Meditate with Rice

Meditation with Rice:  How Yogic Philosophy Aids Healthy Eating Habits

The Answers Are Within

We have all heard the phrase, 'the answers are within.'  In times of confusion, it is generally best to be quiet and to take pause, in order to allow clarity to surface, so that we can see our direction with more ease. 

It's just a matter of listening. But listening can be challenging when the mind is turbulent with stress, confusion or pain.  

One of the most popular yogic texts, called the Patanjali Sutras, explores the complexities of our inability to listen, the causes of this inability, and how to solve the problem of not being able to listen through the practice of yoga.  The formula of yoga quells the obstructions that inhibit the inability to listen by quieting the mind. 


Create The Space for Calm in Your Life

In the Patanjali Sutras the stuff that clouds the mind, our thoughts, and mistaken beliefs are called vrittis.  Vrittis are often translated as 'swirling fluctuations of thought,' and are considered mental debris that block our ability to perceive the truth of things.  

Further, we project our vrittis on to the things, people, and experiences we perceive, further inhibiting our ability to accurately interpret.  Most of us, according to yogic theory are in a constant state of projection.  It is yoga and meditation that diffuses our vrittis and allows them to settle, so that like a clear lake, our mind becomes calm and translucent, enabling the direct perception of truth, as it is.

When it comes to eating food in a balanced way, it is often creating the space to connect with the self and really listen that is needed.  The more frequently we do this, the more often we take pause, the more we allow ourselves to 'stop,' the more easily we can act in accordance with our inner truth. In the practice of connecting with the self, many of our habitual patterns to food can be alleviated. 

Try A Meditation with Rice

Just take a moment and plunge your finger tips and hands into uncooked rice.  Feel the temperature of the rice and its texture against your skin.  Notice its weight, temperature, and smell.  Really let yourself experience the physical presence of the rice. 

Ask yourself: 

• How does this rice make me feel?
• Do I enjoy this rice when I eat it? 
• Where do I imagine that this rice comes from? 
• Is this rice good for me? 
• Am I grateful for this rice? 

The Benefits of Contemplative Practice with Food
The primary reason it is good to take pause, and contemplate your food every once in a while is that it slows you down.  It is this slowing down that allows your voice, intuition and inner knower to awaken.  You have a guide within you, but it often takes effort to reestablish trusting your inner guide.  Just like any relationship, it takes consistency and effort to nurture the relationship with that aspect of yourself.  In so doing, you develop self-reliance in your eating habits.  It frees you from the constraints of rules, lists and dogma — even ayurvedic dogma.    

My Coaching Programs & Intuitive Eating

I always include mindfulness into the work that I do with clients to restore a healthy relationship with food.  If you are interested in beginning a program with me so that I can help you, book a consultation with me.  If you have already had a consultation and would like to initiate a longer healing program that can help you develop a healthy and intuitive relationship with food, please email me directly at monica@hamsacenter.com, so that I can suggest a program specifically for you.  

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