Eat but Fast…
A baby boy is born in the palace of the King of Lumbini province. The royal people are happy seeing their ever-elegant baby prince. The king invites the Kula Guru, the Guru of their dynasty, to bless the child.
Guru (seeing the baby): The boy shall become the king of the hearts of the millions. He shall reign the lives of millions for generations. He shall not meet an end like an ordinary king.
(Indirectly, he means that he shall be the saint.
The king thinks of keeping the boy engaged in the jolly of the royal life, for he shall not renounce the material world. But, destiny has something special in its abode. What we propose, the Lord disposes.)
The young Gautam renounces the royal robes and wanders in the forests for several years in search of his query, “Who am I?” He penances for many years and performs rigorous fasting. He loses his physical health and turns into a fragment of skeleton and skin. He has many disciples who follow him.
One day, he goes to the bank of a river to drink a few sips of water. He loses his balance and falls into the river. He has no strength to swim across the river. He finds a branch of a tree hanging near his reach. He grasps with all his strength of the soul and finally grabs the bank. A lady living in the forest finds him. She supports him and prepares food for him. Gautam finds himself incapable to take a morsel to his mouth. The mother feeds him. Within a few days, he recovers.
Mother: O saint! No one can pray after being the prey of hunger.
Seeing Gautam receiving service from a lady, all his followers leave him.
Gautam realizes the notion and leaves for Bodhgaya. He sits under the Bodhi tree, fixes his mind on the soul, and attains nirvana. He becomes Siddhartha, the one who has realized his aim in life. He is also called Buddha, the one who has realized the notion of oneness.
There is nothing special about the Bodhi Tree or Bodhgaya. The Bodhgaya is within our hearts if we realize the state of oneness. Fasting is not based on remaining hungry for hours but fixing the mind on the soul. It is the true Upavaas, the sense of feeling the presence 24*7.