Blessing food and water before consumption

[waterdrop]

I heared from someone about blessing food and water before consumption

what do people who do it say before consumption ?    do you do anything else ?   what is its effect   (qi wise ?  mind wise ? etc)

[silent thunder]

For me it's not about the specific words used, or even using words.

 

It's more a state of being... magnifying and resonating authentic deep gratitude.

 

My son and I also played a game when he was a toddler, to help train him in this process.

 

We'd think of as many possible aspects of the chain of connection from seeds, to our table in how our food got to us.

 

I'd start and thank the farmers who planted the seeds.

He'd thank the sun and the rain.

I'd thank the harvesters, he'd thank the truck drivers.

I'd thank the road repair folks, he'd thank the company that made the tires on the trucks.

 

We'd see how far down the rabbit hole of detailed connections and thanks we could get...

 

Sometimes Mom would have to force us to start eating before it got cold.

 

Then we'd just play in between mouthfuls, til the meal was done.

 

(20 min after meal was done, he'd pipe up).  thank you to little buggers digesting my food!

 

We haven't played in years... thanks for the reminder.  I'm going to start it up at lunch again.

[C T]

I don't offer thanks before a meal. Instead, I dedicate whatever little or much merit accrued from the sustenance that such may help benefit all sentient beings directly or indirectly. At the end of the dedication prayer, I would blow softly on the food/drink. This habit aids awareness, and also heightens conscious eating/drinking. Over time, secondary qualities like gratitude, empathetic joy, simplicity & loving kindness.... these arise quite effortlessly as a natural response to the cultivated mindfulness of merit-offerings. This practice of offering merit can extend to nourish many other sustainable activities besides the consumption of food and drink. One can even dedicate the merit at the end of a good practice session (whatever one practices) to the happiness and welfare of all sentient beings. It is said that doing so seals the benefits thereby enhancing efficacious results and realizations. In my walks, i sometimes come across beasts of burden, unloved animals, injured insects etc... I'd recite a mantra, basically wishing them an auspicious rebirth, followed by merit dedication, and blowing on their heads if close up enough. If not, the simple gesture of blowing into space will suffice. 

[waterdrop]

Good reply i just dont undesratnd this part " whatever little or much merit accrued from the sustenance that such  " 

what do you mean by "merit accrued"  ?              (i dedicate merit after meditaiton  - just not sure what to you mean connected to food)

[C T]

Every conscious action we take thats non-harming/beneficial generates merit. 

This merit loses meaning and virtue if not offered. 

The greater the awareness, the more merit is accrued through one's actions. 

Even compassionate and kind thoughts and words are imbued with merit. 

 

Edited March 28, 2020 by C T

[thelerner]

Sometimes I'll say/think 'The spirit of God is everywhere, his mystery infuses the universe', (consider the food with reverence), 'Wow- (whatever I'm consuming)

 

Don't know if it affects the food**, but it slows me down and gives me greater appreciation for long journey the item took and its intrinsic nature.  Shows a little bit of thankfulness and gratitude.  Eating is one of those common place miracles we so often take for granted.   

 

 

<**I've read some Kabbalist, Daoist, and Hindu sources that claim water before and after prayer is different, better, purer..  But thats not my focus.   On the otherhand, digestion is such a complex process that I hope the prayer affects me.> 

Edited March 28, 2020 by thelerner

[waterdrop]

so C T in relation to that sentence i still dont get it  " I dedicate whatever little or much merit accrued from the sustenance "

what sustenance do you mean - the food ?   and what merit is accrued and where ? 

what do you get the merit from in relation to the food  (you sitting down on the chair before eating ?)  you mean you dedicate the merit before you eat   ? 

 

[C T]

1 hour ago, waterdrop said:

so C T in relation to that sentence i still dont get it  " I dedicate whatever little or much merit accrued from the sustenance "

what sustenance do you mean - the food ?   and what merit is accrued and where ? 

what do you get the merit from in relation to the food  (you sitting down on the chair before eating ?)  you mean you dedicate the merit before you eat   ? 

 

 

It can be done before, during or after - doesn't make any difference. 

Merit means the good that follows any action, any word, any thought.

These three activities can generate either positive, neutral or negative karma. 

 

When you sit down for a meal with a kind understanding that you are being blessed by the food/drink you are consuming, then it can be said to have positive karmic merit. In Buddhism, such merit will multiply when one selflessly offer that goodness away to other beings in the six realms. This is a practice that generates greater appreciation for all that sustains you, so that in return, you may have the great virtue to be able to sustain others. A big tree is spacious, generous and can shade many types of beings. This tree does not just rely on its own tree nature to grow - many other non-tree factors are essential in the growth process from seedling to maturity. Similarly, you are not able to self-sustain, so your sustenance is dependent on the gathering of many other external and internal factors coming together so that you are able to feed properly. Offering merit means you understand the truth of interdependence. In this understanding, you will naturally generate a level of gratefulness, empathetic joy, humility, etc, in addition to the physical nourishment aspect of the process. The arising of those pleasant states of mind is..... merit. 

