Ekadashi

I have recently been sharing much on the practice of Ekadashi, and I am elaborating here for all who may be interested and inspired to try it.
Ekadashis in India are considered powerfully beneficial days to fast/go light and reset our system. This has been my personal experience as well.

Fasting and eating light on this day helps us harness the power of our body’s innate intelligence, cycle, and the upcoming full/New Moon’s energies to experience optimum overall health.
Fasting especially on these days not only cleanses our physical bodies but also helps us release unserving and debilitating energetic imprints of the past in the body-mind.

ALIGNING WITH THE MOON

Eka means 11; Dashi means day — the 11th day. Ekadashi is the 11th day from the Full/New Moon. (4 days before the next Full/New Moon)
On the 11th day of every 15 day cycle, the Moon comes to form a trine with the Earth and Sun in such a way that the gravitational force starts to strongly influence the water content in all the bodies on Earth.
It not only affects tides, but also changes the biological rhythms of plants, animals, and humans. (Read scientific study related article below)
The human body is naturally affected by these changes as it is composed of 70 percent water. The Moon especially is known to affect the psycho-emotional field of our body.

We have 2 Ekadashis in a given Moon cycle.
The 11th day from any New Moon is the Ekadashi in the Shukla Paksha or Waxing Gibbous Moon phase. The next 11th day from the Full Moon is in the Waning phase/Krishna Paksha.
So every month we have two Ekadashi days.
When we get in tune with our bodies, we also realize that we eventually don’t need to remember these days/timeframe mentally.
Our attuned body-minds naturally sense all subtle undercurrents and needs as they move through us. Without pulling up our calendar, we now can recognize how on these days, the body does not feel hungry and is called to a slower pace, unlike other days.

यथा पिण्डे तथा ब्रह्माण्डे
“Yatha Pinde Tatha Brahmande”
As above. So below.
As is the atom, so is the universe.
The microcosm is a reflection of the macrocosm.
We are an expression of the Cosmos.

A VEDIC PERSPECTIVE

Our Body-Mind-Spirit, the Cosmos, are all aligned in a cyclic rhythm.
In Winter as Nature comes to rest, we too are called to eat lighter food.
In Spring and Summer as all comes alive and is in an active growth mode, our bodies feel more hungry and what we eat digests easily and assimilates better. Even the cycle of any day mimics this rhythm. As the Sun goes up — our digestive fire is the strongest and as the day sets, it’s recommended we skip a meal or eat light.
Vagbhata, a renowned Ayurvedic Scientist Scholar and Doctor shares how not being in tune with this rhythm diminishes our JatarAgni — the inner digestive fire. According to Ayurveda, Agni Mandhya — low digestive fire is one of the main root causes for all diseases of the body-mind.

According to Ayurveda, the body regularly develops Ama/Food toxicity due to to our modern lifestyle and the residue of the digestive processes.
The timeframe from the 11th day (Ekadashi) of the moon phase, onwards till a few days post the Full or New moon, our digestive process is slower than usual. When we fast and rest on these two days, we give the body-mind respite from its daily digestive work and activity.
By resting and having an as easeful day as possible, we loosen ourselves from our mental busyness, giving ourselves a chance to get back to our unique balance and rhythm.
These days are therefore very ideal to meditate as well.
Regular detoxification of our body helps keep our whole Body-Mind in balance. By balancing our whole system, we naturally feel healthy and have more vigor.
Our clear body-mind now allows us to have a deeper intuitive connection with our whole Self. We now accomplish all that we do joyfully.
The Vedic system recognizes the importance of all these changes and therefore considers Ekadashi as one of the supreme fasting practices.

When we prep our body-minds on Ekadashi, our system is at ease, cleansed, and ready for the next level of reset when the next Full/New moon comes around!
For all who want to do this at an advanced level one can also follow the ancient practice of Chandrayana (Lunar cycle) Intermittent Fasting that is done through the whole month and is a practice supported by Yoga asanas, mudras and meditations.

I speak a little more in detail about Ekadashi here as well.

