Last Updated on February 6, 2024 by astrologerbydefault

For the longest time we eat food at home, prepared by our mothers, wives, daughters or fathers, husbands and sons. These food items are filled with the very personal energy of love and the home. Or for the unluckier ones, it is the impersonal sort of food prepared by a chef or a cook in a hotel or a mess or a canteen. The point is, we rarely get to eat the food which we ourselves have prepared with our own hands. And we do not even realise what we are missing out.

Food is not just the carbohydrates, fats, proteins and the assorted micronutrients. Food is energy, in every sense of the word. The food we eat and the water we put into our bodies becomes a part of Us. So do be very careful on what you are putting inside you.

Indian food is predominantly vegetarian and every vegetable is a medicine. eg turmeric, garlic, spices etc all have documented medicinal properties. So when we add turmeric to food we are actually taking a small dose of medicine with every bite. Ayurved at its best.

The person who is making the food and his mindset when he is cooking has a very deep impact on how the food is. The mother or the wife or the son, when cooking the food for the family generally has love at the back of the mind. The ‘cook’ knows that he is cooking for his own loved ones and understands the responsibility. So his emotions are full of care, love and support which also enter the food. Call it the positive aura of the food.

But in a commercial kitchen, perhaps the cook in a commercial kitchen is overworked. Or maybe cursing his boss or thinking of the raise he has not got yet. And these negative emotions also enter the food he is cooking. Some of you may have felt this energy at some point of your life. Maybe you went to an expensive restaurant, ordered a nice dish, it  looked so very good but it failed to satisfy. And perhaps you bad dreams and later an upset stomach. This was because primarily the energy of the food was all wrong for you.

This is the exact concept of the “prasadam” in a temple. This small spoonful of food given to devotees in temples is carries the blessings of the deity. The food formally placed before the deity’s moorthi during the puja and picks up the energy of the mantras chanted. This food even in this minute quantity nourishes our soul. In Indian kitchens even today there is always a small moorthi of Goddess Annapurna. The person cooking the food sees her divinity and remembers her blessings. ‘Annapurna’ literally means the “one who completely satisfies the Universe with food”

But the best food that you will ever eat is the food that you cook with your own hands. It is your own energy and you know that you are going to eat it yourself. So your higher self residing within ensures that the food prepared is the best possible for your soul. And in this world of frozen food and microwave ready food and TV dinners we are missing this privilege of eating the food prepared with our own hands.

(In my family I cook breakfast, lunch and dinner daily personally. And dinner means a minimum of 2 vegetable dishes, one dal/curry, rice and chapatis with curd, pickles, salads etc. One evening, I was high on Veerbhadra Dhandakam, a stotra which describes how Shiv destroyed the Yadnya of Daksh Prajapati and how Devi Sati destroyed her physical manifestation and returned to Her energy form. The energy was so intense that, every single thing I cooked that evening burnt! Since then I stick to very soothing Annapurna stotra or Vishnu Sahastranama!)

So start today. Prepare at least one dish every day. This may be as simple as a salad or boiled rice or even tea. And try to add more energy to it by listening to something that uplifts your soul. Classical music to mantras what ever makes you happy. This will ensure that your positive emotions add to the energy quality of the food. Eat something that you yourself have prepared everyday and you will be well on your way to self healing.