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 child­hood 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)