S6 Ep25: Reimagine Your Diet— Elevate Your Well-Being with Functional Foods with Hoda Mohajerani
“We are A PART OF nature, we are not apart from nature.” — Hoda Mohajerani
At our core, humans are a part of nature, not separate from it. Our health and well-being depend heavily on the natural world around us. The modern world may have pushed us into a distance from nature, but if we want to achieve optimal health, we must ensure that our choices are in harmony with the world around us. By working with the natural rhythms of the earth, we can create thriving ecosystems that nourish both our bodies and the planet.
Founded by Hoda Mohajerani, Chakra Chai® is a heart-centered business that believes that food is not just vital for our bodies, but it can also heal the environment. Based on the Ayurvedic teachings on the interconnectedness of life, they are committed to spreading values that are in harmony with the earth and its people and are proud of their regenerative agriculture techniques and responsible business practices.
Their mission is not only to offer exceptional products but also to contribute positively to society. Being a part of the Eco-Alliance, Chakra Chai® is passionate about discovering sustainable packaging alternatives to reduce their impact on the planet. This is why they prioritize utilizing materials that are compostable, recyclable, and reusable.
In this episode, Justine sits with Hoda to discuss why we should be mindful of the food we consume and how we consume them. They also share how we can apply “regenerative” not only in agriculture but also in our business, how food can build a community, where individual and systemic change start, what Ayurveda means, what are chakras, and how we can nourish these energy centers. With so much valuable information to gain, you won’t want to miss this week’s podcast!
Connect with Hoda:
Following the loss of her newborn son, Arta, Hoda’s body, mind, and soul were in a state of disarray. Her heart was shattered, her energy depleted, and she suffered from chronic gut and colon problems. Hoda’s being was in turmoil while she struggled to find solace in her physical and emotional state. However, the sheer power of her will kept her going through the toughest of times.
While meditating at home, Hoda heard a whisper from her dear Arta: “Chakra Chai”. At first, she was not sure what it meant or what her little one was trying to tell her. Over time, though, she began to understand the profound message, delivered with the utmost tenderness and love.
Hoda received a download of information that she knew was sacred and powerful. She sat with her thoughts and quieted her mind, allowing for the message to sink in and take root. She knew that this was an incredible gift, one that she had to honor and pursue with all her being.
CHAKRA CHAI is the product of her loss and grief, but it has become Hoda’s mission in life to offer a drink that brings wholeness, balance, and strength to those who need it. It is a privilege to serve others, and she hopes that each sip of CHAKRA CHAI offers solace and healing to all those who come across it.
Episode Highlights:
01:29 Inspired by Heritage
07:21 Deeper Into Regenerative Agriculture
10:07 In Tuned with Nature
17:50 Functional Foods
22:25 What is Ayurveda
Resources:
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Use promo code: essentialseven
Tweets:
If you're looking for a natural way to nourish your body, regenerative agriculture, functional foods, and Ayurveda are the three pillars of health worth exploring. Learn how you can enjoy optimal health and vitality as @jreichman and Chakra Chai® Founder, Hoda Mohajerani share more about this perfect trifecta. #podcast #entrepreneurship #socialgood #inspiration #impactmatters #NextGenChef #EssentialIngredients #ChakraChai #AyurvedicTruffles #regenerativeagriculture #regenerativebusiness #functionalfood
Inspirational Quotes:
07:50 “Life and the ability to bear life and continue the life cycle is absolutely necessary for regeneration.” —Hoda Mohajerani
10:14 “We are A PART OF nature, we are not apart from nature.” —Hoda Mohajerani
14:47 “There are so many different perspectives and viewpoints on this— be open enough to hear that.” —Justine Reichman
18:18 “Food is communion. Food is community… So if we want to change food systems, if we want to change our bodies, then we have to change our perception” —Hoda Mohajerani
27:36 “Don't consume, commune.” —Hoda Mohajerani, Chakra Chai® motto
28:03 “Take a deep breath. Take a moment; give yourself that. And know that by giving yourself that, you've also just contributed to your own health and the health of the farmers.” —Hoda Mohajerani
Transcriptions:
Justine Reichman: Good afternoon, and welcome to Essential Ingredients. I'm Justine Reichman, your host. With me today, I'm very pleased to introduce you to Hoda Mohajerani who is the founder of Chakra Chai.
