The Missing Ingredient: Cooking with Prana

The ancient science of Ayurveda (and its sister science, Yoga) recognizes a number of different “bodies” or “anatomies” that make up our being, chief among them being the physical, mental, and energy bodies.

We can think of the physical body as a kind of “hardware” – the equipment that allows us to function – while the mental body is more like the “software”, and the energy body is the power that makes it all run. Needless to say, we need all three bodies to be performing optimally (and in alignment with one another) if we are to function at our highest potential.

We all know those genetically blessed individuals who always seem to perform at a high frequency regardless of how little food or sleep they get, who are always annoyingly full of energy even before their morning coffee (and before yours), who exercise and/or party to the extreme, or are always on the go and never seem to burn out. Ayurvedic tradition would say this is because they have very high “Prana” (or a strong energy body).

Also referred to as “Chi” or “Qi” in Traditional Chinese Medicine, or “Ki” in the Reiki tradition of Japanese healing, “Prana”, simply put, is the energy that drives life, the power that animates the body and the mind, and the natural urge toward healing and vitality that is present in every cell of every living organism from its inception. When our Prana is in a healthy state of flow, we experience high energy levels, a thriving physical body, mental stability and acuity, and a healthy sense of optimism and creativity.

Because of their unique elemental makeup (or “constitution”), a lucky few are born with a high level of Prana. The rest of us, however, must learn to cultivate Prana if we are going to perform to our highest potential. There are a number of ways we can do this, either through specific yoga poses or sequences, breath-work (also called “Pranayama”), the types of foods we consume and even the way we prepare them.

Raw plant foods are said to contain very high levels of Prana, because when we eat them, we are literally ingesting “life”. And when we are cooking, we can incorporate practices that add more Prana to the food, increasing both its digestibility and its nutrition.

Right-hand energy, for example, is designated for giving, while the left hand is for receiving. Ayurvedic tradition would encourage us to give money or gifts with the right hand in daily life, and to receive with the left. Considering that cooking is a very “giving” practice, we would want to cook mostly with our right hand, when we can, and to always stir ingredients in a pot or pan in a clockwise direction to increase Prana.

There are also mantras we can speak over the food as we prepare it. Or, if you prefer a more mainstream approach (and you’re not afraid of concerned looks from your dinner guests), you can talk to your food in a loving and encouraging way. I personally love to wish my food well or “best of luck” as I put a pan in the oven to roast, or tell it how beautiful it is or how well it did when it’s done. (I should add that this is a totally involuntary practice that I performed even before any formal training in Ayurveda, and one which has always elicited many, many concerned looks).

Playing calm or upbeat music in the kitchen is another way we can increase Prana while cooking, as well as avoiding cooking when we are stressed or in a bad mood, preparing food (and eating it) slowly and mindfully, and allowing some natural sunshine in the kitchen (as a literal and measurable example of this, there are studies that have shown the nutrition of harvested Shiitake mushrooms to increase after they have been left in the sun).

However off-beat some of these practices may sound, I believe many of us already know on an instinctive or intuitive level that our food is that much more delicious and nourishing for our bodies when it is “made with love”, just as studies have shown house plants to be more responsive and likely to thrive when they are talked to, played music, or in an energetically positive environment.

As a personal aside, during my Ayurvedic training, I experienced first-hand the difference it made to prepare food in a Pranic way; Knowing that I’d be eating an exclusively vegan diet during those three weeks (a diet rich in the fibre, starchy carbohydrates, grains and legumes that normally caused me a great deal of digestive upset), I had diligently packed a stock of digestive enzymes, probiotics, and bitters to help get me through it, only to be pleasantly surprised to find that I didn’t need any of these supplements, as our food was prepared by an Ayurvedic expert using all of the aforementioned Pranic practices and more. During that time period, I enjoyed better digestion and more energy than I had in years, despite the fact that I was eating the same diet that had caused me so much distress in the past.   

Whatever tradition of energy healing you ascribe to, virtually all ancient cultures and schools of medicine maintain that the type of energy we put into our nourishment is what it will give back to us. And whoever you are, regardless of whether you believe the benefits of Ayurvedic cooking are the result of Universal Life Force Energies or a state of mind, over 5000 years of healing are tough to argue with. 

*Special thanks to Matea Zajec of Hari Om Yoga & Wellness for filling in the gaps in my Ayurvedic expertise (and to her beautiful mother, Ada – Ayurvedic master and healer extraordinaire – for all of her restorative treatments and delicious meals that I enjoyed in Costa Rica.