Guest guest Posted August 8, 2001 Report Share Posted August 8, 2001 Sat Nam! I wanted to mention Ekadasi in relation to this topic, which is a fast that is practiced on the 11th day after the new and full moons. I had never been given a very good explanation of why it is practiced like that, so I did a web search and found a very interesting article that I would like to share: http://www.sivanandadlshq.org/religions/ekadasi.htm. We practice gaudiya vaishnavism and Ekadasi is regularly practiced. It is not necessarily a complete fast (though there are special fast days, like August 12th coming up is Janmashtami- Krishna's appearance/birth day!), but there are to be no grains or beans taken on that day. The reason I have been given in the temples we go to are basically that Lord Chaitanya said so, which is reason enough. Lord Chaitanya is an incarnation of Radha and Krishna combined who appeared 500 years ago and who propagated the congregational chanting of "Hare Krishna Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna Hare Hare, Hare Rama Hare Rama, Rama Rama Hare Hare". He did not admit to being God (though he revealed himself to a few close associates), as it was the Kali Yuga (the age of hypocrisy and quarrel) and a time when many people will falsely claim to be God, so God came as his own devotee. Anyway, another reason they give is that sinful reactions take cover in grains and beans on that day, which is a difficult explanation to accept since all their food is offered to God and thus purified before it is consumed, or so I would think. Lastly, I have heard it was astrological (obvious because of the lunar nature of the day), but not until reading this article I just read did it seem so well explained. This man explains the nature of the mind and its relation to the food we take in and the chakras and how being conscious of the processes of the mind moving through the chakras and such is yoga. He says that on certain days the planetary influence is such that the mind rests in different chakras, and at this 11th day after the new and full moons the mind rests at the third eye and the heart chakra (I don't know if he meant that respectively or not) and in these locations the mind is more "at home", closer to itself and its true nature and thus these days are ideal for meditation. Fasting is known to promote a stillness of mind and facilitate meditation, so fasting is recommended on these days. So, I find all of this very interesting. We haven't been practicing ekadasi for awhile (there is no fasting for pregnant, nursing woman, or children), but my husband maintained it long after I had to stop and he came to instinctively know when it was ekadashi. Oh, and by the way, there is also an ideal time frame for breaking ekadashi the following day. If anyone is interested in trying it I could get the calendar resource my husband has used. > > mark terrell [mark.terrell] > Wednesday, August 08, 2001 12:47 AM > Kundaliniyoga > Re: Planets and days > > > Traditionally the best days to fast are thursday (jupiter) or > monday (moon). In kundalini yoga the 11th day of the new moon is > also said to be > good because the glandular secretions are said to be particularly > strong that day. Full moon and new moon are good too. > > Seva Simran > > Tir Danut wrote: > > > First sorry for my bad english. > > > > Is there any relation between the planets and the days of the week? > > I intend to fast one day per week, and I read in a book > (unfortunately not many details were given) > > that if you fast in a certain day you are put in > > resonance with certain aspects of a planet and you get certain effects. > > If it possible some links with detailed info will be good. > > > > Thank you. > > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted August 8, 2001 Report Share Posted August 8, 2001 Thanks so much for that link. It's a great article exlaining it. As a homeopath and former astrologer, I particularly appreciated it. Seva Simran littlebird108 wrote: > Sat Nam! > > I wanted to mention Ekadasi in relation to this topic, which is a fast that > is practiced on the 11th day after the new and full moons. I had never been > given a very good explanation of why it is practiced like that, so I did a > web search and found a very interesting article that I would like to share: > http://www.sivanandadlshq.org/religions/ekadasi.htm. We practice gaudiya > vaishnavism and Ekadasi is regularly practiced. It is not necessarily a > complete fast (though there are special fast days, like August 12th coming > up is Janmashtami- Krishna's appearance/birth day!), but there are to be no > grains or beans taken on that day. The reason I have been given in the > temples we go to are basically that Lord Chaitanya said so, which is reason > enough. Lord Chaitanya is an incarnation of Radha and Krishna combined who > appeared 500 years ago and who propagated the congregational chanting of > "Hare Krishna Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna Hare Hare, Hare Rama Hare Rama, > Rama Rama Hare Hare". He did not admit to being God (though he revealed > himself to a few close associates), as it was the Kali Yuga (the age of > hypocrisy and quarrel) and a time when many people will falsely claim to be > God, so God came as his own devotee. > > Anyway, another reason they give is that sinful reactions take cover in > grains and beans on that day, which is a difficult explanation to accept > since all their food is offered to God and thus purified before it is > consumed, or so I would think. Lastly, I have heard it was astrological > (obvious because of the lunar nature of the day), but not until reading this > article I just read did it seem so well explained. > > This man explains the nature of the mind and its relation to the food we > take in and the chakras and how being conscious of the processes of the mind > moving through the chakras and such is yoga. He says that on certain days > the planetary influence is such that the mind rests in different chakras, > and at this 11th day after the new and full moons the mind rests at the > third eye and the heart chakra (I don't know if he meant that respectively > or not) and in these locations the mind is more "at home", closer to itself > and its true nature and thus these days are ideal for meditation. Fasting > is known to promote a stillness of mind and facilitate meditation, so > fasting is recommended on these days. > > So, I find all of this very interesting. We haven't been practicing ekadasi > for awhile (there is no fasting for pregnant, nursing woman, or children), > but my husband maintained it long after I had to stop and he came to > instinctively know when it was ekadashi. Oh, and by the way, there is also > an ideal time frame for breaking ekadashi the following day. If anyone is > interested in trying it I could get the calendar resource my husband has > used. > > > > > mark terrell [mark.terrell] > > Wednesday, August 08, 2001 12:47 AM > > Kundaliniyoga > > Re: Planets and days > > > > > > Traditionally the best days to fast are thursday (jupiter) or > > monday (moon). In kundalini yoga the 11th day of the new moon is > > also said to be > > good because the glandular secretions are said to be particularly > > strong that day. Full moon and new moon are good too. > > > > Seva Simran > > > > Tir Danut wrote: > > > > > First sorry for my bad english. > > > > > > Is there any relation between the planets and the days of the week? > > > I intend to fast one day per week, and I read in a book > > (unfortunately not many details were given) > > > that if you fast in a certain day you are put in > > > resonance with certain aspects of a planet and you get certain effects. > > > If it possible some links with detailed info will be good. > > > > > > Thank you. > > > > > > > > "OUR DESTINY IS TO BE HAPPY" > - Yogi Bhajan > > You can UNSUBSCRIBE from this list at the Groups Member Center (My Groups), or send mail to > Kundaliniyoga > NO UNSUBSCRIBE REQUESTS TO THE LIST PLEASE! > WEB SITE: kundalini yoga > > KUNDALINI YOGA ON-LINE TRAINING. Details from > kundalini yogaclasses.html > > Sponsored by YOGA TECHNOLOGY - Practical Books & Videos on Kundalini Yoga & Meditation. Also Meditation & Mantra CDs. > > Your use of is subject to Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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