Tag: nutrition

Meditation, Diet, and Inner Clarity: A Veterinarian’s Journey from Grass to Conscious Eating

The First Question: Can Life Be Sustained on the Simplest Form of Nature?

The inquiry began with a very fundamental and almost ascetic curiosity—whether a human being could survive entirely on grass, especially soft, succulent green grass with the least fiber, and even whether cooking it could make it suitable for human consumption. This was not merely a nutritional question but a deeper exploration into minimal living, purity of intake, and the possibility of aligning the body with the most basic form of nature. However, it soon became clear that regardless of tenderness or cooking, grass remains primarily composed of cellulose, which the human digestive system cannot process. Unlike ruminants, humans lack the necessary enzymes and microbial systems to break down cellulose into usable energy. Cooking may soften grass, but it does not transform its fundamental nature into digestible nutrition.

From Grass to Vegetables: Understanding What the Body Accepts

This led naturally to the question: if grass is also a plant, then how do vegetables nourish us? The answer revealed a fundamental distinction. Not all plants are equal in their nutritional design. Grass is structural, meant for survival and resilience, whereas vegetables are specific plant parts—leaves, roots, and flowers—that are softer, water-rich, and contain accessible nutrients. Over time, humans have also cultivated vegetables to enhance digestibility and nutritional value. Thus, while both grass and vegetables belong to the plant kingdom, their usability for human nutrition differs profoundly.

Grains and Seeds: Nature’s Stored Energy for Life

The exploration then moved toward grains, which are also plant-derived. The key realization here was that grains are seeds, designed by nature to store energy for the growth of a new plant. Unlike grass, grains are rich in starch, which the human body can easily convert into glucose. Cooking further enhances this process by breaking down the structure of the grain, making nutrients readily accessible. Thus, grains serve as a primary energy source for humans, unlike grass, which remains indigestible.

Legumes, Cooking, and the Hidden Barriers to Nutrition

The discussion deepened into legumes such as dal, chana, and rajma. These too are seeds but contain protective compounds like phytates, lectins, and enzyme inhibitors. These anti-nutrients make raw legumes difficult and sometimes harmful to consume. Cooking becomes essential, as it breaks down these compounds and unlocks the protein and nutrients within. This introduced the important concept that nature often protects its nutritional reserves, and human intervention through cooking is necessary to make them usable.

Soaking and Sprouting: Awakening the Seed

Further insight emerged through the processes of soaking and sprouting. Soaking activates enzymes within the seed, reduces anti-nutrients, and prepares it for digestion. Sprouting takes this transformation further, breaking down complex nutrients into simpler forms and increasing vitamin content. This stage represents a transition from dormant seed to living plant, making the food lighter and more bioavailable.

Vegetarian Diet: Possibility and Limitations

The conversation then shifted toward whether a person can live entirely on vegetables, especially in cooked or uncooked forms. It became evident that while a plant-based diet can sustain life, it must be properly structured. Merely consuming leafy vegetables is insufficient. A complete vegetarian diet requires a balance of grains for energy, legumes for protein, vegetables for micronutrients, and some fats for overall function. Without this balance, deficiencies and weakness can arise.

The Question of B12 and the Nature of Vegetarianism

A deeper philosophical question emerged regarding vitamin B12. Since B12 is not naturally present in plant foods, does dependence on it imply that humans are not truly vegetarian? The understanding clarified that B12 is produced by bacteria, not plants or animals. Historically, humans likely obtained B12 from soil, water, and less sanitized food sources. Modern hygiene has removed these natural pathways, making supplementation necessary. This does not negate vegetarianism but highlights a shift in environmental conditions.

The Veterinarian’s Inner Conflict: Profession and Personal Choice

As a veterinarian, the presence of animal farming systems raises an internal question. If animals are being raised for consumption, why not participate personally? This is not merely a dietary question but a matter of alignment. The clarity that emerged was that working within a system and making a personal ethical choice are not contradictory. A veterinarian’s role is to care for and reduce the suffering of animals, while choosing vegetarianism is a personal stance of non-participation in consumption. These two roles can coexist harmoniously.

Occasional Non-Veg: Experience of Energy and Satisfaction

The discussion then returned to lived experience. Occasional non-vegetarian food, even in small weekly amounts, seems to provide a unique sense of energy, satisfaction, and completeness. This experience was acknowledged as real. The explanation lies in the dense nutritional profile of animal foods—complete proteins, B12, iron, and certain compounds that are easily absorbed. If a vegetarian diet is slightly lacking, non-veg can act as a quick correction, producing a noticeable boost.