Welcome, Hoda.
Hoda Mohajerani: Hi, Justine. Thank you so much for having me.
Justine Reichman: I'm so pleased to have you on, I'm so pleased to spend a few minutes getting to know you. It's been so lovely, and I'm excited for our listeners and viewers to get to know you as well. And to learn a little bit more about Chakra Chai.
Hoda Mohajerani: Thank you for making me feel so comfortable and so welcome. And really getting some belly laughs in there as well before.
Justine Reichman: It's really nice to find someone that shares a sense of humor. Moving to California has been a challenge for me.
Hoda Mohajerani: As well, you're from New York and myself from London with a British dry humor. Yeah, it's great to find you again.
Justine Reichman: We must have missed each other when I lived in London. But now that we're here now, we're here to connect. I'm glad to connect. I just want to welcome you and have you introduce yourself to our listeners and our viewers.
Hoda Mohajerani: Well, as you said, my name is Hoda Mohajerani, and I am of Persian origin. I was born in Tehran, and grew up in Paris and London, and then lived for 20 years in Vienna, Austria with bouts all across the world from Egypt, to the Canary Islands, to Central and South America. I've not seen nearly as much of the world as I would like to, but what I have seen of this incredible planet and all the rich cultures around the world has really inspired me. And I just love meeting new people and hearing new stories. And also inquiring about some old stories, heritage is really important for me. I studied comparative religions. I'm going to tell you a few things about what I've done. But I don't know if the question of who I am is the sum of all these parts.
Justine Reichman: I think what's interesting for our listeners is to hear a little bit about who you are, and how that connects with where you are today. Because there's so much to who you are. I mean, I have a zillion questions on a personal level. You have all these places, and we could sit and have coffee, or tea, or oysters, or whatever. Go and dig into that all day long. But I think for our listeners and our viewers, I think what would be great is because you've had those experiences, and I connect with you on that. I lived in Mexico City, I lived in London, I lived in Paris for a little while. And I think it's all those experiences that brought me to where I am today. Ask that question to you, what about those experiences? Is it that brought you to where you are today and helped you found Chakra Chai?
Hoda Mohajerani: Well, the origin story of Chakra Chai is its own thing, which I will share with you and our listeners in a minute. But I think if you want to scratch a little deeper beneath the surface, what my life has shown me so far is the humanity at the heart of every place that I have ever traveled to. And really, the only thing that remains is love. And so love is the key driving force for me as a human being. And it's something that I have spent close to five years structuring and modeling within the company as well to really truly operate from a place of heart and love. And that no matter what the fashion, or the trend, or the culture, or the environment, or the economic status of a person or society, it's our humanity and our inner capacity to recognize what is good and to follow through with that. That really inspires me. And I've tried to realize that within the company.
Justine Reichman: That's really beautiful, because it's not so many people. I listened to so many people talk about their stories and what inspired them to begin on their journey. But coming from a place of love is just so honest and heartfelt.
Hoda Mohajerani: Yeah. Well, that kind of brings us to the origin story. Because there isn't, at least in my books, there isn't any greater love than that between a mother and her child, and a child and the mother. I had the privilege to know, and bear, and hold, and give birth to, and unfortunately, also let go of my one and only child, my son Arta. And what he did really in coming to this earth, and the experience of the love that I experienced, there really was the greatest teacher I've ever had, the greatest spiritual teacher I've ever had. And that is basically why I've created this business. For example, won't compromise on the efficacy of the formulas, why I won't compromise on the business model in terms of our regenerative business model, our dedication to regenerative agriculture and sound conscious business practices. Because I keep feeling like it would be a disservice and a dishonor to my teacher of love to do anything that's compromised in that way. I want the planet and our customers to really experience something that is transformative for them in the most positive way without having to go through any dark nights of the soul. So I want to offer the results, and the goodness, and the transformation without the challenge.
