Author: The Food Yogi

The First Steps in God Realization

The First Steps in God Realization

Excerpt from FOOD YOGA – Nourishing Body, Mind, & Soul

“I am the Taste of Water”

The Bhagavad-gita[1] contains a statement from Krishna that illustrates how easily we can raise our awareness of God, just by being conscious while drinking water:

O son of Kunti [Arjuna], I am the taste of water, the light of the sun and the moon, the syllable Om in the Vedic mantras; I am the sound in ether and ability in man. [2]

The translator, Srila Prabhupada comments: “This is the all-pervasive nature of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. We should mark the important word in this verse from the original Sanskrit: aham. Aham means ‘person,’” he says.

According to monotheistic traditions within Hinduism, God is both a person and an all-pervading energy. Krishna states later in the Bhagavad-gitamaya tatam idam sarvam jagad avyakta-murtina, “By Me, in My unmanifested form, this entire universe is pervaded. All beings are in Me, but I am not in them” (Verse 9.4); or, as French philosopher Voltaire once stated, “God is a circle whose center is everywhere and circumference nowhere.” [3]

A practical way to understand this all-pervasive nature of God is through the example of the sun. We understand the constitution of the sun globe by experiencing its all-pervasive heat and light. Although we are 93 million miles away from the sun, we are able to understand what the sun is through its energy, heat, and light. Essentially, therefore, the sun and its qualities of heat and light are distinct and yet inseparable.

For example, when the sunshine enters your room, you say, “the sun is in my room.” Of course, if the sun were really in your room, you wouldn’t be around to talk about it. The point is that the sun globe and the sun rays are simultaneously one and different. In the same way, the impersonal, all-pervading energy of the Creator is simultaneously one with and different from the personal features of the Creator. God, the Supreme Person, and God’s omniscient energy are essentially the same thing, and yet distinctly different. Such is the inconceivable and apparently contradictory nature of the Supreme.

The idea that the realization of God can be experienced in the mundane act of drinking water is profound, to say the least, but certainly believable once we accept the all-pervasive nature of the Supreme. After all, water is just one of the numerous energies that make up this mortal world. Logically, we must conclude: where there is energy there must be an “Energetic” — a source from which that energy flows. That energetic Source, according to the Vedas is Para-Brahman.[4]

The Bhagavat Purana contains a rich description of how we can perceive the presence of God’s all-pervading energy or universal form in nature:

O King, the rivers are the veins of the gigantic body, the trees are the hairs of His body, and the omnipotent air is His breath. The passing ages are His movements… (SB 2.1.33) …the clouds, which carry water, are the hairs on His head, the terminations of days or nights are His dress, and the supreme cause of material creation is His intelligence. His mind is the moon, the reservoir of all changes. (SB 2.1.34)

Even without these scriptural references, it is easy to perceive the presence of a divine force in our lives, if we only take the time to contemplate. We may argue on specifics of the Divine, but we can all agree on one thing: God in some form or another exists.

The late Mother Teresa encouraged the practice of contemplation as a means to God-realization by making it a central component of her mission.

“Our life of contemplation shall…gather the whole universe at the very center of our hearts where the Lord of the universe abides, and allow the pure water of divine grace to flow plentifully and unceasingly from the source itself, on the whole of his creation.”

In her teachings, she urged people to become more thoughtful by taking the time to silence our rushed lives.

“We need to find God, and he cannot be found in noise and restlessness. God is the friend of silence. See how nature — trees, flowers, and grass grow in silence; see the stars, the moon, and the sun, how they move in silence … We need silence to be able to touch souls.”

Sometimes, we need to slow down and quiet our minds to be able to appreciate the full value of our current situation. Silence is golden. Author of The Ragged Edge of Silence: Finding Peace in a Noisy World, John Francis Ph.D. certainly believes so.

After an oil spill near the Golden Gate Bridge of San Francisco in January of 1971, Francis took a vow of silence and avoided riding in motorized vehicles for the next 22 years. A strong-willed and opinionated man, Francis decided to see what he could learn from listening and walking wherever he went. In sharing his experience, Francis learned that contemplation is an effective means to enhance our spiritual awareness because it helps us to discover who we really are — and ultimately — to find peace.

Lacking a natural quiet of a previous age, we can accept the benefits of meditation and silence as a way to counteract the anxiety and depression often generated through our association with a noise-polluted world.

Of all the material elements, water is the one that speaks to our body, mind, and soul. In its purest form, it energizes our body through the process of hydrolysis; as calming tea, it can still our mind; as a transporter of higher vibrations it can inspire our soul, and its feminine qualities can embrace and nurture our entire being.

