Food

We have so much to consider about the stuff that goes down our gullet. Some are very much particular about the food they eat. Some are compelled to nourish on what comes on their way. Yet millions combat with hunger and poverty. Many unfortunate ones succumb to what Charles Darwin postulated as ‘The law of natural selection and the survival of the fittest’.

And so do many that I come across in life put forth their own postulations about food. A Nutritionist might have innumerable a stance as one could imagine. A medical specialist might cram our brain with numerous recommendations on our diet. And so would a horticulturist claim his/her stance to go for a daily intake of 120g fruits and 280g vegetables per capita per day. Indeed, a reinforcement of the figure worked out by the Indian Council of Medical Research.

A man was rummaging dust bins for any remains of food. The instant he found it, he had it gobbled down like a hungry dog. This, did he have washed down with the bitter coffee that we've left for the flies to hover over. A rather pathetic and heart-throbbing incident as I recall it now. But it was a fact that I have witnessed at Howrah train station on my voyage to college.

I had my own aunt, who had the syllables rolled off her tongue in a rather amusing way, ‘People are scrupulously obsessed with food, sometimes having it blended with unnecessary flavor and piquancy. But except for it being galloped down the alimentary canal and flushed down to its ultimate destiny, there’s nothing more to it.’

A saint might have added ‘Eat to live but don’t live to eat’. And still a few hold firm onto the belief that over-eating is in a way sinful. And so do the saints and the strict practitioner of Buddhism, who dwell around the rugged and serene terrains in pursuit of eternal bliss, thrive on controlled diet. They lead an ascetic life, restricting them to a meal a day or rather a lighter one.

And some are of the opinion that we earn or work for only a single purpose or a need to be met, simply to eat. They would have their words blurted out, ‘What’s the whole purpose of us earning if we aren't going to spend it on eating to our heart’s content!?’ The effect of which, in most of the cases, would be reflected on the simultaneous increase in the girth of an individual.

Eating delicious and liberal quantity of food to many is what they would ascribe to as being happy. ‘A good and delicious food before me turns me on and makes me happy’, was an explicit remark of a popular Indian actress being interviewed by media on her perception of happiness.

 The quantity and quality of food have a profound bearing on the happiness of many individuals. For some, it is joy, pride for some or simply an indication of wealth for others. Some might eat gluttonously at the cost of putting one’s health at stake. Yet millions battle with empty stomach or are malnourished. What have you to say on this simple yet perplex topic, ‘Food?’