States of Awareness vs States of Ego: How the Body, Mind, and Energy Respond to External Inputs

Why the Same Food Heals One and Hurts Another

Have you ever wondered why one person thrives on a certain food, while another suffers from it?

Why someone facing intense stress recovers quickly, while another collapses under far less?

Why a person in deep meditation seems immune to pain, and another in fear reacts violently to the smallest discomfort?

The answer doesn’t lie only in biology, diet, or medicine.

It lies in something deeper - the state of inner alignment.

And in that lies the truth:

It’s not just what you consume — but the state you’re in when you consume it that determines the impact.

Poison That Doesn’t Harm… and Food That Does

When Poison Becomes Power

There’s a reason why ancient seers described Shiva as Neelkanth — the one who held deadly poison in his throat without letting it destroy him.

This is not just a story. It is a symbol of inner mastery.

When you are in a state of pure awareness — deeply centered, non-reactive, spiritually aligned — your entire system works differently:

• The body’s chemistry calms down

• The mind no longer resists or reacts

• The energy field becomes coherent

• Fear dissolves, and intelligence awakens

In such a state, even what is harmful by nature - such as emotional trauma, toxic people, or even actual physical poison -can lose its destructive power.

Not because the poison changed, but because you changed.

When Amrit Turns Toxic

On the other hand, even Amrit the nectar of immortality in Vedic tradition — can become harmful when consumed in a state of ego, fear, or imbalance.

This applies to:

• Healthy food that causes bloating and acidity when eaten in anxiety

• Medicine that doesn’t work when taken with doubt or negativity

• Spiritual teachings that become distorted in the hands of the arrogant

• Even love, which can turn toxic when received by a wounded ego

The same inputs food, words, events have entirely different outcomes depending on your inner state.

The Energetic Science Behind It

Modern research in neuroscience, epigenetics, and quantum biology is slowly validating what yogis knew for centuries:

When you are in awareness:

• Heart rate variability increases (sign of resilience)

• Digestion improves (parasympathetic dominance)

• Hormonal balance returns

• Cells activate self-repair mechanisms

• Brain waves enter coherent alpha/theta states

• Immune function strengthens

• Emotional clarity deepens

When you are in ego-driven reactivity:

• Stress hormones spike

• Breath shortens

• Inflammation increases

• Gut becomes hyper-reactive

• Sleep, immunity, and clarity collapse

• Even good food is poorly absorbed or becomes irritating

Your state of being sends a signal to every cell in your body:“We are safe and aware” or “We are under attack and must defend.”

And that determines whether you heal or hurt, no matter what you consume.

If you’d like to understand the 10 heads of the ego-mind and how to master them to align with full awareness and dharma, look no further than the ancient epic  - The Ramayana. Read here. If you’re from India or familiar with Hindu culture, you already know this story. But here’s something deeper: Every character in The Ramayana is a symbolic archetype not historical figures and Ramayana is not true history. Ramayana happens in our mind.

The Three Inner States (A Simplified View)

State	Body Response	Mind State	Energy Field	Outcome
Ego (Fear / Chaos)	Inflammation, tension, hypersensitivity	Overthinking, worry	Distorted, fragmented	Pain, reactivity, fatigue
Mindfulness (Witness)	Balanced, calm, better digestion	Observing, stable	Centered, semi-coherent	Clarity, resilience
Awareness (Atman)	Healing mode, regeneration, immunity boost	Stillness, no resistance	Harmonized, radiant	Peace, power, immunity

Shiva's Lesson: You Are the Alchemist

Shiva didn’t reject the poison. He held it with stillness, without swallowing or suppressing.

This is the message:

Pain is not the problem. Your resistance to pain is. Fear is not the enemy. Your identification with fear is.

When you shift from reaction to presence —from ego to essence —from “why me” to “let me see” the world no longer acts on you… it begins to respond to your vibration.

So What Can You Do?

You don’t need to renounce the world or believe in a god.

You only need to pause and return to your center.

Try this daily:

• Eat in silence - even for 10 minutes — with full awareness

• Observe your breath - without changing it

• Feel your heartbeat - not as noise, but as life

• When fear arises, instead of resisting, say: “I see you.”

That’s how you begin retraining your body, mind, and energy to function from awareness, not fear.

Awareness is the ultimate medicine. Ego is the hidden poison.The same food, same stress, same situation — in one state, it destroys. In another, it liberates. You are not helpless. You are the alchemist.

Start not by changing the world —But by changing the one who is experiencing it.

Because the real transformation begins… when you turn inward.