 

Neutral karma basically means the continuation of a certain distractive habit of engaging with an activity but without any awareness of the above. Without such awareness, then the activity yields zero merit. There is no consciousness of interdependence. The act of eating is conducted mindlessly, or in a robotic fashion. Even after the meal, one have no recollection of what went before, due to the mind being distracted by lack of attention to what's in the moment. This is the common position of most people, those who are constantly preoccupied by distractions during meal times. Such a habit neither generates nor reduces merit. 

 

Negative karma related to eating/drinking means one indulges in the activity under the influence of 'poisonous' mind states. For example, greed, selfishness, gluttony, pride, craving, addiction etc can be associated habits that actually decreases the merit of eating and drinking. Not only one gains no benefit from the activity, but it actually causes a chain of unpleasant outcomes that impinge on one's health, and compounding other secondary sufferings. Such unawareness can be likened to loss of merit. One's basic awareness and goodness erodes as a result of ignoring the fact that such actions are detrimental to well being of self and others. 

Edited March 28, 2020 by C T

[waterdrop]

So to understand you can pre dedicate merit ?           (cause i thought until now its only after you do the deed)    i can say  i dedicate the merit i will make tommorow cleaning the street to X  and Y  ?

Edited March 28, 2020 by waterdrop

[Heartbreak]

C T can you give us an example of dedicating merits from food and water consumption?

[thelerner]

As an aside, I find Chinese and Thai restaurants that have a well defined shrine (in some corner), with fresh fruit and drink, usually have the best food. 

[GSmaster]

Whats the point of blessing food and water, when you can bless oneself?

 

What has more impact a food and water that you expell out in few hours. Or yourself that lives for many years.

[senseless virtue]

21 minutes ago, GSmaster said:

Whats the point of blessing food and water, when you can bless oneself?

 

The meat products you consume used to be some animals' flesh. By blessing the food, you are also benefiting the creatures that hence have contributed to your sustenance.

 

I might add that it's well known that the food we consume endows us its spiritual qualities in subtle energy. This is why eating meat products is also said to involve karmic connections.

Edited March 28, 2020 by virtue
addition

[Nungali]

11 hours ago, waterdrop said:

I heared from someone about blessing food and water before consumption

what do people who do it say before consumption ?    do you do anything else ?   what is its effect   (qi wise ?  mind wise ? etc)

 

Formally for feasts and shared meals we used to ;

 

http://www.thelemapedia.org/index.php/Saying_Will

 

Nowadays , graduating more to  shamanic and local practices I simply say 'Bugglebear'  - a Bundjalung word which means   thank you, good,  I am appreciating this and feel good becasue of it .   Its also said many times other than eating  , as teacher said ;

 

" Always say thanks to 'Mum'  ( 'mother nature' )  ,  bugglebear ,  because she  gives you all you need and looks after you . "

 

 

 

 

 

[SirPalomides]

This is a Daoist prayer for meals that  someone told me about:

 

食齋咒
五星之炁
六甲之精
三真天倉
清雲常盈
黃父赤子
守中無傾
INVOCATION WHEN EATING
May the vapors of the Five Stars,
Essences of the Six Jia-spirits,
And celestial granaries of Three Perfected
Remain pure and prosperous, with continual surplus.
May the Yellow Father and Crimson Child
Guard the Center so that it is without disturbance.

 

This post was sponsored by @GSmaster

[GSmaster]

2 hours ago, virtue said:

The meat products you consume used to be some animals' flesh. By blessing the food, you are also benefiting the creatures that hence have contributed to your sustenance.

 

The digestion is like an acid lake, or in other words like a fire, it burns connections and information.

 

Same does cooking on fire. High temperature cooking kills not only bacteria, but purifies the energies.

 

When you cut things up you are doing the same, destroying connections.

 

That said mass produced meat carries alot of bad stuff, that will make one sick on long term consumption. The negativity of slave lifestyle, the pain and suffering, hormones, antibiotics and other things all get physically accumulated inside the meat.

 

 

Edited March 28, 2020 by GSmaster

[C T]

7 hours ago, waterdrop said:

So to understand you can pre dedicate merit ?           (cause i thought until now its only after you do the deed)    i can say  i dedicate the merit i will make tommorow cleaning the street to X  and Y  ?

 

Dedication of merit need not be recipient-specific. One can simply hold an aspiration that whatever merit comes from the action (or speech/thought) be dedicated to the well being and happiness of all sentient beings in the 6 realms. If you don't align with notions about the 6 realms, then just leave that out. 

