Cooking for myself?

[jayaisvara 0]

If I were to seriously take up sadhana, should I cook my own food(especially if other family members are not familiar with Gaudiya Vaisnavism) and give it to Lord and then take remnants? I am having a debate about this with my mother and I need to know what to do. There are so many things that she restricts me from doing. On ekadasi's, I can't fast, if its on work days(because I have to go to college) and also even if its ekadasi on weekends or holidays, I can fast only until 12 noon. I don't know if this is the reason why I can't seem to advance any further. I'd love to read your comments, thanks.

[Guest guest]

are you speaking of complete fasting or abstaining only from cereals and legumes?

 

[jayaisvara 0]

Only taking fruits, vegetables, milk, nuts and water.

[Guest guest]

many young devotees all over the world have big problems in being accepted as in the family as vegetarians and they are strict to eat (and offer) not exactly pure food being cooked and stored aside meat and eggs

 

i think that you simply have to be happy.. to chant harekrishna... and to pray krsna to help you in the future to celebrate ekadasi in the proper way

 

the significance of ekadasi fasting is essentially to have to put less time in cooking and more time in chanting and reading scriptures

 

if you do it, even if you do not eat in the proper way, your ekadasi vow is essentially fulfilled

 

that's my opinion

[Pankaja_Dasa 1]

 

 

I find it very difficult to fast on Ekadasi and other days. Tell you the truth sometimes I don't at all. I doubt the reason for anything else going on is the cause of what you percieve to be going on.

 

As for your mother offering food or not. I think you need to ask her. Just say could you offer some food to picture of Lord Gauranga whos Krishna Himself. Explain deeply {by deep I mean anything you learnt}. Er its not easy thats all I have to say. Nothing ever is.

[Priitaa 0]

Too many new devotees get lost in worrying about total fasting, etc. If we are thinking about how hungry we are, then the goal of fasting is defeated. The idea is to be more faciliated to think/meditate on Krishna more, chant japa more, read more, etc. But if our consciousness is one of food, or lack of food (same thing really) then its not serving the purpose. If one can fast and NOT think of food, great. If one's mind is drifting too much in the direction of hunger and eating, then eat and go chant, read, serve, etc. (By the way, Prabhupada made it easy for us by making acceptable things like peanuts, tapioca, and other nongrain filling foods.)