Chandrayana Vrata:

Fasting on New Moon's Eve

There are many very ancient, traditional forms of Fasting (Upavasana). One of the most
ancient ones, known as Chandrayana, is observed for a whole month. It consists in
reducing the amount of food which totals fifteen mouthfuls on Full Moon, by one
mouthful daily until New Moon when the fast becomes complete and then increasing it in
the same manner from the day after New Moon to Full Moon. Complete abstinence from
food is also observed for one, three, six, nine or twelve days according to each person's
capacity and inclination.

Among the most auspicious times for fasting are the days of Full and New Moon as well
as the eighth and the twenty-third of each month (counting from the first day after New
Moon). New Moon Day (Amavasya) is that day of the lunar month which begins when
the last crescent of the Moon becomes invisible at dawn - for which reason it may
accurately be called No Moon Day. The night before this, that is, New Moon's Eve, is the
Sacred Night of Shiva (Shiva Ratri) which is also known as The Fourteenth Day of Shiva
(Shiva-Chaturdashi) and The Dark Night of Shiva (Shiva Kalaratri). Fasting during the
day and night on this auspicious occasion is particularly meritorious, and is observed for
the expiation of sins as well as for acquiring religious merit.

Thus it is written in the Shiva Purana: "O Sages! on the thirteenth day of the dark half of
the month, one meal only shall be taken (by the devotee). But on the fourteenth, complete
fast shall be observed. The fourteenth of the dark half is sure to bring about the
propitiation of Lord Shiva".

Even greater merit is acquired by fasting on New Moon's Eve in the month of Phalguna
(or Magha, in the South Indian calendar). This is known as the Great Night of Shiva or
Maha Shivaratri and is the most important holiday in Yoga. In India, this annual holiday
may begin as early as a fortnight before New Moon, thus lasting for sixteen days in total,
from the first day after Full Moon to the first day after New Moon. Says the Shiva
Purana: "In the Month of Phalguna, in the Star Uttara-Phalguni, let the Great Festival of
Shiva (Maha Utsava) commence".

Maha Shivaratri proper falls on the 14th of the dark fortnight in February or March,
which is usually the 3rd New Moon's Eve from the Winter Solstice (22 December) and a
fortnight before the Festival of Holy (and the beginning of Indian Lunar Year).

Krichara Vrata:

Krichara Vrata is fasting for 12 days. The observer of the Vrata drinks only some water.
Many sins are destroyed by the practice of this Vrata.
Twelve Pointers for Maintaining
Brahmacharya (Celibacy)
by Swami Nirmalananda Giri

O ccasionally I receive letters from spiritual aspirants asking me for advice on the
subject of brahmacharya. The following are pointers which are essential for the
establishment of brahmacharya.

1) Daily meditation and constant japa is the essential foundation of brahmacharya. The japa and
meditation of Om cause the subtle forces known as prana to rise upward. Those who become
adept in these spiritual practices will become “urdhvareta yogis”–those in whom the sexual
energies flow upward and become transmuted into spiritual energies.

2) Satsanga, the company of holy people–or at least those who are aspiring to holiness–is
extremely helpful in the maintenance of brahmacharya. If you know like-minded people, then
meet with them regularly for spiritual study and conversation. It is not uncommon among both
Hindus and Buddhists for spiritual aspirants to meet daily for meditation.

If you do not know any other spiritual aspirants–and this is not uncommon here in the West–then
keep satsanga with saints and masters by reading their lives and teachings and keeping their
pictures in your home. Holy images of divine forms are also beneficial.

Every day listen to spiritual music. Such music should be soothing and reflective–not the raucous
banging and clanging that many shallow and worldly Christians and Hindus like. It is good to
listen to devotional music, but shun merely emotional music, for it is linked to lower desires, no
matter how “holy” the words.

3) Avoid asatsanga – the company of the unholy and the worldly–in the form of people who have
no interest in spiritual life, as well as books, magazines, television, radio, and motion pictures that
are centered on material consciousness. Absolutely avoid those things that deal with the subject
of sex or depict sexually suggestive (or outright) matters or images.