Justine Reichman: Thank you for sharing that with me. I am so honored that you shared that with me. One of the questions that comes to mind when you share that with me is that we talk about building these products in a regenerative way. And we talk about doing this so that it's better for the planet. And so often when we talk about it, I know what you're talking about, I believe I know what you're talking about. But often, many of the listeners and the guests that are the viewers that we get, I fear don't necessarily know what we're talking about. So can you just explain that in a little detail for us so we know what that means to you? Because I often say that regenerative often means different things to different people.
“Life and the ability to bear life and continue the life cycle is absolutely necessary for regeneration.” —Hoda Mohajerani
Hoda Mohajerani: Well, you're totally right there actually. Because right now, we are as a movement, as a community, we are trying to define what regenerative and regeneration means, especially with regards to agricultural practices, as well as to business practices. So that definition is morphing as we speak, and they're evolving as we speak. But for me, personally, I think life and the ability to bear life and continue the life cycle is absolutely necessary for regeneration. And so any practices, whether they're agricultural practices like mono crops, the use of glyphosate or fertilizers, etcetera that depletes the land beyond or almost beyond repair, oftentimes beyond repair or pollute the land, or the rivers beyond repair cannot be regenerative. Even if it's organic. They don't use the fertilizers or the pesticides. It's organic, but it's monocropping. So it's still depleting the land, it's not regenerative.
The same goes with business practices. How are we modeling the growth of the business, the rollout of the business so that it's not extractive and so that it can regenerate itself over time? And the same goes with the organizational culture. How can we actually ensure that the people who are working within this organization are feeling nourished, regenerated and inspired? Do we push people? Sometimes, it's necessary for all of us to wear multiple hats, especially as a startup, as a young startup and to push ourselves beyond our comfort zones. And can we start integrating, for example, a power nap, let's say, into the conscious regenerative business model handbook and organizational behavior handbook because we want our people to be nurtured and nourished in such a way where we are embodying the results and the kinds of lifestyles that we are proponents of. Does that make sense?
Justine Reichman: It makes a lot of sense. I take a nap in the afternoon. I feel so much better and I feel so much more nourished and rejuvenated than I needed to go. If I don't take that nap, I'm exhausted. I'm not focused. I'm trying to force my way through the rest of the day. Often, I'm not terribly productive. That makes the difference in productivity and the way that I feel.
“We are A PART OF nature, we are not apart from nature.” —Hoda Mohajerani
Hoda Mohajerani: Absolutely. And it's also about mimicking, maybe that's not even the word I want to use because we are a part of nature, we are not a part of the change. And when we look at natural systems and how the earth works, and how the other sentient beings and animals on the earth operate, they're not pushing themselves outside of natural rhythms, outside of our circadian rhythms. So we need to re-integrate that, because what's happened is that we've created false rhythms, or our bodies, and for our societies, and for our economies because we're operating on a false sense of time. So essentially, the traditional capitalist model is reducing in the hopes of eliminating time, so that it can increase productivity and therefore increase profits, reduce costs, increase profits. So we've created a synthetic antithetical rhythm and paradigm to how the earth operates, of which we are a part. So we need to understand as Zach Bush MD actually calls it, and I'm sure others have as well. We have to get back to the natural, original mathematics. We need to get back to the original blueprint of how to operate here, optimally.
Justine Reichman: Like you do with a child when the baby's born. Raised that natural, that pattern for them to live. I was just going to ask you, oftentimes, when people try to push through these days, because they think they're gonna get all this work done, right? They're pushing, they're pushing, they're pushing, but they're actually less effective. And now, we start to read the four day work that week, and then somebody else was saying the three day work. I'm sure you've read these things. They're talking about them more and more because I think there's a reality to this. I think that there are truths to this. And I think that it just, perhaps, there's just not enough data behind it. Have you seen much data?