Take the time to fully appreciate this wonderful element and reap the benefits of holistic well-being.

Excerpt from FOOD YOGA — Nourishing Body, Mind, and Soul

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Footnotes —

[1] Bhagavad-gita As It Is, by A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami, published by Macmillan in 1972.

[2] Bhagavad-gita As It Is, Verse 7.8.

[3] Voltaire (1694–1778).

[4] Para-Brahman: term often used by Vedantic philosophers as to the “attainment of the ultimate goal.” There is only one Supreme ParaBrahman and all energies and other deities are expansions of this Para-Brahman.

New Book: The 7 Maxims for Soul Happiness

New Book: The 7 Maxims for Soul Happiness

Unlock the keys to a more fulfilling life with help from ‘The 7 Maxims of Soul Happiness

New book by Paul Rodney Turner teaches readers how to unleash their inner bliss

GAITHERSBURG, Md. – According to former monk and the “Food Yogi” Paul Rodney Turner, the state of happiness is in trouble; with many unable to find some form of happiness, people go through life sad, exasperated and even suicidal. In “The 7 Maxims for Soul Happiness: How to Unleash Your Inner Bliss” (published by Balboa Press), Turner shares insights into living a more blissful life.

Filled with a plethora of tips, the book features pragmatic spiritual solutions intended to nurture a wayward spirit. Turner explains that happiness is the natural state of being. Most discontentment stems from a person’s misidentification with their physical form. “We are programmed to look for happiness in all the wrong place,” says Turner.

He adds, “Everyone wants to be happy but most of us are looking for it in the wrong place. In my new book, I outline some concepts that will shed light on our true potential as spiritual beings, from where true happiness resides.”

For a complete list of books authored by Turner, visit his Amazon Author page.

“The 7 Maxims for Soul Happiness”

By Paul Rodney Turner

Softcover | 6 x 9 in | 156 pages | ISBN 9781982222451

E-Book | 156 pages | ISBN 9781982222468

Available at Amazon and Barnes & Noble

[button_3 text=”download-now.png” align=”center” href=”http://paulrodneyturner.com/7-maxims-of-soul-happiness”/]

About the Author

Australian-born Paul Rodney Turner, also known as the “Food Yogi,” was a celibate monk for 14 years from age 19-33. He lived a simple life, including sleeping on the floor without a pillow, taking cold showers, rising at 3:30 am every morning, meditating for 2 hours and studying the ancient Vedic literature of India. Turner is a vegan chef, social entrepreneur, public speaker, numerologist, holistic life coach, spiritual guide and the international director of Food for Life Global, the world’s largest food relief that serves up to 2 million plant-based meals daily. He currently lives in the Andes Mountains of Colombia with his wife and son on their animal sanctuary. Get a free sample here

The 12 things you can do to avoid cancer

The 12 things you can do to avoid cancer

Or at least dramatically decrease your chances of getting it!

I think all of us have a relative or a close friend or two that have contracted some form of cancer or who have died from cancer in our lifetime.

I don’t propose to have the absolute answer or cure for cancer but I will go out on a limb and say that the following twelve tips will absolutely help you avoid it. The more of these you are able to incorporate into your life the better off you’ll be.

Please note that everything I recommend is backed by scientific research and my personal experience. I don’t propose that my recommendations are the conclusion of all discussions. It is simply 12 things I feel will help one be as healthy as they can and minimize their chances of getting cancer. There are probably 100 things you can do!

1. Eat a Healthy Plant-based Diet

What you eat has a huge impact on your health. However, for most people that might mean feeling better or have more energy but diet has a much deeper impact on our longevity — what you eat can be the difference in dieing way before our allotted time or living a full and vibrant life. According to the World Health Organization, about one-third of all cancers can be prevented by factors within your control, including diet. For example, a plant-based (vegan) diet is richer in many essential nutrients, but fortifying the body against disease. It helps to keep our body at optimum weight and it is well documented that obesity is a leading factor of poor health. A plant-based diet can lower blood sugar levels and most importantly, it can protect us against certain forms of cancer.

Source: 6 Science-based Health Benefits of a Vegan Diet

Source: A plant-based diet is a powerful way to achieve good health.

2. Avoid all Dairy

Dairy products have been linked to all kinds of chronic diseases, including cancer. Milk and other dairy products are the top sources of artery-clogging saturated fat, contributing to heart disease, type 2 diabetes, and Alzheimer’s disease. Studies have also linked dairy to an increased risk of breast and ovarian cancers. Contrary to dairy industry propaganda, dairy products and calcium do not prevent stress fractures and regular consumption of dairy products has been linked to prostate cancer.

