Raw food enthusiast Robin Littman shares his views on the spiritual necessity of eating living food.

For many of us, the spiritual path involves seeking ways in which we may, step by step, find our true connection with Source. In pursuing the spiritual life, it is therefore easy to assume that the material world is not that important. It is gross matter, Maya, an illusion. We will soon be above all of that as we soar above it on our path to enlightenment, ascension and connection with All That Is.

However, the truth is otherwise. The body houses the soul. It is its vehicle during this particular lifetime and so in taking care of it, we are taking care of the soul and are then better able fulfil whatever mission, path or purpose is ours for this time round. Our body is also part of the natural world. It is part of the world of Nature. Unlike the wild animal kingdom, however, we have developed some unusual ways of treating our food before we eat it. We cook it. No other inhabitant on earth does that. And interestingly, no wild animal on earth suffers the diseases that Man suffers from, such as Cancer, Arthritis and heart disease.

The truth is that the most natural and wholesome way for us to nourish our bodies and thereby ourselves is to consume ‘living’ plant-based food – the most nutritious substance we could possibly put into our ‘living’ bodies.

As Ramana Maharshi stated: ‘The most important thing in spiritual life, in addition to meditation, is to eat correctly.’ Giving ourselves the highest form of nutrition is also a way of loving our selves and seen from that perspective it may lead to the opening of a door to Communion with the Divine – thus eating to live, rather than living to eat.

Robin and his wife Jenny are host and organise raw food workshops and retreats, for beginners to enthusiasts. See their website for more details.