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Encyclopedia of Food and Agricultural Ethics pp 1151–1154Cite as

Food in Ancient Indian Philosophy

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Synonyms

Breath; Elements; Food cycle; Hospitality; Hunger; Indian philosophy; Natural philosophy; Vedas

Introduction

Ancient Indian natural philosophy of the Vedas offers a unique mythico-philosophical perspective on the role of food in nature, society, and the cosmos. In early Indian philosophies, food (anna) and breath (prana) are of a vital importance for the microcosmic (the body) as well as macrocosmic (nature and life cycle) “deities” or realities. In addition to their relevance for various disciplines of the body (e.g., yoga and vegetarianism), ancient Vedic teachings on food can also substantially inform contemporary environmental philosophy and ethics of hospitality.

Food in Ancient Indian Philosophy

For the Vedic philosophers, or the tradition of Vedism/Brahmanism, there existed five originary elements of the world: earth, water, fire, air, and ether (Aitareya Upanishad III). Given the natural relation between “food” (anna) and “eater” (attr), some Vedic philosophers...

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References

  • Boland, M. (1997). Die Wind-Atem-Lehre in den älteren Upanishaden. Münster: Ugarit.

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  • Geib, R. (1976). Food and eater in natural philosophy of early India. Journal of Oriental Institute, 25, 223–235.

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  • Olivelle, P. (1998). Upanisads. Oxford/New York: Oxford University Press.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Nutritional Counselling – Dietetics, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Primorska, Izola, Slovenia

    Lenart Skof

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  1. Lenart Skof
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Correspondence to Lenart Skof .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Philosophy and Religion, University of North Texas, Denton, TX, USA

    David M. Kaplan

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Skof, L. (2019). Food in Ancient Indian Philosophy. In: Kaplan, D.M. (eds) Encyclopedia of Food and Agricultural Ethics. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-024-1179-9_491

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