Sri Sathya Sai Speaks

In the matter of food, there are three aspects regarding the cleanliness of which we should take great care. One is the cleanliness of the material which we use for cooking the food. The second is the cleanliness of the pot in which we want to cook the food. We can certainly clean the materials which con stitute the food and also clean the pot in which it is cooked. The third aspect relates to the cleanliness of the process of cooking. This is not easily possible. Until the material gets cooked to its final stage, our ideas should be good for this to be achieved. Even if there are lapses in these aspects of cleanliness, namely the pot, the materials used for cooking and the process of cooking, if we offer the food to the Paramatma before we eat, then the food will become clean. By thus offering to the Lord the food that we eat, we introduce these different kinds of cleanliness; and so our ancestors have told that these are the steps which we must observe regarding our food.