HYDERABAD : You might have tried the keto or juice diet, but have you ever thought of giving our very own Sattvic diet a try? This food system, in fact, is a way of living rather than just a list of prescribed foods. Based on Ayurvedic texts, this holistic way of living advocates a path in which goodness of mind, body and spirit are stressed on for high quality of life.
The Covid-19 pandemic has made people more aware and vigilant about their health. According to Ayurvedic practitioners, following a Sattvic lifestyle can enable you to live in harmony with your mind and body. We take a look at the places in the city that serve Sattvic food and the thought processes behind the meals served.
You are what you eat
Dr Saji D’Souza from KSAC Ayurvedic Hospital in Banjara Hills, says: “According to Ayurveda, Sattvic food is a part of Sattvic lifestyle which advocates goodness in all spheres of our life be it food, thoughts, feelings or action. The food is eaten without hurting any animals. It encompasses physical, mental and emotional well-being. A person is healthy or sick based on the environment he lives in.
The human body gets weakened due to the toxins we ingest. If we minimise the toxins, our digestive, immune, respiratory, and other systems of the body function smoothly. Farm produce laced with pesticides and prolonged use of allopathic medicines can increase the levels of toxins in our body. In a Sattvic diet, only those foods with maximum life force are recommended. Ayurvedic preparations like Chavanprash and kashayams are helping many to keep Covid-19 at bay. The pandemic is a good reminder for Indians to go back to their roots.”
Krishna’s prasad at Iskcon, ABIDS
The principle of cooking with a pure mind is stressed on at Iskcon temple in Abids. Talking to Express, an executive at the Govinda Restaurant on the temple premises said: “The food we sell here is offered to Sri Krishna first. In verse 26 of Bhagavad Gita that begins with ‘Patram Pushpam Phalam Toyam...’, the lord had said that he accepts everything — a leaf, a flower, a fruit or water — from a devotee if it is offered with love and devotion. That is why, our cooks follow a Sattvic lifestyle and fill their minds with good thoughts while cooking. Impure thoughts can be transmitted to the consumer through the food. Our food not only provides health benefits, but also brings divya anand (divine happiness) to the eater.”
Negative prana foods
One must keep in mind that a food substance is said to have negative prana not because of its intrinsic properties, but due to the amount and frequency in which it is consumed.
Pillars of Sattvic living
3 kinds of food
High prana foods at Isha Foundation
Keeping the Sattvic way of living in mind, the Isha Foundation in Hyderabad believes in eating food with high prana. Talking to Express, Vinesh, a volunteer at the foundation, said: “We categorise food into positive, zero and negative pranic food. Positive substances add prana to the system. They can increase the energy levels of your body. Ash gourd is known to have high prana and is an excellent coolant for the body in summer. If you consume negative pranic substances, they take away energy from the system. They will stimulate you on a nervous level but it will deplete you of your vital energies. A good example of this is coffee. It makes its consumers addicted to it, and is good for an instant, short-lived rush only. Zero pranic food neither adds nor takes away anything from the body. It is only eaten for taste.”
Kakoli Mukherjee kakoli_mukherjee@newindianexpress.com @KakoliMukherje2