4) Avoid casual association with members of the opposite sex. Never be socially alone with a
member of the opposite sex. This is an absolute. Make no exceptions based on seemingly spiritual
character, age, or intention. When an older woman tells you that she is your “mother” run away!
The same thing applies when a man tells a woman that he is her “father.” This goes on in both
India and America, including close–and private–association of men with female gurus and of
women with male gurus. No one knows what impulses carried over from previous lives–many
even from century’s past–are lying not far beneath the surface of the conscious mind, waiting to
manifest. “Spiritual” friendships with members of the opposite sex are doors to disaster. I have
seen it over and over. Even in my early teen years I watched “spiritual” associations inevitably
turn into sexual associations. And that had usually been the intention from the first moment. If
what I have said does not convince you, at least I have discharged my responsibility.
5) If you happen to be homosexual, then what I say above applies to both sexes. (The number of
“gays” that end up fathers is remarkable. It may be cute or poignant on the movie screen, but it is
tragic in real life.) In your spiritual associations try to be sure that there are always several people
involved. This is a trial, but many saints and masters have coped with much worse.

6) Avoid absolutely any person or thing that argues against your aspiration to brahmacharya or
tries to persuade or force you into sexuality in any form. The “just try it once/for a bit” people are
worse than tigers. Run for your life–literally.

7) I have warned you about external factors that harm the life of a brahmachari, but the biggest
threat or danger comes from your own mind and impulses. Ruthlessly cut off all overt or oblique
thoughts of sex when they rise in your mind. Note what “innocent” subjects of thought
“somehow” end up in ideas of sex and banish them the moment they appear in the future.

8) What about “physical needs” and “bodily urges”? Never let them be an excuse for wavering in
your ideal. But you must keep the body clean and pure to help you in maintaining brahmacharya.

9) Continuing the previous subject: Diet is an essential factor for the brahmachari and the yogi.
Diet is a form of spiritual culture as well as physical culture. There should be total avoidance of
animal protein in any form and to any degree whatsoever, and this includes dairy products.
Gandhi saw over and over that animal flesh, animal fats, and dairy products were detrimental to
brahmacharya, that movements of lust could be attributed to the physical effects of their use.
(This also happens to be the opinion of the Eastern Orthodox Church, especially the monks who
watch their minds.) This Hindus screamed “blasphemy” because of their attitude toward cows,
but the truth cannot be changed by hysteria. Become not just a vegetarian but a vegan: Eat a diet
that is free from all animal protein and fat, dairy products, sugar, and caffeine. Abstain totally
from nicotine and alcohol.

To learn the scientific and practical basis of what I have advised, see the books of Dr. Neal
Barnard (http://www.nealbarnard.org) and the information put out by the Physicians Committe
For Responsible Medicine (http://www.pcrm.org), Dr. Michael Klaper (http://drklaper.com), and
Dr. McDougall (http://www.drmcdougall.com).

10) Food for the mind in the form of spiritual reading is also a tremendous help to the
brahmachari. Two books are especially important for the aspiring brahmachari: Meditation and
Spiritual Life by Swami Yatiswarananda (order from amazon.com) and Practice of Brahmacharya
by Swami Sivananda. This latter book can be downloaded for free from the Divine Life Society
website.

Read the books of many traditions and teachers on spiritual life, taking what is useful and leaving
aside what is not. Follow your intuition and don’t get what Yogananda called “spiritual
indigestion.”

11) What if you fail in some area or to some degree–or completely? Just keep on trying and be
more vigilant. Do not let the ego or foolish associates or “authorities” convince you that it is
hopeless, you should not even try, you will not be able, blah, blah, blah…. Multitudes of holy
people have struggled; some have failed at times, but ALL HAVE SUCCEEDED. So will you.

12) Finally, know that God is on your side. And remember these words of the Bhagavad Gita:
“Though a man be soiled with the sins of a lifetime, let him but love me, rightly resolved, in utter
devotion: I see no sinner, that man is holy.

“Holiness soon shall refashion his nature to peace eternal; O son of Kunti, of this be certain: the
man that loves me, he shall not perish.

“You find yourself in this transient, joyless world. Turn from it, and take your delight in me.

“Fill your heart and mind with me, adore me, make all your acts an offering to me, bow down to
me in self-surrender. If you set your heart upon me thus, and take me for your ideal above all
others, you will come into my Being.” (Bhagavad Gita 9:30, 31, 33, 34)

The Role of Diet in Sex Control - Swami Sivananda Saraswati

Diet plays a prominent part in keeping up brahmacharya. Purity of food brings in purity
of mind. That power which connects the body and the mind is present in the food that we
take. Various kinds of food have varying effects on the mind. There are certain kinds of
food that make the mind and the body very strong and steady. So it is absolutely essential
that we should take pure and sattwic1 food. Food has a very close connection with
brahmacharya. If proper attention is given to the purity of the food that we take,
brahmacharya becomes quite easy.