Proponents of India’s health system, Ayurveda will disagree with these conclusions but I want to draw their attention to the fact that the milk that is glorified in the ancient Ayurvedic texts is NOT anything like what is currently being sold in supermarket stores. Commercial dairy has none of the healing benefits that are mentioned in the Ayurvedic texts and should be avoided at all costs.

Source: The Dairy Debate

Source: The Health Concerns about Dairy

Please also readhttps://www.pcrm.org/news/health-nutrition/dairy-products-and-ovarian-cancer

And: https://www.pcrm.org/news/blog/got-prostate-ditch-dairy

3. Connect with Nature

We are nature — each one of us is an integral part of a perfectly balanced ecosystem and yet, for the most part, humans live disconnected from nature — in high rise apartments eating processed foods and drinking chlorinated water.

A study conducted by the University of British Columbia examined the specific effect of immersion in nature upon the overall sense of well-being of participants and was published in the Journal of Positive Psychology.

Researchers divided people into three different groups. For one group, immersion in nature was defined as taking time to engage in some form of connection with the natural world, including not just walking in nature but anything not human-built: a houseplant, a dandelion growing in a crack in a sidewalk, birds, or exposing our body to the sun through a window.

One of the other two groups focused on their self-observations regarding human-made objects, and the third did neither. Researchers found that the difference in the participants’ well-being —their happiness, sense of elevation, and their level of connectedness to other people, not just nature — was significantly higher for the first group than that of participants in the group which noticed how only human-built objects made them feel. It was also higher than the control group, which did neither.

Source: Why Connecting with Nature Elevates your Mental Health

4. Minimize Electromagnetic Pollution

The digital world we all relish and appreciate has its drawbacks — the electromagnetic pollution we are all being bombarded with is changing our physiology. The threat of numerous forms of electromagnetic fields (EMFs) to human health is becoming increasingly clear, and thanks to researchers like Camilla Rees, the dangers are beginning to permeate the mainstream media.

B. Blake Levitt, Former New York Times writer and author of Electromagnetic Fields, A Consumer’s Guide to the Issues and How to Protect Ourselves, and Editor of Cell Towers, Wireless Convenience? Or Environmental Hazard? explains in Rees’ book, Public Health SOS: The Shadow Side of the Wireless Revolution that:

“… It turns out that most living things are fantastically sensitive to vanishingly small EMF exposures. Living cells interpret such exposures as part of our normal cellular activities (think heartbeats, brainwaves, cell division itself, etc.) The problem is, man-made electromagnetic exposures aren’t “normal”. They are artificial artifacts, with unusual intensities, signaling characteristics, pulsing patterns, and wave forms. And they can misdirect cells in myriad ways.”

One practical way to reduce electromagnetic pollution is to practice grounding or earthing.

Source: What is the Best Way to Distress?

SourceGrounding the Human Body: The Healing Benefits of Earthing

Source: An Activists Journey to Raise Awareness of Electromagnetic Pollution

SourceThe Influence of Electromagnetic Pollution on Living Organisms: Historical Trends and Forecasting Changes

5. Keep your Blood Alkaline

One of the two leading factors of disease is acidic blood, the other is lack of oxygen. The kind of food we eat certainly changes the pH of our blood and so too does our lifestyle.

When your body fluids contain too much acid, it’s known as acidosis. Acidosis occurs when your kidneys and lungs can’t keep your body’s pH in balance. Many of the body’s processes produce acid. Acidosis can lead to numerous health issues, and it can even be life-threatening.

Nearly all biological functions are dependent upon the acidity or alkalinity of the liquid environment. pH is a measure of the relative acidity or alkalinity of a solution where a pH of 7 is neutral, less than 7 is acidic and greater than 7 is alkaline or basic. A pH of 7.35 – 7.45 is ideal.

Foods that increase the acidity of our blood include meat, fish, dairy and alcohol. Food that increases the alkalinity of our blood includes green leafy vegetables, fruits, and fermented foods.

By eating a plant-based, alkaline diet it easier for the body to maintain that ideal number. If one ate only meat, fish, eggs, sugar and processed foods and drank lots of alcohol then the body would struggle to maintain that ideal number.

Source: Acidosis

Source: Diseases Caused by Alkaline or Acid pH in the body

Source: Acid/Base Balance

6. Keep a Positive Attitude

All disease begins in the mind.

