By Dr. Anil Kumar Mehta
WHAT IS FASTING?
3. Masa Vratas: fasts undertaken in a particular lunar
Fasting is an integra l part of Indian tradition and cu lture.
It means that someone w illingly abstains from certai n or
month.
4. Samvatsara: fasts that could extend an entire yea r.
all foods, drinks or both. Accord ing to t he Ved ic traditi ons, fasting is a time for inner refl ecti on and is useful for
Vratas can be very diverse in their degree of restrictive-
health. The Sanskrit word for fasting is "Vrata", w hich also
means t o vow or to promise.
ness. For instance, one can leave out solid foods f rom t he
diet or one particular type of food or consume only one
VRATA
type of food. But rarely, one abstains from eating all
foods.
A Vrata consist s of one or more actions, including
complete or partial fasting on specific days, a pilgrimage
(Thirtha) t o a particular place(s), a visit and Darshan
Acknowledged categories of food restriction are :
• Anahar: gra in consumption.
(upliftment from looking at an image of God) and Puja
(ceremonial act of showing reverence to a God, t raditi on-
• Palahari: one w ho eats fru it.
• Dudhahar: consumption of mi lk or milk products.
ally with flowers) at a particular or more than one
t emple, reciting mantras and prayers and performing
puja and Havans (offering fi re t o God).
• Nirahar: strictly water intake.
There are fou r categories of Vrata s:
1. Vara: f asts on weekdays.
2. Tithi Vratas: fasts on certain days of the lunar months.
The duration of a fast m ight be diverse f or each individua l
person, but the purpose is t rad itionally the sa me: gaining
liberati on and inner purity. According to t he ancient
Hindu t exts, Vrata assist s the person doing the Vrata to
achieve and fu lfill his desires, while performing Vratas
brings t he divine grace and blessing.
3 4 ~ MANTRA Issu ed Feb/Mar 2016