Over the past 20-25 years I have always believed in conscious eating. Being attuned with my body and eating whatever I desire in the correct amounts is something I like to follow. To do that, you need to ask yourself why you’re eating what you’re eating. Are you eating it out of greed or to satisfy yourself?
To me, all food is good food if you eat it the correct way and in proper proportions. All around the world people eat different types of fruits and vegetable in their meals, so there’s no fixed food plan that everyone needs to follow. Similarly, your mindset plays an important role in how your body processes the food you eat. If you eat the healthiest food in the world with disgust and hate, it will do nothing for your immunity and health. Your body imbibes what you put into it, both mentally and physically.
I recently realised that this core idea behind conscious eating, which I have followed for so many years, can be used for other things too— namely your thoughts, emotions and desires.
We all have hundreds of different thoughts, desires and emotions that run through our minds every day. Being in control of them and segregating what is important and what isn’t can be helpful to your life and the choices that you make. If you’re clued into your desires, it will help you make decisions that resonate with you and ones that help you with your journey to happiness.
It is that hidden desire that makes you wake up in the morning each day and pushes you to live. If we don’t have desires, what would our life be like? Who would we be? How would we react to different situations? Our desires help steer our choices, both consciously and subconsciously. These desires play such an important role on our thoughts, our emotions and then eventually our actions and deeds.
A question that arose when I was thinking about this is, are our desires our own? I’m sure you would immediately say, “Of course they’re our own, who else could they belong to?” Well, if you spend some time and peer into your thoughts and desires, you might find that they are in fact influence by the people and society that surrounds us.
Photo by Mohit GuptaWhile we all have the desire to be our unique self, sometimes our desires and thoughts simply mirror that of society. It’s only when you question your desires that you will find out if it is good for you. Ask yourself, do you desire something because it’ll help increase your social standing or because it’s in vogue? If the answer to that is yes, you must remember that it will only bring you momentary happiness as it is not what you truly hope and desire. Your desires are wholly your own, they’re meant to please yourself, not others.
The more conscious you are about your desires, the better you will be able to understand where, how and why they exist. The same goes for consciously choosing your thoughts and emotions. The best way to have an enriching journey and a steady goal is by being in tune with your desires.
Sometimes, everything could be going absolutely perfect in life. All your boxes could be checked and yet you might have a nagging feeling that something bad is going to happen, that it is too good to be true. It is in moments like this that you need to stop and ask yourself, are you the one sabotaging your own desires? Are you doing it without even realising it? There is a saying, “You are your own worst enemy,” and that can be very true for a lot of people. Don’t let those pessimistic thoughts get in the way of your desires and happiness.
Try and spend some time each day focusing on your thoughts, emotions and desires. You could try and meditate, clearing your mind of all the extra noise and then centring your attention on your inner wishes. Everyone is different, and so do whatever it is that helps you find peace and quiet where you can make a conscious effort to tap into your desires. Making a small change such as this to your life will definitely make a whole world of difference. If you don’t believe me, try it and see for yourself!
Written By Gouri Gupta
Week 18, April 21