When a person is depressed, the whole body is negatively impacted. Depressed people get ill easier and the road to recovery is more challenging. People who are happier and more positive are typically better able to fend off diseases and enjoy better health during chronic illness.

Everyone feels sad once in a while but depression can sap the life out of you and often leave you feeling helpless and weak. When depressed we often lose interest in normal activities such as eating, making love, and decision making, and our sleeping patterns are disrupted. We may feel tired, irritable, or lethargic most of the time; or think continually about death or suicide.

The National Institute on Aging shook up the medical world with the results of a remarkable study: Tracking 4,825 people ages 71 and older, researchers found that those who were chronically depressed for at least six years had an 88 percent greater risk of developing cancer within the next four years. The researchers speculated that depression fuels cancer by damaging T-cells and other parts of the body that fight the disease. (Of course, both cancer and chemotherapy may have biochemical effects that contribute to depression as well.)

Even before doctors had any inkling that mood could affect a person’s chances of getting cancer, it was already clear that depression and loneliness added to the devastation of the disease once it was present. Cancer patients without strong social ties are particularly likely to die early, and patients who get counseling and support may add years to their lives: One study of women with advanced breast cancer found that those who attended weekly support groups lived an average of 18 months longer than those who didn’t. Although later studies did not find the same benefit, doctors agree that support groups can increase your quality of life. Weighted blankets have also been proven to help with depression.

“Cancer survivors who are depressed are twice as likely to die prematurely as those who are not depressed” -Journal of Cancer Survivorship

Just last month, the British Journal of Medicine (BJM) published the findings of 16 cohort studies conducted in England and Scotland over a 14 year period, that examined the role of psychological distress as a predictor of mortality in cancer patients. Based on self-reports of over 160,000 men and women, those with higher levels of distress had a 32% greater risk of total cancer mortality, specifically those reporting symptoms of depression and anxiety. These findings, the Journal reports, contribute to the growing evidence of the link between psychological factors and cancer survival.

Source: Illness: the mind-body connection

Source: Neglecting Mental Health in Cancer Treatment 

SourceAwareness, Diagnosis and Treatment of Depression

7. Breathe

The science of breathing stands on quite ancient foundations. Centuries of wisdom instructs us to pay closer attention to our breathing, the most basic of things we do each day. And yet, maybe because breathing is so basic, it’s also easy to ignore. A brief review of the latest science on breathing and the brain, and overall health serves as a reminder that breathing deserves much closer attention – there’s more going on with each breath than we realize.

Controlling your breathing calms your brain and regulates your blood pressure. According to the ancient yoga teachings of India, at the time of our birth, we are allotted a certain amount of breaths for this life, so it follows then, that slowing down our breathing will increase our lifespan.

In yoga we learn to control prana, the vital force, through pranayama. We use the breath in pranayama to learn to control prana, but don’t confuse prana with breath. Prana is the energy that animates the lungs. It is NOT the breath. Using the breath is the easiest method for training prana. Once you are able to control prana through pranayama you are better able to control the movement of prana to other organs and areas of the body. – Amarajit Singh

In the 1930s, Nobel Prize winner Dr. Otto Warburg hypothesized,

“Cancer has only one prime cause. The prime cause of cancer is the replacement of normal oxygen respiration of body cells by an anaerobic (oxygen-less) cell respiration.” 

He believed that cancer cells thrive in oxygen-poor environments and many research studies now support his assertion. Thanks to Warburg and others, we know that cancer cells metabolize differently than normal cells, which need oxygen for respiration. Instead, cancer cells metabolize through the process of fermentation. This inferior form of energy production is activated when the oxygen level of a cell drops below 40 percent. This leads to an acidic environment that encourages the growth of cancer cells.

It goes without saying that to get the full benefits of breathing practice, we should avoid smoking and also breathing in secondhand smoke. According to the CDC, “Secondhand smoke is the combination of smoke from the burning end of a cigarette and the smoke breathed out by smokers. Secondhand smoke contains more than 7,000 chemicals. Hundreds are toxic and about 70 can cause cancer. Since the 1964 Surgeon General’s Report, 2.5 million adults who were nonsmokers died because they breathed secondhand smoke.

Source: How Breathing Calms Your Brain, And Other Science-Based Benefits Of Controlled Breathing

Source: Breathing Techniques for Stress-Relief

Source: Health Effects of Secondhand Smoke

Source: Why is Breath So Important in Yoga?

SourceCan Deep Breathing Be Key to Cancer Healing? You Bet!

