India is a fascinating country with varied cultures and languages across its immense vastness. It has a rich and distinct culinary legacy, but its size and diversity makes it difficult to keep track of the many names for various food items or the multitude of ingredients used by people from different States, speaking various dialects What binds India together is spirituality, which I believe is not a religion but a way of life, allowing each one of us to believe in what appeals to us. It could be gods and goddess, saints (seers and fakirs included), or simply the faith in a superpower that controls living and being. This way of life has, over the centuries, bred tolerance and acceptance of different views.
India is often described as a country of fasts, feasts and festivals. Fasting is a pan-religion tradition to please god by controlling and curbing one's desires. It is a feature of Hinduism, the Islamic Ramzan, the Christian Lent, the Jains Pariyushan and so on. It a ritual followed all over India in order to purify the body and soul. In this book, I have referred to Hindu fasts since they are what I am familiar with. However, the recipes can be used by anyone of any faith
Fasting is termed upvas in Hindi, although it is derived from Sanskrit. Up means 'near and vas means 'to reside. It suggests that by observing upvas and thereby practicing austerity, one comes closer to God. Therefore, during upvas, the meals have to be satvik (believed to be the food of the gods), and not tamsi (which give rise to emotions such as anger, violence and sexual desire). That was how it was originally meant to be. However, over the centuries, these concepts have changed and adapted themselves to the times and peoples' levels of practised tolerance.
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