Dharma Voices for Animals (DVA) is a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt nonprofit organization committed both to practicing the teachings of the Buddha (the Dharma) and to speaking out when the actions of those in Dharma communities and the policies of Dharma centers lead to animal suffering. We want to be the voice of the animals who cannot speak our language. We speak out about the harm we cause other sentient beings when we eat them, use their body parts as clothing, or use products that are tested on them. While DVA recognizes the challenges of living in a complex, modern society, we wish to promote the choices that provide the greatest reduction of animal suffering.
Join Us
With the help of member donations and a global team of volunteers, DVA works to accomplish its mission by engaging in advocacy, education, and outreach efforts with Buddhists throughout the world. If you share our vision and want to be a voice for animals, become a member to support our efforts to raise awareness among the Dharma community of the great and unnecessary suffering of animals in our world.
The great Dzogchen master and DVA member and contributor, Chatral Rinpoche, put it simply:
If you take meat, it goes against the vows one takes in seeking refuge in the Buddha, Dharma and Sangha because when you take meat, you have to take a being’s life. So I gave it up.
