This is very Shinto, to be honest. The idea that most things have a soul. Your supposed to respect your food, cherish it, and be thankful for it's sacrifice. Yes, it's sad we have to take life to continue living ourselves, but as long as we don't over indulge needlessly, and be thankful for what we take, that's what matters. It always irks me, vegetarians think they're getting off easy from eating plants. Sure, they may not be sentient as we are, but your taking a life regardless of it's level of intelligence and to just devalue the plant's life compared to an animals just seems wrong. Instead of deluding yourself your not taking a life, be respectful and thankful for what you took.