Hoda Mohajerani: Well, there is data behind it. But I'm not the best person to ask about the data first and foremost, because I actually take issue with the fact that suddenly, it seems we need to prove everything through a particular scientific lens, which is the product in and of itself. That lens and that approach, and methodology is the product of a paradigm that inherently may be antithetical to the kinds of knowledge and data that wisdom traditions, for example, are referring to. When you want to do a double blind test, or you want to look at something under a microscope, we're essentially isolating it outside of its natural environment in order to be able to observe it. But we know through quantum physics as well that our observation changes everything. I mean, we just can't do that. It's an interconnected web of life and the wisdom keepers, and wisdom traditions in the First Nations, all of these traditions have actually had an incredible vertical connection to the information like with the chakras, ayurveda, the sadhu. We're not behind the microscope with finding out or doing tests in a laboratory to find out whether ashwagandha is going to affect you like this or like that. They were sitting, meditating for hours on end, eating, I don't know, the metaphoric almond that day. And in that meditations, we're able to actually have complete viewing access to the anatomy of the human body and its connection with the rest of the universe. So I'd like to see that kind of data. And we do have that data.
“There are so many different perspectives and viewpoints on this— be open enough to hear that.” —Justine Reichman
Justine Reichman: And there's a lot of information on that. In between me being a startup founder, etcetera, I went to Pacific College of Oriental Medicine, just to throw that in the mix. I like to keep things interesting. I love all the readings that we could do to learn about all the inter connectedness and the history behind all this. I find it fascinating. So I love that you shared that because I do think that there's so many different perspectives and viewpoints on this, and to be able to be open enough to hear that. Not everybody's open enough to hear that.
Hoda Mohajerani: I think that at the end of the day, personal epistemology, the knowledge that comes and experiential, the knowledge that comes from our own experience, nobody can take that away from us. For example, given the resources, send our products into a lab, and then be able to say, in clinical studies, we have seen that 33% of participants reacted in way X,. And when I'm doing a pop up or a demo, and somebody drinks the product and starts to cry in front of me, I'm in earth Lab, I'm in the world Lab, I'm in the human lab.
Justine Reichman: I like the human lab.
Hoda Mohajerani: It's like the woman or the man is drinking the heart chakra product, and they start crying. And it's not just one person or two people. And it's not just the hippies, or the Bohemian conscious community. Its people from the industry in suits who prior to drinking it, they are thinking, is this hot fill? Is it cold filled? And they're standing there with tears in their eyes. I don't know what I'm feeling, but I'm feeling something
Justine Reichman: That's amazing. Amazing to be able to share, to have that experience. I trust how I feel about anything. Like if I eat something and it makes me nauseous, I know not to eat that. We trust that instinct. So to be able to have that with your product, or watch those, or to have those experiences with other people is so meaningful. Because the studies you can read them, but it's not to me wouldn't be as powerful as watching somebody cry or even just be happy.
Hoda Mohajerani: Yes. Somebody's crying isn't always so sad. For example, in that moment, that heart is being cracked open essentially. So it's the crying of release, relief and softness.
“Food is communion. Food is community… So if we want to change food systems, if we want to change our bodies, then we have to change our perception” —Hoda Mohajerani
Justine Reichman: But it sounds like we're connecting. You're able to connect with your product or ability to open our way of feeling in a new way.
Hoda Mohajerani: Yes. Nowadays, it's become very fashionable to talk about functional foods or food as medicine. Whose medicine? Which medical paradigm? Because again, even the term functional food, we want the food to be functioning. Again, about performance and productivity. Everybody take a deep breath all together now. Food is communion. Food as a community. Food has been used religiously in Hinduism, in Judaism and Islam. We just came to the end of the Ramadan period, right? And in church and communion. So if we want to change food systems, if we want to change our bodies, then we have to change our perception as to what is this thing that we're doing? Not just another remedial allopathic way to support myself with more adrenal strength so that I can go out there and be in the grind again. Well, no. We want to say, let's try to make sure that the food, even the snacks that you're taking, we can call our little truffles, spiritual snacks. Even the snacks that you're taking can be little companions to helping you shift the way you understand what you need in this moment, to the next step of what we need beyond this moment. And maybe it'll even become a little companion to an entire trajectory change. Who knows, that could be the flutter of a butterfly's wings.
