From Doritos to Dal

      

         
          
            "Restraint in diet both as to quantity and quality is as essential as restraint in thought and speech" - Mahatma Gandhi


             Gandhi Jayanti, which falls on the 2nd of October, on the contrary to popular belief is not just about Mahatma Gandhi's birthday. It is a national, even an international symbol of peace and non violence. It is also the birthday of another great human being - Lal Bahadur Shastri, who was a disciple of Mahatma Gandhi. These National leaders had more in common than patriotism. Lal Bahadur Shastri led the country during the Indo-Pakistan war and his slogan "Jai Jawan Jai Kisan" which translates to "Hail the soldier, hail the farmer" became very famous.  A farmer's service to our country is as important as a soldier's. After all, food, shelter and protection are all we need.

              Gandhi ji was a man of extraordinary principles and a simple lifestyle. A major part of his life was spent by having healthy food for his meals. Dal, rice, chapathi, yogurt and food like these were his favourites. Now that I write about it, it seems exhausting to just eat plain food like this all the time. A little cheat day once in a while wouldn't have hurt him. Although, one cheat day might turn into three and three might turn into 7 times a week. Self control is a tricky thing. But Gandhi ji knew his way around food. As we all know, he wrote a lot of books. But what most people don't know is that he wrote a few books about food and leading a healthy lifestyle.

             Now, when people say "healthy food", we immediately think about home cooked food. That isn't wrong. Most home cooked meals are healthy. But not all. For example, Poori is DEFINITELY not healthy, with all the oil in it. But Sambhar and dal? They are safe and healthy. Avoiding packaged food might seem unnecessary but it does a lot more than just help you follow a proper diet. The more we avoid packaged food, the more we avoid the wastage of the packages. On an average, people get packaged food 5 times a month. Especially people who live in hostels. Have you ever wondered what happens to these packages? We think that we don't have to worry about these waste products once they leave our home. But they never truly leave our 'home'. The waste just gets piled up or burned which just adds to the climate crisis and the environmental pollution. Swachh Bharat Abhiyan is more than just a fancy idea. It is how a way of life should be. Taking care of our waste and not letting it affect our world's future is easier than we think. We must just work together as a team and try to take care after ourselves and what we leave out in our nation.