Navratri 2022: Why Onions and Garlic Are Not Eaten During the Nine-Day Festival

 

As part of the Navratri fast, onions and garlic are not allowed to be consumed, otherwise they are essential for Indian cuisine.

Shardiya/Sharad Navratri, dedicated to Goddess Durga, begins on September 26 with Ghatasthapana and ends on October 5 with Vijay Dashami and Durga Visarjan.

This is a time when Hindus fast for nine days and pray for blessings on the tenth day. Onions and garlic, which are essential ingredients in Indian cuisine, are not permitted during these nine days. Onions and garlic, however, have many benefits, as well as improving taste and flavor perception.

The Ayurveda recommends eating only sattvic, easily digestible foods during a fast. So onions and garlic aren’t eaten during a fast. Consequently, the body has to spend more time repairing than digesting, which leads to a detoxification process. In addition to improving skin, immunity, and metabolism, the sattvic diet regulates mental health.

The Hindu Religion Categorizes Food Into Three Groups:

– Rajasic Food

– Tamasic Food

– Saatvik Food.

Onions and garlic are also known to produce heat in the body, so they are avoided during fasts. Rajasic and Tamasic foods often evoke carnal desires and increase mental lethargy.

A sattvic diet focuses on seasonal foods, dairy products, nuts, seeds, oils, ripe vegetables, legumes, whole grains, and plant-based proteins.

A tamasic food can cause mental fatigue or lead to mental drowsiness. It is forbidden to consume onion and garlic during the nine-day holy festival since these foods are considered tamasic.