The belly rules the mind. (Spanish Proverb)
According to Ayurveda (or ayurvedic medicine, a system of traditional medicine native to India), digestion is the cornerstone of health. Good digestion nourishes the body. Eating the proper foods will make a big difference in your well being. There are two aspects to the food and nutrition in Ayurveda. One is the physical food you eat, digest, and assimilate. In this process, the organs of your digestive system has a big role. The second aspect of it is what you consume through your mind-body. What you see, hear, taste, smell, feel, and think are all important for your well being and impact your health considerably. For example, stress plays a key role in our health. Ayurveda had recognized the importance of the environment in our total health. Remember, everything in your environment is composed of doshas (the bodily humors that make up one's constitution) that interact with your own doshas. You are affected by everything else which goes on in this universe as you are part and parcel of this cosmos. Thus we have the "big picture" or "holistic outlook" in Ayurveda. (information from www.holisticonline.com)
The question of food and our relationship to is also a question of the relationship between mind and body. The nature of the relationship between mind and body, whether you believe it divided or of the same substance, will, after much debate, bring us to exploring the nature of our relationship to the environment we live in. In Ayurvedic medicine, it is acknowledged that the human body is a microcosm of the earth. If that is so, there is no divide between mind, body, environment. So again, what then is our relationship to food?
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