‘When your organism is clogged by waste it tries to get rid of that waste by producing a fever to dissolve it, and your temperature rises. You must put up with that temperature: it shows that your organism is cleansing itself. In fact, you can help the work along by drinking very hot, boiled water. Drink several mugs of hot water one after the other, and your temperature will soon drop. The hot water dilates the canals of the body, allowing the blood to flow more freely and carry the body’s wastes to the organs of elimination and the pores of your skin.

It is also an excellent habit to drink hot water when you fast. Boil the water for several minutes and let the calcium settle before drinking it. Anybody who has ever washed greasy dishes knows that cold water is useless; you need hot water to dissolve the grease. Similarly, cold water leaves many material elements in our bodies intact, while hot water dissolves them and carries them away through the kidneys, the skin, and so on, leaving you feeling purified and rejuvenated.

In fact it is a good idea to drink hot water every morning on an empty stomach. As hot water cleanses the canals of the body, it is also an excellent remedy for arteriosclerosis and rheumatism.

During a fast the physical body naturally feels deprived, but the etheric body compensates for any shortages by contributing other purer, subtler elements. The role of the etheric body is to care for the physical body and keep it constantly supplied with energy. Fasting, therefore, stirs the etheric body to renewed activity, activity that takes place on another level, allowing the physical body a period of rest. This is why all religions and spiritual teachings have recommended fasting.

Fasting is not a question of ‘mortifying the flesh’ or of depriving oneself; on the contrary. The main purpose and function of fasting is to nourish oneself. When you deprive the physical body of food, the other bodies (etheric, astral and mental) begin to work more actively. For there is a principle in the human being that defends itself, that refuses to let itself die, and if the physical body is short of food, it sounds an alarm. When the entities that dwell within and watch over the health and well-being of your organism hear the alarm, they come to your rescue and bring you sustenance from higher spheres to make up for what is lacking. Then you begin to absorb the elements you need from the atmosphere and to feel yourself nourished. And if at this time you hold your breath for a few seconds, still higher entities from the astral and mental regions will come and bring you food.’

‪Omraam Mikhael Aivanhov

Read more in…
Izvor Book 204, The Yoga of Nutrition
Chapter 7. Fasting
Complete Works, Volume 16, Hrani Yoga