Food Of The Gods

You are what you eat—so make sure you’re getting a balanced spiritual diet.

- Martha Beck

RECENTLY, I TOLD a frazzled client that she needs to take time each day to nourish her spirit. “I’m not even sure how to do that,” she said. “Can you give me a balanced spiritual diet? Like the old food pyramid?” Well, sure, I thought—except the food pyramid never worked for me. I’m gluten intolerant and have trouble absorbing fats: Once, my doctor wrote me a prescription for “less quinoa, more peanut butter.”

No one diet plan is right for everybody, and that goes for our metaphysical needs as well. But some spiritual practices are so nourishing that they’ve been recommended throughout history all over the world. I’ve outlined a menu of these “food groups” here. Add one of them at a time, the way your doctor might introduce a food to see how your body reacts. If a practice nourishes you, adjust the amount to find your own minimum daily requirement. Then add another practice. Eventually, you’ll create the perfect spiritual diet for you.

Hold Still 

The most powerful nourishment is also the simplest: shhhh! Practicing stillness is a venerable art in many spiritual traditions, usually in the form of meditation. You may want to try formally meditating by focusing on your breathing, a mantra, or a question. If you want a more Western approach, follow the biblical instruction “Be still, and know that I am God.” Eckhart Tolle believes this is actually one concept, our ultimate spiritual truth, expressed five ways: Be. Still. Know. I Am. God. Contemplating any one of them provides nutrient-rich sustenance.