EAT WHAT YOU WANT, BUT KNOW WHAT YOU EAT

May 28 2016 : The Times of India (Delhi)
THE SPEAKING TREE - EAT WHAT YOU WANT, BUT KNOW WHAT YOU EAT




SEEMA BURMAN

Food is whatever the five senses absorb. Sights and smell, sound, food and touch that go in through the ears, eyes, nose, mouth and skin affect body and mind. Food is important because it is visible and vibrant energy that influences us physically , emotionally and spiritually .

Ironically , even the wealthiest person cannot ensure purity of food. Bhishma Pitamah lamented on his deathbed that eating evil-minded king Duryodhana's food had made him mentally weak and he could not stand up for Draupadi when she was being disrobed in court. After lying on a deathbed of thorns, the effect of Duryodhana's food was nullified, making him feel ashamed of his weakness. Pure food is that in which purity of body and mind is used by all those involved in the whole process of producing, buying, cooking and eating.Food is to be eaten with respect for the cook, the vegetables, buyer, seller, so that gratitude is part of the system.

Food is an important part of paying tribute to God. A prayer of thanks to God before eating is an important ritual in Christian homes. Arya Samajis, proponents of formless Power, offer food to fire as respect and gratitude.Offering food to fire, cow, crow, dog or a poor person is recommended in scriptures as bhuta yajna. Sharing develops cosmic love and a feeling of oneness. Anything offered to God becomes prasada and acquires the ability to purify body , mind and spirit.

Entire existence and all actions come under three categories of purity, passion and ignorance ­ saatvic, rajasic, tamasic. Eating food is like performing yajna or sacrifice.Dry wood in right quantity , camphor, ghee and other havan materials are collected, flame is lit, and mantras are chanted for a successful yajna. Similarly cooking and eating is a highly revered process. Kitchen and utensils have to be clean, ingredients are collected with care, the digestive agni or fire is to be ignited meaning that hunger should exist. Cooking and eating is to be held in a saatvic place with saatvic music or sounds. Consuming junk, cold, stale, heavy food, meat and frozen, canned, processed food is like using rotten wood in yajna. using rotten wood in yajna.Pesticides, chemical fertilisers, sprays, hormones, irradiation, artificial refrigeration, preservatives and artificial colours, rob natural food of all prana, making it lifeless.

Naturopathy and Ayurveda recommend food to be seasonal, grown in the right place, at the right time, as only then it can contain living intelligence of nature and energy . Nature offers water-rich fruits and vegetables in summer and dry ones in winter.When we eat out-of-season food we not only disrespect nature but also our inner nature and immune system.

Rajasic food stimulates unnecessary activity of body and mind. Oily , heavy food with artificial preservatives is too bitter, sour, salty, hot, pungent and dry resulting in hyperactivity , restlessness, anger, irritability , and sleeplessness.Tamasic food is decomposed and decayed, consists of leftovers and brings dullness of mind, inertia and confusion. Non-vegetarian diet, stale food, excessive intake of fats, oil and sugary food is tamasic.

Saatvic foods have prana, life force.Modern food processing takes the life out of foods. By choosing a saatvic way of living and eating we discipline ourselves, raise our minds from the tamasic to rajasic to saatvic level. Food prepared by someone who is thinking of how to rob or murder, or in anger or tears will have negative vibes. Not only will the food be difficult to digest, it will also lead to heaviness and inertia, anger and violence in mind.