This meditation is called the basic mindful eating meditation.
In this meditation,
We will start practicing mindfulness with a small amount of food.
You will need to prepare by having a single raisin.
No other foods will work also.
As long as you just have one small piece of food.
A raisin is the classic example used by other practitioners,
But other foods will work just as well.
As long as it's a single piece of food that's small and easy to manage.
Something that you can touch with your hands.
Now,
Let's begin by sitting quietly and assessing your baseline hunger.
Take two to three deep,
Slow breaths to center yourself.
Really get in touch with your body.
Now,
How hungry are you on a scale of zero to ten,
Where zero is I'm not really interested in food at all,
And ten is,
Oh,
I am starving.
I want to eat anything I see.
Where do you look inside your body to tell you how hungry you are?
Think about that question as you sit.
Take a few deep breaths.
Do you have a number from zero to ten?
Write that down for future reference.
You'll start off writing numbers down,
But over time,
You'll free yourself of those numbers.
Okay.
At this point,
You will want to put the raisin on the palm of your hand.
Now,
You're going to explore the raisin using your senses.
First,
Using your eyes,
Look at the color,
Shape,
And surface texture of the object.
You can touch it with your fingers and roll it around a bit.
As you look at it,
What is your mind saying it might be?
Now,
Write how your eyes impact your hunger for this item on a scale of zero to ten.
Okay,
Now investigate this object with your fingers.
Really become aware of the sensations of touch as you touch the object.
Squeeze it.
Is it rough?
Sticky?
Is it smooth?
Is it hard or soft?
How about cold or warm?
How does this object impact your hunger for it?
Write this on a scale of zero to ten.
Now,
You will use your ears.
Bring the object to your ears.
Notice if it has a sound.
Squeeze it or roll it.
How much hunger does the hearing bring?
Is there anything about the sound of it?
Okay,
Now you will investigate the object using your nose.
Smell it,
Smell the raisin,
And breathe some fresh air,
And then sniff it again.
Waft it under your nose a few times.
Does it seem like different parts of it have different smells?
Or is it just one uniform scent?
On a scale of zero to ten,
How much hunger came from smelling the object?
Now,
Place the object in your mouth,
But don't bite down on it.
You can roll it around and use your tongue,
But don't bite it.
After exploring without biting,
You can bite but only once.
Roll it around your mouth again.
Really explore with your tongue.
Did anything change from when you first put it in your mouth?
Now rate how much hunger came from the object being in your mouth on a scale of zero to ten.
Now next,
Chew it slowly,
Noticing the changes in texture and taste.
You swallow it and notice when you do if there are any bits still in your mouth.
Or did it all swallow all in one swallow all at once?
What's going on with your tongue?
Can you still detect the flavor?
How long did the flavor last?
Was there much of a flavor?
Did any of the flavors change while swallowing?
Now rate your stomach hunger.
Is your stomach full,
Empty,
Satisfied?
How did swallowing the single raisin change that?
Did it change it at all?
Now rate your stomach hunger on a scale of zero to ten.
Does your stomach want more of this food?
Okay,
Now let's look at the mind.
Do you notice what your mind is saying about the food?
Typically the mind talks in shoulds and should nots.
Often we don't even know why we have a should or a should not when it comes to a food.
Do you understand what your mind is saying a food should or should not be eaten?
How much would your mind want to have more of this food on a scale of zero to ten?
Where zero is,
I don't want anymore.
And ten is,
I'm still famished,
I want more,
Absolutely.
Okay.
Now,
Lastly,
Let's look at emotions.
Are there any emotions about this food that came up for you and change how it feels to you?
Often we have past memories that can influence how we feel emotionally about a food.
Is the food soothing or comforting?
Do you understand where that feeling is coming from?
Is it a memory?
Traumatic?
Maybe the complete opposite.
Maybe it's a loving memory that you don't want to get out of your head.
And every time you eat this food it reminds you of someone that you love.
Where is that feeling coming from?
As you practice this process you will be able to have a much better understanding of your hunger and where it's coming from.
Now,
This will help you know if you are hungry and if so,
How much to eat.
Mindfulness will give you awareness and that can give you some peace with food.
Namaste.
