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Fasting and marriage

A spiritual discourse on fasting, marriage rituals, and cultural traditions.

"Previously, people came to spirituality in this manner. They would say, 'On this day or that day, I will fast.'"

"And now they are like this: even the little child, and they both go away. The wife goes away, or the husband goes away, and like this. This is nothing, that's it."

The lecturer leads a satsang, discussing the spiritual discipline of fasting across religions and the traditional Hindu marriage ceremony. He explains the symbolic meaning of rituals, such as a couple circling the sacred fire, and laments the loss of respect and lifelong commitment in modern relationships. He shares an anecdote about performing a marriage ceremony for a foreign couple and emphasizes mutual respect between husband and wife as the foundation of a spiritual life.

Filming location: Strilky, Czech Republic

It is not easy to fast for half a day, but you must understand this practice, and you have the energy to do it well. Why do we observe a fast day? In the church, there were many people with differences; some were one way, others another. In India, this practice was very prevalent. But now, people lack the spiritual and physical discipline for lifelong observance. It is not easy for people. Previously, people came to spirituality in this manner. They would say, "On this day or that day, I will fast." For example, among Muslims—I believe it is for one month—they cannot drink water during the day. They can drink, but whether it is very hot or cold, on that day, the Muslims observe it with great respect and devotion for their dear ones. In the morning, after midnight or so, they eat and drink. But when the sun rises, they will not eat or drink until sunset. They understand according to their tradition. Before, many others, including Hindus, also practiced like this. But now, many Hindus cannot manage even for one day. A man might say he is working and going there, and his wife is at home. She will not eat or drink for that one day of ceremonies, and this is very nice. Some people take three days: two days eating and then one day of observance—this day, that day. Why is this? Long ago, they established this practice for concentration and everything. But then some said, "No, I will not do this and that," and they came to another point: this is for the animals. Thus, Hindus, for the cows—we give more food and such, not only the Pandits but all people. They give in this way for the cows. So then, what people said is, "We would like to fast for the cows. We will have pūjā and such." Others said you should fast for your health. "On this day, don't drink or eat, or practice like this," many things. But then they said, "No, I don't want to," or "I cannot," and so on. Then they brought in mostly the women. The women still observe it... once a day or differently. In a week, twice, they eat nothing, and first they perform ceremonies. You know, there is one tree, a bush. What we call Tulasī—you know the Tulasī—so Tulasī is very spiritual. They perform ceremonies for Śiva or Viṣṇu. There is one tree, and they keep it in their house inside. What does it do? The women wake up very early. First, they go to the bathroom and perform seva. After that, they perform the pūjā. They have fire, a little good water from this, and some things for the Tulasī. So she makes here, like this, fire, a little lamp or light, and everything is there. She praṇāms, and then she goes inside the house. After that, she prepares the water there, and it is for her husband. They have so much respect, and this is for everybody to be... yes, it will be. My life will be great. And so she brings, and she also gives something for her husband. The husband wakes up, he goes to the bathroom and everything, and he comes at that time. Already, his wife has prepared that milk. We did not know this coffee or chai, tea. It was either milk or yogurt with water; we could make it. Our drinking, like this coffee and tea, may have come about, let's say, 90 years ago. Before, there was none. More at the beginning, it is about 200 years or something like this. There was no tea and none of this at that time. Milk, ghee, good fruits—that's it. And there, in India, some few people didn't have their children or cows or any animals like this. All neighbors, people, would bring them milk or other fruits or anything. So, people respected each other, and that point always remained. Then, for me, because we have the cows, our holy cows, and all other animals also. We give to the animals and many things. What, then, about the trees? So, trees, there are different kinds of birds, and they are also so respectful. They all come to them in this way. During marriages, there are so many ceremonies, many, many ceremonies. They perform with the fire very nicely, like we are making like this, like this, and we make that. Then first the wife goes in front. She goes first three times. They go, husband and wife. They are going around. So first is the wife, and husband at the backside. They are holding each other with one... so your husband is at the back, and she is taking the back side, going in the front. After three times, she is going first, and the boy is going at the back side. Then they remain for a while, and the Pandit or familiar person, who is it? Then they said, "Now the husband will be in the front, and see the backside." Why? Because if anything happens in the front, then the husband is to hold her like this, to protect her from everything. Before, why did she take the front? Because she gave her this: that if anything happens, you should know, and I am for you. Back and the front, both sides' protection