Spiritual Aspects of Fasting
As a crusader for the many miracle benefits of fasting for 70 years, it’s gratifying to see the increased interest among scientists that’s developed these past decades. Not only have health professionals rediscovered fasting as Mother Nature’s primary method of healing and preventing sickness, but also churches are reawakening to the importance of fasting for spiritual growth.
I’m faithful in following our fasting as outlined in this book. This is one of the main reasons for my long, healthy life! I’m blessed to see the fruition of our world health outreach to help make the world healthier. I am alert and ageless in body, mind and spirit, as my daughter Patricia Bragg is also. See Web: www.walford.com.
During the first three quarters of the 20th century, I saw the world becoming more complex, chaotic and unhealthy. Most humans are feeling alienated, lost and confused. Most people are groping for stability in body, mind and soul in their hectic personal and business life.
In time of deep trouble, our natural instincts lead us back to the fundamentals of Mother Nature’s Natural Laws. This return is usually made with knowledge gained from hard-learned lessons. Fasting as the means of purifying and healing body, mind and spirit is instinctive with animals, infants and among many cultures. Now we are beginning to learn the power of this simple, natural method. More books and articles are appearing that show the spiritual and physical benefits of fasting.
Fasting Gives Mental & Physical Awareness
As the body cleanses and heals itself through fasting, keener mental concentration and clearer spiritual perception develop. Remember, the brain is the physical instrument of the mind. As the mucus and toxic wastes are flushed from the brain cells, with it goes the worries and frustrations from your mind, it becomes free and clearer. You think more intelligently and logically. Your memory becomes sharp and keen. Your creative powers are soon expanded. You are able to face reality and yourself . . . and begin to view your problems objectively to find definite answers – and solutions!
The elimination of toxic wastes releases the mind from physical bondage. The freedom from the bodily necessity of procuring, preparing, eating, digesting and assimilating food frees up and releases a tremendous amount of nervous energy which invigorates the mental and spiritual processes. You attain new levels of great tranquillity, serenity and peace of mind. You become spiritually perceptive and receptive and at one with the Infinite. “Be still, and know that I am God.”
“Fasting changes man. A miracle cleansing process takes place – physically, mentally and spiritually. The awareness of the purification of the heart builds faith, and faith in God means authority with God.” So stated Rev. Charles Stanley in an article on fasting in the Moody Monthly.
In God’s Chosen Fast (Christian Literature Crusade, Fort Washington, PA), author Arthur Wallis writes, “Without a doubt there is a very close connection between the practice of fasting and the receiving of spiritual revelation. Many non-Christian religions such as Buddhism, Hinduism, Confucianism and Islam also practice fasting because they know its power to detach one’s mind from the world of sense, and to sharpen one’s sensibility to the world of spirit.”
Great Spiritual Leaders Practiced Fasting
It was after fasting for 40 days and 40 nights that Moses received the Ten Commandments on Mount Sinai. Jesus spent 40 days and 40 nights fasting in the desert in preparation before starting His ministry.
The founders of the modern world’s four major religions – Christianity, Judaism, Buddhism and Islam – taught fasting as a means of communication with the Divine through purification of body, mind and spirit. They instructed that fasting should be carried out with dedication and in private. Similar teachings are found in nearly all religions, ancient and tribal, as well as influential philosophies and moral codes. Zoroaster, the great Persian prophet, taught and practiced fasting. So did Plato, Socrates and Aristotle. Hippocrates, Father of Medicine, considered fasting the great cleanser and healer. The genius painter and sculptor Leonardo da Vinci also practiced and advocated fasting.
China’s great philosopher and teacher, Confucius, included fasting in his precepts. The Yogis of India and Native Americans practice fasting as a means of spiritual enlightenment. The greatest modern example of the power of fasting is Mahatma Gandhi, who won India’s freedom from the great British Empire in a complete and miracle nonviolent victory of spiritual leadership.
