FAST (Necessary Permission For)

"With reference to your son's request for advice regarding the observance of

the Bahá'í Fast; much as the Guardian realizes the difficulty which a

believer of his position, attending a military school, will have to encounter

if he wishes to strictly conform to the regulations of the Fast, he

nevertheless would advise him to make every effort to obtain from the school

authorities the necessary permission. In case his request is refused the only

alternative for him would be to obey his superior."
Directives From the Guardian
page 27 no 70

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71 FASTING (The Ordinance of)

"As regards fasting, it constitutes, together with the obligatory prayers,

the two pillars that sustain the revealed Law of God. They act as stimulants

to the soul, strengthen, revive and purify it, and thus insure its steady

development."

"The ordinance of fasting is, as is the case with these three prayers

(obligatory) a spiritual and vital obligation enjoined by Bahá'u'lláh upon

every believer who has attained the age of fifteen. In the Aqdas He thus

writes: `We have commanded you to pray and fast from the beginning of

maturity; this is ordained by God, your Lord and the Lord of your

forefathers. He has exempted from this those who are weak from illness or

age, as a bounty from His Presence, and He is the Forgiving, the Generous.'

"And in another passage He says: `We have enjoined upon you fasting during a

brief period, and at its close have designated for you Naw-Rúz as a Feast...

The traveller, the ailing, those who are with child or giving suck, are not

bound by the Fast... Abstain from food and drink, from sunrise to sundown,

and beware lest desire deprive you of this grace that is appointed in the

Book.'

"Also in the `Questions and Answers' that form an appendix to the Aqdas,

Bahá'u'lláh reveals the following: `Verily, I say that God has appointed a

Great station for fasting and prayer. But during good health its benefit is

evident, and when one is ill, it is not permissible to fulfill them.'

Concerning the age of maturity, He reveals in the appendix of that same Book:

`The age of maturity is in the fifteenth year; women and men are alike in

this respect.' Regarding the vital character and importance of the Divine

ordinances and laws, and the necessity of complete obedience to them by the

believers, we thus read in the Gleanings, p. 175:

`Know verily that the essence of justice and the source

thereof are both embodied in the ordinance prescribed by Him

Who is the Manifestation of the Self of God amongst men, if

ye be of them that recognize this truth. He doth verily incarnate

the highest, the infallible standard of justice unto all creation.

Were His law to be such as to strike terror in the

hearts of all that are in heaven and on earth, that law is naught

but manifest justice. The fears and agitation which the revelation

of this law provoke in men's hearts should indeed be

likened to the cries of the suckling babe weaned from his

mother's milk, if ye be of them that perceive...'

"The fasting period, which lasts nineteen days starting as a rule from the

second of March every year and ending on the twentieth of the same month,

involves complete abstention from food and drink from sunrise till sunset. It

is essentially a period of meditation and prayer, of spiritual recuperation,

during which the believer must strive to make the necessary readjustments in

his inner life, and to refresh and reinvigorate the spiritual forces latent

in his soul. Its significance and purpose are, therefore, fundamentally

spiritual in character. Fasting is symbolic, and a reminder of abstinence

from selfish and carnal desires."
Directives From the Guardian
pages 27-29



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Directives From the Guardian
72 FAST (THE)

"Regarding your question concerning the Fast: Travellers are exempt from

fasting, but if they want to fast while they are travelling, they are free to

do so. You are exempt the whole period of your travel, not just the hours you

are in a train or car, etc. If one eats unconsciously during the fasting

hours, this is not breaking the Fast as it is an accident. The age limit is

70 years, but if one desires to fast after the age limit is passed, and is

strong enough to, one is free to do so. If during the Fast period a person

falls ill and is unable to fast, but recovers before the Fast period is over,

he can start to fast again and continue until the end. Of course the Fast, as

you know, can only be kept during the month set aside for that purpose."
Directives From the Guardian
page 29====

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