Gita 17.10
Shraddhatraya Vibhaga Yoga
यातयामं गतरसं पूति पर्युषितं च यत् | उच्छिष्टमपि चामेध्यं भोजनं तामसप्रियम् ||१०||
yāta-yāmaṁ gata-rasaṁ pūti paryuṣitaṁ ca yat | ucchiṣṭam api cāmedhyaṁ bhojanaṁ tāmasa-priyam ||10||
In essence: Tamasic food is stale, tasteless, putrid, leftover, and impure - it promotes dullness, disease, and spiritual degradation.
A conversation between a seeker and guide to help you feel this verse deeply
Sadhak-Guru Dialogue
Sadhak: "In modern life, we often eat leftovers. Is all leftover food tamasic?"
Guru: "Context matters. Properly stored food eaten within a day maintains most of its quality. The teaching targets extreme staleness - food kept until it deteriorates, food whose life force has departed. A working person who prepares food in the evening and eats some for lunch the next day is different from someone who habitually eats spoiled or long-stale food."
Sadhak: "What about preserved foods - pickles, dried foods, fermented foods?"
Guru: "Traditional preservation (proper pickling, drying, fermenting) is different from decay. Fermented foods like yogurt can be sattvic when fresh and properly made. The tamasic quality comes from degradation - food that has begun to rot, lost its life force, or become contaminated. Preserved food done correctly maintains rather than loses quality."
Sadhak: "I sometimes eat when not hungry, whatever is available. Is that tamasic?"
Guru: "That pattern often indicates tamas - eating from inertia rather than need, accepting whatever is at hand without discernment. The sattvic person eats when hungry, chooses consciously, and stops when satisfied. The tamasic pattern is mechanical eating without awareness. Begin by asking before eating: am I actually hungry? Is this food appropriate? This simple inquiry shifts eating from tamasic to conscious."
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🌅 Daily Practice
Begin the day with fresh food. Even if simple - fresh fruit, fresh tea - let the first food be vital and consciously chosen. This sets the tone for the day. Notice how fresh morning food creates different energy than stale or random eating.
Practice discernment at lunch. Before eating, assess: is this fresh? Would I offer this to God? These questions aren't neurotic perfectionism but conscious eating. If only stale or low-quality food is available, eat minimally and with awareness, resolving to create better conditions.
Clear out stale food from your environment. The tamasic person accumulates old food - in refrigerators, cupboards, on counters. A sattvic environment has fresh food purchased frequently in appropriate amounts. This external order supports internal clarity. Let your kitchen reflect the consciousness you wish to cultivate.