8. Get Sunlight

Contrary to popular belief, the sun is not our enemy. In fact, sunlight is critical for our health, most significantly in helping our body produce Vitamin D. Although excess sunlight can contribute to skin cancers, a moderate amount of sunlight actually has preventive benefits when it comes to cancer.

Decreased sun exposure has been associated with a drop in your serotonin levels, which can lead to major depression with seasonal changes. The light-induced effects of serotonin are triggered by sunlight that goes in through the eye. Sunlight cues special areas in the retina, which triggers the release of serotonin. So, you’re more likely to experience this type of depression in the wintertime, when the days are shorter.

Due to this connection, one of the main treatments for depression with seasonal changes is light therapy, also known as phototherapy. You can get a light therapy box to have at home. The light from the box mimics natural sunlight that stimulates the brain to make serotonin and reduces excess melatonin.

Source: What are the Benefits of Sunlight?

SourceWelcome the Sun back into your life!

Source: https://luxeluminous.com/benefits-of-tanning/

9. Eat Fermented Foods

Our body has more bacteria living inside than all the cells that make up the human form. At any one time, we have about 3 pounds of bacteria living inside of us. A healthy body is one that has more good bacteria than bad bacteria. Our gut is the foundation of our organism. It is where we absorb our nutrition and from where we interface with the exterior world even more intimately than through our skin. If you want to get to the bottom of an ailment, you need to look at how your digestion is working, and what you are eating.

The four main nutrients needed for optimal digestion are enzymes, prebiotics, probiotics, and minerals.

Minerals activate enzymes that accelerate the chemical reactions of metabolism. Enzymes are there to break down food into less complex parts for better assimilation.

Prebiotics are food for your microbiome. The best prebiotics is found in raw fibrous fruits and veggies, especially raw, leafy, greens, and soluble and insoluble fiber found in produce.

Probiotics are most often found in fermented food like raw sauerkraut, kimchi, and other products (like live pickles). Probiotic foods also have digestive enzymes.

The Greek physician Hippocrates often referred to as “the founder of modern medicine,” said, “All disease begins in the gut.” The flip-side of that coin is also true! All health begins in the gut.

10. Meditate

Since a good supply of oxygen to the blood and a healthy mind is critical to health, it is not surprising that yoga, tai chi, and meditation have lasted the test of time. Incorporating a deep breathing and meditation routine into your life has been proven beyond a doubt to be great for our overall mind/body/spirit health.

Science has proven that even the most basic meditation practice can reduce stress, control anxiety increase memory, improve attention span and self-awareness, improve the quality of our sleep and most importantly, reduce blood pressure.

As a monk, I would practice a form of mantra meditation for at least 2-hours daily and I found it to be tremendously helpful in reducing my stress and calming the mind. I was also celibate then, and meditation helped me maintain my vows.

Here is a collection of stories and comments people have sent to the researcher, Katie Holmes on the wonderful benefits meditation has brought them, published with the hope of inspiring YOU to try meditation for the first time (or pick it up again if you’ve just been lazy with it.

Benefits of Meditation: 38+ People Comment On The Benefits Meditation Has Brought Them

Source: 12 Science-based Benefits of Meditation

11. Intermittent Fasting

Intermittent fasting involves cycling between periods of eating and fasting, ranging from a few hours to a few days at a time. It is the kind of fasting I prefer because it does not disrupt your usual routines like a full-on fast would do. Fasting is not a new concept, it is a practice that dates back centuries and plays a central role in many cultures and religions. Fasting is a practice that has been associated with a wide array of potential health benefits, including weight loss, as well as improved blood sugar control, heart health, brain function, and cancer prevention.

In India’s Ayurvedic tradition, fasting is considered to be a cure for all diseases!

Several studies have found that fasting may improve blood sugar control, which could be especially useful for those at risk of diabetes. Intermittent fasting and alternate-day fasting could help decrease blood sugar levels and reduce insulin resistance but may affect men and women differently.

Research shows that inflammation may be involved in the development of chronic conditions, such as heart disease, cancer, and rheumatoid arthritis (4). Some studies have found that fasting can help decrease levels of inflammation and help promote better health.

Animal and test-tube studies indicate that fasting may benefit the treatment and prevention of cancer. Similarly, a test-tube study showed that exposing cancer cells to several cycles of fasting was as effective as chemotherapy in delaying tumor growth and increased the effectiveness of chemotherapy drugs on cancer formation (32).

I do intermittent fasting every day by simply refraining from eating after 8 pm and then not eating my breakfast until 10:30 which means I have fasted for 14.5 hours!

