Day 11 of Deepak Chopra's Meditation Series - Eating Zen - I Experience The Peach

Day 11 

Today's Centering Thought: 

I choose foods that help me thrive. 

Our Sanskrit mantra:

Om Vardhanam Namah 

I nourish the universe and the universe nourishes me.

My first understanding of zen came from a story about eating.  I was 14 and my aunt and uncle given me a book on zen and mindfulness for Christmas.  I read the first few chapters with some interest but it was the story about the man who mindlessly consumed a peach while chattering away to his friend that captured my attention opened my eyes to the importance and beauty of living mindfully and fully experiencing the present moment.  The concept was so simple...

If I eat a peach lost in thought I cannot fully enjoy the peach…I may not even taste the peach at all.  

I left that chapter with the understanding that my life was like the peach - and if I don't consciously connect to the moment that I will completely miss out on the experience.  

I ate a grape recently when I was really hungry and decided to meditate or "hone in" on the process.  As I was chewing and swallowing I concentrated on the qualities of the fruit - the bitterness of the red skin, the cold and wetness of the sweet insides - feeling and sensing those qualities as far down into my body as I could.  It was pretty amazing.  

The grape was full of life and I felt it nourish me to my very core.  

I tried the same with a "healthy" cracker. It felt dead in comparison.  Ayurveda claims that the life (prana) in foods is as important (if not more) than the measure of nutrients it contains. I feel eons more vibrant when I eat fresh live foods than if I eat crackers, cereals and canned goods - no matter how many vitamins and "whole grain goodness" they claim to be enriched with.  My whole being feels depleted when I partake in a diet of mostly processed foods...even organic, GMO free foods are unhealthy and depleting if they are designed to have a long shelf life.

In the meditation today, Deepak talks about eating around a beautifully set table instead of the TV.  

I think this ritual really helps to cultivate good eating habits.  I tend to chew more slowly and mindfully when eating in a place someone took time to make special, rather than at the end of the kitchen counter or while mindlessly watching the TV.   I love rituals because they really help me to consciously connect to whatever it is I am practicing.  Lighting a candle and praying or setting intentions before my yoga practice makes the entire process more sacred. The approach becomes an offering, rather than an exercise or process. Eating is the same for me.  When I take a moment to consciously connect to my food - really considering what the little bean went through to get to my plate or the fish that gave its life so I could sustain mine - I feel so much more connected to my food and my body. The meal and process feels more special...more meaningful.  

I even feel like food, herbs and supplements become more beneficial to me when I practice this first - like the mere acknowledgement of their purpose prepares my body to receive them better.  I know this sounds a little crazy, but if you think about it, doesn't a prayer before dinnertime seem to do more for US then would for any God or for the food?  

I've become really interested in rituals lately.  They bring me into the present moment.  I'm wondering if that is what they are ultimately designed for.  All religions have rituals before sacred practices.  It makes sense that a person taking part in something sacred must be  completely present, or the practice would be meaningless.  I have recently reconnected with Wicca because of this.  The incantations and potions in a spell book are really just rituals that help connect the practitioner to the innate power within.  I'll be sharing some of these rituals on my blog down the road so if you are interested, stop back or sign up to follow my blog.