see more the radical accepting whatever comes up in meditation as a gift. Just notice when things are unwanted, that's another thought. 

There are times when I don't have money so I don't buy onions or garlic, and just make vegetables and beans without, and it's not that bad.

I heard a story from the comedian Maria Bamford. She felt really crazy because she had this unwanted intrusive thought of a fantasy of chopping everyone up and having sex with the parts. The fact that she had this thought made her so worried about being crazy, that was keeping her up at night and putting her on edge. She went to a therapist and he said put it on a tape and listen to it over and over until you get bored with it. And that actually cured her, she reports, it went away. I have to say I think it's really courageous to express these kinds of fantasies in public. When I hear it, I think that's kind of scary, but I'm relieved she found a way to deal with it.