Lessons In Practical Buddhism - Sirimangalo.Org

to support one’s practice, protecting one from dangers both
physical and mental.
The second requisite we should consider is food. Our food
should also be useful, we should use food to remove the
hunger, and eat those foods that will not give us indigestion.
We should train ourselves to eat just the right amount so
that we don’t feel bloated and yet are free from hunger. If
we are mindful of when we have eaten enough, we can stop
before we overeat and our meditation will proceed
unhindered as a result.
Improper use of food is indeed a great danger to dhamma
practice. There is a story of how King Pasenadi once came to
listen to a talk given by the Buddha but was unable to focus
on the Buddha’s words due to having eaten an immense
amount of rice and curry just prior to his visit. The Buddha,
commenting on the benefits of moderation, recited the
following verses:
“manujassa sadā satīmato,
mattaṃ jānato laddhabhojane.
tanukassa bhavanti vedanā,
saṇikaṃ jīrati āyupālayan”ti
“For one born human who is always mindful,
knowing moderation in both food and gain,
his suffering is lessened
and he ages slowly, guarding his longevity.”
– SN 3.13
The king was impressed by these words and had his nephew
learn them by heart and remind him of them every time the
king ate. As a result, he was able to cut down his intake of
food to a more moderate amount.
New meditators will be able to sympathize with the king
while they learn to moderate their intake of food; they will
find that while they are still unable to measure the proper
amount, that they are subject to drowsiness when they
overeat and fatigue when they under-eat. They are
therefore encouraged to remind themselves every time they
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