There are many among you, I know, mostly women, who practise fasts. But, there is a limit to austerity, which they do not respect! There is a meaning in fasting which they do not understand!
They fast on Monday for it is the day of Shiva, on Tuesday for it is sacred to Lakshmi, on Wednes, day for some other God, on Thursday for Me(!) on Friday again for Lakshmi, on Saturday, to propitiate Shani and on Sunday, for the Sun! Lal Bahadur Shastry, that good and simple man, pleaded that you miss a meal on Monday nights, but, these misdirected aspirants spoil their health and well-being by overdoing the vow of fasting.
Periodical fasting is prescribed in order to help the system overhaul itself and to give much needed rest to the processes. Again during the fast, you must not be aware of hunger at all! Are you sure that it is so? You must free yourself from all thought of food and concentrate on the thought of God. If thoughts of food bother you, if pangs of hunger disturb you, then, it is much better to eat and then start Sadhana. Upavasa, the word for the vow of fasting, means ‘living in the proximity of God’ (Upa-near; vasa-living) and so, the vow is meant to liberate you from the worry and bother of preparing and eating food, so that you might dwell more intimately with God. Remember that the purpose of Fast is spending time in the contemplation of God and not simply punishing the body by cutting a meal or a series of meals.
Vows, vigils, fasts, etc. along with all kinds of voluntarily imposed or involuntarily suffered hardships are to be looked upon as promoting spiritual strength, not as weakening physical stamina. They dig around the roots and make the plant grow fast. They clip the wayward twigs and make the tree tall and truly trim. (SSS Vol. 6, p. 7)
The great spiritual masters Ramakrishna Paramahamsa, Vivekananda, Tulsidas, Ramadas, Kabir and others--were men who led supremely contented lives. There were numerous occasions when they could not get even food to eat. They regarded such occasions as invitations by God to observe upavasam (fasting) as food for the Spirit. They enjoyed such fasts by contemplation of God. When they were entertained to a rich repast, they considered the feast as a gift from God to make up for the fast they had observed. Whether it was a fast or feast, they looked on both with the same sense of contented acceptance. They were not depressed by the former or elated by the latter.
Samatvam yoga mucyathe, says the Gita, (Equal-mindedness is yoga). The ancient sages practised such equal-mindedness. And this should be taught to our young people and cultivated by them. It is the index of contentment. One who has achieved contentment can enjoy the bliss of Divine grace. (SSS Vol.20, p. 12)