We learned from the last article that Sattvic foods help nourish us deeply both in the body and the mind with life giving energy (prana). They are the ideal foods we need to eat comprising of at least sixty percent of our diet. Now, we will discuss the “Rajas” foods.
The word “Rajas can be thought of as creating “passion” and “action”. Of the three types of food categories in Ayurveda, the “rajas” foods represent the middle ground, being action driven while creating energy and intensity. They provide the balance between the spiritual, harmonious and life giving nature of the Sattvic foods and the heaviness of the Tamasic foods which we will discuss later.
So we can expect Rajasic foods to stimulate our physical bodies and our minds. These foods appeal to our taste buds so they are usually the spicy, salty, sweet and heat generating foods.
Rajvic foods excite our senses and our passions. One can think of them as the types of foods and drinks we enjoy when celebrating a festive occasion or going on a fancy date or for Valentine’s day - rich and tasty foie gras, delicious chocolates, red or white wine, coffee, spices, desserts, liqueurs and so on. Some of these foods may also build up our digestive fire (agni) and they include powdered ginger, black pepper or cayenne pepper. These three spices are perfect examples of the heat generating foods we enjoy.
When we eat a predominantly Rajasic diet, we are eating foods rich in spices, with intense flavours such as onions, garlic, deep fried foods, white rice or breads, cereals, coffee, tea, refined foods, hot chilly sauces, sugary foods, wines and chocolates. These all appeal to our sense of taste and produce the good feeling hormones. Although we feel energised and happy when we first eat these types of foods, in excess they deplete our energy creating stress in our body and in the digestive system. These foods also create an acidic environment and inflammation in the body causing life style diseases such as diabetes, high blood pressure and heart diseases. The effects on the body of eating a Rajasic diet is to stimulate aggression, passion, fire, emotional or energetic imbalance, they may alter our consciousness and then create feelings of depression. This often happens when we drink alcohol.
Rajasic people may have a weak digestive system as they are always in a rush to eat their meals. Yet, they love indulging in a rich diet, heavy on the fatty foods, wines, chocolates and spices. These types of people are always restless, constantly active, pushy, highly motivated, very ambitious and very materialistic - what we refer to as a type A personality. They may also be greedy, possessive and have a highly passionate nature as their desires constantly need to be fed and stimulated. Athletes and business tycoons are a good example of Rajasic energy. People who have too much of this Rajvic “guna” are often full of excess energy which then leads to anxiety, over-thinking, pushiness, aggressiveness and hyperactivity. We have all come across such people in our lives. They often suffer from stomach ulcers.
So what are the Rajasic foods that we often eat in our diet:
Salty foods, pickles, vinegar, sugar, coffee, tea and other stimulants; high protein or fatty foods such as red meat (beef, lamb, pork, chicken), eggs, cheese, nuts; spicy foods (chilies, garlic, pepper, onions); foods with strong flavours (spices, herbs, seasonings, radish; oily foods or deep fried foods, processed meats, sugary and carbonated drinks, chocolates, eggplants (from the nightshade family), wines, alcohol, etc. These foods always stimulate our taste buds as they are salty, sweet, sour or dry and we enjoy eating them.
When we eat Rajvic foods we often notice an initial increase in energy and vitality as when we indulge in chocolates or other fatty foods. We may also notice improved mental clarity and focus. They may also stimulate our creativity and motivation. We may feel an increase in our passion and drive (as we drink a few glasses of alcohol) and then it dulls our normal reserve and inhibitions. We may also notice improved digestion and metabolism when we eat gingery or spicy foods. However, in most cases, they will have an overstimulating effect on the body leading to a feeling of being down as the good feeling hormone gradually wears out. A perfect example is when one has had too much alcohol to drink the night before and wakes up feeling tired and exhausted the following day or when one drinks too much coffee or tea and feels very highly strung and anxious. We then repeatedly eat these foods and drinks to enjoy the effects of the good feelings again and again, causing us to end up overweight as we indulge our senses. A perfect example of this is fried potato chips or crisps which we crave for their salty, crunchy flavour and texture.
According to Ayurveda, these Rajvic foods need to be eaten only occasionally or in moderation to avoid the body being constantly overstimulated leading to illness.
These foods are excellent for people who need to be aggressive such as the military or the police force, athletes and those who work in a highly stressful environment. Because of their highly stimulating effect, it is also recommended not to eat these foods and drinks in the evenings as they may cause restlessness, anxiety, insomnia, disrupted sleep patterns, increased stress and agitation, digestive issues and inflammation. They may also unbalance the three doshas (Vata, Pitta, Kapha) as well as having a predominantly acidic effect in the body causing gout or urinary infections.
Words that express Rajas behaviours and type A personalities are hurry, action, impatience, passion, drive, ambition, motivation, power-mongering, manipulation, desire for leadership, domination, self-promotion, rule-breaking, pushy, putting others down, love of grandeur, competitive, workaholic, exhibitionist, fighting spirit, wilful, extravagant, materialistic, loud, assertive, avaricious, authoritarian and proud.
Ideally we need to balance our diet with both Sattvic and Rajasic foods so that we can balance our body with the need to be spiritual and have life giving energy as well as being physically active. As always, it is important to listen to our own body and adjust our diet accordingly by noticing which foods agree with us and which ones cause us to feel tired. We will discuss in our next article the Tamas foods and how they affect our body.
Excellent article and just proves what I've always said, "we can eat everything because everything has value but enjoy it all in moderation". Thank you.