On arguments in defense of pashubali

In the back and forth on this argument, extreme stances "Hindus have to be vegetarian" tend to be countered with other extreme arguments glorifying pashu bali.

However, what can't be emphasized enough is

1. Animals(goats, chickens) are definitely sentient beings and experience pain. Unlike many other traditions, which tend to doubt that animals have souls, Hindu/Buddhist/Jain teachings don't doubt this and in fact, we were such animals in our past births.

2. Committing violence by killing is a bad act of karma and has definite repercussions, for not just the butcher but also the yajamana(for whom it is being done).

3. There are occasions in the shastras both Vedic and Tantric where pashubali is mentioned. But, note that most Hindus don't do pujas done in a nishkaama way (without desire) in order to fulfill a duty given in shastra, but they do so in order to get some goal. When a karma is done in nishkaama, then karma phala(fruit) doesn't attach to you, whereas if a karma is done with desire, then the phala follows you.

Possibly THE most prominent representative of Kashmiri Shaivism in the 20th century was Swami Lakshman Joo. Here are his views on pashubali.

Once I donated some money to purchase a sheep that was to be slaughtered and eaten at a celebratory dinner for a group of workers I employed. Swamiji found out about the purchase and subsequent slaughter of the sheep was deeply saddened by this event. Early, next morning he called me to his house. When I arrived, he was visibly agitated. He asked me, “Do you know what you have done by slaughtering this sheep? Last night when this sheep was slaughtered I felt its pain and anguish. It suffered so much that I remained awake throughout the night experiencing its pain. How could you cause this kind of pain and suffering to an innocent animal that had done nothing to you? You did all of this violent action only to satisfy the sense of taste. What a sin this is!” He then sent me away.

one has to understand that the ancient śāstrasa in general, and Abhinavagupta in particular, only condone the offering and partaking of meat in the context of special initiations (dīkṣā). Outside of that, both Abhinavagupta and the śāstras say that eating meat is a ‘great sin’. These initiations are highly sophisticated and can only be performed correctly by an enlightened master. To illustrate this point, not only is the gender of the animal to be considered, but also the number of previous incarnations in which this particular animal has already undergone the same process.

Please read the article itself to see the elaborate qualifications(including considerations on previous births of the animal) required for the animal sacrifice ritual.

https://www.kamakotimandali.com/2021/03/31/ahimsa-and-vegetarianism-in-kashmir-shaivism/

Swamiji never performed any rituals involving the killing of animals in his entire life. He stated that there were no priests today who knew how to perform these rituals perfectly. In the 15th āhnīka of Tantrāloka, Abhinavagupta clearly states that such rituals were to be performed by an elevated master and only for the sake of those disciples who were not able to experience the benefits of the practices of āṇavopaya