Tasks of Great Lent
Many clergy define Great Lent as a time of increased attention to the soul, therefore, of paramount importance here, of course, is not diet, but careful work on the imperfections of one’s worldview, behavior and attitude towards others. That is why most believers are guided, first of all, by several traditional rules of Great Lent, such as:
regular church attendance
Assistance to relatives, relatives, friends in various situations
focus on your inner life
Refusal of recreational activities that can distract from spiritual work
a kind of information “diet”, limiting entertaining reading and watching feature films
Adherence to a diet with a predominance of boiled and raw meatless dishes
Of course, it is important for believers to understand why they fast. For example, many girls (often men too) use this time as a motivation to lose weight. But, according to the clergy, this is an empty goal: having achieved some positive result, a person begins to boast about it. And the task of Great Lent is just the opposite! It is important to limit your ego, learn to live in peace with others, without exposing yourself and your successes for show. At the same time, the Lenten table is a chance to shift attention from bodily pleasures and pleasures to thorough spiritual work.
Lenten Diet Basics
Often, it is spiritual practice that leads fasting people to vegetarianism, since attentiveness to others inevitably entails a compassionate attitude towards all living beings. This is facilitated by a number of restrictions that are customary to observe during Lent – the rejection of meat, fish, milk, eggs, sweets and confectionery, rich pastries, the moderate use of vegetable oil, sauces, and other food additives. Only on some days of fasting is it allowed to eat non-fasting dishes in small quantities.
· cereals
· fruit
vegetables and root crops
· berries
Whole grain unleavened bread
and much more.
Thanks to the combination of a conscious attitude to life and adherence to a diet, the transition to vegetarianism during Lent is smooth and easy.
Post and work
The clergy also note that during the period of Great Lent, it is important to carefully evaluate your work activity. Of course, there can be no restrictions for people doing work that is allowed for a Christian. But what about those whose activities are connected, for example, with sales? In this area, you often have to go to cunning, and sometimes to deceit.
In this case, the ministers of the church note, it is important to figure out whether such work contradicts your soul, and also to be prepared for the fact that during Great Lent you will have to, for example, give up your own profit more than once for the sake of the client’s well-being. And, of course, during this period it is especially important to remain an honest and sympathetic employee, to treat everyone around with sincere respect and attention.
– Now it is fashionable to say: “Everyone has his own cockroaches in his head.” One way or another, but something needs to be done about it, and if we suddenly find that there is a mess in the shower, then we need to clean up, starting with the simplest things, – says archpriest, vegetarian with 15 years of experience . – And what could be simpler than the food that we eat every day? You ask, what does the food have to do with it, if we are talking about the soul? But the soul and the body are one. The body is the Temple of the soul, and if there is no order in the Temple, then there will be no prayer there.
Fasting is a very ancient and very effective practice. In its primary meaning, this is a state of presence, wakefulness, in which you clearly see what is happening in you and around you. Here it is very important to emphasize the word “clearly”, consciously. After all, it is important to distinguish the energies that surround us! So, for some energies, we should remain transparent so that they do not destroy us. According to the words of the Apostle Paul: “Everything is permissible for me, but not everything is good” (1 Cor. 10:23), not everything should be eaten from what is offered to us. This is very important: to feel what suits you and what has nothing to do with you. It is necessary one day to understand that everything depends on our decision. And in food as well. In the process of digestion, the blood that feeds the glands that produce enzymes “rushes” to the stomach. It is necessary and natural. That is why after you eat meat, you first experience satiety and a surge of energy, and then long hours of a dull state in your head. Where is there to be clear consciousness?
To be or not to be, to be or not to be? Stay in the old matrix or start a whole new life? That is why the Church commands us to fast – we need to try to find answers to these questions. And therefore, at least for a while, we need to move away from coarse food in order to feel that, in general, we are gentle beings and we have a subtle organization. Fasting is a time of purity of body and soul.