Raw Spirituality  
by Gabrielle Chavez

Excerpted from her book, The Raw Food Gourmet

Spiritual aspirants aim high and live towards their ultimate goal. Life becomes a series of steps taken in the direction of what is apprehended as God. Not, in my life, have I always been directly on the path but always oriented to it, lighted by it, and able to return. With such an intention, help comes in many surprising forms. And some years ago great help came to me through discovering that the bread for my spiritual journey could be "living food."

I saw that what I choose to eat has a number of spiritual ramifications. Not the least of these ramifications are the ethical ones concerning how my food choices affect my brothers and sisters near and far, including my relations in the nature kingdoms.  In many ways we are what we eat. It doesn't take a quantum physicist to notice that what we eat affects us in more than physical ways. It affects our moods, our ability to think, to love, and to pray. Avoiding what we know is toxic and choosing what we know is healthy makes as much sense for an aspirant as an athlete. The discipline, mindfulness, and intentionality involved in a raw commitment can be
Olympian. I believe that eating raw not only supports spiritual practice, it is a spiritual practice, one that is available to all seekers. 

The ability to attune to and experience a greater reality is a sought-after prize even in our Western, materialistic society.  People might seek such experience in nature, art, sexuality, consciousness-altering substances, and/or religious ritual.  But seekers invariably find that what's in the way of a deeper connection with higher Beingness is there own selves.  We are too distracted, too tired, too confused, too anxious, too restless, too stuck in physical, emotional, and mental malfunction to taste and see and feel spiritual ecstasy.  The challenge then becomes not so much to find God or some Higher Power, but to change what it is about ourselves that prevents joyful communion. 

It might seem strange for a theologian to write a recipe book. I've wondered about it myself. Yet my calling has always been to integrate practice with teaching. The great religions demand utter perfection to be fully realized - nirvana, Samadhi, shalom, the kingdom of heaven, to cite a few examples. Christianity in particular--my brand of
Godliness--sets forth as its prime example a life of unstinting, all-embracing love at any cost. Adherents must ask themselves, "How do I follow that with all my heart, mind, soul, and strength?"

My whole life has been devoted to answering that question, and eating raw has become a significant part of my life. I hope that these reflections on my experience might be useful to health seekers who are also spiritually inclined or ready to take their search for physical vitality to another level.

Energy
I begin here because this is where I first saw the connection between a raw lifestyle and spirituality.  Most people, even if they cannot see the so-called health aura, have some sense of the energy given off by others and an awareness of their own energy level.  During my first visit to the International Raw and Living Foods Festival years ago, I was attracted to the palpable vibrancy of so many of the people I saw. Watching and speaking with them, it was clear to me that something about their diet afforded these people such an exceptional sparkle. A few of the more spiritually-oriented raw fooders that I got to know also revealed an unusual clarity of connection to
inner guidance. Later, when I chose to forsake lifeless food, I experienced both of these gifts myself. And you can, too.

Healing
Healing involves greater flows of energy; physical healing at the level of more physical energy, spiritual healing at the level of heightened spiritual conductivity, and everything else in between, with all the physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual levels interpenetrating in the whole system. To seek healing at any level is to seek to connect with the source of healing, to become whole, at one, united, joined with All. Eating raw is demonstrably healing on a physical level, and releases enormous energy to heal more wholly.
 
Transformation
If you choose to live in the light of aspiration, you are probably aware of a gentle but persistent inner invitation to step up to a higher, greater life consciousness, the "still small voice" of conscience or inner wisdom. Converting to an all-raw lifestyle in our culture amounts to a major transformation or metanoia, and it helped me to recognize this as a spiritual milestone for a number of reasons. One, opening to the spiritual aspect of food allowed the
new energy to move more widely in my life. Two, it is difficult - some feel impossibly difficult- to turn against the tide of culture, personal habit and known comfort to eat only living food. Therefore, three, availing myself of spiritual help in prayer and the support of fellow aspirants has been a powerful reinforcement for my transformation.
 
All Our Relations 
All food that we consume as a gift of God is also the gift of our brothers and sisters in the nature kingdoms. Life nourishes life. Most raw fooders, including myself, choose not to take the life of our nearest relations, those with faces. Yet the willing sacrifice of the trees and plants who offer their fruits and bodies to nourish us also deserves honor and appreciation. In gratitude and in turn, the ashes of our bodies will feed theirs.