Meditation and Diet: The Shift from Activity to Stillness

The most refined insight arose in relation to meditation. Non-veg food, while energizing, introduces a certain heaviness that can reduce clarity in advanced meditative states. It may support dynamic or active phases of practice but becomes less suitable as one moves toward deeper stillness. Lighter, vegetarian food supports subtle awareness and sustained attention. This is not a moral judgment but a functional observation based on experience.

Toward a Balanced Understanding

The journey leads to a simple yet profound conclusion. There is no absolute dietary rule that applies universally. Instead, diet evolves with one’s stage of life and inner practice. Non-veg may serve a purpose in earlier stages, while a well-balanced vegetarian diet becomes more aligned with advanced meditative states. Supplementation, particularly for B12, ensures that nutritional completeness is maintained.

Ultimately, the path is not about rigid categories but about awareness. The body provides feedback, and the mind interprets it. When both are understood clearly, diet becomes not a source of conflict but a tool for alignment with one’s deeper pursuit of clarity and stillness.

My Experience with Dhauti, GERD, and Food Sensitivity

The other day when I practiced vastra dhauti, I noticed something very interesting. As I started to draw out the cloth, it felt like it was being gripped from inside. When I kept a constant, light pull, it didn’t slide out smoothly. Instead, it came out in small pulses, as if something inside was releasing it little by little.

The Haṭha Yoga Pradīpikā (2.24) and Gheraṇḍa Saṁhitā (1.16–18) describe Vastra Dhauti as a practice where a moist, clean strip of cloth is swallowed and later withdrawn, purifying the stomach. The texts say the stomach “grasps and pulls it in”, which should not be taken literally; rather, once throat resistance is overcome, the natural peristaltic movement of the esophagus and stomach muscles carries the cloth inward, giving the yogi the feeling that the stomach itself is drawing it inside. It purifies the stomach, removes excess bile and phlegm, and prepares the yogi for subtler practices.

That made me wonder: was the cloth stuck in my stomach? Or was some sphincter muscle holding it?

After thinking over it, I realized the esophagus has two main sphincters. One is the cardiac (lower esophageal) sphincter, which sits just above the stomach, and the other is the pyloric sphincter, which sits at the stomach’s exit into the intestine. The pulsative grip I felt was most likely from the cardiac sphincter. This sphincter naturally prevents food or foreign objects from falling freely into the stomach, so the entire cloth cannot simply slip down and get trapped.

That discovery was a relief. It meant that if one end of the vastra is held in the hand, even a beginner should be able to withdraw it safely, though slowly and with patience. The pulsating contractions and the irritation from the cloth itself help in gradually pushing it upward.

Then another thought struck me: if my cardiac sphincter can grip the vastra this strongly, does it mean my sphincter is not weak? I’ve been dealing with GERD (acid reflux), and one common explanation is that the lower esophageal sphincter gets weak. But maybe in my case, that isn’t the whole story. Perhaps there are other reasons for my reflux.

This is where the question of food sensitivity came up. I wondered if gluten sensitivity might be a hidden factor, mainly in ankylosing spondyloarthritis like me. Gluten can irritate the gut lining in some people and worsen reflux or bloating, even when the sphincter itself is working fine.

But then I noticed something else: even when I ate jwar (sorghum) roti, which is gluten-free, it felt hard to digest. Although I found relief with it when well cooked, thin and in small to moderate quantity. This made me realize that digestion is not just about gluten. Foods like jwar, bajra, and chana are heavy, high in fiber, and too much can sit in the stomach longer, which can sometimes worsens reflux.

I considered mixing grains: jwar + bajra + chana multigrain roti. This could balance heaviness with variety, but it may still feel dense if digestion is already weak. On the other hand, lighter options like oats + kutki (little millet) seem easier on the system.

Yet, I have a deep habit of eating roti every day. It’s cultural, emotional, and satisfying. So the challenge is not to quit roti, but to find the grain combination that gives me both digestibility and comfort.

From this whole journey, my learnings are:

  • The body has natural safety mechanisms (like the sphincter grip in dhauti).
  • GERD is not always about a weak sphincter; food type and sensitivity matter a lot.
  • Heavy gluten-free grains can also be tough, so light mixes may be better.
  • Habits like roti can be kept, but with smart substitutions.

In the end, the practice of dhauti not only helped me cleanse but also gave me a direct insight into how my sphincter works. That, combined with my experiments with roti and grains, is slowly teaching me the personal balance I need for both yoga practice and digestive health.

I got help in meditative Dhyana, relief from GERD, and an improvement in personality through it. I felt I had come to know enough of the interior of my body. Dhouti Vastra was like a narrow clinical gauze bandage, about 1.5 feet in length. The throat resists it and propels it out with coughing; it only enters the stomach if enough normal saline water is drunk along with it. The outer end should never be swallowed, otherwise it may be lost inside and surgery could be required to remove it. Therefore, this is a serious practice and should be done cautiously, under the guidance of an expert.