Source8 Health Benefits of Fasting, Backed by Science

12. Sleep Well

It is often believed that diet and exercise are the foundations of good health but according to Sleep Diplomat, Dr. Matt Walker, sleep is the real foundation and diet and exercise are the pillars.

Sleep is one of the most important but least understood aspects of our life, wellness, and longevity. Until very recently, science had no answer to the question of why we sleep, or what good it served, or why we suffer such devastating health consequences when we don’t sleep. Compared to the other basic drives in life—eating, drinking, and reproducing—the purpose of sleep remained elusive.

Walker has spent the last four and a half years writing Why We Sleep, a complex but urgent book that examines the effects of this epidemic close up, the idea being that once people know of the powerful links between sleep loss and, among other things, Alzheimer’s disease, cancer, diabetes, obesity, and poor mental health, they will try harder to get the recommended eight hours a night.

There is some evidence of a link between insufficient sleep and the risk of cancer. In particular, people with circadian rhythm disorders—in which the body’s biological clock is disrupted because of shift work, for example—may be at increased risk. A study in the International Journal of Cancer found a relationship between women’s irregular work schedules and the rate of breast cancer. Researchers compared 1200 women who had developed breast cancer between 2005 and 2008, with 1300 women who did not have a cancer diagnosis. They found that the rate of breast cancer was 30 percent higher for the women who had worked shifts. Women who had at least four years of night shift work, as well as those with fewer than three night shifts per week (keeping them from ever fully adjusting to one schedule) were at highest risk. Shift work has also been shown to increase the incidence of certain cancers—for example prostate cancer—in men.

Source: Lack of Sleep Increases Your Risk of Some Cancers

I hope these 12 tips are helpful. If you are currently struggling with cancer or have fears of contracting it, please try to incorporate some or all of the above suggestions into your life.

Some other sources

Wishing you the best of health and happiness!

Paul Rodney Turner, the Food Yogi

 

How I remained celibate for 14 Years and the Solution to a Peaceful World

How I remained celibate for 14 Years and the Solution to a Peaceful World

I’ve given hundreds of public lectures about my humanitarian work over the years in over 60 countries. Usually, I focus on the social impact our volunteers have made, including the enormous amount of meals served by these selfless souls. The statistics never fail to impress but at the Vegfest in Brazil in 2018 I decided to focus on the why rather than the what.

I boldly broached the topic with the somewhat sensational title: A former monk shares an inside secret. Right out of the gate I talked about the fact that during the prime years of my life 19 – 33 I lived the life of a celibate monk, this includes sleeping on the floor without a pillow, taking cool showers; only eating at regulated times of the day, and of course, abstaining from sex and all the typical hedonistic things young men do. How did I succeed? The shocking answer is that I learned how to control the urges of the tongue.

My spiritual teacher often told us, “Spiritual life begins with the tongue.” I later clarified that statement by asserting that

“Evolution of consciousness begins when one masters the tongue.”

According to the yoga tradition, the tongue has two functions: tasting and vibrating, so what you speak and what you eat dramatically impacts your level of awareness.

I go into great detail in my book, FOOD YOGA to prove this point, citing scientific research as well as references from the yogic tradition and of course my personal example speaks volumes. Even if you don’t accept my references, my experience is my experience and I know for a fact that through controlling the tongue it enabled me to be successful in controlling the sex urge and living a peaceful and stress-free life.

But getting back to the why does Food for Life Global only serve plant-based meals cooked with loving intention? It is because when food is prepared with a loving consciousness it has incredible power to transform the consciousness of those that eat it. And in this way, not only is Food for Life Global feeding stomachs, it is directly impacting the mood and awareness of our recipients to bring about a more peaceful and loving world.

The bottom line is, hunger is not a result of a lack of food. Hunger is directly related to the fact that the bulk of humanity has a selfish and divisive consciousness and thus the resources of the world are not equitably shared.

That day that every living thing is honored equally as an integral participant in the play of life, wherein all things are valued for their unique contribution and viewed as essential and not disposable, then and then only can we have peace and prosperity for all and social anomalies like hunger will cease to exist.

Take Our Survey and WIN a FREE SCHOLARSHIP

Take Our Survey and WIN a FREE SCHOLARSHIP

I am offering a FREE scholarship at the Food Yoga Academy.

All you have to do is take a quick survey that you can complete in less than 2-minutes!

And that’s it. You will be in the running to get full access to the Food Yogi level 1 Certification course.

This is the introductory course for food yoga and it includes many hours of video lessons and vegan recipe demonstrations. All students that complete the course will be awarded a printable certificate and a digital badge that they can proudly display on their online resume.