for his wife. And then they sit together, and they bore Dimmik Malan. They are holding like this. The long shirt is very nice, and... Then after, when they are going, then there is only the one, the... what is this? Something, salt. So he is holding like this, and she also with her. So why is this? It is always said, "I will do this, I will be... will I do that? I will that." First is the woman's. Give them the first time and everything, and then the husband also always, he is, what does he give? Everything to his wife. So when the husband goes, they are working somewhere where you are working and earning money. They give the money every day. Maybe so, money comes. Money is in his pocket, that this boy. And when his wife steps in the house, then first his husband gives all money to her, and all the good things, all give it to her, yes. And so she will take the money and put it somewhere where she is managing. He will not say, "Give it to me," and this, no. And she is respecting very much. She is doing everything good with what she likes, this, this... And also, she puts a little bit of money in your pocket, not too much, yes, and why? To buy something, and this, that does his wife. So that was such a great respect on both sides, and that time, when you are married, that's the whole life, that's it. And now they are like this: even the little child, and they both go away. The wife goes away, or the husband goes away, and like this. This is nothing, that's it. So there is a... how to do? We had in Jordan when I was there one month, nearly a month already from the one month there. And so from Australia, Croatia, and from there one couple, they said, "Swamiji, please, can you do a marriage ceremony, please? Can you? They want to, we want to marry, and we will all be very good." But please, said good, that's there. So I said, "I will go to Jodhpur, Jaipur, and..." and this go to boys and girls, they don't know how to do, what to do. "Don't worry, I will make a marriage ceremony, how, what it will be." And then our Indians, the girls and Pandit, I met there, very nice, and they were sitting there. They don't know how to do what they do. So, so that Indians, they gave both girls and boys the dress, and how it is the dress, well, the gold and this and how things and. Like a good dress is like this, and like this is like that, and he has something. It is true that he comes, and he has like this, and many ceremonies like this. It's very, very good, it was. And they don't know what to do. How to do this? So I put two children, men. One girl, girls for the girl, the lady, and one man for his men. Men, for it. And they were sitting beside, and everything they do, what they like, you were with them. No, from India, who was it? Can you tell me? Stand up, stand up, please. Yeah, they are married. You must stand up. Yeah, stand up, all, everybody. Yes, and they were also very happy. Please sit down. So in Jaipur, Jordan, in Jordan, they were managing this very nice house. And so our people were also, they were married in India, in Europe, and how. So they said, "I think I would marry like how Indians are doing." Yes, yes, really it was. They were tired, and they didn't know how to do it. And many of the people came, they gave very nice dressing, the door, what is canning? With money, and money, not like this, you know, no, no,... money, like this, like this,... Yes, it was beautiful that in that way, then they make first see, and they say, "All yes, this is a here." Christian Havoc is saying, "I see the first, the girls. She gave them something about this or this, and then the man, man gives no, yeah." And then the coming, looking this one like this, some, yeah, ring, ring... So first, get to her, and then to him, and after 10 days she goes away. And this is the Kali Yuga, you know, the Kali Yuga. So, but in that, how they, how people did and are doing. At that time, people in all these countries, and other countries also, were really very peaceful and very good to each other, like this. So then, they did not... they did anything also like this, and then everything is gone. We should... we should have... For our friends, our neighbors, our parents, everything we are, you have here in your countries. Here, a little, little cut of the web. There is every hour, good at home, they will tell something, this or this, like this. This is that. Is the humans, and this is the humans, how it making? And so then they didn't, did not want to do something. Then what they said? "We make prasāda, and we give ceremonies, and every day we are making something to eat and drink," they say. But not, it is like this for this, but it is because of the god, the moon. Which moon? When we do everything, it is that very much, and this we have in the books. Everything, really. And this, that time, in this, what we are doing immediately, immediately. In your life, it becomes immediately quick if you are both together and respecting. Not your money is always to your wife. Yes, you can go to bring something. She's going to buy for him everything. He should stand; he's standing beside, but she's... Can you see with yes? That's okay. He said, "I have this color or this color." Then he said to yes to his wife, and she said, "Of course, it is yours, for you." So it was a respect, very nice. And so, as I was practicing this morning in that, it... What is written in this? All points inside there are that point. Tomorrow, I am going to give to some people about, yeah, Jyotiṣ is everybody, but so we've come to my room there downstairs, and many they have. Said that they want to have this mantra. Mantra is very important. Respect this is very good. And so, more or less, I said, Mahāprabhujī's, and Mahāprabhujī's, what