This past Wednesday was Asarah B'Teves, the date Nebuchadnezzar began his siege around Jerusalem approximately 2500 years ago, give or take 166 years!
So I fasted. Not only did I not find it pleasant to fast (who really does?), but sadly, I felt no impetus to teshuvah as a result of the hunger. This has gotten me thinking in the past about the whole concept of taanis.
It is apparent that centuries ago, nothing motivated people to think about teshuva and introspection like one or three days of fasting. In the Megilla, Esther tells Mordechai to have all Jews in Shushan fast for three days! The people of Ninveh fasted when Yonah warned them of God's wrath. The prophets instituted fast days. The Arizal recommended specific numbers of fastdays in relation to specific sins! (As quoted in Igeres Hateshuva by the Baal Hatanya)The Jews have three millenia of fasting tradition behind us.
Then at some point, rabbis began to discourage the practice. I don't know exactly when it happened. but it seems to coincide with the early stages of the Chassidic movement. I've read stories of different rebbes telling people not to fast.
Did it stop working as a successful tool? (For me it stopped working!) Why was it ever successful? Why is it no longer? I find that on Yom Kippur, since I'm davening and teaching all day, it doesn't bother me at all. It's on these "working fasts" that I feel the deprivation and the associated headaches.
I have no solution.
Posted by Yehupitz at December 26, 2004 04:20 PM