Bhagavad Gita, Chapter 17, Verse 10

That which is stale, tasteless, stinking, cooked overnight, refuse and impure, is the food liked by the Tâmasika.

Even food itself is described here as capable of real decay matching a real decline in the mind.

Naming stale and impure food as tied to the mode of ignorance extends this chapter's pattern all the way down to something as basic as a plate of food. Real consequence reaches into the most ordinary choices.