Before Nirjala Ekadashi can we take some juices or pills to increase our fasting capacity?

Answer Podcast

so thank you very much so if for doing nirjala ekadashi say we take some tablets or take some juices before we before the fasting time begins see we can’t cheat the body so the important thing in fasting is to fix the mind on Krishna and while fixing the mind on Krishna if we can fast, it’s good now the success of nirjala ekadashi is not just being nirjala the success of nirjala ekadashi is being Krishna conscious so if now there are three ways this can work out one is that we make our plan tomorrow I am going to fast and I know it’s going to be difficult to tolerate so I become absorbed in Krishna and then I become so absorbed in Krishna so busy that I don’t feel the pangs of the body so much so if that is happening where the absorption in Krishna helps us to rise above bodily pangs that is the best the second is we feel the bodily pangs and then the bodily pangs make us no I have to take shelter of Krishna and then we take shelter of Krishna as soon as I stop chanting the stomach is the rats are howling in the stomach but then I remember Krishna and then I absorb myself in Krishna I can tolerate so that’s good but if say somehow different people have different body types some people’s body is very difficult to fast if you are getting acidity if you are feeling like fainting if you are just having too much prominence then it might just be just take some water, take some drinks take something and just keep moving on so I remember I was in Kharagpur maybe 10 years ago so one devotee wanted to fast and it was so hot and at night the fan also the electricity went off so that devotee he didn’t want to take water so at night he took bath 12 times at night because it was so hot I told him better drink some water he wasted so much time what is the point in that so now if certain things like this can help us if we know that I have particular body weakness and taking some pill or taking some drink can boost me up then and can help me to fast that’s fine but the thing is that we don’t have to spend a lot of time and energy I do google and do research and read 100 pages what is the best way to fast and then more than thinking about Krishna I am thinking about how to succeed in tricking the body into fasting so if the fasting itself becomes the definition of our success it can lead to problems in two ways one way is that if I don’t fast I become totally disheartened and the mind is so tricky that it will say that now you have fallen fall down completely you can’t fast you can’t fast nirjal then don’t just take water take juice, take food, take everything so if I can’t fast in this level, I will fast in this level so if we define our success in terms of not doing something, if we can’t do it we just become too disheartened on the other hand if we define our success in terms of our capacity to do something then we can become very proud say we are fasting nirjal and then we go to the kitchen to see who is eating what so attached hopeless sense gratifiers so what is happening our body is fasting but our ego is feasting so the important thing is to be Krishna centered if we are centered on Krishna and if fasting inspires us to become more centered on Krishna, that’s the best if the fasting causes so much pain that we are not able to be centered on Krishna then better to take something and again become centered on Krishna thank you very much Hare Krishna