SELF CARE

Today we are all exploring and recognizing the importance of self-care.
The kind of self-care that not only works for all parts of us but also serves our unique needs at any given time.
The fast-paced Thought/Mind based lives we all lead nowadays has us feeling lost in the chaos of the external noise of life as the Mind-World pulls us in many directions.
As we move through our day and life, we cannot sense the subtle aspects of ourselves at the energetic level, and therefore, we don’t feel or cannot discern the subtle signals from our body-mind.
It is no surprise then that we move through life feeling stressed, on edge, confused, depleted, chaotic, and at a fundamental level at unease.It is the very reason these two days are noted in our calendars as Ekadashi, so we don’t forget to make the most of what these days offer us.
I personally have experienced immense benefits since Ekadashis have become an integral part of my self-care routine.

As we live our innate nature, we naturally thrive.
We embody a healthy and powerfully sensitive body that is in tune with all that is.
Our energy that now flows freely and expansively is deeply connected to the flow of our higher Mind.
Our experience of life that is us now is wholesome, innately joyful, and our spirit resilient.

Today is Ekadashi. The upcoming New Moon is on the 6th. If you would like to note all the Ekadashi dates in your calendar, you can find them here.
https://www.drikpanchang.com/vrats/ekadashidates.html

IMPORTANT GUIDELINES if you plan to try this.

• Always follow your body’s intuitive guidance in the now.
  Trust and be with your own experience and follow your body-mind’s pace.

• If you have any health conditions, please begin slowly.
  And preferably under the guidance of an Ayurvedic or Integrated Medical Practitioner. You can perhaps start by simply eating lighter on these days or cutting out one meal.

• As your body-mind responds and aligns with this, you can then proceed to what calls next. You may lighten your diet even more by cutting out all meat and grains or only eat fruits throughout the day.
  Eventually, as the system finds its rhythm, many go on a complete diet without even consuming water.
  Ahem, I am nowhere there yet and not sure if I plan to be! :)

• The same goes for the Mind. Let the day be as easeful and effortless as possible. Make time to meditate.
  The practice of Pranayama in the morning is another intentional way to set the tone of your body-mind and day as it helps calm and align your whole system.

• Do the things that center you and that you love to do.

BREAKING THE FAST

How you break your fast is key and will determine how your system will reboot and sustain the benefits of this practice.
This is one of the most central and critical points to keep in mind.

• If you plan to fast overnight, break your fast early in the morning and preferably not later in the day.

• Break your fast by eating the lightest of meals possible.
  Breaking it by drinking fresh juice is optimal and highly recommended. Vegetable juice is preferred over sweet fruit juice.
  Whenever possible we break our fasts by drinking “Gourd” juice. Vegetables from the Gourd family are cleansing, cooling, nourishing, and easily digestible. Ash gourd or Bottle gourd juices are commonly used to break Ekadashi fasts. They are fairly tasteless and you may add other ingredients such as Beets, Carrots, Apples, Ginger etc to make it more palatable.

• Make sure all your subsequent meals are smaller in size and lighter than usual. Eat vegetables, and don’t add meat to your meals right away.
  I also make sure to always eat a small bowl of homemade yogurt with my midday meal. Make it as wholesome as possible.

• Don’t overload your system. Be in tune and aware of your ability to fast.
  If you begin by fasting longer than you can manage, you will feel famished and depleted in energy rather than energized.
  This may then have you overeating in the subsequent days.

• Keep in mind that essentially Ekadashi is a timeframe set by the energy movements in the Cosmos. Depending on how ready one feels and is, one may begin fasting from the previous night, continue it through today and end it the following day in the morning.

Last but not least, let this be wonderfilled curious exploration for you.
Have fun! Be curious and observe without judgment as you move through this new experience.
Give yourself ample time as you play and revel in all the little nuanced Ahas that may arrive in your awareness as your body-mind reveals to you things you may have never noticed before.
It’s a beautiful way to get in tune with our body-minds and the subtle rhythm of the world we sense around us.

THE WISDOM OF THE MOON

As we know, the Moon and its phases, especially the New and Full Moon, have a significant impact on our body-minds. Much of the body is water, and as the tides are affected by the Moon, so are our body-minds.
The Moon has been recognized as a guiding light for us humans for a very long time. Many indigenous cultures follow ancient practices that speak and point to her wisdom.

