Verse-9
Chapter 17 — Shraddhatreya Vibhag Yoga
Verse 9
🕉 Original Sanskrit Shloka
kaṭvamlalavaṇātyuṣṇat-īkṣṇarūkṣavidāhinaḥ
āhārā rājasasyeṣṭā duḥkhaśokāmayapradāḥ
🕉 English Translation
Kadwa hai, khatta hai , namkeen jo,
Bahut garam tikha va rukha bhi ho.
Jalan , rog, dukh shok paida kare,
Rajas purush ko yeh pyara lagey.
📜 Translation
English
The food, i.e. food item which is extremely bitter, sour, saline, excessively hot, pungent, dry and of burning nature is liked by rajasic person. It is productive of pain, grief and diseases.
The liking for the food is in accordance with the predominance of the quality and the interest of a person in the type of food he likes, makes it clear that which quality is predominant in a particular person. That the food-items are liked or preferred in accordance with the predominating attribute, is true. 'Ati sarvatra varjayet' is the inspiration provided by the ethical scriptures. Do not take the words 'very' or 'extremely' in context of 'excessive hotness'. According to the arrangement of the words in the verse, this word 'ati' has been used once only. In fact take it in the context of bitter, sour, pungent, dry type of foods! The food which is spicy, pungent, and the nature of eating very sour things, consuming burning hot eatables or drinks is bound to cause problems inside. While eating tears start pouring down from the eyes, the tongue feels the punch of it, hiccups take place-all these are the results of such pungent and dry food. Due to such burning and hot sensation inside, and continuous liking for such food, disease and its consequence pain-is a natural state. Consumption of such extremely pungent, dry and sour food helps neither physically nor mentally. Such meals bring about harshness in nature and does not allow the inclination towards the worship of God to develop!