???? (khaa?aa)
Meaning: noun: Food, eating.
Quote:
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baabaa hor khaa?aa khusee khuaar.�
jit khaadhai tan pee?eeai ��man mahi chalahi vikaar.
O Baba! All those foods, by eating which the body suffers and vices enter the mind, are destroyers of happiness. – Guru Nanak Sahib, Guru Granth Sahib, 16
Message: Food � something we absolutely need, can come in different forms. We need food to sustain our body. We also need food to sustain the spirit.
The verse above is taken from a hymn uttered by Guru Nanak when he returned from his first journey away from home. According to Bhai Vir Singh and the Puratan Janam Sakhi (The oldest biography of Guru Nanak), instead of going home, Guru Nanak stopped two miles away. His parent�s asked a pertinent question. Why like other youths, did he not enjoy food, clothing or worldly pleasures?
Using food as an example, the Guru responded. By believing in the Divine, I enjoy all sweets. By listening to His glory, I taste all salty dishes. By uttering His praise, I savour all sour and bitter tastes. By singing His attributes, I relish all spices. The love for the Divine alone is like enjoying thirty six delicious dishes.
Any other type of food that is consumed, may give a little pleasure but it produces ailments and suffering. It causes vices to enter the mind and destroys our happiness.
Etymology: From Sanskrit khaadan (eating, food) ? Pali khaadan ? Prakrit khaa? ? Lahndi khaa?aa (meal).
Summary of the Week:
Every one works to put food on the table. Some are fortunate to have enough but others in this world still remain hungry. Let us remember the hungry and do our bit within our community to put some food on their table. Let us help the global movement to end hungerby sharing and avoiding waste.
We all work for food that ultimately perishes. We also feed ourselves with wealth, pleasure, power, honour and more. All these ensure a very comfortable life but none is designed to satisfy the longing of the spirit. Ever wondered, why some wealthy, famous, and accomplished people are unhappy? Ever had the feeling that something is missing from our lives despite the wealth we are surrounded by?
Should we not also be working for food that endures beyond this physical body? The Bhagats and our Gurus have pointed the way. The dry bread, the simple khichdi, the saag is enough to sustain this body. Be grateful we have some food, no matter how simple. Looking further, the divine spirit that lives inside of all of us needs our attention too. It needs some food too.
How do we feed the spirit? Prayer will help us connect to the Divine. Spiritual reading in a conscious, consistent manner will help us understand divine wisdom. Through helping the needy around us, we put the wisdom into practice.
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One needs to remember the Divine even while eating dry bread, and see the Divine, pervading within and around, everywhere. – Guru Arjan Sahib, Guru Granth Sahib, 105
