The Chandogya Upanishad states:

आहार शुद्धौ सत्वशुद्धि:

āhāra śhuddhau sattva śhuddhiḥ (7.26.2)

“By eating pure food, the mind becomes pure.”

Ayurveda classifies food into three types – saatvic, rajasic, and taamasic – depending on how it influences our nature. Saatvic foods such as grains, pulses, fruits, and vegetables are the pure foods that bestow good health, virtue, and happiness. Shree Krishna proclaimed in Bhagavad Gita that these foods are āyuḥ sattva (promote longevity.) Foods that are very bitter, acidic, and sharp tasting are rajasic, causing inferior health, agitation, and despair. Meaty foods and those foods that are stale and have foul smell are taamasic, leading to agitation, despair, and detrimental to both body and mind. “The purpose of eating is not to relish bliss through the plate, but to keep the body healthy and strong,” advices Swami Mukundananda ji. He adds, “The wise partake of foods that are conducive to good health, and have a peaceable impact upon the mind.”

The learned say, “We are what we eat.” When animals are slaughtered, the fear and aggression hormones are shot into their cells from their glands, and remain in the meat. When one consumes the meat, the emotions trapped in the meat are also ingested. Fruits and vegetables on the other hand, do not have emotions; therefore, when they are picked they do not release any emotion cells. The prana (subtle life force energy) within fruits and vegetables fuel the body with pure nutrients and always facilitate a healthy state of mind.

Vedas prescribe consumption of sattvic diet for humans, as it leads to clarity of mind and physical health. However, not all Hindus are vegetarians, although vegetarianism is associated with Hinduism. While some are born into vegetarian families, some are not. The spiritually progressing individuals are the ones that practice non-violence in their thoughts, speech, and actions, as they believe in the law of Karma. Our scriptures reveal the karmic implications for harming humans, animals, or any living being directly or indirectly. Hence, partaking of non-vegetarian food creates bad karma, and we have to bear its fruit either in this life or in the next.

As Gabriel Cousens puts it aptly, “Food is a dynamic force which interacts with the humans on the physical body level, the mind emotional level, and also the energetic and spiritual level.” Therefore, to increase our positive vibrations and energy level, to facilitate our progress on the spiritual path and reach a higher consciousness level, consumption of saatvic food (vegetarian food) is very important. See Science of Healthy Diet for a wise diet plan.