My Unforgettable Experience with Gandhi
The date I met Mahatma Gandhi was July 27, 1946 in New Delhi, which would become the capital of the new Republic of India a year and a month later. (India’s independence became official on August 15, 1947.) At Gandhi’s headquarters there, I received permission to accompany this amazing man on a 21 day fasting trip eastward through India’s villages, where he would talk with the people and help them with their problems. At that time, the average Indian earned about 10 cents a day and starvation was a way of life. To show he shared their plight, this saintly and compassionate spiritual leader was planning to travel the dusty roads from village to village on foot, without food, only water; for 3 weeks.
Gandhi – A Spiritual Miracle
Gandhi was then 77 years of age and looked very frail in appearance. But his looks were indeed deceiving! This man was a tower of strength . . . physically, mentally and spiritually. His stamina, endurance, energy and mental abilities were astounding to everyone, including me!
The trek began at sunup. The heat and humidity were the worst I have ever experienced. I have spent time in some of the hottest spots in the world, including Death Valley in California, the Sahara Desert and across North Africa on an 800 mile bicycle trip in intense summer heat. But never once did Gandhi seem to tire. Never once did he falter in his brisk pace of walking. The only time he sat down was during talks with the villagers. He would speak for 20 minutes, then answer questions for 20 minutes. Then we continued down the hot, dusty road to the next village. Gandhi ate nothing and drank only water flavored with lemon and honey.
Many who tried to travel with him fell by the wayside, suffering from heat and exhaustion. But Gandhi was inexhaustible! I have been an athlete and hiker all my life, but I have never seen anyone who had the physical stamina and energy that Gandhi had. Each day he walked and talked until sundown before stopping for a rest. During the 21 day fasting walk, I had many talks with Gandhi on the power of fasting. Of all I learned from him, this statement seems to me the summation:
“All the vitality and energy I have comes to me because my body is purified by fasting.” – Gandhi
Walking miles from village to village, he gave people courage and hope a better life was coming to them! (It has, India won.) His internal strength and beautiful pure soul were so powerful that weak people felt strong after seeing him and hearing his brilliant wisdom. He gave his unlimited strength to the discouraged and sick. He brought bright light and love where there was darkness.
“Fasting Brings Spiritual Rebirth to All Who Cleanse and Purify Their Bodies.”
Gandhi told the people to fast and purify their bodies and they would find real peace and joy on earth.
“The light of the world will illuminate within you, when you fast and purify yourself.” – Gandhi
This trip with the great Gandhi is an experience I will never forget! This physically small man was a spiritual giant. He led millions of people to independence from the mighty British Empire without striking a single physical blow. Yet, with all his power and influence, he was completely without arrogance. Characteristically, on the day of India’s independence, Gandhi took no part in the celebrations that went on all over India; instead he spent the day in fasting and prayer in his garden.
The Grotto Where Jesus Fasted
On one of my trips to the Holy Land, I was in the area of Jericho. It was near the Mount of Temptation, where Jesus is said to have been tempted by the devil after his fast of 40 days and 40 nights. I decided to climb it. It was a long, easy ascent. From the top, which was still 200 feet below sea level, I looked down upon the hot, barren Jordan Valley. On my descent, halfway down, I came upon a monastery built partly within the rock itself where 10 elderly Greek monks were living in poverty. Following the ancient custom of greeting any stranger as if he might be the wandering Christ, these monks welcomed me with beautiful courtesy. I was taken on a tour of the monastery. It was a fantastic place; parts of it jutted out over deep, brutal chasms while other rooms were carved out of the solid rock. One of these was a grotto which, my guide told me, was “the very spot where Jesus fasted 40 days and 40 nights, and was tempted by the devil.”
Fasting Keeps Monks Youthful
The monks told me that they fasted 2 days every week, and once a year they fasted 40 days and nights in the grotto. They felt that this fasting had not only given them great spiritual enlightenment, but had also added vigorous, healthy years to their lives. Their youthful appearance bore out their belief. Although far along in calendar years, these men had great flexibility. It required a lot of physical stamina to keep the monastery in good condition in this rugged, barren wilderness and oven-like heat. All were healthy, lean and muscular, with the glow of health to their skin and bright, keen eyes – none of them wore glasses!
Their spiritual quality showed in the genuine brotherly love which they bestowed on me, a stranger. At the end of my visit, one of the monks escorted me to the gate, kissed me on both cheeks and gave me a blessing in Greek.
