Improvement of awareness and concentration skills with fasting,

Improvement of awareness and concentration skills with fasting, aurélien berthomé 4/10/13 5:45 PM
RE: Improvement of awareness and concentration skills with fasting, Ian And 4/10/13 7:50 PM
RE: Improvement of awareness and concentration skills with fasting, Cedric . 4/10/13 9:15 PM
RE: Improvement of awareness and concentration skills with fasting, Richard Zen 4/29/13 7:08 PM
RE: Improvement of awareness and concentration skills with fasting, Karalee Peltomaa 8/4/14 6:37 PM
RE: Improvement of awareness and concentration skills with fasting, Karalee Peltomaa 8/4/14 6:11 PM
RE: Improvement of awareness and concentration skills with fasting, Karalee Peltomaa 8/4/14 6:05 PM
RE: Improvement of awareness and concentration skills with fasting, Jenny 8/4/14 10:12 PM
RE: Improvement of awareness and concentration skills with fasting, tom moylan 4/11/13 6:04 AM
RE: Improvement of awareness and concentration skills with fasting, Karalee Peltomaa 8/4/14 6:16 PM
RE: Improvement of awareness and concentration skills with fasting, katy steger,thru11.6.15 with thanks 4/11/13 6:29 AM
RE: Improvement of awareness and concentration skills with fasting, Alesh Vyhnal 4/29/13 9:47 AM
RE: Improvement of awareness and concentration skills with fasting, Alesh Vyhnal 4/29/13 9:51 AM
RE: Improvement of awareness and concentration skills with fasting, Karalee Peltomaa 8/4/14 6:24 PM
RE: Improvement of awareness and concentration skills with fasting, Karalee Peltomaa 8/4/14 6:20 PM
RE: Improvement of awareness and concentration skills with fasting, Karalee Peltomaa 8/4/14 5:57 PM
RE: Improvement of awareness and concentration skills with fasting, John M. 8/4/14 6:23 PM
RE: Improvement of awareness and concentration skills with fasting, Karalee Peltomaa 8/4/14 6:52 PM
aurélien berthomé, modified 10 Years ago at 4/10/13 5:45 PM
Created 10 Years ago at 4/10/13 5:45 PM

Improvement of awareness and concentration skills with fasting,

Posts: 12 Join Date: 12/15/12 Recent Posts
Hi everyone,


I'm kind of exprimenting different things these days, and I think I stumbled on to something really interesting that might help some dark night yogis that might have trouble to get rid of their dark stuff and because of that are lacking concentration skills, which is obviously something very useful to progress.
I don't claim anything, and I consider myself still at the beginning of the process leading to enlightenment, but I know that I've done a lot of cleaning of emotional blockages, since the beginning of my spiritual practices, which started only a little more than one year ago. And I recently was able to try fasting for the first time, I did it for 2 days, it was a hydric fast, and I've never felt so much energized, the first day was the hardest, especially during the night because, you can clearly feel your body detoxifying all the craps you stored into it during all those years of eating. But as soon as I went beyond that first day, after that, all my senses started to open, like I could smell a lot of smells in nature, and my awareness increased a lot too, and all my meditation sessions were quiet easy, not struggling, not forcing anything, everything was just happening kind of spontaneously. I did another fast of 2 days, one week later, and experienced exactly kind of same things. I've been a vegetarian for one year now, and I think, that the fasting period might be easier depending of the type of diet that you have, if you eat a lot of junk food, and eat meat, it might not be as easy as it seems, but I can't really tell it's only a guess I've never fast when I was a meat eater. So and because of those experiences, I'm getting more and more interested into the breatharianism lifestyle, and I see it as something complementary to my other spiritual practices. So I just wanted to share that, because I know how difficult it is to deal with the dark stuff coming out of our minds. So by fasting you might not get 1st path or 2nd path or whatever, but you might get relieved of some annoying stuff, which might help you to progress further and faster, and with more motivation on the path that you chose. That's it, I wish good luck to everyone, and I congratulate all of you for having the courage to go beyond your limits to find what life is all about.

Metta to All of you

Aurélien
thumbnail
Ian And, modified 10 Years ago at 4/10/13 7:50 PM
Created 10 Years ago at 4/10/13 7:50 PM

RE: Improvement of awareness and concentration skills with fasting,

Posts: 785 Join Date: 8/22/09 Recent Posts
Thanks for posting about your experiences with fasting. Very interesting.

