Spiritual Value of Food

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Spiritual Value of Food

By K. Navin Chander

 

Light and Love the night has a thousand eyes,

And the day but One; yet the light of the bright world dies

With the dying sun. The mind has a thousand eyes,

And the heart but one;

Yet the fight of a whole life dies

When love is done.

 

The old saint looked kindly at the old businessman but declined to

attend the dinner proposed by him. All persuasions yielded no result.

Finally the businessman slowly moved out of the ashram. After a

distance, a disciple of the saint came from behind and said that he

should not feel disappointed and that he would come and attend the

dinner on behalf of the saint and bless him. The businessman agreed and

next day the dinner was held.

 

On that night after dinner the disciple could not meditate at all and

could hear a low moaning of a girl. This went on for three days.

Ultimately, the disciple approached his Guru and complained. The Guru

asked him to mention all that he had done in the last few days. The

disciple made a clean breast of the only unusual event of the dinner he

had in the businessman's house.

 

The all-knowing Guru told him that the businessman was merciless

money-lender. A poor agriculturist could not repay the debt and the

interest on it. He threatened the helpless man and finally married his

teen-aged daughter in lieu of his debt as he had no male issue till

then. This girl was most unhappy at the turn of events and wept silently

in her lone moments. In that frame of mind, she prepared the dinner

which the disciple ate.

The Guru explained that while cooking, the personality of the cook would

enter the food through subtle vibrations. These unseen vibrations will

later enter into the personality of the eater and influence his mind.

That is the reason why his meditations were disturbed.

The Guru explained that what goes into the mouth would greatly influence

what comes out of it and shape our lives. The food prepared in a

spiritual frame of mind, thinking only of God or Sadguru, will always

give peace of mind, with powers to divinely discriminate between good

and evil. Food especially taken in hotels prepared and served with

ungodly tendencies, unruly behaviour and foul in mouth do great harm to

the spiritual make-up of a person.

 

Once in October 1916, Bhikubhai came to Shirdi with barfi, watermelon

and a garland to offer to Sai Baba. She was a child-hood friend of

Mother Radhakrishna Ayi and as she crossed Godavari River in Kopergaon

she saw the cremation site of Radhakrishna Ayi, Overcome with emotion,

she collapsed at the site and wept bitterly. She felt Sai Baba was

ungrateful to Radhakrishna Ayi after all services to Baba. She

vehemently accused Baba. In such a frame of mind, she came to Shirdi and

offered barfi and watermelon to Sai Baba. The all-knowing Baba refused

to accept them. When she wanted to garland Baba even against remount's

rations, mysteriously the garland snapped itself into three parts.

 

Bhikubai had to return disappointed, Kaka Sahib asked Baba as to why he

refused the gifts of Bhikubai. Baba explained to him that he cannot

accept the eatables nor wear the garland brought with such a troubled

heart and mental uneasiness.

 

Sai Baba exhorted his devotees to think of Him before they partook their

food which would then become sanctified from any spiritual impurities.

Every action of Baba had a meaning behind it. If we go deeper into the

matter we will thus begin to understand why he acted so even while

looking harsh externally.

(Source Shri Sai Padananda April 1998)