The following are excerpts from “The Hindu Perspective”, featured on ieTV.
Pt. Gyandeo Persad, Spiritual Leader, Sukh Shanti Bhakti Mandali and Dharma Jyot Mandali
There are many types of vrat (fasting). We fast in order to prepare our minds and bodies for puja and other religious occasions. For Ekaadaasi, we fast from grains and also give them away as charity. We often maintain fasts for various Devtas on various days of the week, which our sages have structured for our benefit.
In the Bhagavad Gita (Ch. 17, v. 5-6), Krishna Bhagavan declares that we must not emaciate or starve the body. While fasting is prescribed in Hinduism, we must fast according to our personal situation. Persons who are diabetic, or who have other ailments, should fast according to their medical conditions. The sense of taste is only one of the five senses in the body. When we fast, we are not only physically abstaining from food but we are also cleansing the mind of egotism, attachment and any other negative qualities. We begin the spiritual journey by controlling the sense of taste and by guiding the mind towards God. In fact, we must seek to practise abstinence from negativity at all times, even beyond our fasting period.
The question is often asked, when should we start fasting for a puja? The body needs to be prepared in order to undertake spiritual practices such as puja. If one is already vegetarian, then fasting becomes a matter of moderate food intake and controlling the five senses. If one is non-vegetarian, it can take the body about 40 days to be cleansed from non-vegetarian foods.
Pt. Jaidath Maharaj, Spiritual Leader of the SWAHA Gyaan Jyoti Mandali and President of SWAHA
Fasting is a process that is linked to benefits associated with religious occasions. If we are performing sacrifice, such as puja or yagya, the results of these activities are not only based on the performance of the actions on the day of the religious sacrifice. It also involves the process leading up to the puja, such as cleaning the house, fasting, and preparing for the rituals. In puja, the means justify the end: we prepare in the right way and then perform the puja.
Puja is worship. It is nitya karma, worship that must be performed on a daily basis. Every day, we must perform some type of puja. Since it is unrealistic for non-vegetarians to fast every day while performing their nitya karma, it is recommended that puja be performed in the morning before consuming any interdicted food or drink. The exception is, of course, for shodasi puja that is performed in the 13 days of someone’s passing as it may have been unexpected and there would not have been time to fast. In a maha yagya, it is expected that the efforts we make has to be significantly more. Several months are necessary for interdicted food or tamasic bhojan to be cleansed from the system.
Fasting provides the organs with a rest from processing food. Food also has an effect on our mind. As I understand Shree Krishna’s teachings, fasting is about attaining a particular state in mind and body by eating particular types of foods. My recommendation for fasting, based on the scriptures, is that we should at least set a minimum standard for ourselves. We should refrain from eating interdicted food and give preference to sattvic bhojan, such as fruits.
Pt. Ishwar Madho Maharaj, Longdenville Hindu Mandir; Principal, SWAHA Hindu College
We all strive for perfection as we move forward on the spiritual path, especially during special religious observances. Fasting involves a physical sacrifice, upavaas, which means ‘to be near to the Lord’. Within the Devi Bhagwat, many references are made to fasting and its benefits. Fasting helps to bring the grace of the Divine Mother; it brings the three gunas (modes of existence), tamas (lethargy, inertia), rajas (materialism, passion) and sattva (purity), under control. In other words, we rise from the state of inertia, to the active, materialistic state and then to the highest state of truth and purity. The mere fact that there are a multitude of religious occasions on our religious calendar is an indication by our sages and saints that we should establish the discipline of fasting in our lives.
There is the physical aspect of fasting. It is a sacrifice that helps to detoxify the body. However, fasting in Hinduism is related to a spiritual purpose. It is not just about conditioning the body, such as in intermittent fasting, which is prevalent in Western culture. However, devotees should not feel obligated to perform a rigorous fast without salt, especially if they have medical conditions which prohibit it. When fasting, we must abstain from non-vegetarian food and prohibited or unhealthy beverages. When our fast has concluded, we should not immediately return to our old eating habits. In other words, we must not let the food control our minds.
Vrat means ‘fasting’, but it also means ‘a promise, a vow, a pledge or a resolve’. It is slightly different from upavaas, which means fasting after one has undertaken a certain vow. I promote 21 days fasting as the minimum, except in extenuating circumstances. Fasting entails the purification of the 21 tattvas (qualities or principles) including five organs of action, five organs of perception, five elements of the body, five forces of praana (vital airs), the mind as well as the body and the environment.
In the Bhagavad Gita, Shree Krishna describes the various influences that different types of food have on one’s behaviour, mind and body. Non-vegetarian food has tamasic qualities, creating tamasic emotions within the mind. Anger, impatience and lethargy are all associated with eating particular types of food. Some foods are nourishing and promote longevity, power, good health and pleasantness. Then there are foods that bring sickness and pain. Food has a big impact on us, so we should try to reduce our intake of excessive peppery, acidic and pungent foods; junk foods that could be toxic to the body; as well as tamasic foods that cause lethargy. There is a common saying. “You are what you eat.” This is clearly articulated by Shree Krishna in Chapter 17 of the Bhagavad Gita.