is there? Mahāprabhujī's saying is for everyone, perfect. So it is Oṁ Prabhudeep Niranjan Śabdukha Bhanjan. Yes, so, and those may not need, or they will. They have to do; they know they have learned everything. Everything, Oṁ Prabhudeep Niranjan Śabda Gvanjan. But there it is like this. There is a boy and there are girls. Okay, we don't know. Yeah? But we said there is one girl and one is a boy. But how? But then, when we said marriage, then coming to, and where if spirituality is working, and this and that, and so you also, you have, you have heard that mantra from others and this, but then you have to come to the guru, Gurudev. That, and it will come and give you this and this, and then on the head here. So, on the head here means the whole body respects, you know? It's, we give them like this. So, when you are, any persons, they are, they are height from this, or... First man, or like this, he will go to the other one whose hand is like this. And we also do in India, also know that we have somebody coming, then yāgas. There is who we tell, "Yes, hello, this is hello." This is, of course, we have, everybody knows so. This is spirituality. It is there, so then automatically in our whole body and in our heart, very good. All that is always in the different countries. And then many countries in India also. India is a very big country. It is the fifth, fourth biggest, the fourth, so. This is there, of course there is language there, there is other language, there is other language, so we have how many languages? So we have very many languages, about 20, 30, or 50, I don't know, please. Yeah, but then they have made it a language, Hindi, the Hindi language. And others, other countries have this, not country, but this. So, everyone, they have then where they are, which kind of there, where there is very little water and where there is a lot of water. So India is a very big and very big beginning. They have dancing, any good things. This is, but also that time. When they marry, after, they cannot go, and they are both, yes, but now, as people begin to learn many things and become good and become professors and like this, then one likes and the other doesn't like, and now the women also are very good, study very much, very good. Now, in our India, a great person is first, which is one woman. And this is very great. She is very great. And I think yesterday or the day before yesterday, they had her ceremony, a very big one. So she is the whole Indian, whole; she is that. Yes, very good. So it must not be only men. It's a woman's also, and study very much. So, you know, did you have her heard this up? Yeah, when? First for that scale, Rāṣṭrapati, but I mean, see the woman's here. Yes, so don't think that in India there are only women who are not good. Now everything is there, very great. See, little, little people are talking. This, this is that is nothing, but where, who, how, and how they have done, and then that is very, very important, this. So this way, you could see in your life, and we will also—that's why I'm telling—we should practice, and that you speak to your family. Speak: what is this, and what is not? So it will come again, but it is already beginning, very beginning, that it will come back again. Otherwise, Kali Yuga is beginning. Yes. So there is a very big, very big thing still to do, but very few people are very good. In your country is very good, other countries very good, yes. At home we are all good, but there are something, this is not good, and that is not like this. So this is be self, myself, and you are my, my brother. My brother, my yogī, everything I am is for you, and you are for me also. How you are sitting, very good. Nobody's speaking, and whatever I tell, you are listening. And I am also looking at everything, seeing everything, giving some words, and we are this. So in this life, it is called the humans. I told you yesterday, every day I'm telling, jīva-jīva-bhakṣate. All creatures, each and every creature is there, eating and kicking that cell. But from that it comes, Kheḍā, what we call the Hindu. Hindu. All Hindus are humans. Humans. So humans, Śiva has brought. Others are gone like this. But of course, again it happens that when it is given to the humans, and like this, then they say to God, or what, who is, that we don't want to believe anything. We will kill the... So you know that they were running behind Śiva. They want to kill Śiva like this, and so they see there, live near with us, but we cannot see them. They see us like this. And where there is that, you know, then still you don't see. But you have all good things and peace and everything for you, as you are the humans. And that human is the god for everybody. In that way, we are in our practice. Tomorrow we will have again, my god, it is already three days, three or four. I have two, three practices and very many things to do. Oh yeah, it will come again. We will come again, so your practice and everything, and today I also told that we will go to the forest with my car, and people, all, few came and few did not, and it was beautiful, very nice. Everybody says, "Thank you, our ashram is very good." Thank you, and now we will do something, okay? Śrī Deepnān Bhagavān Dev Purīśaṅmare Jai Mahājan Bhajan Jī Bhagavān, Jai Satya Sanātan Dharma, Jai.

This text is transcribed and grammar corrected by AI. If in doubt what was actually said in the recording, use the transcript to double click the desired cue. This will position the recording in most cases just before the sentence is uttered.

The text contains hyperlinks in bold to three authoritative books on yoga, written by humans, to clarify the context of the lecture:

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