Hindi
ॐ सर्वे भवन्तु सुखिनः,
सर्वे संतु निरामया,
सर्वे भद्राणि पश्यन्तु,
मा कश्चित् दुःख भाग्भवेत् ।
ॐ शान्तिः शान्तिः शान्तिः ।
English
Om Sarve Bhavantu Sukhinah,
Sarve Santu Niramaya,
Sarve Bhadrani Pashyantu,
Maa Kashchitt Dukha Bhagbhavet
Om Shantihi Shantihi Shantihi.
Meaning
May All Be Happy and Prosperous,
May All Be Free from Illness,
May All Life Be Auspicious,
No One Becomes a Partaker of Sorrow.
Om Peace, Peace, Peace.
Shanti Mantra is chanted to request the almighty to purify our body and relieve us from all types of suffering.
Hindi
ब्रह्मार्पणं ब्रह्म हविर्ब्रह्माग्नौ ब्रह्मणा हुतम् |
ब्रह्मैव तेन गन्तव्यं ब्रह्मकर्मसमाधिना ||
English
Brahmārpañam Brahma Havir
Brahmāgnau Brahmañāhutaṃ,
Brahmaiva Tena Gantavyam
BrahmakarmāSamādhinah
About
Annam Brahma emphasizes creating a tailored Satvik meal plan to resolve and improve the malnutrition issues in society, and also educate people in opting for mindful choices. In the loving memory of Shri Yogendra Ji, the founder of the Yoga Institute, Annam Brahma is dedicated to his vision of enriching the lives of people through healthy and clean eating.
With our pure, ardent, and compassionate beginning, we aim to spread the goodness of happy living to one and all we can and with such mutual initiatives, we would do wonders together in reaching the needy masses.
Our daily ritual before serving the food is a salutation to the lord and seeking the blessing of our respected seniors. We recite the Shanti mantra to spread love, peace and harmony each time before serving the food.
The entire creation is a reflection of Brahma, the Cosmic Consciousness itself; the food we eat is Brahma, the method in which we offer it Brahma and it is being offered in the fire of Brahma.
In simple terms, it is a pious gesture to offer food to the needy. The food prepared is divine, cooked in the divine fire and served to God-like people. The one who performs such an activity attains good karma and is a truly spiritual person.
Annam Brahma is deeply influenced and shaped by these teachings. We believe it is an essential part to offer sumptuous food that will make a significant impact on the minds of the people, making a physiological and psychological change in them.
Our Mission is to ‘Empower the society and communities by creating easy access to healthy wholesome cooked Satvik food. Additionally, educating them on nutrition, cleanliness and mindful habits are some of the frameworks we plan to touch upon.
Our Vision
Bhagavad Gita describes how Satvik food promotes a balanced mind and body but also helps in maintaining a pleasant aura. Regular intake of Satvik food increases the vitality of mental and physical health, strengthens our persona, and prevents diseases.
Our vision is to spread the benefit of Satvik nutritious food to the underprivileged society and uplift their stature in society.
Less fortunate people are left with few choices to fulfil their basic needs.
A major chunk of their daily earnings is spent in purchasing food to curb their hunger, and even after that they are not able to eat nutritious meals. Annam Brahma ensures that they are served with nutritious meals free of cost, thereby helping them with good health.
Our Mission
Annam Brahma's mission is to eradicate hunger and malnutrition through mindful habits.
We aim to provide 30,000 meals in and around BMC hospitals Municipal hospitals and slum areas. Our key target areas are slums, municipal hospitals and specific areas of the city.
The Yoga Institute refused to be a witness to their plight and decided to take the Annam Brahma initiative to make provisions for their sustenance. Since our primary commitment is to care for the less fortunate people, Annam Brahma focused on providing them daily meals twice a day. This was our way of providing comfort and care to society. However, we also realized through the initiative, that hospital staff and those helping around them, need daily food.
History
Annam Brahma was established four years ago on the 10th of June 2018, serving the needy people in the vicinity of The Yoga Institute. Back then, breakfasts were served from 7:30 am to 8:15 am and they consisted of healthy foods like: poha, upma, sheera, daliya and khichdi These meals were completely free of cost to the people.
Initially, people were sceptical to eat the food served. There were doubts regarding whether any money had to be paid, the people who were permitted to take the food etc. Once it was clear to them that the food was free of cost, and was served to anyone who came at the time of service of food, the number of people who started arriving increased expeditiously.
Due to this increase, a decision to serve meals in the evening hours was also commenced from April 2021.
Word of mouth led to an increase in popularity of Annam Brahma, and more and more people, from other localities started coming to the Yoga Institute for nutritious, Satvik meals.
During COVID-19, Annam Brahma had to stop serving for a short period of time due to implementation of Section 144. In order to resume serving, the BMC and Police was approached by the Annam Brahma Team for help to carry out the same. Annam Brahma Team also provided meals to the frontline workers, policemen, BMC staff during the pandemic, when they were unable to go home due to restrictions and in fear of infecting their families.
Post COVID, in order to reach more people, a customized food truck was envisioned and created after much thought and care, which currently serves two BMC hospitals namely Bhabha Hospital, Bandra East, Mumbai and V N Desai Hospital, Santacruz East, Mumbai.
The modified tailor-made truck helps us, to keep food fresh and healthy. It also provides high convenience in storage and transportation of food on the roads of Mumbai.