Hom Jay Dinshah (November 2, 1933 – June 8, 2000) was an American

veganism Veganism is the practice of abstaining from the use of animal products and the consumption of animal source foods, and an associated philosophy that rejects the commodity status of animals. A person who practices veganism is known as a vega ...

activist and natural hygiene proponent who was the founder and president of the American Vegan Society and the editor of its publication the ''Ahimsa'' magazine (1960–2000).

Life

H. Jay Dinshah was born in the Malaga section of Franklin Township, Gloucester County, New Jersey, United States, where he lived his entire life. His father was a US citizen of

Parsi The Parsis or Parsees () are a Zoroastrian ethnic group in the Indian subcontinent. They are descended from Persian refugees who migrated to the Indian subcontinent during and after the Arab-Islamic conquest of Iran in the 7th century, w ...

ancestry who was born in India, and his mother was a US citizen of German ancestry. A lifelong

vegetarian Vegetarianism is the practice of abstaining from the Eating, consumption of meat (red meat, poultry, seafood, insects as food, insects, and the flesh of any other animal). It may also include abstaining from eating all by-products of animal slau ...

, Dinshah became

vegan Veganism is the practice of abstaining from the use of animal products and the consumption of animal source foods, and an associated philosophy that rejects the commodity status of animals. A person who practices veganism is known as a ve ...

in 1957.Dinshah HJ, Song of India, 1973 He and his younger brother Noshervan—then aged 23 and 20 respectively—visited a Philadelphia slaughterhouse in 1957, after which he vowed to "work every day until all the slaughterhouses are closed!"Dinshah HJ, Dinshah A, Powerful Vegan Messages, 2014 He married the English-born Freya Smith in 1960. They had two children, Daniel Dinshah and author and athlete Anne Dinshah. In 2000, Dinshah died of a heart attack at age 66, after a life of promoting veganism and the ethic of

ahimsa (, IAST: , ) is the ancient Indian principle of nonviolence which applies to actions towards all living beings. It is a key virtue in Indian religions like Jainism, Buddhism and Hinduism. (also spelled Ahinsa) is one of the cardinal vi ...

, dynamic harmlessness. The International Vegetarian Union (IVU) memorialized Dinshah in their ''IVU News'' issue of October 2000. That same year, he was posthumously awarded the Mankar Memorial Award during the 2000 World Vegetarian Congress, held in

Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...

, Canada.

Vegan activism

Dinshah founded the American Vegan Society early in 1960, and later that year (August) married the English-born Freya Smith. Freya, whose parents were active in

The Vegan Society The Vegan Society is a registered charity and the oldest vegan organization in the world, founded in the United Kingdom in 1944 by Donald Watson, Elsie Shrigley, George Henderson and his wife Fay Henderson among others. History In Novembe ...

(of Great Britain), contributed to the early growth of the American Vegan Society and is the president of the American Vegan Society today. The American Vegan Society is headquartered at Malaga, New Jersey, on a parcel of land which is called "SunCrest", or "the SunCrest Educreational Center". During Dinshah's life, the American Vegan Society was characterized by vegan publishing and outreach, annual vegan conferences, vegan archiving, spiritual inspiration, providing people with an experience of vegan living, vegan food-preparation demonstrations, maintenance of a small veganic garden, and extensive networking. Dinshah served the American Vegan Society as its president and as the editor of its publication, ''Ahimsa'' magazine (1960–2000). As a teenager, Dinshah was a motivational speaker, following the example of his father, who promoted vegetarianism along with color therapy. Throughout his life, Dinshah continued to lecture and to organize conferences advocating "positive veganism" as "dynamic harmlessness" ("Ahimsa" is derived from a Sanskrit term meaning "non-harming"). Dinshah's lectures, organized by American Vegan Society, included: 1961 "Coast to Coast Crusade" for Veganism across North America; 1965 "North Atlantic Lecture Tour" in Iceland, Britain, Europe; 1967-1968 "Round the World" Lecture Tour including four months of lectures in India. Through these efforts, Dinshah lectured to general audiences in 19 different nations, on five continents, about veganism and ahimsa. Although Dinshah would lecture in English, local multilingual vegetarians interpreted his talks for each audience. Some videos of Jay's lectures from the 1980s and 1990s are archived and can be viewed on the YouTube channel Powerful Vegan Messages. Crediting the wisdom of

Mahatma Gandhi Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (2October 186930January 1948) was an Indian lawyer, anti-colonial nationalism, anti-colonial nationalist, and political ethics, political ethicist who employed nonviolent resistance to lead the successful Indian ...

and

Albert Schweitzer Ludwig Philipp Albert Schweitzer (; 14 January 1875 – 4 September 1965) was a German and French polymath from Alsace. He was a theologian, organist, musicologist, writer, humanitarian, philosopher, and physician. As a Lutheran minister, ...