The influence of foodstuffs on the brain cells, emotion and passion is remarkable. There
are different compartments in the brain and each food produces its own effect on each
compartment and on the general system. A confection of sparrow produces an
aphrodisiac effect. It directly stimulates the reproductive organs. Meat, fish and eggs
stimulate passion. Mark how elephants and cows that live on grass are quiet and peaceful
and how tigers and other carnivorous animals that live on meat are turbulent and
ferocious. Instinct or the voice from within will guide you in the selection of articles of
diet that are conducive to the keeping up of brahmacharya. You can also consult some
elderly and experienced persons.

Sattwic food

Charu,2 Havishya3 Annam,4 milk, wheat, barley, bread, ghee,5 butter, dried ginger,
green gram, potatoes, dates, plantains, curd, almonds and fruits are all sattwic articles of
food. Charu is a mixture of boiled white rice, ghee, white sugar and milk. Havishya
Annam is also a similar preparation. This is very useful for spiritual aspirants. Milk is a
perfect food by itself, containing as it does, the different nutritive constituents in a well
balanced proportion. This is an ideal food for yogins and brahmacharins. Fruits are great
energy producers. Bananas, grapes, sweet oranges, apples, pomegranates and mangoes
are wholesome and nutritious.

Dry fruits such as grapes, raisins, dates and figs, sweet fresh fruits such as bananas,
mangoes, sapotas, melons, limes, pineapples, apples, wood apples and sweet
pomegranates, sugar and sugar-candy, honey, sago, arrowroot, milk, butter and ghee of
cows, tender coconut water, coconut, almonds, pistachio nuts, toor dal, ragi, barley,
maize, wheat, rice of red paddy whose bran is only partly removed and rice of good smell
or sweet taste, and all preparations from any of these grains, and white pumpkin are
sattwic articles for keeping up brahmacharya.

Milk, fruits, almonds, sugar-candy, butter, green oats, Bengal oats (Chenai) soaked in
water overnight, bread, etc., are all helpful in meditation. Thed, a kind of Kandamula
found in abundance in Brahmapuri, Vasishtha Guha and other parts of the Himalayas, is
very Sattvic. It helps meditation. My friend and spiritual brother Swami
Purushottamanandaji used to live on that for some days when he was at Vasishtha Guha,
fourteen miles from the reputed Rishikesh. Sunthi-Sevana (taking powder of dried
ginger) is very good for aspirants. It can be taken along with milk. It refreshes the mind
and helps digestion. Yogins take it very often. Triphala water also is taken by Yogins. It
removes constipation, cools the system and stops wet-dreams. Myrobalan or Haritaki
(Harad of the yellow kind) can be chewed by Yogic practitioners very often. It preserves
semen and checks nocturnal discharges. Potatoes boiled without salt or roasted in fire are
very good.

Forbidden food

Meat, fish, eggs, tobacco, liquor, and stale food, are not at all beneficial. Tobacco and its
preparations, foods and drinks containing liquor or narcotic drugs such as opium and
bhang, food preparations which are stale, or which are remnants after being eaten away
by other persons, animals, birds or insects, or which contain dust, hair, straw or other
rubbish, and milk of buffalo, goat or sheep should be avoided as they are either rajasic6
or tamasic7 by nature.

Mitahara8 or moderation in diet

Mitahara is moderation in food. Take wholesome sattwic food half-stomachful. Fill a

quarter with pure water. Allow the remaining part free. This is mitahara. brahmacharins
should always take mitahara only. They should be very careful about their night diet.
They should never overload the stomach at night. Overloading is the direct cause for
nocturnal emissions.

