I love this time of year. The month of Ala (Loftiness) in the Baha’i Faith is a month of Fasting. From sunrise to sunset Baha’is from age 15 to 70 abstain from food and drink for 19 days. It is a time of spiritual cleansing and rebirth before the new year, which occurs on the Spring Equinox. During this month I get up before sunrise, pray and have breakfast before watching the dawn splendor. And then I am surprised at how the challenge of not consuming food turns out to be barely a challenge at all. The key is prayer. Whenever I get hungry I turn my thoughts towards God and through prayer I am able to transcend my material self.

This morning my Dad jested that he was surprised to see me up during the daylight, commenting that he was beginning to worry that I was becoming nocturnal. I explained it was the Fast, and he responded “I didn’t think the Baha’is had any weird rules.” This took me aback a little. Fasting is a spiritual activity that occurs in just about every religion so I never thought it would be viewed as ‘weird’, but in this increasingly material and secular society I guess it could be viewed that way. I think these are the two biggest challenges of the fast for me: changing my sleeping habits, and responding to other people’s views with grace. When you are tired and haven’t eaten it’s easy to be cranky, but the whole point of the Fast is to challenge oneself to grow spiritually, which includes treating all with love and friendliness.

Many people challenge me saying that it isn’t healthy to abstain from food and drink. Sure, for a longer period of time that would be true, but I make sure to eat before dawn and to break fast at sunset in a balanced way. I think it is also important to experience hunger to develop sympathy for those in this world for which hunger is not a choice. In the end I am choosing to give up food because I see a spiritual benefit from it, much like how Gandhi performed hunger strikes or Catholics give up a luxury for Lent, but it is still a choice. At the same time I don’t see it as a choice because in my faith it is an obligation, a pillar to show my devotion to and gratitude for God. I fast because I love God and this is my way of both thanking God and developing spiritual tools to walk the path of love and service. And with that I will leave you with a quote about the Fast which lifts my heart:

“These are the days of the Fast. Blessed is the one who through the heat generated by the Fast increaseth his love, and who, with joy and radiance, ariseth to perform worthy deeds. Verily, He guideth whomsoever He willeth to the straight path.” ~Baha’u'llah