Nourishment for the soul....

[Guest guest]

"The month of fasting has come, the emperor's banner has arrived;

withhold your hand from food, the spirit's table has arrived. The

soul has escaped from separation and bound nature's hands; the heart

of error is defeated, the army of faith has arrived. Fasting is our

sacrifice, it is the life of our soul; let us sacrifice all our body,

since the soul has arrived as guest. Fortitude is as a sweet cloud,

wisdom rains from it, because it was in such a month of fortitude

that the Koran arrived. ...Wash your hands and your mouth, neither

eat nor speak; seek that speech and that morsel which has come to the

silent ones."

 

Rumi

 

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DO HINDUS OBSERVE FASTS ALSO?

 

FASTING is very common among hindus...

 

many devout hindus observe fasts during shivaratrrii, krishna

janmashtami . navaratri etc... . shri vaishnavites also observe fasts

during ekadashi and poornima days... maybe some shri vaishnava

member here can throw light on the significance of fasting during

ekadashi! please come forward and post your thoughts, please!

 

even, in upanishafds- fasting is recommended for a student of

spirituality- fasting helps to create a harmonious relationship

between the body and soul ...

 

as our beloved mahatma gandhi says...

 

"a complete fast is a complete and literal denial of self; it is the

truest prayer."

 

" a genuine fast cleanses the body, mind and soul. it crucifies the

flesh and to that extent sets the soul free."

 

in order to undertake fasting, one needs to have complete self-

discipline... you need to train the mind and the body to undertake

such austerities...

 

i remember my grandmother used to fast for every occasion- on

tuesdays, she will fast for hanumanji; on mondays - for lord shiva ;

fridays - it was for sree lalithambika nd saturdays for the

saneeshwera bhagwan- one of the navagrahas... but we kids used to

love when she undertook these fasts... because when my grandmother

used to break these fasts, my mother used to cook the tastiest

dishes - what is caleed " pala aharam' - pala aharam has two menaings-

when spelled 'phala' aharam - it means a fruit diet - but when you

spell pala aharam -it means 'variety of foods' ... so , our mom used

to make dosas, idlis, vadais, poori, bhaji etc not the regular rice !

we kids were happy when grandma undertook fasts! smiles!

 

but, nowadays, young girls undertake 'fasting' for different reasons -

they call this 'dieting' i call it 'forced or fashinable

starvation'here, the idea is to lose 'weight' drastically to

look 'slim and slender' but this does not last forever... because a

period of fasting is followed by a period of 'binging' ...

 

but, ayurvedic doctors recommend periodic 'fasting' on health

grounds..

 

regular cleanin of the digestive system helps one to get rid of

accumulated toxic materials in the digestive system... in such cases,

fasting is an anti-dote...

" starve the fever and stuff the cold' says a proverb...

 

but, the mother of all fasts was our beloved MAHATMA GANDHI... HE

USED IT VERY EFFECTIVELY AGAINST THE BRITISH AS A NON-VIOLENT FORM OF

PROTEST... and even the british were threatyened by this

seemingly 'innocent' act of abstinence - for if gandhiji died as a

result of fasting, all hell will break loose! they could not risk

such a public outrage!

 

folks, just fast for a day and feel the pangs of 'hunger' ... then ,

we will realize how it is to be 'poorand hungry' this will awaken

your conscience and you will realize that in this world everyday, so

many people do not even get a 'morsel' of food for days on end!! in

many countries in asia, young chldren do not even get 'milk' the

basic neccesity... many children fail the world healt organization's

bangle test- that is when you slip the bangle on the child's hand it

goes past the elbow- that is how 'mal-nourished;' these children

are!!

 

well, folks - 'fasting' is a great spiritual practice ....

but 'forced' starvation is not- it is 'inhuman' - it is atrocious and

it is our responsibility to see that 'wealth' is sahred if not

equally atleast equitably!

 

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in closing, i leave you with these thoughts...

 

NOURISHMENT FOR THE SOUL!

In order to travel the path, the sufi needs strength supplied by

proper bodily nourishment. It has been said that whatever the sufi

eats is transformed into spiritual qualities and light. However, the

food of others, since it but serves their own desires and fears, only

strengthens their selfish attachments and takes them further away

from the Truth.

 

"This one eats and only,

Stinginess and envy result.

While that one eats and there is but,

The light of the One.

This one eats and only,

Impurity comes about.

While that one eats and all becomes,

the Light of God."

 

 

love and have a great tuesday!