In this food I see clearly the daily presence of the entire universe supporting my existence. This verse helps us see that our life and the lives of all species are interrelated. Eating is a very deep practice.As you wait to serve yourself or to be served, look at the food and smile to it. It contains sunshine, clouds, the sky, the Earth, the farmer, everything. Look at the peach deeply. Don’t put it into your mouth right away. Look at it and smile to it, and if you are mindful you will see the sunshine inside the peach. A cloud is inside. The great Earth is inside. A lot of love and a lot of hard work are inside. Then, when you eat it, please be sure to chew only the peach, and not your projects or your worries. Enjoy eating your peach. The peach is a miracle. You, also are a miracle.
So spend time with your food; every minute of your meal should be happy. Not many people have the time and the opportunity to sit down and enjoy a meal like that. We are very fortunate. — Thich Nhat Hanh (from How to Live #BK558)
Jan Chozen Bays, a medical doctor, zen practitioner, and author of Mindful Eating, reminds us that “Mindful eating gives us many opportunities to be fully present and experience the liveliness that constantly arises in the vast field of open awareness.” Here are some more tips on mindful eating from mindful.org and lionsroar.com.
Sometimes the holidays may feel more stressful than enjoyable – mindfulness can help. In this inspiring video, Jon Kabat Zinn, the man who brought mindfulness meditation into the mainstream, tells Oprah about his practice, his morning routine, and his philosphy, including “Mindfulness is the gateway into the full dimensionality of being human.”