Extract from THE SIVANANDA BOOK OF MEDITATION
A poor diet can act as severe hindrance to the practice of meditation. To have a calm and concentrated mind, we need to follow a sattvic (pure) diet. All foods have distinct energies that are used to build the human organism. Yogic science (like Western science) recognises that the physical body is formed from food, but yoga goes one step further and states that the mind is formed from the subtle energies of food. What is consumed by the human body correlates directly to the efficiency of the mind. Accordingly, if you eat food that is over processed, the mind will reflect the impurities in the food by becoming unbalanced. For example, studies show that certain red food colouring creates hyperactivity in children and that refined sugar can cause emotional instability. These are just two of many hundreds of examples of substances that are often heedlessly consumed with no awareness of their effect on the mind. A person who meditates regularly must be particularly aware of these substances, as even on a day-to-day basis, diet affects the quality of meditation.
The optimum diet for a meditator is a simple one. This is not to say that meals should be unappetising, but there should be an absence of foods that negatively affect the mind. Hot and pungent spices, garlic, onions, too much salt, coffee, black tea and meat all agitate the mind, making control of thought difficult. Other foods dull the mind, inducing the state of sleepiness instead of concentration. These include all pre-cooked and overripe foods, as well as alcohol, and, though not taken as food, marijuana and cigarettes. Consider adopting a vegetarian diet. Many diseases can be cured by a change in diet or a short period of fasting to detoxify the system. This is true not only of physical disorders, but of many mental problems as well. Contrary to popular opinion, vegetarians get plenty of protein. It is meat eaters who consume too much. Animal protein contains a high concentration of uric acid, a nitrogen compound similar to ammonia. It is not water-soluble and cannot be broken down by the liver and so, though a certain amount is eliminated, the greater proportion is deposited in the joints, resulting in arthritis. Hardening of the arteries and heart disease are two of the most common illnesses in the West, where the greatest amount of meat is consumed. The culprit is too much cholesterol which, if taken in excess, cannot be totally eliminated from the body.
Innumerable chemicals are fed to and injected into animals to increase their weight and the profit they yield. Nitrites, food colouring, artificial hormones, and even arsenic are among the chemicals added to animal flesh before it goes on the supermarket shelf. These, along with additives in other foods collect in the human body and are stored in the tissues. Cancer occurs when normal body cells react to the excessive toxins by mutating into cells that reproduce uncontrollably.
There are other practical and spiritual reasons for not eating meat. Four times more grain or soya is needed to feed animals bred for human consumption than to feed a person directly. This raises a moral question regarding the sharing of the world’s resources. The vegetarian diet is also less expensive and results in the most efficient utilisation of available land. Plants are original source of energy for all living beings, as they store the energy of the sun through photosynthesis. Vegetarians take their nourishment from this powerful and life-enhancing original source.
For a yogi, though, the main consideration in not eating meat is the basic principle of ahimsa, or non-injury. Thou shalt not kill, as the Bible says. Animals have feelings and consciousness, just as humans do. Mass breeding and slaughter is cruel and unnecessary. There is no doubt that you are that what you eat. A subtle part of what is consumed becomes our consciousness. Those who change to a vegetarian diet notice a corresponding change in consciousness. A certain grossness disappears and awareness becomes more refined; the mind is more easily controlled. Then, with time and practice, success in meditation is assured.
Try to eat a little less. Many people eat far more than is necessary, mainly out of habit or to satisfy the senses. Overeating is the cause of great majority of diseases encountered in modern society. Meditation becomes impossible when the stomach is overloaded; drowsiness sets in and sleep follows. Be moderate in the amount you eat. Your mind and body will feel light, alert and full of energy.
-Swami Vishnudevananda