, Dinshah created and promoted the Pillars of Ahimsa, one for each letter of the word: A-H-I-M-S-A. Dinshah explained each in his book ''Out of the Jungle.'' * A-Abstinence from Animal Products; * H-Harmlessness with Reverence for Life (from Schweitzer); * I-Integrity of Thought, Word, and Deed; * M-Mastery over Oneself (against greed, envy, and materialism; instead focus on enlightenment); * S-Service to Humanity, Nature, and Creation (3 main draws to veganism: health, environment, and animals; devotion to improving the world); * A-Advancement of Understanding and Truth (applying Gandhian principles of Truth) Dinshah was co-organizer of the 23rd World Vegetarian Congress in 1975, which was held in

Orono, Maine Orono ( ) is a New England town, town in Penobscot County, Maine, United States. Located on the Penobscot River, Penobscot and Stillwater River (Maine), Stillwater rivers, it was first settled by Province of Maine, American colonists in 1774. ...

, sponsored by the International Vegetarian Union (IVU), and hosted by the North American Vegetarian Society (NAVS), which continental organization he and other vegetarians founded to organize this international conference. During conference planning, the ad hoc committee decided to found the North American Vegetarian Society and asked Dinshah to serve as its first president. Dinshah's birthday, November 2, has been designated as Dynamic Harmlessness Day and is the day following World Vegan Day (November 1).

Natural hygiene

Dinshah was an advocate of

orthopathy Orthopathy (from the Ancient Greek, Greek ὀρθός ''orthos'' 'right' and πάθος ''pathos'' 'suffering') or natural hygiene (NH) is a set of alternative medicine, alternative medical beliefs and practices originating from the ''Nature Cur ...

(natural hygiene).Iacobbo, Karen; Iacobbo, Michael. (2004). ''Vegetarian America: A History''. Praeger. pp. 167-168. He was a board member of the American Natural Hygiene Society and corresponded with Herbert M. Shelton. In 1961, Dinshah attended the American Natural Hygiene Society's Convention in Chicago which featured a display of vegan clothing.

Positions held

* International Vegetarian Union (IVU), Executive Vice-President *

(England), Vice-President * American Vegan Society (AVS), Founder, President, 1960-2000 * North American Vegetarian Society (NAVS), Cofounder and President, 1974–1979 * American Natural Hygiene Society (ANHS), Acting Executive Director, 1983 *Vegetarian Union of North America (VUNA), first President, 1987–1989 *Better Eating Coalition (various vegetarian and vegan groups) - late 1990s (under leadership of Dr. Richard Schwartz).

Honors and awards

* Induction, Vegetarian Hall of Fame (North American Vegetarian Society)Inductees, Vegetarian Hall of Fame, North American Vegetarian Society website
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Publications

*''Powerful Vegan Messages'', 2014 posthumously coauthored with his daughter Anne Dinshah *''Here's Harmlessness'', 1964, 1968, 1970, 1973, 1993 (an anthology edited by Jay Dinshah) *''Out of the Jungle'', 1967, 1968, 1970, 1975 (

Schweitzer Schweitzer is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Albert Schweitzer (1875–1965), German theologian, musician, physician, and medical missionary, winner of the 1952 Nobel Peace Prize * Anton Schweitzer (1735–1787), German op ...

Centennial Edition), 1995 *''Health Can Be Harmless'', 1968, 1987 *''Song of India'', 1973 *Numerous (>250) magazine articles and other writings

References

External links

H. Jay Dinshah (1933-2000) - International Vegetarian Union
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dinshah, H. Jay 1933 births 2000 deaths 20th-century American non-fiction writers American animal rights activists American health and wellness writers American male writers of Indian descent American people of Parsi descent American veganism activists Orthopaths People from Franklin Township, Gloucester County, New Jersey Writers from Gloucester County, New Jersey