Right Food
Anna Se Brahma ki Yatra
Anna Se Brahma ki Yatra
The Journey to the Divine begins with Food
If the food , our fuel, is right, the journey to self discovery becomes a celebration.
“Aahaar” not just means what is ingested through the mouth but it includes all that is taken in through the touch, the smell, the ears and sight, the “Chaitsik Aahaar” because it not only feeds the physical but the mental and cosmic self as well. Hence the great emphasis on how the food is prepared, how it is served and how it is eaten. It is not just the physical and chemical properties in food that determine who we are but the cosmic properties that play the most crucial role in the journey called life.Lunch is a time of celebration and we start the celebration with Nritya.
Nritya/Dance
Nritya before the meal enfuses a feeling of celebration in the body, mind and the atmosphere with Hrin Vaayu or positive vibrations. The feeling of joy allows the digestive juices to flow uninstructed in the body thus preparing the body and mind for the meal.
Prayer
Prayer is a state of inner silence and gratitude.
Param Poojya Bhojan hai Divyam Anoopam!
Param Shakti Roopam
Param Tripti Swaroopam!
O revered worth worship
You are indeed divine and unique!
You are the manifestation of power,
You are the embodiment of fulfilment!
The prayer is repeated thrice with eyes closed, hands folded, and body in sukhasana, mind filled with joy and gratitude.
Aasana/Posture
The saadhak, seeker sits on the floor in Sukhasana or Padmasana on a cotton or woollen mat. The ancient wisdom speaks endlessly about the significance of postures. Modern civilisation and its dependence on comforts have broken these postures ,breaking the body from inside and unbalancing several features .The advent of the dining table and the European toilet has distorted two very crucial postures, one, the posture in which we eat the food and the other with which we excrete. The natural postures allow the valves at the waist and knees to form a lock to function at best efficiency and this is an important element in the digestive process. The hands and feet are the two main outlets from where energy flows out. That’s why in Siddhasana or Padmasana, the hands and feet are meant to be joined together so that the energy doesn’t flow
The pious flame is invited with feelings of deep gratitude. The law of attraction is at play.There are two types of vibrations present in the atmosphere, the negative vibrations,Dhan Vaayu and the positive vibrations,Hrin Vaayu. While lighting the flame, we attract vibrations that we reflect from our being. If we are still,calm and positive within, we attract Hrin Vaayu or the positive vibrations and similarly with dhan Vaayu. The flame is far more sensitive than the other elements, hence it is important to remember this when we invite the flame.
The plate is placed on a stool at navel height. With spine upright, each morsel is chewed appropriately with joy before it is taken in.
At the end of the meal, a big pinch of turmeric powder mixed with half a pinch of rock salt and cold pressed mustard oil is massaged on the gums and teeth with the middle finger after which the mouth is rinsed well with water and the water too is taken in.
The meal ends with gratitude. Hands folded, the pious flame is then bid farewell to.
