Ital is Vital :: essays papers

Ital is Vital Food is more than fuel for our bodies, it nourishes our souls and feeds our hearts. A significant part of Rastafarianism is eating Ital. Ital is a rastafarian term for a saltless and vegetarian diet. Not all rastafarians strictly follow this diet, however it is held as an ideal. In Nyabinghi ceremonies, eating Ital is part of the ritual protocol for all participants. There are many different aspects of an Ital diet, many different singular beliefs and philosophies on eating Ital, however, there are a few unifying beliefs that exist. Eating Ital makes one more pure. If one fills there body with whole foods from the earth, they will inevitably exist in a higher, purer state. They will run on divine fuel. Just the act of becoming aware of what one puts into their bodies is a consciousness raising experience. Rastafarians regard there bodies as temples for the Hola life-force (spirit). Therefore, they are determined to eat food which will balance not only the body but the spirit as well. "Eat of the TREE OF LIFE" The Rastafari I-talists avoid pork and shell fish, insects, creeping creatures, animal flesh, fowl and their juices. They avoid large fish and fish grown without scales and fins, and most eat no fish at all. Rastafarians also avoid added salt in their foods, vinegar, mayonnaise and all alcoholic beverages and liquor. They also avoid bleached white substances such as white sugar, white flour, white bread, white rice and chemicals and artificial additives and colouring. A particular branch of Rastafarians, called the Nazerites, eat no grapes or fruits-of-the-vine, such as pumpkins or cucumbers. Rastafarians avoid blending Ital foods with other food, as well. Rastafarians refrain from anything polluted with pesticides, or any type of packaged foods. Some rastas are serious enough to avoid using synthetic plastic countertops. Kitchens, therefore, are made with natural materials, like wood, and food is served only in bowls that have come from the earth, like gourds or wood. The reason for avoiding pork and shellfish is because they are environmental scavengers, and regarded as unclean. Large fish are avoided because they feed on smaller fish, and if one is going to eat flesh, it mush be the flesh of plant eaters. Most Rastafarians believe that in the beginning of creation it was not intended for man to eat flesh. "And Jah said, Behold I have given every herb bearing seed, which is upon the face of all earth, and every tree, in which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed, to you it shall be for meat (food).