Speaker: Parag Agarwal
Reducing Animal Suffering: Compassion For All Sentient Beings
**Please note special time for this call.
As Parag Agarwal started moving up in his 35-year global career with Fortune 500 corporations, he began to notice a lot of suffering around him. “I used to sit in a car with my son next to me playing with a toy while there were kids outside who were begging. Pretty early on, I decided I wanted to do something for the vulnerable.”
His heart’s journey started with helping educate underprivileged children. But when his niece sent him videos showing how animals are abused in our society, “it opened a door of awareness for me which cannot be closed.” He decided to dedicate “the second innings of his life” to reducing the suffering faced by animals in India. In 2022, while also serving in his current role as CFO of Dr. Reddys, a multi-billion dollar Indian multinational pharma company, he co-founded India Animal Fund with the blessings of His Holiness the Dalai Lama. India Animal Fund is a backbone organization for ecosystem development of the animal protection movement in India. It works to reduce animal exploitation – including their use for consumption, as objects of research and testing, and other forms of labor – and to enable them to live a life of dignity without fear, hunger, or confinement.
“No one gets up thinking I am going to exploit and be cruel to an animal today,” he reflects. “But somehow it has become part of the system… The suffering of animals is intense.”
In a relatively short period of time, IAF has been able to mobilize various stakeholders and has positively impacted the lives of thousands of animals.
Parag has co-founded several other social impact organizations in this area, including Ahimsa Trust (an organization to catalyze more investment and leadership talent in the field of animal welfare), Plant-based Foods Industry Association (an industry body of plant-based alternatives start-ups), and Physicians’ Association for Nutrition (a body of doctors that educates medical professionals about nutrition).
Another pivotal turning point in his life came more recently, when he sat a 10-day Vipassana meditation retreat followed by extensive reading of Buddha's original teachings about the Four Noble Truths and the Eightfold Path. “This has been the start of my real inner transformation. I feel as if I have just taken a few steps on a very long and beautiful path.”
Parag is a Chartered Accountant and a Company Secretary and has previously been associated with organizations such as Reckitt, Unilever, GSK Consumer Healthcare & Genpact. He is also the founder of TAP India Foundation with the vision of an India where no child is out of school. Parag’s family has taken a pledge to share 50% of their net worth with society, and are signatories to Living My Promise.
Join us for a conversation with this passionate vegan and a voice for the vulnerable.
The conversation will be moderated by former Awakin Calls guests Ariel Nessel and Rev. Bonnie Rose. Ari is currently focused on advancing the alternative proteins sector to address animal cruelty. Bonnie is a minister with Ventura's Center for Spiritual Living and has recently authored a book titled Dances with Dogs.Five Questions with Parag Agarwal
What Makes You Come Alive?
My journey of inner transformation is relatively recent - a few years old - and my key learning is that the only meaning of life is to help others who are less privileged and are vulnerable. Working to help the vulnerable makes me come alive - and I believe that the voiceless animals are the most vulnerable. Reducing animal suffering is a complex and difficult task, with animal use embedded in our society in many ways for centuries. This path holds many obstacles and disappointments - my idol is Gandhiji who was the ultimate Karma yogi - working to selflessly serve others while renouncing the fruits of action.The "first innings" of my life - the corporate life - will soon phase out, and I will fully dedicate myself to help reduce the use of animals in the Indian society. I am grateful that my corporate life has given me the knowledge, resources and the network to serve the purpose of my life.The other thing that also makes me come alive is being with the nature - there are moments when one gets absorbed in the beauty of the earth and loses oneself. This has happened to me a few times, and I love going to the mountains and the forests.
Pivotal turning point in your life?
There are two.I am from a small town in India, and from a family with comfortable yet humble means. I grew up seeing kids begging and felt their vulnerability and suffering. I always wanted to do something for them, and around 10 years back started a foundation that works on bringing the underprivileged kids into the schooling system in India.However, sometime in 2016 my niece sent me some videos that showed how animals are (ab)used in our society. It opened a door of awareness for me which cannot be closed. As I got deeper into this, I realised that the animals are the most vulnerable and gradually I decided to shift my resources - financial and time - to the cause of reducing animal suffering.The second event was my 10 day Vipassana meditation retreat in 2021, followed by extensive reading of Buddha's original teachings about the four noble truths and the eightfold path. Some of my 50 year old habits changed overnight. And I have continued to read, including J Krishnamurthi, Gandhiji's translation of the Gita, What the Buddha taught by Sri Rahula Walpola and more. This has been the start of my real inner transformation. I feel as if I have just taken a few steps on a very long and beautiful path.
An Act of Kindness You'll Never Forget?
The realization that a a family we have more resources than our needs had been growing. We returned to India after 8 years of working abroad and in May 2020, on the eve of Buddha poornima, as a family we decided to share 50% of our net worth with the society. We decided to dedicate most of it to help the animals - on its own it would be a drop in the ocean and therefore I decided to reach out to try to get like-minded people to support. I was introduced to someone in the US - he is now a friend. In the first call, he agreed to match my contribution without asking questions. He is someone with unlimited love for the animals, and unmatched generosity and an inspiration.
One Thing On Your Bucket List?
I hope I will have, some day, the inner strength to go on a long march in India to raise the consciousness of people in India towards the animals.
One-line Message for the World?
Compassion for all sentient beings - unless we love all sentient beings, our compassion is incomplete.
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