In Pursuit Of Prana
"Prana"
the key word in yoga philosophy, translates as
"life force" and the
study of yoga is devoted to gaining access to the
life force dormant in
all of us and to assimilating life force
from outside the body.
It is part of the belief of the Yoga community
that the way you look
and feel is directly related to what you eat,
and therefore an eating
pattern based on foods which
"regenerate and impart vitality to the
body with a minimum of
stress, and which will leave the mind
clear and elevated"
has been composed.
Whole foods, and those
that are planted, are believed to be a major
source of life force,
and the yogi aims to incorporate this prana
into the body, at the
same time providing an alternative to both
chemical additives and
denatured foods.
The underlying theory
behind the Yoga Foods Plan reflects
the entire yoga philosophy-
the more life force the body assimilates,
the greater potential
for health, vitality, mental clarity, serenity and self- awareness. Food
can either regenerate the body,
regulate the weight and
elevate the mind, or sap that life force, add
excess poundage, and
bring about premature aging and illness.
Eating foods closest
to their native state, with minimal destruction to their inherent
life force has a positive effect on physical and mental- well being.
What
Foods Are On A Yoga Diet ?
Natural foods which have
been planted, such as vegetables, fruits,
herbs, nuts, grains,and
legumes, plus certain dairy products.
Foods are consumed raw or
lightly cooked without heavy seasoning and
sweetening, so the taste
can be fully experienced.
Vegetables should always
be fresh, and organically grown,if possible.
Frozen vegetables
can be used, but never canned.
At least one meal a day
includes a raw salad, and one or more
servings of cooked vegetables
is recommended. Steaming is the best method
of cooking, and all the
liquid is conserved for soup or broth.
Bean and seed sprouts are
used plentiful.
Since harsh spices can irritate
the digestive system and are said to
agitate the mind- only sea
salt, vegetable salts, herbs, garlic, onion,
lemon, and soy sauce are
used for seasonings.
Meat is excluded from the
diet. Instead Yogi's eat legumes, nuts, grains,
avocado, yogurt and cheese
to supply protein.
Dairy products that are
low in fat- nonfat milk or raw milk, cottage cheese,
farmer cheese, ricotta and
feta cheeses- are all part of the Yoga food diet.
Preferred cheeses are made
with raw or goat's milk; certain other mild,
natural cheeses such as
Swiss, Montery Jack, and cheddar, are permissible
in limited quantity. Fertilized
eggs are thought to contain all life- supporting elements
but play a minor role in
the yoga diet; The more orthodox Yogi, who follows
the Indian example, consumes
neither eggs nor milk.
Whole grains are mixed with
fruit or yogurt. dried fruits are stressed in place of candy.
Fruit and vegetable juices,
vegetable broth and herb teas are a very important
part of the Yogi diet.
Eating this way, you would be eating an abundance of vitamins and minerals
and
general low calories, and since food consumption is minimal and items
rich in
calories are not part of the plan, you cannot help but lose weight.
Yoga foods are virtually free of saturated fat, cholesterol, and concentrated
sugar,
all implications in heart ailments, diabetes, kidney disease, and many
other maladies.
Food preparation is simple and straight forward, therefore meal planning
is
not complicated nor time consuming.
Some agree that the costs of this diet, is in the same line as one
with meat and prepared
foods, Organic food costs more, but are offset by the prices
of meat, and prepared foods,
that you would buy instead of. Also eliminated are the potential hazards
of chemical
food additives.
