Sign-In
Cart
Fasting & Feasting: A Hindu Guide to Vrats Abroad
Paperback
Series: Hindu Life Abroad, Book 2
Publisher: Independently Published
Published: May 18 2026
Pages: 158
Weight: 0.44
Height: 0.40 Width: 6.00 Depth: 9.00
Language: English
You grew up watching someone fast. A mother, a grandmother, an aunt who kept the Ekadashi without making a production of it. You understood, without being told, that certain days were different from other days.
Then you moved. And the practice that was held in place by everything around you suddenly required something it never used to require: you to do it consciously, alone, far from the calendar you grew up with.
Fasting and Feasting is the complete guide to Hindu vrat practice for those living outside India. Not a book of theology. Not a recipe collection. A practical manual for keeping the practice alive wherever you are.
What this book covers- 22 vrats in full - Ekadashi, Navratri, Shravan Mondays, Pradosh, Karva Chauth, Satyanarayan Vrat, Purnima, Amavasya, Santoshi Ma, Mangala Gauri, Solah Somvar, Varalakshmi Vratam, Jitiya, Hartalika Teej, Shani, Surya, and more
- The physiology behind the fast - what the body actually does across 12, 24, and 36 fasting hours, and why the lunar calendar prescribes these specific intervals
- Tithi dates for your location - how to calculate correctly for the UK, US, Canada, and Australia, why calling family in India gives you the wrong date, and which app to trust
- The ingredient problem solved - where to find sendha namak, kuttu atta, sabudana, singhara atta, and makhana in Western supermarkets and online, including the mainstream substitute for rock salt that most people do not know exists
- Fasting through a working day - the energy curve hour by hour, what to tell colleagues, how to handle lunch invitations, and when nirjala fasting at work is and is not advisable
- Family and household guidance - managing a household where not everyone fasts, introducing children to the practice without making it feel like punishment, and maintaining solo practice without community support
- Regional vrats in depth - Varalakshmi Vratam for South Indian households, Jitiya for Bihar and Jharkhand, Hartalika Teej for Maharashtra and Rajasthan, and how to research and preserve your own family lineage's specific practice
The tradition figured out something that modern fasting research is now confirming: structured, timed interruption of eating, aligned with the lunar cycle, produces measurable effects in the body and the mind. The mechanism does not require proximity to India. It requires only that you observe the fast correctly, on the right day, with the right intention.
This book explains the mechanism and gives you everything you need to act on it. The calendar. The ingredients. The timing. The adaptations for diaspora life that no existing guide has brought together in one place.
Who this book is forHindu diaspora readers in the UK, US, Canada, Australia, and elsewhere who want to maintain or rebuild a vrat practice. Those returning to the tradition after years away. Those who observed vrats growing up but lost the thread when they moved, and want to find it again.
The practice your family kept is still available to you. This book shows you how to keep it, wherever you are.
Also from
Sivam, Ananta
Tantric Talismans for Beginners: The Sacred Art of Yantra, Kavach, and Consecrated Protection
Sivam, Ananta
Paperback
Invoke Heramb Ganapati: Complete Mantra and Sadhana for Those Who Have Nothing Left
Sivam, Ananta
Paperback
Dhanda Yakshini Sadhana for Wealth, Money & Abundance: Ancient Tantric Rituals Made Simple for Beginners
Sivam, Ananta
Paperback
Teaching Sanskrit Slokas to Your Children Abroad: A Complete Guide for Hindu Families in the West
Sivam, Ananta
Paperback
Invoke The Apsaras: Eight Celestial Sadhanas for Wealth, Longevity, Beauty, and Hidden Powers
Sivam, Ananta
Paperback
Sacred Removal: Ancient Rituals for Energy Healing, Cleansing the Subtle Body & Restoring Spiritual Balance
Sivam, Ananta
Paperback
Rahu In The Foreign Land: The Spiritual Map for Indians Living Between Two Worlds
Sivam, Ananta
Paperback
Beat Shani Sadesati: Forgotten Tantric Yantras and Secret Mantra Rituals to Crush Saturn's Grip
Sivam, Ananta
Paperback
Panchanguli: A Complete Sadhana for Clairvoyance, Prophetic Vision, and Knowledge of Past, Present and Future
Sivam, Ananta
Paperback
Tarapith Siddhi: Ma Tara's Mantra, the Cremation Ground, and the Path Bamakhepa Walked
Sivam, Ananta
Paperback
Also in
Hinduism
The Stories Behind the Poses: The Indian Mythology That Inspired 50 Yoga Postures
Balkaran, Raj
Hardcover
Tantra Illuminated: The Philosophy, History, and Practice of a Timeless Tradition
Wallis, Christopher D.
Paperback
Third Eye Awakening: Ultimate Beginner's Guide to Open Your Third Eye Chakra
Brisbane, Chloe
Paperback
From Shiva to Schrödinger: Unravelling Cosmic Secrets with Trika Shaivism & Quantum Insights
Majumdar, Mrittunjoy Guha
Paperback
Chakras and the Vagus Nerve: Tap Into the Healing Combination of Subtle Energy & Your Nervous System
Llewelyn, C. J.
