The 3 Gunas And How It Relates To Our Diet and Health

In yoga philosophy, food is not only viewed in terms of its nutritional profile, but also how it affects our minds. What we eat can uplift our moods and keep us calm and emotionally nourished, or they could agitate us and make us dull and lazy. Food can be widely categorized into Sattvic, Rajasic, or Tamasic. We should stick to eating Sattvic food and avoid contaminating our bodies by consuming Rajasic and Tamasic food.

  • Sattvic food are pure food that increases our mental clarity, health, cheerfulness, vitality, and vigour. They should ideally be fresh and natural, organically grown, non-GMO, and without preservatives or artificial flavourings. Examples of Sattvic food include fruits and vegetables, grains, pulses, nuts and seeds.
  • Rajasic food are food that over-stimulates our bodies and minds and prevents us from calming our minds. Such food are typically strong flavours that are spicy, sour, bitter, and pungent. Examples of Rajasic food include onions, coffee, tea, and processed food.
  • Tamasic food are food that are stale, overripe, unripe, decomposed, and unclean. These food can make us full, inert and lazy, and fill our minds with dark and impure thoughts. Examples of Tamasic food include meat, fish, all stimulants (alcohol, drugs), and fermented food.

It can be a daunting endeavour for those of us who consume all types of food to abruptly switch to a Sattvic diet overnight. We can help to ease the transition by gradually shifting our food choices at a pace that is comfortable for us.

Below are some guidelines on how to make the switch to a Sattvic diet as natural and undisruptive as possible:

  • Familiarize ourselves on what foods are Sattvic, Rajasic and Tamasic
  • Swap out your least favourite Rajasic and Tamasic food with Sattvic alternatives for an easy start
  • Begin to incorporate more Sattvic food into our diet instead of focusing on removing Rajasic and Tamasic food to ease the feeling of deprivation
  • Commit to eating only Sattvic food on weekdays to make it easier to stick to (versus removing all Rajasic and Tamasic food altogether forever)
  • Stock your kitchen with Sattvic food and avoid having Rajasic and Tamasic food in your pantry/fridge as much as possible

Although it will be difficult to completely switch to a Sattvic diet, as long as we commit to pursuing it as a lifelong endeavor and never give up our attempts to adopt a mostly Sattvic diet to nourish our body and mind, we will gradually gravitate towards a healthier diet and lifestyle. We should also not beat ourselves up over the occasional slip-ups and just try harder again. Afterall, “better beats perfect”!