Looking back, as I descended the long, stony trail, I saw him watching solicitously. We waved to each other and I carried a warm glow of friendliness in my heart from that barren rocky land. Here again was proof of what I have learned from my own experience – that one of the spiritual benefits of fasting is an empowerment of genuine sense of service, kinship and love for all humanity.
The Fast of 40 Days and 40 Nights
There is a significance to the “40 days and 40 nights” of fasting of the great spiritual leaders and of those who seek the highest spiritual enlightenment. This is the practical limit to which the disciplined body can exist without food before it begins to consume itself. The cleansing process has been completed, and all toxic wastes and excess fat have been “incinerated” – burned up into energy. When this limit is reached, starvation begins. The body will then have to feed on sound living tissue and this is harmful to body, mind and spirit! The fast should be terminated before this point is reached! A long fast should never be attempted until the body has been trained to fast for short intervals, from 1 day up to 10 days, over a period of time.
We don’t advise a 40 day fast, it is not for the novice! It’s only the experienced faster who learns to distinguish between the early cravings of habitual appetite and the warning pangs of genuine hunger cry for food.
At the beginning of a fast there is a craving for food which arises from the habit of eating at certain intervals. This may last for several days, but then the craving passes. There follows a short period of several days or more when the faster might feel some weakness and requires more rest. This is probably the most difficult part of fasting.
Gradually this sense of weakness will disappear, signalling that the body has eliminated its worst wastes and toxins. Then comes a feeling of growing strength, with little or no concern about food, and an increasing mental alertness. There is a sense of release and freedom as one ascends to the higher levels of serenity and peace of mind. Spiritual awareness can reach a point of ecstasy!
How long this fast period lasts depends upon the individual. When the process of elimination of all wastes has been completed, the body signals a warning with pangs of genuine hunger. When this happens, whether 2, 3 or 4 weeks, the fast must end to preserve its benefits!
A Sound Mind in a Sound Body
Even the greatest spiritual leaders that the world has known trained themselves by habitual fasting, 1 or 2 days per week, before they undertook longer fasts. Herein lies the difference between genuine fasting and extreme asceticism, which has given fasting a bad name by prolonging it into starvation, which is wrong.
True fasting is psychosomatic (psycho – of the mind or spirit; and soma – of the body). It’s truly a natural miracle to achieve “a sound mind in a sound body,” as the Greeks put it, and according to the Bible:
“Your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit.”
Your Body is Your Temple And Needs the Best Care
To quote again from famous Pastor Dr. Stanley, “According to medical experts, fasting is the most natural, original process of purifying the body. Since the Lord admonished man to work six days and rest one, would it not be equally wise to rest the digestive system for one day as well? I have found that fasting also sharpens the mind. The physical and spiritual benefits cannot be easily separated. A clear mind is essential to the desire for oneness and direction.”
And from Arthur Wallis comes the observation that, “Our physical condition can often influence our spiritual lives more than we realize. Is God glorified when (our bodies) are weak or sickly through neglect of the divine laws that govern their well-being? Is God glorified when we become casualties from over-working, or over-feeding or undernourishing our bodies, and failing to give them their ‘Sabbath’ of rest and relaxation? In an age of pressure, when the breakdown of mind or body is becoming all too familiar, the physical (as well as the spiritual) value of a fast of God’s choosing becomes a matter of some importance. Here is a divine provision for health and healing, for renewal of mind and body, that we must further consider.”
Courage, vitality, energy, endurance, zest and vigor are not mental states to be conjured up at will, but are the mental expression of a physical state. The Bible tells us that, “The kingdom of heaven is within.” Fasting purifies all the trillions of cells of the body, including those of the brain. When the brain is free of toxic poisons the mind is liberated both psychologically and then spiritually. It’s free from anxieties, boredom, loneliness, tension and fear. It can meet all of life’s problems and make wise, better decisions. It can find more peace, joy and realize a fuller, more meaningful, healthier life.
Fasting is a natural tranquilizer with absolutely no negative side effects. A brain purified by fasting pays higher dividends than any other investment you can make. Begin today! Please let this book be your guide and friend! Discover for yourself the Miracles of Fasting!
