People often ask me how I am so grounded and vibrant on a vegan diet. The answer is simply that I prepare healthy foods and I focus on spiritual practices that keep me centered. I choose vegan foods that are grounding such as beans, whole grains, roots, and dark green leafy vegetables, like the collard, arugula, and mizuna greens in this photo. For that meal, I sautéd the collard greens in walnut oil and tossed them with some leftover tempeh and red bell pepper. Then I drizzled organic flax oil over the raw mizuna and arugula.

In addition to simple, tasty greens that are full of iron, calcium, and many other vitamins and minerals, I continue to sit daily in a silent meditation practice that balances my chakras (energy centers in the subtle body) and keeps me centered in my heart. In my pocket book, Radiance Rising: Spiritual Practices for Daily Living, I describe meditation (and other spiritual practices) in an easy-to-read way that appeals to many people.

Currently, my favorite daily practice is one that I’m calling my “time out of time”, which I enjoy after my morning meditation. For my time-out-of-time practice, I light candles on my coffee table, then sit on the couch with a cup of hot tea. I begin by reading aloud my current vows (which I wrote on January 1^st), and then offering my tea to Neem Karoli Baba. After that, I sip the tea whilst reading spiritual teachings. Recently I have been reading books by Ram Dass. To read the book reviews, please click on the titles: Be Here Now, Be Love Now, and Still Here.

The past few mornings, since I am in between books, I’ve been reading the Vegetarian/Vegan Starter Kit (magazine) published by PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals), and I will write a blog article with quotes from that publication once I digest it a little more. As a vegan yogini, when I read about the ill treatment of factory farm animals, I am filled with such a deep sorrow that I feel sick to my stomach and my heart aches. Thus, I feel very inspired to do my part to help raise awareness about this issue. In short, the animals and fish are suffering very much because of the dietary choices made by the human species. And, the choice to no longer eat animal products, but to instead eat a plant-based (vegan) diet, not only reduces the suffering of the animals, but it increases the good health of the humans and dramatically reduces the global greenhouse emissions. So, going vegan is a win-win-win situation: the creatures win, the humans win, and the planet wins!

More on this topic soon.

May all beings, including the cows, pigs, chickens, and turkeys, be free to live happy lives.

Om Shanti (Peace),

Yogini Tejaswini

Photo of Teja’s vegan dinner by Teja Shankara.