To trust a stranger without investigation invites troubles so endless that even descendants must endure them. To rust a man who has not been tested and to suspect a man who has proven trustworthy lead alike to endless ills.
Every portion of body, mind, and spirit yearns for integration of yin and yang… Where ordinary intercourse unites sex organs with sex organs, angelic cultivation unites spirit with spirit, mind with mind, and every cell of one body with every cell of the other body.
Fasting in the monastic community is considered an ascetic practice, a “dhutanga” practice. Dhutanga means “to shake up” or “invigoration”. The Buddha, as is well known, emphasized moderation, the Middle Way that avoids extremes, in all things. Fasting is an additional method that one can take up, with supervision, for a time.
