Diet Control

The eating diet in Edward Siddhartha, Paine’s exquisite biography of the eponymous Hindu lord of Palaces in London from his whole life, illustrates a human diet consisting solely of the consumption of meat, bread, dairy, and fruit and vegetables. Siddhartha eats meals continuously throughout the day with little consideration to the feelings of hunger or fullness, unable to restrain himself from consuming meat, on many occasions stuffing himself in a bowl of fish and other meat with the conclusion that he can only bear meat, a diet that discourages him from sitting down with his friend, Thomasina. His eating habits violate his religious principles, and this has a profound effect on his thinking on Hinduism and Hinduism.

In his eating habits, he treats both food and mental health as if they are a currency of spiritual and emotional stability, one that he can’t achieve on his own, such is the way of his religion. Finally, at the end of the story, Siddhartha gives up his eating habits and is able to attain the spiritual level of Hinduism he was after.

Paine claims “He belongs to a religious tradition in which the body and mind are thought to be one in the same thing.” (Paine 185). While the reason why Siddhartha has to eat meat, a food that is forbidden to him by his religion, is a spiritual inclination to overeat meat as a part of his spiritual practice, because of his changing diet. Siddhartha could have chosen a different lifestyle, but to identify his moral values of religious understanding and spirituality in his lifestyle is extremely beneficial to Siddhartha’s spiritual health and spiritual health.

According to Paine, Siddhartha “Had experienced in his life an agony of spiritual emptiness, or at least a failed attempt to fill that emptiness.” (Paine 183). Siddhartha’s spiritual hunger drives him to identify himself with those in his situation as good examples in order to be able to escape his exile. His spiritual study, with his new vegetarian diet, allows him to come to these conclusions, although he previously could only succeed in copying the yogi cookbooks.

Over the course of his journey, Siddhartha regresses his medical state towards all scientific as well as religious reforms. Without any consideration for his meals, he begins to treat food as if it were a commodity and treat it as if it were a reward at the end of his day. He claims, “…it was more than time for God to forgive me for making him angry for mistreating me in the ways of everyday life and poring over his books as a result.”(Paine 251). With his eating habits, Siddhartha believes one thing regarding spiritual traditions to be true, which is the judgment of what he eats, along with its physical effects. Being able to disregard what he eats and eating more food as a more spiritual practice, Siddhartha has an alternative to any other diet, or neither, by finding meaning in what one eats. It is evident in his veggie diet that his spiritual connections cannot be achieved without his vegetarian diet.

Since the end of Siddhartha’s eating habits, he is able to foster spiritual connections within his spiritual practices. Thus, he becomes less physically active, to the detriment of the health of his mind. Siddhartha’s studies with Krishnamurthy, where he does not eat meat and animals, allow him to understand better his notions on Hinduism and Hinduism. As he learns more about Hinduism, “after the death of all the physical animals, Krishnamurthy added his knowledge that the class of consciousness consisted exclusively of spiritual beings.”(Paine 181). This knowledge of what he eats brings him the understanding of Hinduism and Hinduism as a spiritual practice, with regards to his philosophical practices. This explains how his eating habits are harmful to his mental health. Therefore, as he begins to change his eating habits he attains spiritual ability and health without the materialistic competition with the other being.

While Siddhartha’s eating habits continue to persevere Paine is able to take away much of his remaining nourishment, leaving him with spiritual darkness, despite the fact that he considers himself an intelligent gentleman. For the most part, Paine does this through the use of fasting and images of the goddess Kali. “Every time Siddhartha prays, he places something on his forehead that represents the Hindu’s symbolic connection to the goddess Kali.”(Paine 191). Despite the fact that he is able to view and define Hinduism and Hinduism as spiritual practices and practices, his religious practices are highly criticized.

During his parting of ways with his Lord and master, it is impossible to untangle the spiritual and secular characters of Siddhartha as well as the two methods of religion that Paine used to describe his years. The use of symbolic links to Hindu.