I'm interested in the health benefits. Anyone over 55 will know what I'm talking about, all the little aches and pains that come with the aging process. So, I'll have to give a go on this 61 year old body.

Anyone wanting to learn more might find this website of interest:

http://www.allaboutfasting.com/benefits-of-fasting.html

Water fasting offers the quickest detox and strongest therapeutic effect. It is also the most challenging fast to perform in the first few days. Careful preparation in the days before a water fast can make all the difference in your level of comfort, but the emotional challenge will still be great. Getting professional supervision is an option and is recommended for a water fast longer than 3 days. See the Who Can Fast page to make sure you meet the criteria necessary for fasting. . . .

The speed at which old conditions can right themselves during a water fast is incredible. It's amazing the little health "issues" that just go away – the mole that just drops off, the shoulder that's been achy for years suddenly feels well again, that little patch of "weird" skin you've grown accustomed to vanishes without a trace...and those are just the little things. Fasting can even alleviate some "big" things, but if you have major health conditions, you may benefit from having professional supervision.
thumbnail
Cedric , modified 10 Years ago at 4/10/13 9:15 PM
Created 10 Years ago at 4/10/13 9:15 PM

RE: Improvement of awareness and concentration skills with fasting,

Posts: 89 Join Date: 12/25/12 Recent Posts
Though I do some intermittent fasting (max 24 hrs) and consistently only eat two meals a day, I would advise caution with fasts over 24 hr. I am not saying not to do them, but to be careful with them.
I do like eating only two meals a day as it saves time for other activities, and gives your digestive system a break.
That's my two cents.
thumbnail
tom moylan, modified 10 Years ago at 4/11/13 6:04 AM
Created 10 Years ago at 4/11/13 6:03 AM

RE: Improvement of awareness and concentration skills with fasting,

Posts: 896 Join Date: 3/7/11 Recent Posts
Hi Aurelian,
i've done LOTS of fasting over the years. there are many different types and reasons to fast and almost all of them good. i have done weeks of fasting using the master cleanser fast (not a brand, something you can make yourself) with great effect. i often do juice fasts combined with blue green algea (spirulina or chlorella) which theoretically detoxifies by sucking accumulated heavy metals out of your intestines. my experience shows that it works wonders for me but i can't speak to the actual mechanisms.

the first benefit of fasting is that it makes much more of your energy available which would otherwise be utilized by the ongoing digestion process. its difficult to overestimate how much energy those processes require. the second benefit is that during this time of rest, the intestines wil begin cleaning themselves; an opportunity they don't often have in our modern world. this second (cleaning) benefit can be assisted vith enemas or flushes, enemas are far healthier if not so discussible :-)

the clarity of mind and "lightness of being" associated with fasting is well known and often commented upon. in most retreat situations one takes a vow not to eat after 12:00 noon. this is not a random act of torture but rather an acknowlegment that one can indeed concentrate better when not "full". in several places in the suttas manipulating intake of food is used as a gross way of influencing subtle mind states and tendencies.

by the way, we mostly associate fasting with hunger. generally, if one fasts "correctly", using enemas etc. one does not suffer hunger any more than usual and is mostly absent after day 2. the habit of chewing and enjoying food is largely a psychological phenomena which is not difficult to handle for most people.

have fun.

tom
thumbnail
katy steger,thru11615 with thanks, modified 10 Years ago at 4/11/13 6:29 AM
Created 10 Years ago at 4/11/13 6:29 AM

RE: Improvement of awareness and concentration skills with fasting,

Posts: 1740 Join Date: 10/1/11 Recent Posts
Nice! I was just meeting with a friend about this last week and am starting a longer fast on Sunday. It can be nice to have moral support for the first 1-2 days, so maybe grab a buddy emoticon

Good luck all!