I was surprised and delighted with my growing awareness of the life energy of plants as I began to incorporate them into my diet while they were still alive. My lifelong habit has been to pluck a fruit or vegetable from the tree or ground or produce bin and consume it as though it were mine because I grew it or bought it. Now that seems inconsiderate of the life I intend to eat, so I am learning to lovingly acknowledge its existence and even have the courtesy to ask before taking. The joy that beams back when I remember to do this confirms for me that life is
connected through consciousness.  Dorothy MacLean, one of the founders of the Findhorn community, teaches
that communion with the plant and devic kingdoms of God is a timely part of human spiritual evolution.  The plants not only nourish and heal us, they can teach us from their wisdom how to restore and heal the earth. Healing is not complete until all kingdoms are at one.

Service
For the last step in a class I took called "12 Steps to Raw Food," with raw teacher, author, and chef
Victoria Boutenko, we were asked to imagine what we might do with the extra energy and time that comes to
those who make this change. Many wished to invest their additional vitality for the benefit of others. In fact, the promise of more time and energy to overcome "compassion fatigue" is a very good reason for those of us with a social conscience to embrace this lifestyle.

We are all in this together as communal beings and individual wellness cannot be attained, finally, until everyone is well. Spiritual people understand and welcome this truth with its attendant call to service. I believe that raw fooders already serve by taking responsibility for their dietary health and by consuming fewer of the earth's resources. Sharing our good food and what we've learned about it is also a great service. Let us be prepared to do even more. Investing one's time and energy to help heal the world makes for a satisfying, meaningful life as well as a long and healthy one.

Forgiveness
I have spoken much of success in turning from an ingrained, cooked lifestyle to a transformed raw one.  Successfully overcoming hereditary eating habits and primal cravings for addictive, but unhealthy, comfort foods will cause your self-esteem and self-confidence to blossom. You will be rewarded in many wonderful ways. I applaud your choice and efforts in that direction. 

But what if you fail? What if I fail? One of my early raw heroes, a rail-thin, spirit-bright Sufi now looks like a football player and has been jailed as a sex offender. Others I know, both leaders and followers, have not succeeded in staying on a raw path as completely as they wished.  Fortunately, there is no one to forgive but yourself, since eating cooked food is neither a sin nor a crime! Bringing upon oneself the experience of missing the mark of aspiration is a good opportunity to own up to a personal failing, notice the consequences and move
on with the next choice. Self-forgiveness and taking responsibility for our choices is a much needed, and much neglected, spiritual practice. 

We might thank heaven for the reality check that our body brings us. Physical perfectionism is an idolatry of the body which prevents us from expanding into a wider spiritual reality and also increases our sense of separateness. Our meat bodies are limited. As sane and healthy and life-giving as a raw lifestyle may be, sooner or later the flesh that clothes the purest raw fooder will wear out, sicken, and die.  Can we embrace our imperfect bodies, our illnesses, our failures, and eventually our own physical death? This, too, is a spiritual opportunity that comes to every life, but quite pointedly to a raw aspirant's life. 

Tolerance and humility are related virtues that flow from a forgiving heart. With the enthusiasm of converts, we raw fooders passionately believe in what we're doing. We've made a huge commitment against the grain to walk our talk. Yet there are situations where a spiritually-minded raw fooder may choose to make exceptions. My friend Julie told me she was once in line trying to order a salad to go and discovered she only had a check to pay for it, which they did not accept. The woman behind her stepped up and said, "Let me order you a slice of pizza. I can afford it." Julie tried to protest, but the woman insisted. The person behind the counter heard the exchange, returned the stranger's money and said, "That's all right.  We throw away extra pizza all the time.  Here's a couple slices." Julie didn't mention she really wanted raw food instead and sincerely thanked her benefactors.
Those pizza slices became holy food both by gracious giving and gracious receiving. For spiritual folk, it's ultimately not about the enzymes, it's about the love.
 
Gratitude
Since becoming raw, I have become mindful not only to give thanks for the food, but also to the food and even with the food. When the food we take in thrums with life, so do we. Grateful, we may open our hearts, adding love to love. As we embrace the flow of life blessing us, gratitude grows to joy and joy rises to ecstasy. Whatever your path, may you be blessed with vitality.  And may you be blessed with Life beyond vitality. Thank you.