Mealtime prayers are an opportunity to pause before rushing food into our stomach. They are an opportunity to calm down, relax our body, adopt the right posture, be grateful for the food that we are receiving and evaluate the strength of our Agni.
Our dear friend, teacher and talented sanskrit musical artist – Gaiea Sanskrit, shares here a selection of sanskrit prayers to listen to before meals.
This time of pause, before meals is also an opportunity to evaluate strength of agni and therefore consciously choose how much we eat and what we will eat. This is essential in ensuring healthy digestion, absorption and preventing formation of toxins (Ama).
Enjoy the sanskrit mealtime prayers and enjoy your meal !
??
Below transliteration and English translation of the sanskrit mealtime prayers.
brahmarpaṇaṃ brahmahavir brahmāgnau brahmaṇā hutaṃ brahmaiva tena gantavyaṃ brahmakarma samādhinā
The ladle is Brahman; Brahman is that which is offered in the fire of Brahman by the priest, Brahman is this whole process. Brahman alone is the result for him who contemplates on action as Brahman.
—–
annapūrṇe sadāpūrṇe śaṅkara prāṇa vallabhe jñānavairāgya siddhyarthaṃ bhikṣāṃ dehi ca parvati
O Mother Annapurna, You Who are always Full (with the gift of Food and Blessings), You Who are the Beloved of Shankara, …O Mother Parvati, Please grant me the Alms of Your Grace, to awaken within me Spiritual Knowledge and Freedom from all Worldly Desires.
—–
mātā ca parvatī devi pitā devo maheśvara bāndhavāḥ śiva bhaktāśca svadeśo bhuvanatrayam
My Mother is Devi Parvati, and my Father is Deva Maheswara (Shiva), My Friends are the devotees of Shiva, and my Country is all the Three Worlds (Whose Lord is Shiva-Parvati).
—-
aham vaiśvānaro bhūtvā prāṇināṃ dehamāśritaḥ ( in the above recording it’s just the above two lines) prāṇāpānāsamāyuktaḥ pacāmyannaṃ caturvidhaṃ (full verse)
It is I who take the form of the fire of digestion in the stomachs of all living beings, and combine with the incoming and outgoing breaths, to digest and assimilate the four kinds of foods.
—–
jīvane yāvadādānaṃ syāt pradānantatodhikaṃ ityeśā prarthanāsmākaṃ bhagavan paripūryatām
However much has been taken in life, more should be returned. May this our prayer to you, O Lord, be fulfilled.
More sanskrit sounds here
