‘अन्न हे पूर्ण ब्रह्म’ Food is an absolute Divine!
Updated: 7 days ago
They say digestion begins at the mouth. This is true as our saliva plays a major role in adding digestive enzymes in properly chewed food, called Bolus in anatomical terms. While this takes place in our mouth, all of our senses are equally as important and take part in aiding digestion. Let’s take a few steps back before digestion starts its journey at the mouth.
The sense of smell catches the food in our mind’s eye even before we see it in front of us. We already form an image of what it could be and our memory associated with it. When we have the food in front of us, we see its shape and color, and then we sense the texture. We can also hear whether it’s crunchy or not, and finally, we taste it in our mouth. On a daily basis we probably forget to notice all of these characteristics, but we all have experienced them at some point in our lives. If we savor these experiences rather than shoving or gulping the food down, it would activate more saliva. Remember the magic of imagining lemon or any sour food? Just by mentioning the name of it, our mouth becomes watery. Food has our senses associated with this.
If we go back a few more steps at its cooking phase, the emotional state of the cook influences the quality of that dish. The person who is cooking the food needs to pay attention to the kinds of thoughts they have while cooking, as their energy can transfer to the meal they are preparing. If it is made with anger or frustration, good food can become toxic. Food made with happy thoughts can transfer good, loving energy, which can add its nourishing value. You can simply say ‘this food is nourishing!’. Blessing the food while cooking or before eating to set your intention is an important aspect. Happy food can be digested easily.
A few more steps back, and we may not entirely have control over this phase, but where our food comes from matters. For this step, praying or sending blessings to our farmers, supporting sustainable local produce businesses, growing your own veggie garden, or keeping our surroundings clean are just a few things we can take part in towards our well-being.
You are what you eat, but Ayurveda says you are what you can digest. When you are stressed, the sympathetic nervous system (fight or flight) activates and directs blood flow to the stressor which restricts the flow to the digestive system. Marma Massage Therapy helps activate the parasympathetic nervous system (rest & digest), which helps improve our digestion. Food is life, and our digestive system at its best can absorb nutrients at an optimal level.