Very good. I am 82 next month. I have not eaten animals and birds and fish since i was 25. Now I don’t buy cows prudcts because theese animals are torutured in hellish conditions by dairy corporations that have no heart, no human decency.
Doing austerities has two results: As you have written: “But the idea is to remove unclean thoughts during the fasting, and overall thank God and remember him more during those days in terms of keeping your spirit with the Lord!”
This is good. But there are also dangers. Asuterities are also done by evil men. Anyone who does austerities becomes more powerful. You may remember that after Jesus fasted for 40 days in the desert, Satan appeared to him and said, “Now you can have full power to have whatever you desire to have in this world.” And Jesus rebuked him, sent him away.
So this is the danger of beoming an ascetic.
Another danger of doing asuterities is that the heart can also become harder. As spiritual beings, we want our hearts to become softer. More loving, so that we can approach God with feelings of love in our heart. Only when there is love in heart can we begin to enjoy a sense of lving reciprocation of love with God.
Therefore the real austerity of the heart is to cultivate a profound sense of inner serenity of the heart. This inner serenity brings a sense of inner pleasure which causes the desires of the flesh to decrease. Desires for sense gratification and love of God are mutually exclusive. The more we desire sense gratification, the less we can feel and remember God’s presence in our lives.
Therefore the first step in spiritual life is to be clean and honest and loving towards each other. This is not yet spiritual. It is still on the material platform. But the heart becomes softened so that we can begin to approach God. This is the function of morality. Morality cannot by us a ticket to heaven. But it enables us to approach a devotional demeanor of the heart.
A sinful man cannot open his heart to God. First he has to repent. Then he has to purify himself. Then his spiritual life can begin. Abstaining from killing inncocent creatures is a huge step forward. They also have souls. But they do not have bodies and minds that enable them to understand spiritual life. But they suffer pain as much as we do. They cry when their children are taken from them. They also have the ability to feel love towards us. I have seen people weep when their dog or cat dies. But these same people eat animals that are killed by mass production machinery in slaughterhouses. Then they wonder why there are forest fires, tidal waves, plagues (like covid and aids), hurricanes, earthquakes and volcanoes. This is nature’s feedback. But the church will not speak in this way. Perhaps because of fear. Perhaps because of financial threats coming from the wealthy who run these killing machines. Perhaps because of lack of purification of the heart.
Every religion, be it Muslim, Christian, Hindu……they all have prayer beads on which they recite the names of God. Allah…… Jehovah………Krishna……..all of these names are simply referring to the qualities of God as the creator, the master, the provider, the judge, etc. They all refer to the same Supreme Personality of Godhead. The same God of all of us. This is the greatest sacrifice for this astrological age. Vibration and meditation on the sound vibration of the name of God. On prayer beads. On rosary.
Even in Bible Jesus is asked how we should pray. His answer: “Our Father who are in heaven, Your name is holy, sacred. And if we chant Your holy name: Thy kingdom come…….right here on earth, just as it is in heaven.” This is the recommendation of Jesus……..to chant the holy names of God, both individually on prayer beads, and in congregation with cymbals and drums. This is the austerity, the spiritual practice of this age, recommended in all the major religions.
Therefore you can obtain some beads, and repeat the names of God on each bead, so many times each day. That will be more profitable spiritually than undergoing severe fasting. Still, at the same time, you can eat only once or twice in a day. But keep your strength, so that you can chant the names of the Lord, and you will feel His presence in your heart. The name of God is not different from God the Person. You will feel His presence in the sound vibration of the holy name.
You are a very sincere soul. I would like very much to be closer to you. You are in Norway. I am in the U.S. Geographic distance. Spritually, we are together. Thank you.