A glutton can never dream of becoming a brahmachari. Control of tongue is a sine qua
non if you want to control lust, if you want to observe the vow of brahmacharya. The
tongue must be controlled first. Then it will be easy to control the passion. There is
intimate connection between the tongue and the organ of generation. Tongue is an organ
of knowledge. It is born of the sattwic portion of the water-tanmatra.9 The organ of
generation is an organ of action. It is born of the rajasic portion of the water-tanmatra.
They are sister organs as the source is the same. If the tongue is stimulated with rajasic
food, at once the reproductive organ also gets excited. There should be selection and
restriction in diet. The food of a brahmachari must be simple, bland, spiceless, non-
irritating and non-stimulating. Moderation in food is very necessary. Stuffing the stomach
is highly deleterious. Fruits are highly beneficial. You should take food only when you
are really hungry. The stomach will deceive you sometimes. You may have false hunger.
When you sit for taking meals, you will have no appetite and no relish. Dietetic
restrictions and fasting are very useful auxiliaries in controlling the camel mind and in the
attainment of brahmacharya. You should not ignore them or make light of them on any
account.

Fasting–a purificatory exercise

Fasting controls passion. Fasting destroys sexual excitement. It calms the emotions. It
controls the indriyas10 also. Passionate young men and ladies should take recourse to
occasional fasting. It will prove highly beneficial. Fasting is a great tapas.11 It purifies
the mind. It destroys a great multitude of sins. Shastras12 prescribe Chandrayana
Vrata,13 Krichara Vrata, Ekadasi Vrata14 and Pradosha Vrata for the purification of the
mind. Fasting controls particularly the tongue, which is your deadly enemy.

When you fast, do not allow the mind to think of delicious dishes, because then you will
not derive much benefit. Fasting overhauls the respiratory, circulatory, digestive and
urinary systems. It destroys all the impurities of the body and all sorts of poisons. It
eliminates uric acid deposits. Just as impure gold is rendered pure by melting it in the
crucible again and again, so also, the impure mind is rendered purer and purer by fasting
again and again. Young, robust brahmacharins should observe fasting whenever passion
troubles them. You will have very good meditation during fasting, as the mind is calm.
The chief object in fasting is to practice dhyana15 rigorously during that period as all the
indriyas are calm. You will have to withdraw all the indriyas and fix the mind on God.
Pray to God for guiding you and throwing a flood of light on the path. Say with bhav:16
“O God! Prachodayat, Prachodayat.17 Guide me, guide me. Trahi, Trahi. Protect me
protect me. I am Thine, my Lord!” You will get purity, light, strength and knowledge.
Fasting is one of the ten canons of Yoga.

Avoid excessive fasting. It will produce weakness. Use your commonsense. Those who
are not able to observe a full fast can fast for nine or twelve hours and can take milk and
fruits in the evening or at night.

During fasting, the internal digestive organs such as the stomach, the liver and the
pancreas take rest. Epicureans, gluttons and those who are tireless eaters do not allow rest
for these organs even for a few minutes. Hence, these organs get diseased soon. Diabetes,
albuminuria, dyspepsia and hepatitis are all due to overfeeding. After all, man wants very
little on this earth. Ninety per cent of the people in this world take more food than what is
absolutely necessary for the body. Overeating has become their habit. All diseases take
their origin in overeating. An occasional complete fast is a great desideratum for all to
keep up good health, relieve the internal organs and maintain brahmacharya. Diseases
that are pronounced incurable by allopaths and homoeopaths are cured by fasting. Fasting
develops will-power. It increases the power of endurance. Manu, the Hindu law-giver,
prescribes in his code the remedy of fasting for removal of the five capital sins also.
It is better to drink a large quantity of water, either tepid or cold, according to
temperament and inclination, during fasting. It will flush out the kidneys and remove the
poison and all sorts of impurities in the body. In Hatha Yoga it is termed as gata-shuddhi
or purification of the flesh-pot, the physical body. You can add half a teaspoonful of soda
bicarbonate to the water. Those who fast for two or three days should not break their fast
with any solid food. They should take some kind of fruit juice, either sweet orange juice
or pomegranate juice. They should sip the juice slowly. You can take an enema daily
during fasting.

