Gagar Ma Sagar – Words Are Few, But Meaning Infinite
Even a small visual can hold boundless wisdom and joy.
What is Abhakshya?
Abhakshya refers to anything that is unfit for consumption — food that is not worthy of even placing in the mouth. In our daily language, when someone becomes picky or overindulgent, we jokingly say, “They’ve become fatty!” That same indulgent process occurs within the body too.
The more nourishment the body receives, the more indulgent it becomes. The more nourishment the soul receives, the more awakened it becomes. When one consumes abhakshya, it leads the soul toward delusion and carelessness. It wastes time, harms nature, the self, and the entire universe. As the body becomes over-nourished, it is pulled toward suffering, poverty, and degeneration.
That is what I want to talk about today.
The Hunger Trap
Among the masses, there’s a popular saying: “The stomach’s needs make one endure anything.” Hunger drives people to do unimaginable things. But even after getting food, people still go to extreme lengths for more.
There are those who do not eat to live, but instead live to eat.
Human or Animal?
What separates a human from an animal?
An animal lives to eat. Observe them — dogs sniffing all day, cats doing the same, rats constantly searching — eating and eating, all day. A human whose entire day revolves around food is either coming from an animal birth or heading toward one in their next life.
The one who is obsessed with food lives like an animal.
But the one who wants to be truly human eats only to live.
The Science of Jain Food
The food science of Jainism is renowned worldwide — which is why “Jain food” is recognized globally today.
Food is divided into three types:
- Sattvic – pure and suitable for daily consumption
- Rajasic – spicy or rich, consumed occasionally
- Tamasic – entirely unfit and must be avoided
These classifications don’t exist in the Western world. There, people eat anything and everything — meat, alcohol, etc., with no regard for purity or effect.
But Aryan and Indian traditions have deep, meaningful science behind these food divisions.
Sattvic, Rajasic, and Tamasic – What Do They Mean?
- Sattvic foods include grains, pulses, milk, curd, jaggery, sugar — pure foods that nourish without agitating the mind.
- Rajasic foods include vegetables and fruits — to be taken occasionally.
- Tamasic foods are those made in darkness or with fermentation, decay, or rot — like alcohol, drugs, and stale or processed foods.
Even ice is tamasic — made without sunlight.
So are underground vegetables (kand-mool) — grown in the absence of sunlight.
Tamasic = Tamas = Darkness.
What is created without light, without energy, is tamasic and should not be consumed.
Why Daylight Matters
In ancient Aryan culture, kitchen roofs had glass panels so sunlight could reach the kitchen throughout the day. Food prepared in natural light was considered sattvic.
Food made in darkness or under artificial light is tamasic — and this includes most night meals.
The Four-Fold Jain Food Classification
Jainism classifies food as:
- Asanam – solid food (grains)
- Paanam – liquids (pure water, in contact with air and sunlight)
- Khaiman – food that can be chewed
- Saiman – food that can be sucked or sipped
These should be:
- Prasuk – non-living (e.g., cooked on fire)
- Esanijjenam – suitable and allowed by scriptures
Raw food is non-prasuk and must be avoided.
Also:
- Food must be consumed the same day it’s cooked
- No leftovers or stale food
- As the sun sets, bacteria and fungus begin forming — leading to illness
- Even refrigeration cannot stop fungal and bacterial infection
- So Jainism advises against eating at night or consuming leftover food
Even Medicines Can Be Tamasic or Sattvic
Some modern foods or drugs are taken as medicine. While some medicines are sattvic and heal the body and mind, tamasic medicines disturb both. They lead to mental agitation, addictions, and moral decline.
Many ancient kings preferred death over accepting tamasic or violent medicine, refusing to eat meat or abhakshya even for survival.
What About Milk?
According to Jain scriptures:
- Cow’s milk, curd, and ghee are sattvic
- Especially from desi cows, not hybrid or Jersey breeds
- Western vegans reject all milk due to animal cruelty — valid in their context
- But in India, milk was once obtained ethically, when families kept cows at home
Even cow dung has been found to have radioactive properties and can generate electricity. It was once believed to prevent cancer. Cows were once an integral part of Indian households — not animals, but mothers.
So milk is sattvic only if ethically obtained, not through modern exploitative dairy practices.
Abhakshya Fruits and Vegetables
- Many modern hybrid fruits (e.g., seedless grapes) and vegetables (capsicum, etc.) are genetically modified or cross-bred.
- These are considered abhakshya — unnatural and not fit for consumption.
🧘 Conclusion: Discipline is the Key to Sattvic Life
The essence of Jain food science is awareness and discipline.
Only food that falls under Asanam, Paanam, Khaiman, Saiman, and that is prasuk and esanijjenam, should be consumed.
Every bite we take shapes our body, mind, and soul. A sattvic life begins with sattvic food.
If you wish to live purely — start with what you eat.
Tomorrow, I will share more about night eating and its dangers.