I would love to quote a piece of literature about the essence and effects of fasting below, as it is also an important part of the Vision Quest. Namely during the Vision Quest, three days and nights, one does not eat (in most cases). I can really feel resonance with the viewpoint, as described below by Steven and Meredith. Residing from my own personal experience with fasting. I have noticed that some of us find the idea of not eating for a long(er) duration of time scary, strange or simply don't see the point. I surely do, I have felt it's effect on my body and spirit. How it was a strong and supportive force during the journeys that I made to and in my inner world. And I am certainly not the only one. 'Of all traditional acts of self-empowerment, fasting is the most universal. The empty, quivering sensations at the pit of your stomach are more than hunger. You are experiencing emptiness of self. You are letting go of the toxins and poisons of your spiritual (and physical) food. Since the dawn of human history, our ancestors have forged this bond between physical, psychological, mental and spiritual purification. "When your mind is empty like a valley or a canyon, then you shall know the power of the Way," said an old medicine man. It is not contradictory to associate weakness and emptiness with strength and fullness. The acquisition of personal power is more characterized by shaky knees than by physical prowess. Fasting produces states of being that attract and begin to store large amounts of power and energy. Even as the heart cannot be mended unless it has been broken, so the vessel cannot be filled until it stands empty. A fast does not harm anyone who is prepared and who has dedicated the fasting to some purpose other than personal gain (or weight loss). Fasts up to a week long are quite possible and even beneficial to many individuals who might never consider fasting. One might think that in a land of abundance like America, fasting would "go out of style." This has not occured. There are many individuals of diverse persuasions who consider fasting to be neiher foolish nor weird. They fast because it is a practical, time-honored means of attaining clarity. The physical effects of a fast are usually far less upsetting than the psychological effects. With no meals to organize your day around, you are going without modern life's most common security blanket. Fasting will teach you a great deal about your psychological need for structure. You will find out how much of your physical hunger is really just social programming. Remember that one can go for several weeks without food - and live' (The trail to the Sacred Mountain, Steven Foster and Meredith Little). Psychosomatic feelings of weakness are common. The link between the physcial states of being and memory is accentuated. Much of our time is lived in memory. Ever-so-subtly, irrelevant memories fade from consciousness. You will find yourself increasingly capable of remembering clearly, and of looking into the mirror of the natural world, in which those memories and feelings are reflected. The second day of a fast is often the hardest. You may feel weak, dizzy, and experience nausea or vertigo. Often, by a third day, physical hunger is a thing of the past. You have attained a kind of acuity akin to the "seeing" of the heart. This altered state of awareness does not change until food is again introduced into your system.' Lastly, fasting in the complete absence of food is not possible for every 'body.' We can think of suffering from a certain physical or psychological disease or when medication needs to be taken. This always needs to be consulted with the doctor and guides.
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> With dirty hair, heavenly armpits, an empty stomach, and nothing to do, I have always felt there was everything to do. Enabling myself to finally and truly start to listen to my own inner world. To my pains, my frustrations, my power, my shadows, my beauty, my life, my direction. And oh boy, that was really about time. Happy fasting,
Inez