Ian, when are you kicking yours off?
thumbnail
Alesh Vyhnal, modified 10 Years ago at 4/29/13 9:47 AM
Created 10 Years ago at 4/29/13 9:47 AM

RE: Improvement of awareness and concentration skills with fasting,

Posts: 130 Join Date: 2/14/13 Recent Posts
Just be careful about the quite dramatic decrease of blood pressure, which continues for some time even after you begin to eat again. If you lie down and then get up, do it slowly. My longest water fast was 10 days for health reasons. Now I mustn't fast since I take many medications. Taking medications is an absolute contraindication to fasting.
thumbnail
Alesh Vyhnal, modified 10 Years ago at 4/29/13 9:51 AM
Created 10 Years ago at 4/29/13 9:51 AM

RE: Improvement of awareness and concentration skills with fasting,

Posts: 130 Join Date: 2/14/13 Recent Posts
But now I remember there were some experiments concerning taking chemotherapy and fasting. The fasting should purportedly increase the effectiveness of the chemotherapeutics.
thumbnail
Richard Zen, modified 10 Years ago at 4/29/13 7:08 PM
Created 10 Years ago at 4/29/13 7:08 PM

RE: Improvement of awareness and concentration skills with fasting,

Posts: 1665 Join Date: 5/18/10 Recent Posts
I'm doing the 2 meals a day thing as well (lost a little weight) but I feel much better and I enjoy being hungry before I eat. It used to be more of an addiction. The only thing to watch for is that meals are nutritious enough. Vitamin supplements might also be a good idea.
thumbnail
Karalee Peltomaa, modified 9 Years ago at 8/4/14 5:57 PM
Created 9 Years ago at 8/4/14 5:57 PM

RE: Improvement of awareness and concentration skills with fasting,

Posts: 401 Join Date: 6/19/14 Recent Posts
aurélien berthomé:
Hi everyone,


I'm kind of exprimenting different things these days, and I think I stumbled on to something really interesting that might help some dark night yogis that might have trouble to get rid of their dark stuff and because of that are lacking concentration skills, which is obviously something very useful to progress.
I don't claim anything, and I consider myself still at the beginning of the process leading to enlightenment, but I know that I've done a lot of cleaning of emotional blockages, since the beginning of my spiritual practices, which started only a little more than one year ago. And I recently was able to try fasting for the first time, I did it for 2 days, it was a hydric fast, and I've never felt so much energized, the first day was the hardest, especially during the night because, you can clearly feel your body detoxifying all the craps you stored into it during all those years of eating. But as soon as I went beyond that first day, after that, all my senses started to open, like I could smell a lot of smells in nature, and my awareness increased a lot too, and all my meditation sessions were quiet easy, not struggling, not forcing anything, everything was just happening kind of spontaneously. I did another fast of 2 days, one week later, and experienced exactly kind of same things. I've been a vegetarian for one year now, and I think, that the fasting period might be easier depending of the type of diet that you have, if you eat a lot of junk food, and eat meat, it might not be as easy as it seems, but I can't really tell it's only a guess I've never fast when I was a meat eater. So and because of those experiences, I'm getting more and more interested into the breatharianism lifestyle, and I see it as something complementary to my other spiritual practices. So I just wanted to share that, because I know how difficult it is to deal with the dark stuff coming out of our minds. So by fasting you might not get 1st path or 2nd path or whatever, but you might get relieved of some annoying stuff, which might help you to progress further and faster, and with more motivation on the path that you chose. That's it, I wish good luck to everyone, and I congratulate all of you for having the courage to go beyond your limits to find what life is all about.

Metta to All of you

Aurélien

Hello Aurelia, metta to you too.  I have only read so far your first post and look forward to reading the whole thread.  Last November I threw my 60-year old body into a long hydric fast and quit at the 47th day because my mate was getting overwrought (I was going through some psyche trauma as the toxins left my brain).

I plan to do another long fast this November however I came across an interesting article:

http://www.meditationexpert.com/meditation-techniques/m_Fasting_Cultivation_Practice.html

As with yourself, my sense channels opened up.   Since then I've noticed that MSG (monosodium glutamate) does not assist my meditation activites and creative visualization drills.   I was schooled in fasting techniques as a body de-tox by Dr. Robert Morse, MD.   He also sells herbs to accelerate the de-tox process.  As with yourself I turned to raw fruits and veggies for 90 percent of my new eating lifestyle.  But I still consider myself as a candidate for de-toxing the body and am prepping for this November.
thumbnail
Karalee Peltomaa, modified 9 Years ago at 8/4/14 6:05 PM
Created 9 Years ago at 8/4/14 6:05 PM

RE: Improvement of awareness and concentration skills with fasting,

Posts: 401 Join Date: 6/19/14 Recent Posts
Ian And:
Thanks for posting about your experiences with fasting. Very interesting.