Paperback
El Yoga de Jesus: Claves Para Comprender Las Enseanzas Ocultas de Los Evangelios
Yogananda
Yogananda, Paramahansa
Paperback
Yoga Off the Mat: A Practical Guide to the Wisdom of Yoga--Find Balance, Meaning, and Liberation in Your Daily Life
Rountree, Sage
Desiato, Alexandra
Paperback
The Psychology of Kundalini Yoga: Notes of the Seminar Given in 1932 by C. G. Jung
Jung, C. G.
Paperback
Dios Habla Con Arjuna: El Bhagavad Guita, Vol. 1: La Ciencia Suprema de La Unin Con Dios
Yogananda, Paramahansa
Paperback
Solving the Mystery of Life: Collected Talks & Essays on Realizing God in Daily Life Volume IV
Yogananda, Paramahansa
Paperback
Karmic Relief: Harnessing the Laws of Cause and Effect for a Joyful, Meaningful Life
Goldberg, Philip
Paperback
El Yoga del Bhagavad Guita: Una Introduccion a la Ciencia Universal de la Union Con Dios Originaria de la India = The Yoga of the Bhagavad Gita
Yogananda, Paramahansa
Paperback
Myths of the Asanas: The Stories at the Heart of the Yoga Tradition
Kaivalya, Alanna
Van Der Kooij, Arjuna
Paperback
Consciousness Is All There Is: How Understanding and Experiencing Consciousness Will Transform Your Life
Nader, Tony
Paperback
Dasbodh - International Edition: Spiritual Instruction for the Servant
Shri Samartha Ramdas, Saint
Paperback
The Little Book of Hindu Deities: From the Goddess of Wealth to the Sacred Cow
Patel, Sanjay
Paperback
Ashtavakra Gita - The Heart of Awareness: A bilingual edition in Sanskrit and English
Ashtavakra
Paperback
The Yoga of the Bhagavad Gita: An Introduction to India's Universal Science of God-Realization
Yogananda, Paramahansa
Paperback
Mudras of India: A Comprehensive Guide to the Hand Gestures of Yoga and Indian Dance
Carroll, Cain
Carroll, Revital
Paperback
Autobiography - Russian - Self Realization Fellowship Pub
Self Realization Fellowship Pub
Yogananda, Paramahansa
Paperback
The Bhagavad Gita for Daily Living, Volume 1: A Verse-By-Verse Commentary: Chapters 1-6 the End of Sorrow
Easwaran, Eknath
Paperback
Kriya Yoga: Art of Super-Realization: Art of Super-Realization Paramhansa Yogananda
Yogananda, Paramhansa
Paperback
Sanskrit Alphabet (Devanagari) Study Book Volume 2 Conjunct consonants & Exercises on mantras and slokas
Michika, Medha
Paperback
Solving the Mystery of Life: Collected Talks & Essays on Realizing God in Daily Life Volume IV
Yogananda, Paramahansa
Hardcover
Shakti Rising: Embracing Shadow and Light on the Goddess Path to Wholeness
Chinnaiyan, Kavitha M.
Paperback
The Yoga of Snakes and Arrows: The Leela of Self-Knowledge [With Fold Out Gameboard]
Johari, Harish
Paperback
Essence of the Bhagavad Gita: A Contemporary Guide to Yoga, Meditation & Indian Philosophy
Easwaran, Eknath
Paperback
Journey to Self-Realization: Collected Talks and Essays on Real Izing God in Daily Life,
Yogananda, Paramahansa
Paperback
Shiva Purana: The Great Hindu Epic of indestructible Destroyer
Divyananda, Swami
Hindu Philosophy Council
Paperback
The Bhagavad Gita for Daily Living, Volume 2: A Verse-By-Verse Commentary: Chapters 7-12 Like a Thousand Suns
Easwaran, Eknath
Paperback
Sovereign Self: Claim Your Inner Joy and Freedom with the Empowering Wisdom of the Vedas, Upanishads, and Bhagavad Gita
Shunya, Acharya
Hardcover
God Makes the Rivers to Flow: An Anthology of the World's Sacred Poetry and Prose
Easwaran, Eknath
Paperback
The Beginner's Guide to Karma: How to Live with Less Negativity and More Peace
Levine, Mordy
Rinpoche, Lama Lhanang
Paperback
The Complete Life of Krishna: Based on the Earliest Oral Traditions and the Sacred Scriptures
Vanamali
Paperback
Chakras & Self-Care: Activate the Healing Power of Chakras with Everyday Rituals
Kavanagh, Ambi
Paperback
The Dharma in Difficult Times: Finding Your Calling in Times of Loss, Change, Struggle, and Doubt
Cope, Stephen
Paperback
In Praise of Adya Kali: Approaching the Primordial Dark Goddess Through the Song of Her Hundred Names
Devi, Aditi
Paperback
Holy Vedas: Wisdom from the Sacred Teachings of Hinduism
Divyananda, Swami
Hindu Philosophy Council
Paperback