Fast for a day to start with. Then slowly increase the number of days according to your
strength and capacity. In the beginning you may feel a slight weakness. The first day may
be very tiring. You will feel real ananda, bliss, on the second or the third day. The body
will be very, very light. You can turn out more mental work during fasting. Those who
are in the habit of fasting will rejoice. On the first day, the mind will tempt you in a
variety of ways to eat something or the other. Stand firm. Be bold. Curb the mind at once
when it hisses or raises its hood. Do more japa18 of Gayatri19 or any mantra20 during
fasting. Fasting is more a spiritual kriya21 than a physical kriya from the viewpoint of
health. You will have to utilise the fasting days for higher spiritual purposes and in the
contemplation of God. Always entertain thoughts of God. Dive deep into the problems of
life such as the why and the wherefore of the universe. Enquire: “Who am I? What is this
atman22 or Brahman? What are the ways and means to attain knowledge of God? How to
approach Him?” Then realize your Nijananda23 state and rest in purity for ever and ever.

My dear brothers! Will you start the fasting tapasya from the very second you read these
lines?

Peace be unto all beings!

For more reading on the subject of Brahmacharya, please read the following articles:

Twelve Pointers for Maintaining Brahmacharya (Celibacy) – by Swami Nirmalananda

Giri. Pointers which are essential in maintaining brahmacharya written in response to
letters from spiritual aspirants.
The Role of Celibacy in Spiritual Life – by Swami Chidananda
Science Discovers the Physiological Value of Continence – Part 1 – by Dr. Raymond
Bernard. Yogis have known for ages the necessity of continence for success in spiritual
endeavor. Medical science has detailed the benefits of sexual abstinence and the negative
effects of dissipation. This book is an in-depth scientific examination of the subject.
Science Discovers the Physiological Value of Continence – Part 2 – by Dr. Raymond
Bernard

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1) Sattwic: Partaking of the quality of Sattwa: light; purity; reality. [Go back]
2) Charu: A preparation of boiled rice, milk, sugar and ghee, to be offered into the fire for
gods; a sattvic dietary regimen usually taken by yoga-practitioners and celibates. [Go
back]

3) Havishya: Sacrificial food. Charu. [Go back]

4) Annam: Food. [Go back]

5) Ghee: Clarified butter. [Go back]

6) Rajasic: Possessed of the qualities of the raja guna (rajas). Passionate; active; restless.
[Go back]

7) Tamasic: Possessed of the qualities of the tamo guna (tamas). Ignorant; dull; inert; and
dark. [Go back]

8) Mitahara: Moderate diet. [Go back]

9) Element [Go back]

10) Indriya: Organ. The five organs of perception (jnanendriyas) are the ear, skin, eye,
tongue, and nose. The five organs of action (karmendriyas) are the voice, hand, foot,
organ of excretion, and the organ of generation. [Go back]

11) Tapas (tapasya): Austerity, practical (i.e., result-producing) spiritual discipline;

spiritual force. Literally it means the generation of heat or energy, but is always used in a
symbolic manner, referring to spiritual practice and its effect, especially the roasting of
karmic seeds, the burning up of karma. [Go back]

12) Shastra: Scripture; spiritual treatise. [Go back]

13) Chandrayana Vrata: Aan observance in which, beginning with fifteen morsels of food
on a full-moon day, a person lessens them one by one daily, until he takes no food on the
new moon day; and again increases them one by one till he reaches the same fifteen
morsels on the next full-moon day. [Go back]

14) Ekadashi Vrata: Observing ekadhashi (the eleventh day after the new and full moons,
sacred to Vishnu) by fasting–through abstinence from grains and other staples and eating
much less than usual, oftentimes fasting from food (and sometimes water) until after
sundown. [Go back]

15) Dhyana: Meditation; contemplation. [Go back]

16) Bhava: Subjective state of being (existence); attitude of mind; mental attitude or
feeling; state of realization in the heart or mind. [Go back]
17) “Impel me! Impel me! [toward Thee].” [Go back]

18) Japa: Repetition of a mantra. [Go back]

19) Gayatri Mantra: A Rig Vedic mantra in the gayatri meter invoking the solar powers
of evolution and enlightenment. [Go back]

20) Mantra: Sacred syllable or word or set of words through the repetition and reflection
of which one attains perfection or realization of the Self. Literally, “a transforming
thought” (manat trayate). A mantra, then is a sound formula that transforms the
consciousness. [Go back]

21) Kriya: Purificatory action or practice or exercise; movement; function; skill. Kriyas
purify the body and nervous system as well as the subtle bodies to enable the yogi to
reach and hold on to higher levels of consciousness and being. [Go back]

22) Atma(n): The individual spirit or self. [Go back]

23) Nijananda: The bliss beyond sense perception. [Go back]