 

Simply being mindful of the practice is itself a merit, so yes, the consideration of pre-dedicating merit has to do with virtuous intent, and that is a good thing. Such mindfulness, ideally, should seep into one's awareness as naturally as possible, until such point that it arises spontaneously when all the obstacles to selfless action are dismantled. Every thought, deed and word generates benefit to others - in Vajrayana, the mindfulness of keeping this aspiration central is known as the cultivation of bodhicitta, and one that is realised by bodhisattvas. 

[C T]

6 hours ago, Heartbreak said:

C T can you give us an example of dedicating merits from food and water consumption?

 

"May the merit accrued from the food and drink Im about to consume be a source of blessing and comfort to all sentient beings. May they be free from the root cause of unhappiness, and may they enjoy auspicious karma always." 

 

The aim is to develop a mindset suffused with the paramitas. Watch the intention behind any action, thought and speech. Thats vital. 

[Gerard]

Mandatory practice in Thai Buddhist monasteries (Vipassana retreat).
 

Sacred temples of the Mind where I learnt to eat like an educated human rather than a hungry wolf!

 

It will help you attain mindfulness while eating. 
 

Science behind this (Stomach, yang Earth):

 

http://www.itmonline.org/5organs/spleen.htm

 

Refer to Li Dongyuan, A Treatise on the Spleen and Stomach (Piwei Lun), 1249.

Add to the paragraph:

 

"If we eat slowly, chewing our food well, in small portions and in happy state of mind, we won't harm the Earth element." 
 

Stomach Qi should descend

Spleen Qi should ascend

 

This is the natural function of both organs. In reality most people suffer from the opposite: stomach qi is rebellious (goes up, ie. acid reflux) and spleen qi sinks (ie. diarrhoea).

 

A sacred Taoist medical book. Amen!

 

 

Edited April 1, 2020 by Gerard

[GSmaster]

On 28.03.2020 at 1:56 PM, waterdrop said:

what do people who do it say before consumption ?    do you do anything else ?   what is its effect

 

the people do it not to change the food itself, but to change inner state during food consumption, adds awareness, digestive juices and concentration on food.

 

Yea, I think if you eat food, while being distracted by something else, body might not realease enough enzymes / digestive power, and food gets undigested / wasted.

[waterdrop]

just searched in youtube "diet qigong"   and ran into a video of someone talking about raising the vibration of the food itself (something i remember now i heared elsewhere about water)  :
 

 

[C T]

7 hours ago, waterdrop said:

just searched in youtube "diet qigong"   and ran into a video of someone talking about raising the vibration of the food itself (something i remember now i heared elsewhere about water)  :
 

 

 

Entertainment for nouveau western Taoists... little to zilch benefit because it leads to self cherishing, which is ultimately of a contractive nature and defeats the purpose of charging the food. That being so, no matter how much one believes that the energy of the food eaten was somehow 'raised', its just a feel good thing, with no lasting benefit. You'd derive more benefit from merely eating calmly and unhurriedly, and with full attention to the whole process, from purchasing the ingredients, to cleaning, storage, raw preparation, cooking.... right through to the eventual expelling of the waste, which in itself contains a compassionate visualization practice of Yama absorbing the sorrow of living beings' neuroticism into his bottomless belly. 

[waterdrop]

This are good replies 

But i did hear about a blessing before drinking water from my reberthing course instructor  ,  also i did hear from taoists and buddhsits about "viberations"   -       and i did hear from people in qigong including qigong instructors about good food with good qi ,  and i did hear about microwave being bad for the food    ....     doesnt it clash somehow with what you say ?

CT do you not think that it doesnt matter if you use microwave to cook your food ?

 

[C T]

18 minutes ago, waterdrop said:

This are good replies 

But i did hear about a blessing before drinking water from my reberthing course instructor  ,  also i did hear from taoists and buddhsits about "viberations"   -       and i did hear from people in qigong including qigong instructors about good food with good qi ,  and i did hear about microwave being bad for the food    ....     doesnt it clash somehow with what you say ?

CT do you not think that it doesnt matter if you use microwave to cook your food ?

 

 

The highest vibration you can generate is from cultivating a heart of loving kindness, simplicity, patience and joyful giving. 

 

With loving kindness, your food will naturally be suffused with good vibration. 

 

With simplicity, you make little demands on what is consumed, so you become free of craving and greed. 

 

With patience, you generate forbearance for those who only care for their own satisfaction, and those whose work generate heavy karma from having to kill and slaughter animals and other living beings so as to make these available for consumption. 

 

With joyful giving, you will break the hold of self-cherishing, and find happiness in sharing what you have with others in a spirit of brotherly/sisterly affection. 

 

So, don't worry so much about the effects of microwaved food. Learn to cultivate instead what is truly vital for your inner well being, and everything else will fall into place. Nothing will have a hold over you enough to displace your serenity, and even if you were to have only one spoon of rice or a slice of bread for sustenance, you will be blessedly sustained.