Our modern world is so involved in consuming packaged and processed foods with so many chemicals, and now their harmful effects are being revealed. People who are too lazy to cook, simply order processed or packaged foods from stores or restaurants and consume.
In contrast to this, in the Vedic way of life especially in the path of Krishna Consciousness, we never see any trace of canned or processed foods. We have seen only fresh and natural food used for offering naivedyam and then honored as prasadam. Cooking and offering fresh preparations in our worship is the norm of the Vedic Life and a key aspect in Krishna Consciousness.
So, to make naivedyam for Lord Krishna, we should never use processed or packaged foods treated with chemicals or preservatives. For every offering we have to cook fresh for the Lord. In Jagannath Puri, we can see how they cook naivedyam all fresh, the whole day. They never use any pre-cooked, packaged or treated food, or any microwave for cooking for the Lord.
Pre-cooked foods by some one, or foods treated with chemicals or preservatives are not offered to Lord Krishna. We can see this fact mentioned in Srimad Bhagavatam and many other scriptures. In the Bhagavad Gita, Lord Krishna even mentions only Patram (fresh tulasi leaf), pushpam (fresh flower), palam (fresh fruit) and doyam (fresh water)…patraṁ puṣpaṁ phalaṁ toyaṁ
yo me bhaktyā prayacchati
tad ahaṁ bhakty-upahṛtam
aśnāmi prayatātmanaḥ … (BG 9.26).
In this respect we may even wonder about simple things such as even canned tomatoes. Yes, they cannot be used to make naivedyam. To make naivedyam, we must always use fresh vegetables, fruits and grains. Then when we honor the maha prasadam, it is not only healthy, but the most important thing is that it is transformed into spiritual vastu.
In Bhagavad Gita, Lord Krishna further says that if one is eating anything that is not offered to Him incurs only sin. This obviously includes eating in restaurants or ordering foods from those places. According to the sastras, thes foods only bring sins and can never give spiritual awakenings. Why? because the mood of the cooks gets into the subtle content (linga) of those foods.
Sastras say that our foods have 3 constituents:
1) Sthula (gross) – that which nourishes the external body and organs,
2) Linga (subtle) – invisible that nourishes the mind, and
3) Mala (waste) – that which is thrown out as waste
Common people see only the sthula aspect of the food. They are not at all aware of the linga (subtle) form of the food. Only fresh and freshly cooked foods can contribute to our linga (subtle) part, which is the mind. This is the part that carries the meaning, ‘You are what you eat.” So, who cooked the food and how the food was cooked is more important than the gross part of the food because it will affect your very mind.
In the history, we see that in world war, soldiers were fed with milk from the cows who were beaten and tortured when milking. The reason given was that when the milk was obtained when the cows were angry, the soldiers who drank would inherit this anger of the cows from the milk and have enough anger to fight against the enemies. Actually this is not a new concept, but can be found in our vedic scriptures as well. For a sadhaka, feeding his mind with proper food is more important than feeding his gross body.
The devotees offer only fresh fruits, vegetables and freshly cooked foods to the Lord. The Lord actually accepts only the subtle (linga) part of our offering that we do not see and His remnant becomes superially charged with His spiritual potency for our linga sarira and soul. Lord Krishna further says that if any one eats any food that is not offered to Him eats only sin.
yajña-śiṣṭāśinaḥ santo
mucyante sarva-kilbiṣaiḥ
bhuñjate te tv aghaṁ pāpā
ye pacanty ātma-kāraṇāt … BG 3.33
He says, “My devotees are released from all kinds of sins because they eat food which is offered first for sacrifice (to Me). Others, who prepare food for personal sense enjoyment, verily eat only sin.”
So, eat only maha prasadam. Srimad Bhagavatam says that if someone honors (eats) maha prasadam even unknowingly, sinful reactions of seven lifetimes are counteracted. If someone does that knowingly, sinful reactions of one million lifetimes are counteracted. The Vishnu Purana says that simply by honoring prasadam once, one gets the credits of fasting for 6 months. The Brahma Vaivarta Purana says that when a person is full with prasadam and he walks on the earth, he purifies the earth; when he goes to holy place, he purifies the holy places; when he touches someone, that person is purified. Honoring prasadam is equivalent to performing millions of horse sacrifices.
Once Ramanujacarya, while walking on the banks of the river Kaveri along with his disciples, washed his hands in the river after honoring prasadam. Two fishes after eating the remnants from his hands immediately obtained four handed Vishnu forms and went back to the spiritual world (Vaikuntha). Ramanujacarya then told his surprised disciples why prasadam acted so effectively on the fishes. First of all, the fishes never offended prasadam by making distinctions as to its quality. Secondly the fishes were totally dependent on the prasadam.
So, if we follow this very simple devotional practice such as offering and then honoring (eating) only prasadam, elevates one to high spiritual position. It is also clearly said that only sattvic foods can be offered to the Lord. People may be wondering about onion and garlic. They are highly tamasic foods that have sulphone hydroxyl which is the poisonous substance that can penetrate the brain cell barrier and make one dull and hence spiritual interest and awakening is greatly jeopardised. It may be good for the gross body, but very harmful for our subtle body (mind). Dr.Beck who was the founder of ECG has discovered this truth. When someone even joins a yoga class, what is the very first rule they ask you to promise? ‘Do not eat onion and garlic. They are dangerous to your spiritual life’.
So, in conclusion, eating only prasadam alone, makes us healthy and spiritually advancing. But, not everyone can realize this truth:
maha-prasade govinde
nama-brahmani vaisnave
svalpa-punya-vatam rajan
visvaso naiva jayate This sloka states that those who have no pious (ie. no sukrti), won’t have faith in maha-prasadam, or in Sri Krishna, or in His Holy Names or in his devotees. Thus, their life goes in vain like animals.
So, let us not consume processed, chemically mixed, or canned foods. They are very harmful.
Offer only fresh foods to Lord Krishna first, and then honor (eat) only that Maha Prasadam!
By doing this, you will be really healthy, your mind becomes devotional, and make yourself, the soul, really happy!