Aphrodisiac food for jet
age
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By Madhusree Chatterjee in New Delhi -
Onions, tulsi, pistachio nuts, eggs, chilli peppers, chocolates,
pomegranate...designated as aphrodisiac (
food,
drug,
or
other
agent
that
arouses
sexual
desire) food down the ages, these are
being prescribed to Indian city slickers to feed their “erotic fantasies
and desires”. In the age of changing urban lifestyles, food is a great
and easy way to de-stress and work up a libido, said Prabeen Singh, a
Delhi-based authority on aphrodisiac food and an arts activist.
“There can be no substitute for the suggestive power of the subconscious
that actually makes the man or woman believe that the beak of swallow
ground in newt blood, mixed with the first blossom of champa plucked on
a full spring moon is a magic potion for flagging libido,” Singh told a
packed audience at the India International Centre (IIC) in the capital.
“The more costly and exotic the ingredients are, the greater its
potency,” she said during a discourse on “Aphrodisiac Food”. The fear of
sagging libido is often a major source of anxiety, especially in men,
Singh observed. Hence the quest for aphrodisiacs since time immemorial.
Libidinous food was first documented in the Vedic texts and the Bhagavad
Gita in India, in ancient Chinese scriptures, in the writings of Pliny
the elder and Discordes in first century AD. The word aphrodisiac traces
its origin to the Greek goddess Aphrodite, known for her beauty and
ability to love, Singh said.
The Vedic science that probes the sexual power of food in ayurveda is
rasayan tantra (nutrition therapy) and vajikarana (virilisation). For
example, the Vedas that have detailed conjugal codes for couples, cite
onions as the cheapest aphrodisiac that promotes harmony in bed.
Christian and European traditions also endorse it.
Ancient texts recommend anise, basil, orchid bulbs, pistachio nuts,
arugula, sage, sea fennel and river snails as the most common
aphrodisiacs, Singh said. The Greeks believed that any food that had the
power to “induce gases” in the body possessed aphrodisiac quality.
The Arabian magnum opus, The Pefurmed Garden, and India’s Kama Sutra
speak of condiments like nutmeg, cloves, cardamoms and ginger as spices
that trigger sex drive.
“The flower of a mango tree according to a myth represents the Cupid’s
arrow. Mango groves were considered a status symbol in Southeast Asia.
The mango is still a symbol of male sexuality. It is often compared to a
sealed jar of ‘paradisiacal honey’,” Singh said. The mundane egg is
associated with new life and as the symbol of fertility.
The Egyptians believe that god created the white and yellow egg out of
the sun and the moon. In France, brides break an egg on their doorstep
to ensure many children.
“The most opulent of all eggs, caviar, the Persian egg of strength, has
high zinc content and amino acid that act as a vascular dilator,
increasing blood flow, increasing libido,” Singh said. Legends say
Venetian adventurer and author Giocomo Girolamo Casanova de Seingalt,
the celebrated French courtesan Madam Dubarry and the Russian spy
Rasputin were all fond of caviar as the “aphrodisiac of their choice”.
Chilli peppers release endormorphins that cause a floating energised
feeling.
“So powerful is its pleasure that it can be addictive. It has the power
to raise body temperature and make lips swell to a plump pout. The
effect of eating red-hot chillies can send visual cues of a flush,”
Singh said.
History cites that chilli was used as a key ingredient in fortifying
chocolate “which the ruler Montezuma consumed to make his tongue dance
and pulse quicken in preparation for his daily visits to his beautiful
concubines”.
Crustacean sea food like oysters, lobsters, abalone and scallops are
said to possess aphrodisiac powers. “Oysters are full of zinc that
controls the progesterone level,” the food expert said.
The pomegranate is cited as a “fruit of paradise”. It boosts energy and
is a “natural relaxant”. Common mood-relievers like figs, bananas,
chocolates, honey and absinthe are potent as libido-stimulants, Singh
added. — IANS