Prasadam and Spiritual Progress: A Metacognitive Inquiry

Food is a fundamental necessity for every organism. Yet, while millions struggle daily to secure a morsel of food, others confront the growing crisis of food wastage. This paradox raises deeper questions about the human relationship with food. 

This raises many questions:

• What is the true relationship between humans and food?
• How does this relationship evolve as one ascends from material consciousness to spiritual consciousness?
• What role do vegetarianism and non-vegetarianism play in spiritual progress?
• How can food wastage be reduced through conscious living?

There is no single answer to the above questions. 

In the following quote, Sri Aurobindo has clearly stated a one stop resolution which can be a starting point to alter our behaviour towards food.

“It is absurd to make food such an important thing in the spiritual life. It is a secondary matter whether one takes vegetarian or non-vegetarian diet, so far as the spiritual life is concerned.” – Sri Aurobindo

When we feel hungry, we immediately rush to the food to satisfy our taste buds. This is a neurologically programmed response. If there is any lapse to this satisfaction, we reject the food. Interestingly, this rejection response is an evolutionary conserved response which can be altered in yoga.

Before going further, let us first have a look at the following quotes by Sri Aurobindo and The Mother collected from the Dining Hall at Sri Aurobindo Ashram, Pondicherry.

“Always behave as if The Mother was looking at you, because she is, indeed always present.” – Sri Aurobindo

“Eat for living but do not live for eating” – The Mother 

“When we eat, we should be conscious that we are giving our food to that presence in us; it must be a sacred offering in a temple and the sense of a mere physical need or self-gratification must pass away from us.” – Sri Aurobindo

“The food given from the Dining room has the Mother’s force behind it. It contains everything that is necessary to keep you in good health to do the sadhana. Keep that attitude and eat. Everything will go well.” – Sri Aurobindo

“It would be hundred times more effective to never waste food than to cut down one meal as a show and to eat more before and after.

A strong, ardent, sincere campaign against the waste of food is essential and full heartedly I approve of it.

Let the inmates of the Ashram show their goodwill and collaboration in never eating more than they can digest and never ask more than they can eat.” – The Mother

Here I have summarized the essence from the above quotes which will help the sadhaka to elevate their relationship with the food:

• Treat food as a gift of the Divine Mother and consume it as prasadam.
• Prepare food mindfully so that it nourishes every cell of the body.
• Prioritize nutritional and vibrational value over mere taste, appearance, or texture.
• Eat consciously, with attention to quality, quantity, and inner state.
• Recognize food wastage as both an ethical and karmic imbalance affecting the individual and society.

During my recent visit to Auroville, I was deeply inspired by the practice at Solar Kitchen, where the quantity of food wasted each day is publicly documented. This simple yet powerful act serves as a reminder for seekers to cultivate greater awareness and responsibility towards consumption.

In the contemporary movement towards conscious living and clean food, Integral Yoga offers a unique framework for understanding the relationship between food, consciousness, and human evolution. Such an approach may lead not merely to physical wellbeing but also to the integral healing of the sadhaka. 

India possesses a vast and sacred diversity of prasadam traditions, varying across regions in appearance, taste, seasonal availability, and nutritional composition. These traditions carry not only cultural significance but also subtle psychological and spiritual dimensions.

To conclude, a careful analysis of the Ashram Food at Pondicherry (The Mother’s Prasadam) has much to offer in terms of the food composition and quality suitable for an individual for the satisfaction of all his chakras and planes of consciousness pointing to the Vedic understanding of offerings to Agni.

The Mother’s careful formulation of food within the Ashram environment opens a significant area of interdisciplinary research exploring the relationship between diet, consciousness, healing, and holistic evolution.

The question remains: When it comes to food, are we truly conscious yet?

- Abhishek Om Ghosh (India)