I'm interested in the health benefits. Anyone over 55 will know what I'm talking about, all the little aches and pains that come with the aging process. So, I'll have to give a go on this 61 year old body.

Anyone wanting to learn more might find this website of interest:

http://www.allaboutfasting.com/benefits-of-fasting.html

Water fasting offers the quickest detox and strongest therapeutic effect. It is also the most challenging fast to perform in the first few days. Careful preparation in the days before a water fast can make all the difference in your level of comfort, but the emotional challenge will still be great. Getting professional supervision is an option and is recommended for a water fast longer than 3 days. See the Who Can Fast page to make sure you meet the criteria necessary for fasting. . . .

The speed at which old conditions can right themselves during a water fast is incredible. It's amazing the little health "issues" that just go away – the mole that just drops off, the shoulder that's been achy for years suddenly feels well again, that little patch of "weird" skin you've grown accustomed to vanishes without a trace...and those are just the little things. Fasting can even alleviate some "big" things, but if you have major health conditions, you may benefit from having professional supervision.
Hello, Ian, thank you for the link.   I do recommend a gradient approach if one is older and has lived off the typical American diet.  Some start with green drinks, then increase the fruits, and especially the more astringent (pulling power) lemon.

Once I water fasted for 60 beautiful days.   My body kept getting hotter and hotter and I kept drinking more and more water and never suffered much except the cravings.   My 47 days fast on very little water was much more aggressive and an injured hand healed, but it was not all beautiful, so I believe how much water one drinks makes a big difference.   I tried to get as close to dry fasting as advisable for my condition.       However one uses the water, just temporarily stopping of eating can be a big relief.
thumbnail
Karalee Peltomaa, modified 9 Years ago at 8/4/14 6:11 PM
Created 9 Years ago at 8/4/14 6:10 PM

RE: Improvement of awareness and concentration skills with fasting,

Posts: 401 Join Date: 6/19/14 Recent Posts
Hello, Cedric, I like your approach too and see how it could increase one's lifespan, especially if one stays away from the childhood related processed foods.  Our psyche does tend to make strained connections about food and traumatic events as a child.   
thumbnail
Karalee Peltomaa, modified 9 Years ago at 8/4/14 6:16 PM
Created 9 Years ago at 8/4/14 6:16 PM

RE: Improvement of awareness and concentration skills with fasting,

Posts: 401 Join Date: 6/19/14 Recent Posts
Hello, Tom, I'm glad you mentioned the psychological aspect of eating.   I think you touched the tip of an iceberg.   I am doing sessions right now on the whole subject of eating and my mind knows it is going to lose that bit of satiation/temporary mind quiet, and does not like it at all.  I once made the mistake of taking away my mother's craving for sugar -- she was quite upset about it.

I hope you will read the article I posted a link to and make further comments.
thumbnail
Karalee Peltomaa, modified 9 Years ago at 8/4/14 6:20 PM
Created 9 Years ago at 8/4/14 6:20 PM

RE: Improvement of awareness and concentration skills with fasting,

Posts: 401 Join Date: 6/19/14 Recent Posts
Alesh Vyhnal:
Just be careful about the quite dramatic decrease of blood pressure, which continues for some time even after you begin to eat again. If you lie down and then get up, do it slowly. My longest water fast was 10 days for health reasons. Now I mustn't fast since I take many medications. Taking medications is an absolute contraindication to fasting.

Hello, Alesh, yes that would be too much too fast.   Smoothie and juice fasting also help the body heal.  Many people report better health simply going to a 90% raw diet.
John M, modified 9 Years ago at 8/4/14 6:23 PM
Created 9 Years ago at 8/4/14 6:23 PM

RE: Improvement of awareness and concentration skills with fasting,

Posts: 135 Join Date: 2/11/12 Recent Posts
The BBC did a great documentary on intermittent fasting: Eat, Fast, and Live Longer. It explores a number of different approaches to intermittent fasting along with some of the science behind it. Fascinating stuff. I side with MCTB in the appreciation that one should take care when combining fasting with contemplative practice, though.
thumbnail
Karalee Peltomaa, modified 9 Years ago at 8/4/14 6:24 PM
Created 9 Years ago at 8/4/14 6:24 PM

RE: Improvement of awareness and concentration skills with fasting,

Posts: 401 Join Date: 6/19/14 Recent Posts
Alesh Vyhnal:
But now I remember there were some experiments concerning taking chemotherapy and fasting. The fasting should purportedly increase the effectiveness of the chemotherapeutics.

