21/10/2020
CONNECT WITH YOUR FOOD
In old yogic texts, diet is beautifully described as what a person should eat, what a person should not eat, the manner in which one should eat and how much to eat.
We have a tradition of chanting shloka before our meal,
वदनि कवळ घेता नाम घ्या श्रीहरीचे ।
सहज हवन होते नाम घेता फुकाचे ।
जिवन करि जिवित्वा अन्न हे वदनि पूर्णब्रह्म ।
उदरभरण नोहे जाणिजे यज्ञकर्म ॥१॥
These lines give a good description about how to eat food and if one follows
this, one can stay away from many diseases. Today everybody is so busy in their work that they eat their food in a hurry, while working on computer, mobile etc. Same way we see a picture in every household that we eat our food while watching T.V, small children play games on mobile while their mother feeds them. While doing so we eat beyond the capacity of our stomach and this puts extra burden on our digestive system, extra food is stored as fats and we start gaining weight.
So pray to god before eating your meal or at least sit for 2 minutes with your eyes closed. This will calm your mind, if you are stressed or arguing with somebody then after praying your mind will calm down and you will eat with all your senses and digestion of food will be better.
The last line of the shloka says ‘उदरभरण नोहे जाणिजे यज्ञकर्म’ what does this mean? This compares the act of eating food similar to how we give offerings to a yadnya. Eat your food slowly, chew it properly. Give food to your stomach in small quantity and frequently.
And lastly, expressing gratitude for food and the person who cooks it, will make your life healthier and happier.
Swati Deo
Consulting Dietician
