Christmas evening was dinner night with Guruji at a restaurant. It was also Akhanda Dhyana – the last Sunday of the year when full day Meditations are conducted at Taponagara. We were catching up on the day’s events while choosing from the menu. Since one of our friends was an avid non-vegetarian he took longer to chose from the all-vegetarian menu. Strangely this triggered a full-length conversation with Guruji about the rationale behind proposed abstinence from consumption of meat cuisine.

Guruji mentioned that he recently encountered a case wherein a person’s life had been disturbed due to a black magic spell cast on them by someone. Since this person is an innately good-hearted, well-intentioned meditator there was protection, but only until the time he consumed meat. The reason – the dark energies can enter meat easily. When dark energies are sent to a person and if they cannot immediately enter and harm then they hover around and wait! Also, black magic targets only the person for whom it is meant. Even if it takes ten years they standby and at the first available opportunity they act.

Besides the targeted black magic there are also general negative emotional energies floating around in the environment. This explains why we feel low or uncomfortable in certain localities. When we channel Light to the whole world, one of the benefits is that it cleanses the environment of such fear based energies. We meditators have energy shields so we are safe until we literally bore holes in the shields with intense negative thinking or anger. At such times we let the negative energies in. It is also a commonly known fact that in a heavily inebriated state we become weak-minded and are more susceptible to psychic attacks. A strong minded person does not face such problems though.

The conversation continued and the food, all vegetarian of course, was served in the meanwhile. Even plants have life and we grow, harvest and eat them, does not this amount to aggression we asked. Guruji explained, “You see as per the laws of life applicable to our kind of Bhoo Loka earth, eating plants and vegetation is allowed. There are earths in the lower densities where different laws apply.”

To help us understand further Guruji narrated Amara Maharshi’s inter-dimensional travel experience. “Amara once visited a certain earth which is in a higher frequency. As he landed there, he had to take up a local body. While walking on the ground there he habitually walked on grass, like we do on our earth here. You won’t believe this but the grass and the trees around took offense and the trees even hurled fruits on him!

“Oh come take a seat; sorry we ordered food already, you took quite some time to reach here.” Guruji welcomed Kavindra and Sreedevi as they joined us for dinner.

We briefly told them about what we were discussing and then Guruji continued, “The point is, on that particular earth even vegetation cannot be consumed casually.”

The commotion of people talking in the restaurant did not seem to drown our conversation. Since it was Christmas the place was chock-a-block. “Also don’t forget that different Laws of Karma apply based on the soul’s origin. For some souls even killing and consuming animals is allowed.”

When wild predators like lions kill antelopes for sustenance it is perfectly fine because it is natural to that species.

On this Path there has never been any restriction of food or lifestyle habits. The pure Spiritual Energies that purify our five body system of Spiritual, Intellectual, Mental, Vital and Physical bodies, automatically cleanse denser patterns of lower energy. This results in a natural avoidance of anything that comes in the way of absorption of pure energy. Quite like dry leaves naturally falling off a tree. Only once, sometime in 2010, there was a request for abstinence from non-vegetarian food for a short period.

We had forgotten that we were at dinner so the dialogue halted for a while. Food preferences and some other small talk later something very interesting was revealed. I cannot recall how the topic came about but if I hold the tail and reach up to the other end there most certainly would be a snake’s head! Oh yes, a snake. There’s a popular folklore which warns that cobras remember their enemies for a period of twelve years. There’s even a well-known local movie song based on the ferocious twelve year vengefulness of a cobra.

Guruji confirmed that it was true! Snakes have a photographic memory which lasts in their minds for a period of exactly twelve years. He even evidenced this by telling us about a villager in Gollahalli (where Antar-Manasa is situated). This villager attacked a cobra on the way to his farm. The snake escaped alive. Elders in the village advised him to stay off that path to his farm. About four years later he let his guard down and while he was on the forbidden path he encountered the cobra, all set in attack mode.

A hot cup of coffee, sugarless for Guruji, warmed our spirits in the chill of the cold Christmas night, but it did not stimulate further discussion. I have often observed this interesting phenomenon - any conversation over food ends with the last morsel. A few pleasantries later we headed back to Taponagara.

After the New Year as the routine of life set in, some more questions popped-up from an inquisitive mind. What about eggs? Does it fall in the category of non-vegetarian food, because milk does not? As an animal product does it also attract any non-positive energy? Guruji’s answer - no.

What about the leather products we so often use, do they attract non-positive energy? Guruji’s answer – “Yes they do. But the energies they carry are from the respective animal or reptile groups, like tiger or snakes.”

Myths, legends, energies, there is always something new to explore, understand and experience. The journey continues.