Ayu ssattva balaఽrogya sukha preeti vivardhanAh|
raSyAh SnigdhAh sthirA hridya AhArAh saattvika priyAh||
KatvAmla lavana tyuShNa teekshNa rUksha vidAhinah|
AhArA rAjasa syeshta duhkha SokAఽmaya pradAh||
Yatayamam gatarasam pUti paryuShitam chayat|
Uchishtamapi chAmEthyam bhOjanam tAmasapriyam||
(Bhagavad Gita)
The psychology of eating explores the factors influencing our food choices, eating habits, and overall relationship with food. Delving into these aspects helps us understand why we eat what we do, how food affects our emotions, and the ways cultural influences shape our preferences. By examining the psychological elements of eating, we gain insight into our motivations, which can guide us toward healthier decisions and improved well-being.
– In the Bhagavad Gita’s Shraddha Traya Vibhagayoga, diet is profoundly linked to mindset. The Gita categorizes food into three qualities: Saattwika, Raajasa, and Tamasa.
Saattwika Food
Sattva symbolizes good health, happiness, and contentment. Eating Sattvik food promotes calmness and gentleness. Even a modest portion of Sattvik food can foster a positive disposition and benefit society.
Saattwika foods include: Rasyaa: Milk and sugar; Snigdha: Butter and ghee, Sthira: Long-lasting vegetables like carrots and gourds, Hridyah: Heart-healthy foods.
Raajasa Food
Rajasic foods, often spicy, sour, and strongly flavored, include items like fried curries and garlic, which can lead to negative emotions and health issues, such as high blood pressure and heart disease. Alcohol can amplify these Raajasa qualities, increasing impulsivity and anger.
Taamas Food
Taamas Foodis associated with inertia. Those inclined toward sensual pleasures may favour half-ripe fruits or other tasteless items such as impure or spoiled food.
Yaatyamam: Expired items, Gatarasam: Uninteresting, unhealthy foods like junk food, Pooti: Rotten or putrid food, Paryushitam: Foods that have lost freshness and food those are leftovers.
The modern term “Goblin Mode,” recently added to the Oxford Dictionary, describes a state of apathy and disengagement, akin to the effects of consuming Taamas foods.
The Psychology of Eating
In 1903, Georg Walther Groddeck, often considered the father of psychosomatic medicine, suggested that our health is influenced by what we eat and proposed that the subconscious has three core qualities. Sigmund Freud, in The Ego and the Id (Das Ich und das Es, 1923), acknowledged that he derived the triad of the Id (Tamogunam), Ego (Rajogunam), and Superego or Ego Ideal (Sattvagunam) from Groddeck’s work.
The ancient insights of Veda Vyasa and the Ayurvedic texts concerning Sattva, Rajas, and Tamas have often been overlooked. This neglect reflects a gap between modern science and valuable ancient knowledge.
Functions of Trigunas
“Sattvam prakasakam viddhi, Rrajaschapi pravartakam|
Tamo niyaamakam prokta manyonya midhuna priyam||”
(Kashyapa Samhita)
The Sattvaguna (superego or ego ideal) – has the virtue of radiance. Rajoguna (ego) – has the virtue of behaviour. Tamoguna (Id)- Consists of the virtue of appointment. The ‘Kashyapa Samhita’ states that the Trigunas—Saattvik, Raajasik, and Tamasik—work together to form the human mind. Written over 2,000 years before Freud, the text shows influence from Groddeck, who studied Sankhya sciences in India.
The Bhagavad Gita highlights that our food shapes one of these three gunas, suggesting that diet significantly affects behaviour. This connection warrants scientific exploration, potentially leading to a new approach in preventive medicine.