So don’t delay, do the survey now and be in the running.

HOW TO ENTER

Answer the following question in this short survey and you will be in the running to win a FREE scholarship at the Food Yoga Academy for the Level 1 Food Yogi Certification.

The survey should take no more than 2-minutes to complete. Don’t delay!

Create your own user feedback survey

You and I are Brilliant

You and I are Brilliant

“I used to be conceited once but now I know I’m brilliant” – Rodney Turner

LOL, my dad (Rodney Turner) was a character, always the joker and always the one to say something outrageous, however, sometimes he spoke some gems. In all seriousness, the above statement taken literally is outrageous, pompous and a little cheeky but when we understand our true nature as souls the statement get some legs. You see, all of us from the single cell organism to biologically complex humans are essentially souls having a physical experience and what is the nature of the soul? It is as brilliant as the sun and it “illuminates the entire body by consciousness,” says Krishna in the classic scripture known as the Bhagavad-gita.

My father may not have understood the spiritual significance of his comically-motivated statement during his physical presence here on earth but I’m sure he did when he had to leave his body at death.

Death is our greatest teacher with old-age a close second. Both of which provide clues to our true eternal nature as a soul. As we age, things start to break down or stop working the way they used to. As young men, we are motivated by sex and our body responds accordingly.  But, as we get older, sex is not as motivational as it once was and our aging bodies comply. The same can be said of our voracious appetites as teenagers. I remember well how much food I could easily digest in one sitting, whereas now at age 54 I have to be more mindful of how much my stomach can digest.

Wrinkles, reduced vision, hearing, and memory are all reminders (clues) that this body (temple) we call “home” is on borrowed time and at any time it can be taken away and we will be forced to evacuate and move to another physical shell. Unless of course, we are successful in raising our awareness to such a state that we are fully detached from this material world and purified of the ensnaring desires of lust, greed, and anger. Then, according to the Bhagavad-gita, we can transcend the bond of material nature and move into the higher spiritual frequencies.

The fact is, as souls, we are truly brilliant in all aspect, for just as a spark has the same quality as fire, we as a soul have the same qualities as the Creator, only in smaller quantity. It may take us many thousands of physical bodies to awaken to this truth but eventually, our ultimate success is assured. My dad, in all his quirkiness, was actually onto something and it is one of the fondest memories I have of him. He would often say this after potting a ball on the pool table and his natural confidence rubbed off on me, however, it was not until many years later when I decided to become a monk that his statement revealed its true worth.

Thanks, dad.

PS. In my latest book, SOUL POWER I go into great detail about our true nature as souls. Get your copy here.

 

Food Yoga Level 2 open for enrollment

Food Yoga Level 2 open for enrollment

The Food Yoga Academy is now offering Food Yogi level 2 certification, however, students will have first completed level 1 to be eligible.

The Food Yogi Level 2 Certification will dive deeper into the art and science of food yoga, providing much more information, case studies, and realizations, which will equip students with a thorough understanding of the science.

Students will receive both a PDF certificate they can hang on their wall, as well as a digital badge they can proudly display on their online resume, website and social media pages.

Once students have completed both levels they are then eligible for Food Yoga Master training where they will be invited to spend a week with me in Colombia at Juliana’s Animal Sanctuary and retreat.

I have really enjoyed taking this course. It has been very interesting and has given me a lot of ideas for strategies I wish to incorporate into my daily life. – Gail Hollingsworth

I didn’t expect so much information on energy, physics, sacred geometry… and I absolutely loved it! Eating apples became a very different experience since then. Paul’s interview in the beginning of the course and Mathew Bates’ testimony at the end were incredible, and provided both a great introduction and a great conclusion to the entire course. – Ana

To learn more about the Food Yoga Academy visit www.foodyogaacademy.com

 

Food Yogi Certification Level 1 – Enrollment open

Food Yogi Certification Level 1 – Enrollment open

The Food Yoga Academy, the brainchild of International director of Food for Life, Paul Rodney Turner (aka Priyavrata das) has officially launched.

The Academy’s first course is Food Yogi Certification Level 1, where students can learn the fundamentals of the food yoga lifestyle and how to enrich their lives through conscious eating and devotion. Based on the teachings of his book, FOOD YOGA – Nourishing Body, Mind & Soul, students will learn the art and science of eating with consciousness and compassion to provide a framework to elevate the act of eating from the dry and mundane to a soul-satisfying experience.

In this introduction to Food Yoga, Turner lays out the 10 fundamental truths.

