FOOD AND THE CHAKRAS
As culture and consciousness continue their inevitable evolution, it only natural that our physical state is changing too. As our physical sat change, so must our eating habits. However, those who think they eat their way to enlightenment may find the path slow and arduous.
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The proper diet for expanding consciousness cannot be prescribed as a generalization for anyone. The diet one chooses should fit his needs, goals, and body types. If you weigh 220 pounds and labor a day on the construction site, you have different needs than the ninety nine-pound secretary who sits; you have different needs than the ninety nine-pound secretary who sits in an office. Most commonly, a vegetarian diet is recommended for developing sensitivity and raising consciousness to ‘higher” states. Yet this diet is not for everyone, and can even be harmful if the nutritional balance is not maintained.
Food has basic vibration qualities, which are above and beyond their nutritional makeup. Food prepared lovingly by a family member is far more beneficial than food prepared by someone who hates her job in a fast food restaurant. Various types of food have different vibration qualities as well and can be roughly corresponded to the various chakra levels as follows:
Chakra One: Meats and Proteins
From flesh to flesh, meat is probably the most physically oriented food you can eat. Meat takes longer to digest than most other foods and, therefore, stays in the digestive tract longer. For this reason, it occupies energy in the lower part of the body, often limiting or dominating energy that might otherwise flow toward the upper chakras. Meats and proteins are good foods for grounding. Too much of them, however, leaves the body sluggish and overly tamasic. If, on the other hand, one feels weak, disoriented, or out of touch with his body and the physical world, a good meal of flesh foods can do much to ground him.
It is not necessary to eat meat to be grounded. It is the protein that is most important for the structural tissue associated with the first chakra. A vegetarian diet with proper protein can provide enough “foundation food” to keep the first chakra happy. It is then important to eat such foods as tofu, beans, nuts, eggs, and dairy products.
Chakra Two: Liquids
Chakra two is associated with water, therefore, pointing to liquids. Liquids pass through the body more quickly than solids and help cleanse the body and keep the kidneys from becoming overloaded with toxins. Juices and herbal teas can aid this cleansing process. We must have enough liquid to remain healthy.
Chakra Three: Starches
Starches are an easily converted energy food, relating to the fire element of the third chakra.
Starches that come from whole grains rather than processed flours are assimilated by the body more slowly and more thoroughly. More quickly absorbed foods. Such as simple sugars or stimulants, also provide energy, but prolonged use of them depletes the general health of the third chakra. Addiction to “energy foods” shows an imbalance in the chakra. Sugar addiction can point to (as well a cause) third chakra imbalance.
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Chakra Four: Vegetables
Vegetables are a product of photosynthesis, something that our bodies are incapable of producing. Vegetables trap the vital energy of the sunlight, as well as a good balance from the earth, air, fire ( sun), and water vegetables, are a product of cosmic and Earth processes in natural balance, reflecting the balance nature of the heart chakra. In the Chinese system, they are neither yin nor yang, also representing the balance and neutrality characteristic of this chakra.
Chakra Five: Fruits
Fruits are said to be highest on the food chain because when ripe, they drop the ground and do not require the killing of plants or animals to harvest them. Fruits are rich in vitamin C and high in natural sugars. They pass through the system the most quickly of all solid food and leave the energy free to travel to the upper chakras.
Chakras Six and Seven
It is more difficult to recommend foods for these higher chakras as they are not linked with bodily processes, but with mental states. Certain mind-altering substances such as marijuana or psychedelic drugs are known to affect these centers, sometimes beneficially and sometimes not. In relation to food, fasting is most relevant to the upper chakras.
Note: it must be understood that mere ingestion of meat will not make someone automatically grounded, nor will a diet of pure vegetables open a heart chakra that is otherwise closed. The objective is to obtain a balance among the chakras, and a balance within a person’s diet helps to bring this about. The previous listings are merely offered as a guideline for correcting the vibration aspects of the heart chakra with diet. A person who lacks protein may feel flighty and ungrounded.
This body runs on energy, not food.
While much of that energy is obtained from food, we will find that energy from other chakras such as love, power, or higher states of consciousness, often decreases our need for food.