The indigenous Torres Strait Islanders of Melanesian origin from Australia also speak and live their lives guided by her phases.
The Anishinaabe tribe from the Great Lakes region of Canada and the Native Americans call the Moon the Grandmother Moon, recognizing and celebrating the Feminine energy aspect that lives and moves as spirit in all of life.

In Hawaii, there’s a saying, “Kamaliʻi ʻike ʻole i ka helu pō.”
Children who do not know the moon phases.

In the indigenous Hawaiian culture, the phases of the Moon and its biodynamic effects were taught very early on to young chidren. The one who did not yet understand this esteemed knowledge were considered to be like a small children who had not yet consciously recognized the body-mind’s interconnectedness to all that is.
In Hawaii, the Helu Pō (Moon phases) determine how one relates to all aspects of life. The phases of the Moon guide us to a holistic, ecological, and ethical approach to planting, farming, harvesting, fishing, gathering, building, and subsequently all doing.

These traditions offer us a glimpse into what the indigenous cultures believed their true identity was and how they saw and understood the symbiotic nature of their physical experience here on this plane.

A Personal Note

I have been exploring simple and easeful ways to experience health in our body-minds for over a decade now.
Raised in India, naturally, a lot of what I have explored comes from my culture and its traditions.
Fasting on Ekadashi, has been one of the simplest and most beneficial practices I have experienced. If you are called to it you may also fast on Full Moon and New Moon days as the Moon has quite a detoxifying effect on our bodies on these days.
This practice has had a profound impact on my health and consequently how I live the physical expression of what I am.
Many have experienced benefits such as weight reduction, lower or complete stress relief, an energized body and an active focused mind, a consistently joyful and positive attitude, improved sleep quality, lowered blood pressure, and much more.

Well-being in and of our body-mind is our birthright.
At the core, these ways of consciously being anchors us back into living from the intuitiveness of our true nature.
The more I am present in and as presence in my life, the more I am able to sense my soul’s impulse, and the more I am my flow.
This way of being helps me discern what is uniquely right for me in any given moment, allowing me to live my most aligned full life.

The ability to fast, feel our sacred hunger and then eat food that nourishes the body-mind is a blessing we get to experience in this physical plane.
We break our fast with a Brahmaarpanam Prayer (Offering to and from All That Is) as we acknowledge this gift in reverence.

ब्रह्मार्पणं ब्रह्म हविः ब्रह्माग्नौ ब्रह्मणा हुतम् ।
ब्रह्मैव तेन गन्तव्यं ब्रह्मकर्मसमाधिना ॥
अहं वैश्वानरो भूत्वा प्राणिनां देहमाश्रित: ।
प्राणापानसमायुक्त: पचाम्यन्नं चतुर्विधम् ॥

brahmārpaṇaṃ brahma haviḥ brahmāgnau brahmaṇā hutam ।
brahmaiva tena gantavyaṃ brahmakarmasamādhinā ॥
ahaṁ vaiśhvānaro bhūtvā prāṇināṁ deham āśhritaḥ ।
prāṇāpāna-samāyuktaḥ pachāmy annaṁ chatur-vidham॥

- Bhagavad Gita, Chapter IV, Verse 24 and Chapter XV, Verse 14

The offering of this food is the One we call the Brahman, All That Is and Consciousness. Tthe very act of offering, the one who makes the offering and the very fire that digests the food itself is also the same One.
We realize and awaken to the truth that the One permeates it all and exists in and as every act and thing.
Taking the form of the Agni -fire of digestion in the bellies of all living beings, and the mingling of subtle breaths, it digests and assimilates the four kinds of food to nourish our body-minds.

Food consumed with sacred intention post prayers is Prasadam (Consecrated food) and considered healing and life giving. If you plan to give this practice a try, I would love to hear how this experience is unfolding for you.

May our practices help us recognize and experience the already present and available gift of our abundant health and well-being.
May we all awaken to live our most expansive, alive, and vibrant selves!
So it is, and so it shall be.
Much love
❤🙏

Scientific Study on the lunar cycle: effects on human and animal behavior and physiology — https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16407788