Students will learn about the more subtle aspect of food and how to achieve optimum health by practicing the Food Yogi diet and lifestyle, which includes, what to eat, when to eat, water therapy, detoxing and the sacred geometry of wholefoods.

The courses will also include raw vegan food demonstrations, including smoothies, pates and crackers, cheesecakes, and soups, etc.

Students will be tested at the end of the course to earn their certification.

WHAT IS FOOD YOGA?

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“This Level 1 course gives the fundamentals of the prasadarian lifestyle,” says Turner. “However, in Level 2 we will dive deep into all the details of preparing food with love in order to nourish the mind and spirit.

His book food yoga was a direct response to the inspiration behind Food for Life, Srila Prabhupada who said that “Everyone should get a chance to take prasadam*.”

“I realized that we had to empower people with the knowledge of prasadam but in order to do that I had to build a framework for understanding. The book, therefore, takes the reader on a journey of first discovering how food and thoughts are energy and I present scientific proof to back these statements,” he explains.

The Food Yoga Certification Level 1 is available now for $97, however, a special limited launch discount is being offered to the first 100 students with the coupon code: 50yoga2018

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To learn more, visit www.FoodYogaAcademy.com

* Prasadam: Pure plant-based food that has been offered to God with devotion.

 

New Book, SOUL POWER Now Available on Amazon

New Book, SOUL POWER Now Available on Amazon

SOUL POWER – Five Noble Truths for a Successful Life available in paperback and ebook

International director of Food for Life Global www.ffl.org, the world’s largest network of plant-based food relief projects, Paul Rodney Turner has released a new book in the self-help genre called SOUL POWER – Five Noble Truths for a Successful Life that draws from his 35-years of experience as a practitioner of the Bhagavad-gita.

This is a follow-up to his earlier book, the 5-star rated FOOD YOGA – Nourishing Body, Mind & Soul in which he became world-famous as the food yogi.

“One evening in New York, while sitting at the table with pen in hand and feeling a little discouraged, I asked myself a simple question: What is special about me? I allowed my pen to flow without thinking too much about the answers, and to my surprise, I came up with five affirmations that coincidently all begin with the letter “P”. Easy to remember, and as you’ll see they touch upon the very core of our existence. Thus was born what I call The Five Noble Truths that now serve to guide me through my life: I am Powerful; I am Protected; I am Perfect; I am Prasadam; I am Prosperous,” he explained.

Turner’s hope is that these affirmations will give people the solace, strength, and wisdom they need to succeed in life as well help remind them just how awesome they are as a spirit soul.

In expanding on the meaning of each affirmation, Turner has drawn from the teachings of various esoteric and spiritual traditions, with a special preference to the Vedic scriptures. “Essentially, I was writing this book for myself,” he says. “As I typed each word, I took on the role of an empathetic friend offering encouragement. I want the readers to know that everything contained in this book was written with the utmost sincerity by the hand of an encouraging friend.”

An affirmation is a declaration of something that is true. Turner explains that the affirmations presented in SOUL POWER will resonate with readers as they have with him and that they’ll embrace and apply them within the context of their own spiritual tradition.

“Each one of these affirmations is drawn from the perspective that you and I and all living things on this planet are souls – eternal personified sparks of the Creator, not bound by time and the true essence of what makes us conscious beings” he explains.

To complement the spoken affirmations, Turner has also provided geometric equivalents (yantras) for each affirmation which will aid the reader in their meditation.

ISKCON author, Krishna Dharma praised the new book:

It is said that the greatest of all wisdom is to know yourself. In this well written and fascinating book Paul Rodney Turner introduces us to five life changing truths about who and what we really are. Drawing from different spiritual traditions, especially from the Sanskrit texts of India’s ancient Vedic teachings, he shows how we are something far greater than we could ever imagine. He presents us with five powerful meditations, each accompanied by a mystical yantra that embodies its essential truth and aids in expanding the consciousness. By deeply contemplating these truths about the self, along with the yantras, you will surely become empowered to fulfil your life goals, and experience a profound and lasting peace and inner happiness.

The book is available in digital and print from Amazon.com for $1.99 and $9.95 respectively.

GET YOUR COPY NOW FOR JUST $1.99!

PRINT EDITION $9.95

Pre-register for the Food Yoga Academy and Get a 50% discount

Pre-register for the Food Yoga Academy and Get a 50% discount

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For a limited time only I am offering a special 50% discount code for those interested in pre-registering for the Food Yoga Academy. You do not even have to pay anything at this time. Just express your interested by providing your name and email and you’ll get the discount code!

 

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