My understanding is that it is not so much that it increases the effectivenss of the chemos, but that it helps the body to stay in a high electric/magnetic condition by eating live alkalinizing foods while having the Ph equivalent of battery acid pumped in.  Also, I think psychologically, it helps one to feel more causative about doing something about their condition.   I'm a student of the Hamer German New Medicine so I don't think along conventional lines anymore.
thumbnail
Karalee Peltomaa, modified 9 Years ago at 8/4/14 6:37 PM
Created 9 Years ago at 8/4/14 6:37 PM

RE: Improvement of awareness and concentration skills with fasting,

Posts: 401 Join Date: 6/19/14 Recent Posts
Richard Zen:
I'm doing the 2 meals a day thing as well (lost a little weight) but I feel much better and I enjoy being hungry before I eat. It used to be more of an addiction. The only thing to watch for is that meals are nutritious enough. Vitamin supplements might also be a good idea.
Hello, Richard, my partner lives this way and has little food craving.   He does take an herbal "superfood" supplement.   However, he does need to de-tox and we are talking about building a steam sauna to speed up the de-tox process.

From observing him I realized that when a person gets upset they become hotter, more acid, or the acids get stirred up and I can always tell when he is upset because the underarm odour becomes intense.   My one severe panic attack during my last fast occurred when acid toxins were stirred up and leaving the brain.

I think this is one reason why many people report health improvements after turning to raw fruits and veggies as their main diet.
That Ph supports the body electrics.  From a psyche point of view it could also be because these are foods that have very little association with possible trauma or overwhelm in their childhood.  For example, I had a childhood experience while eating cream of wheat and brown sugar and margarine and the mind does tend to identify and associate.  

I think that once the mind is resolved the body can be fixed up simply by looking at it because it is afterall a hierarchy of life forms with their own purposes and counter-purposes held in place. In the meantime I take a grosser approach. 
thumbnail
Karalee Peltomaa, modified 9 Years ago at 8/4/14 6:52 PM
Created 9 Years ago at 8/4/14 6:52 PM

RE: Improvement of awareness and concentration skills with fasting,

Posts: 401 Join Date: 6/19/14 Recent Posts
John M.:
The BBC did a great documentary on intermittent fasting: Eat, Fast, and Live Longer. It explores a number of different approaches to intermittent fasting along with some of the science behind it. Fascinating stuff. I side with MCTB in the appreciation that one should take care when combining fasting with contemplative practice, though.


Hello, John, in my case I found this to be true.   Although my concentration was improved during fasting my mental state was ups and downs and I could not always be so aggressive in working on my mind and letting go of that child o' mine.  But I also took on more than I should have at the time and now I have more understanding and skill with my practices.   One way or another, the toxins are going to stir up the mind and so I believe there has to be some sort of management of that, but to keep it simple and light as possible.   I was going in and asking, "what is my cause?" which was quite punishing in the revelations.   Don't do that!  
thumbnail
Jenny, modified 9 Years ago at 8/4/14 10:12 PM
Created 9 Years ago at 8/4/14 10:12 PM

RE: Improvement of awareness and concentration skills with fasting,

Posts: 566 Join Date: 7/28/13 Recent Posts
Anyone water fasting, or really anyone period, will want to avoid nonoptimal mineral levels or imbalance. Minerals are the foundation of health, and vitamins can be layered in to work optimally only after mineral balance is optimal. One reason that you see marathon runners, who should be the epitome of health, drop dead from cardiac arrest is that they have sweated out their magnesium. I take four dropperfuls of ReMag elemental magnesium every day, in my drinking water, in addition to almost nightly epsom salt baths, to keep my magnesium levels optimal. Most people are deficient in magnesium. You can ask doctor for a magnesium RBC test to find level. Ideal level is higher than the reference range.

Breadcrumb