Justine Reichman: Somehow, you've connected. You've taken love, you've taken community, you've built a product and been able to connect people with their hearts, opening it up. And also made sure that we built a more regenerative planet and place to work. You've connected it all through what you're building on it. Just so wonderful and lovely. I'm inspired. I don't say that lightly because you've connected everything together the way you built it, what you built? And I would imagine that the people that work with you feel it as well.
Hoda Mohajerani: Well, I'm so glad that you mentioned. First of all, thank you, Justine. I would not be here without my team. I really wouldn't say they are the most spectacular human beings who have really gone through their own personal journeys of transformation individually and collectively within the organization because the nature of what we're building and creating here requires that, each of us. No one has shied away from it. Everyone has leaned into the sharp edges and cut away what was unnecessary and showed up time to the best of their capacities. Yeah, I have a fierce little team and I love them. I owe them everything. Again, I have my son Arta to thank for the original vision, and then my Co-Founder and other team members who've helped me develop that vision and design it in a way that's viable so that we can support seven different charities. We correlated each one to a different chakra. Because for us, when we say heal yourself, heal the world. It's very real. When I choose to purchase the Root Chakra, because we just had earth day I mentioned earlier, the Root Chakra Chai products are supporting me. My roots, my earth elements, which are associated with that chakra. My adrenals, my blood, my skeletal system, and it's donating from the top line to the Rainforest Alliance. So every time I do this, it's for me, and it's for the world. It's like that product is just our offering to remind ourselves that we are absolutely connected within us without above and below.
Justine Reichman: I love that. So hold on, can you do me a favor? I know many of our guests will be familiar with ayurveda, but many of them won't be. So if you could just talk to that a little bit. I'd be most appreciative.
Hoda Mohajerani: Absolutely. Ayurveda is the oldest form of medicine that comes from India. It's about 5000 years old from what we know that literally means, AYUR is life, and VEDA is knowledge. So it means the knowledge of life. A lot of your listeners may have heard of the Doshas, Vata, Pitta, Kapha which are like the different aspects of the human constitution. But then you have the chakras. The chakras are these energy centers within the subtle body which correlate to the sub dosha. So I won't get too technical right now. But essentially, these energy centers can be out of balance even if you're trying to or should be balanced on a physiological level. And so the products address, if you will, both a physiological and an energetic support for the human being.
Justine Reichman: Thank you. I think that's really accessible that way to get the information, and I think that it can be challenging when we have these conversations often and people are not familiar with the topic.
Hoda Mohajerani: Yeah.
Justine Reichman: So the other question I have for you is, if you could just maybe talk to the seven chakras.
Hoda Mohajerani: Hmm. I'd love to. Very brief overview is that there are many more chakras than seven, but this is already enough.
Justine Reichman: Before we go into that, can you tell me how many chakras are there?
Hoda Mohajerani: Apparently there are over 120. The first chakra is Muladhara is at the base of the perineum on a physical level, the element is earth and it governs the blood, the skeletal system elimination, the adrenals. And on an emotional and psycho emotional level, it's about the primary fundamental identity, existential angst or support that you have. It's almost as if you imagine the lotus flower, how it comes from the murky depths and rises to the top. That's how you can kind of imagine the energetics moving from the first chakra up through the center of the body. Then you have the second chakra spot, Hispana which is the sacral chakra. It's correlating with the fertility glands and sex organs, and creativity, and the ability to have joy and experience spontaneity. Then moving up to the third chakra, Manipura, which is the solar plexus chakra. It correlates with the pancreas, with digestion, with your digestive fire, and it's a lot about manifesting your will and your vision into the world. Let me just stop here for a second because when it's under activated, for example, or diminished, you'll have trouble finishing tasks or being able to realize things in the world. Or also may have problems with boundaries where people can walk over us or over our wants, but we were too afraid to say it. And when it's over activated, the solar plexus chakra results in people who are very egotistical and can have bouts of rage and too much fire, and will push their will forward too much. So it's really about being able to balance so that you're able to access your power and deliver it in the right way.
