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At the upāshray, the monks sat on the floor mats and shared the food they had collected.
Before eating, in silence, they attuned themselves to the meaning of food with a special prayer:
अहो जिणेहिं असावज्जा, वित्ती साहूण देसिया । मुक्ख साहण हेउस्स, साहु देहस्स धारणा ।।
“Aho Jinehim asāvajjā Vitti sähuna desiyā Mukkha sāhana heoosa Sāhu dehassa dhāraņā.”
"Oh Great Conquerors, who have mastered your senses, What a wonderful Teaching has come from you! You have taught us to nourish the body with only that food which is innocent, pure, benign, and healthy, for it does not carry the vibrations of pain or bloodshed. You have taught us that we eat to sustain the body, and that we sustain the body for one purpose only: to allow us to reach Enlightenment and experience the liberation of Soul.”
They ate with the fingers of their right hand, in an attitude of quiet and non-attachment. Munishree observed the process of eating.
Each morsel of my food is being absorbed by my saliva and digestive juices and turned into nectar. My body cells are turning this food into energy. I am in tune with this nourishment as a means to bring out my life. Through this touch with life, may my body become a fit vehicle to carry me to moksha, and to receive and share the quintessence of truth with a loving heart.
A monk was to see his body as a vehicle or a temple in which he dwelled; he had to keep it in good condition. At the same time, it remained ever in partnership with soul, its master. The monks were taught neither to give it undue attention and excessive care nor to do anything which would harm or exhaust it. Both extremes were viewed as a result of being
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