By Laura

 

Preparing a Meal and Sharing It

Cooking a meal and then enjoying it with a friend or loved one is a great exercise you can do to increase your perception of the interconnectedness of all things.

Most traditional religions recite a prayer before eating. This is an important ritual that often gets over looked. Ask yourself: when people stop and pray over food what are they doing? They are thanking God (or gods or the universe or the cosmos) for the food they are eating. But they are not just being thankful. They are adding energy and meaning to the food. We all eat for energy, but to better appreciate and absorb the energy in food, it's helpful to appreciate it, savor it. A prayer can make eating a holy experience, by putting love and appreciation into the food. This kind of deliberate appreciation of food was the real purpose behind the religious custom of being thankful for a meal.

Cooking with Love

Preparing a meal with love in another way to infuse your food with postive energy. As you're cooking, keep in mind the interconnectedness of the universe. The water cycle nurtures the plants that grow, animals eat the plants. Humans eat animals and plants. It all returns back to the earth. Contemplate where your food has come from. Picture the farmer who planted the crop, the water that nurtured it, the soil that was gave the minerals, the insects that fed off the plant, the animals that ate the crops. Look at your food now. Review how far it's come.

Prepare the meal with love and gratitude. Thank the people who nurtured the food, the cycles that grew the food, the universe that contains the food. Perhaps remember your grandmother or mother who cooked for you when you were small. Food always tastes better when it was made by someone with love in mind. Can you add that same positive energy to your food today?

Invite people to share the meal you've prepared. Enjoy the food together. Before eating, silently offer up thanks and gratitude for the food.

Enjoy the meal. Eat slowly. Savor the taste. Enjoy the flavors. Notice your friends, thank them for coming.

Review the Process

• What did you learn from this exercise?
• How do you take food for granted?
• What are your eating habits?
• Do you rush through your meals, not noticing what you're putting into your body?
• How can you change your attitude towards food?
• Can you add any rituals, such as being thankful for your food, into your everyday life?

Decide how you want to change your relationship with food. Maybe you'll resolve to eat slower and enjoy your food. Maybe you can begin to say silent thanks before eating. Being mindful of what you put into your body and how you put it into your body is an important step on the path towards spiritual and personal growth.