Navratri Special Diet
Navratri is here. This year Navratri is beginning from 21st to 29th of September. In North India Navratri is celebrated by fasting or vrat. People usually do fasting for nine days, worship in the morning and play Garba/dandiya at night.
There are certain rules for the Navratri fast. If you are planning to keep fast during Navratri then you must know what you can eat and what you need to avoid. There are no hard and fast rules. These rules are flexible. You can modify them according to your willpower. While some people choose to stay away from non-vegetarian food and alcohol, others choose to avoid onion, garlic, cereals & pulses. Here, I am suggesting you what you can eat or avoid in Navratri week.
Scientific Reason behind celebrating Navratri:
We celebrate Navratri twice in a year (Chaitra Navratri and Sharad Navratri). There is a scientific reason behind it.
Scientifically when the season changes, our immune system gets weaker and our body becomes prone to toxins. So, it is advised that we detoxify our body by eating natural but highly nutritious food like fruits, vegetables, dry fruits, milk & milk products, some grains like (Sago, Sama Chawal, Kuttu ka Atta, Singhare ka Atta etc.)
Food to eat during Navratri
There are many tasty food items you can have during your fast. Let me list these items for you:
Flours:
- Kuttu ka Atta (Buckwheat flour)
- Singhara Atta (Water chestnut flour)
- Rajgira Atta(Amaranth flour)
- Sama ka Atta (Barnyard Millet flour)
Grains:
- Sama Chawal (Barnyard Millet)
- Sago (Saabudaana)
- Makhana (Foxnuts)
Milk & Milk products:
- Milk
- Curd
- Paneer
- Ghee/ nutter
- Khoya
Fruits and Vegetables:
All fruits and vegetables except onion and garlic.
Spice and Condiments:
- Sendha Namak (Rock Salt)
- Cumin Seed/Powder
- Choti Elaichi (Green Cardamom)
- Long (Cloves)
- Kalimirch (Peppercorns)
- Jaiphal (Nutmeg)
- Dalchini (Cinnamon)
Other foods:
- Hari Mirch (Green Chili)
- Nimbu (Lemon)
- Hara Dhaniya (Coriander leaves)
- Kadi Patta/Meetha Neem (Curry leaves)
- Adrak (Ginger).
- Sugar
- Honey
- Jiggery
- Coconut
Foods that are Prohibited during Navratri:
These food items are prohibited during Navratri (followed primarily by North Indian People & in most parts of India) –
- Alcohol (all alcoholic beverages)
- Non- vegetarian food (chicken, meat, fish, eggs etc.)
- Onion & Garlic
- Wheat, Wheat flour & its Products
- Refined flour (Maida)
- Pulses & Legume (Sprouts, Chana, Rajma, all kind of lentils)
- Rice & Rice flour
- Sooji and Besan
- Garam Masala, Hing (asafoetida), Mustard, Fenugreek seeds (Methi Dana)
- Packed food items like tomato sauce, soya sauce, mayonnaise, cold drinks, biscuits, chips, kurkure, toffee, chocolates.
Hope this information is helpful for you. The author does not intend to enforce his/her views on any individual or religion. It is completely based on their knowledge and suggests that the reader can have completely different views that they follow. While we would be more than happy to learn different views and provide diets accordingly.
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