Dear J
For twelve years I have been eating only natural foods. All the time, uncooked plant foods. I primarily consume coconut, bananas, soaked lentils, and vegetables. I do not drink anything except pure water. I refrain from consuming any animal-derived food, including milk. I do not add salt. It is through food that we can achieve spiritual liberation. Only food allows us to communicate with cosmic forces. I would like to know your views on food. We should talk about this.
A.P. Sithan
Dear Sithan,
I accept that concern about food is very important. It is indeed attention to health. An intellectual, a spiritual ascetic, should always be aware of what he eats and what it does to his body. Because the body is our instrument. The body binds the mind, emotions, and knowledge. An imbalance in the body can also lead to an imbalance in the thoughts.
However, I believe that focusing solely on food and practicing eating is pointless. The notion that food can provide all true knowledge is merely a fantasy. We transform this belief into a philosophy through our illogical thoughts. Food plays a small part in our life. If we consider food penance, it is merely one of its principles, not a form of knowledge.
The only path to inner fulfilment and spiritual liberation is through learning, bringing what is known to practice, and expanding upon it. Food, or anything similar, represents a narrow-minded opposition to knowledge.
Food addiction is one of the most prevalent addictions in this century. They are always thinking about food. They call themselves “foodies.” Yours is the other end of that mindset. You, too, suffer from a similar addiction to food; we can call it a negative addiction. Foodies have binge eating disorder (BED) and you have avoidant/restrictive food intake disorder (ARFID) .
Food is an object; eating is a worldly act. To embrace any object or any worldly activity as a complete solution to all problems is to distance ourselves from reality and wisdom.
Jeyamohan