Yes, then you go to the Anahata, which is heart chakra, and that's like the connector, the crucible between the upper chakras and the lower chakras. Compassion empathy, cardiovascular health, the thymus gland. Then you have Vishuddha, the throat chakra. So that's the thyroid, it's the upper respiratory tract, it's communication, kind and honest communication. Then you have the guru chakra, the Ajna chakra, which correlates also with the pineal gland, memory, focus, insight, intuition. And then you have the crown chakra, Sahasrara, which is your divine receptacle, basically, so that you can receive divine directive and it governs the hypothalamus, the parasympathetic nervous system. So like our products for the Crown Chakra contains blue lotus flower essence, black sesame, reishi, gotu kola to really calm down the nervous system and relax us into further receptivity to divine instruction. So that was a real marathon through the chakras.
“Don't consume, commune.” —Hoda Mohajerani, Chakra Chai® motto
Justine Reichman: I think we got them all, most importantly. And I think that they will give people a background or a little taste of what you were talking about so that when they do go to look at the products, they have a better idea how to connect the product with the chakra.
Hoda Mohajerani: Yeah. What we say is, we have our motto, don't consume, commune. So of course, you can just grab a Chakra Chai product, whether you're getting from our shop online or in one of the stores that carry us. You can grab it and just have it when you're getting in the car or something. But it's always offering you that opportunity to drop into intentional communion to say, this is what I need right now. This is why I'm taking it. Take a deep breath. Take a moment, give yourself that and know that by giving yourself that you've also just contributed to your own health and the health of the farmers that are growing the inputs that have gone into that product and beyond. So yeah, I hope the listeners will enjoy partaking in this in a different way. And I love your feedback.
Justine Reichman: I would love to give them to you. I'm sure we'll get some feedback. I will definitely circle back with you and let you know whatever we're here because it's really important to connect the guests with our listeners as well.
Hoda Mohajerani: Thank you so much, Justine.
“Take a deep breath. Take a moment; give yourself that. And know that by giving yourself that, you've also just contributed to your own health and the health of the farmers.” —Hoda Mohajerani
Justine Reichman: Thanks so much for joining me today. We hope to follow you along to continue to support you in any way we can. Please keep us updated on how you're evolving, what you're doing. We can continue to support you. And those that tuned in and watch the whole podcast, or listen to the whole podcast and watch the whole video cast, very kindly given us a promo code, we will make sure to list it for you, and then you will be able to access her products and get a little special discount that she generously has given everyone that tuned in for the whole podcast or videocast. Thank you Hoda for doing that. But before we close out, where can people access your products? Where can they find that? Because a promo code without access to the products is very challenging to use.
Hoda Mohajerani: Unless you'll sit there and meditate very, very deeply to be able to get our website, which I don't recommend. I'll just give you the shortcuts. It's Chakra Chai, that's C-H-A-K-R-A-C-H-A-I.C-O, That's our website. chakrachai.co, and the promo code is essential seven, and you don't have to buy a whole seven day alignment set, although I do recommend that you can start with a single or what we call the tuning sets, which are a trio. So you have correlating chakras like the first and seven, and then you're always given the heart chakra because love is the universal solvent, and unifier, and amplifier.
Justine Reichman: And we'll make sure to include that in the show notes so that everyone has it.
Hoda Mohajerani: Yeah, please follow us as well on Chakra Chai official. I'm just so delighted to have been on such a heartfelt and authentic podcast with you.
Justine Reichman: Oh, thank you. I'm so glad that we're able to have you here today and to be able to share your story on our platform because it really is such a wonderful story that first comes from love and it should be spread around for everyone to hear so that they can learn more, and I think the messages are honest and pure. I can't wait for everyone to be able to watch and listen. Thank you.
Hoda Mohajerani: Thank you, Justine.
