food prana

justwannabe · 03-19-2007, 10:23 PM

still new so figuring stuff out. I think food is also considered to have prana in it. if that is not the right word please correct me. Yoga also believes in non violence. So would cutting things like oranges with a metal blade take away some of the prana? metal is a conductor of electricity, if you put a metal necklace on your neck, especially gold, it will not allow the energy to flow through your spine correctly. so since metal is a conductor, conductors can drain energy i belive, but I could be wrong. so is cutting your food with metal a violent act that drains some of the energy? wood does not conduct so would that be better? still figuring out and enjoying the journey,
thanks
seeker

InnerAthlete · 03-20-2007, 01:38 AM

That's a very interesting question.
I gather you have a Kapha-dominant constitution?

There are two issues you bring up. The first is violence of the action and the second is the energetic result of the cutting.

The answer to the fisrt is no...and yes. It is possible to cut anything with violence, as a slasher would in a dark alley. It is also possible to cut without any violence at all, as a highly skilled surgeon might. So this is an issue of intention rather than action. Some mistake this within the yoga world. It is not the action. One need only read the Gita and focus on the dilema of Arjuna to get this.

The second element, is there energy drain by cutting the food with a material that is a conductor (metal), is not so easy to respond to. Since the food still has life and has not had the energy of it killed by a cooking process, a freezing, etcetera.. I would say this is of little concern. If you prefer to peel the orange then do so. But more important is the joy. If you are miserable peeling it but elated cutting it, then by all means cut it.

This is a very intricate topic. Ideally food that is to be cooked should be cooked by wood burning stove. The energy of fire is transfered into the food and thus into the body. But we live in the world we live in and most food is NOT prepared this way. Second choice would be a gas stove. And from there the methods of preparation trail off significantly.

It is important, as yogis, that we do not get so preoccupied with these things that we forget joy. In that situation the pendulum has not moved to middle but has swung to another extreme of the continuum.

Hubert · 03-20-2007, 04:46 AM

I used to think of prana as some sort of electricity. But now I think it isn't. Prana is more subtle, something what manifests in our world through it's effects but not by itself. It is not measurable through usual scientific means. Prana is "currents" in our "etheric" body, to use an antroposophic term. The etheric body is the vital body, what makes the matter our body consist of take a living form. Think of it as the organizer, the cohesion force. All living things have such "bodies". When we die, the vital body is separated from the matter it uses to form our material body. Than the matter follows the rules of our material world, and it decomposes.

As about the orange. Cutting with a sharp object exposes the cells to the oxigen, what might be considered detrimental. You loose vitamins and other valuable nutrients by that. So it is better to just tear them apart, as the living tissue will tear along the boundaries of cells, exposing them less. Not that it would make too much of a difference, but, well, you asked.

justwannabe · 03-20-2007, 08:04 AM

IA and Hubert,
thank you very much for both of your replies I appreciate the insight. And yes hubert I did ask, I dont need to give my ego the sugar coat

IA, I am not sure what a kapha dominant constitution is

Hubert, I was thinking prana kind of in the same terms as you. From what I gather, it kind of comes from the sun, from living things. not a calorie, but something different

03-19-2007, 10:23 PM	#1
justwannabe pañcashata Member Join Date: Aug 2006 Posts: 557	still new so figuring stuff out. I think food is also considered to have prana in it. if that is not the right word please correct me. Yoga also believes in non violence. So would cutting things like oranges with a metal blade take away some of the prana? metal is a conductor of electricity, if you put a metal necklace on your neck, especially gold, it will not allow the energy to flow through your spine correctly. so since metal is a conductor, conductors can drain energy i belive, but I could be wrong. so is cutting your food with metal a violent act that drains some of the energy? wood does not conduct so would that be better? still figuring out and enjoying the journey, thanks seeker __________________ I am light, I am love, I am peace, I am kindness, I am happiness, I am here, it is now. I am, and so are you

03-20-2007, 01:38 AM	#2
InnerAthlete Mostly Good Egg Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: Certified Purna Yoga Teacher - Seattle, WA Posts: 1,078	That's a very interesting question. I gather you have a Kapha-dominant constitution? There are two issues you bring up. The first is violence of the action and the second is the energetic result of the cutting. The answer to the fisrt is no...and yes. It is possible to cut anything with violence, as a slasher would in a dark alley. It is also possible to cut without any violence at all, as a highly skilled surgeon might. So this is an issue of intention rather than action. Some mistake this within the yoga world. It is not the action. One need only read the Gita and focus on the dilema of Arjuna to get this. The second element, is there energy drain by cutting the food with a material that is a conductor (metal), is not so easy to respond to. Since the food still has life and has not had the energy of it killed by a cooking process, a freezing, etcetera.. I would say this is of little concern. If you prefer to peel the orange then do so. But more important is the joy. If you are miserable peeling it but elated cutting it, then by all means cut it. This is a very intricate topic. Ideally food that is to be cooked should be cooked by wood burning stove. The energy of fire is transfered into the food and thus into the body. But we live in the world we live in and most food is NOT prepared this way. Second choice would be a gas stove. And from there the methods of preparation trail off significantly. It is important, as yogis, that we do not get so preoccupied with these things that we forget joy. In that situation the pendulum has not moved to middle but has swung to another extreme of the continuum. __________________ ---- http://www.yogamojodojo.com http://www.teamyoga.com http://www.innerathlete.net/forum

03-20-2007, 08:04 AM	#4
justwannabe pañcashata Member Join Date: Aug 2006 Posts: 557	IA and Hubert, thank you very much for both of your replies I appreciate the insight. And yes hubert I did ask, I dont need to give my ego the sugar coat IA, I am not sure what a kapha dominant constitution is Hubert, I was thinking prana kind of in the same terms as you. From what I gather, it kind of comes from the sun, from living things. not a calorie, but something different __________________ I am light, I am love, I am peace, I am kindness, I am happiness, I am here, it is now. I am, and so are you

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03-20-2007, 04:46 AM	#3
Hubert astashata Member Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: Romania Posts: 806	I used to think of prana as some sort of electricity. But now I think it isn't. Prana is more subtle, something what manifests in our world through it's effects but not by itself. It is not measurable through usual scientific means. Prana is "currents" in our "etheric" body, to use an antroposophic term. The etheric body is the vital body, what makes the matter our body consist of take a living form. Think of it as the organizer, the cohesion force. All living things have such "bodies". When we die, the vital body is separated from the matter it uses to form our material body. Than the matter follows the rules of our material world, and it decomposes. As about the orange. Cutting with a sharp object exposes the cells to the oxigen, what might be considered detrimental. You loose vitamins and other valuable nutrients by that. So it is better to just tear them apart, as the living tissue will tear along the boundaries of cells, exposing them less. Not that it would make too much of a difference, but, well, you asked.