All glories to Sri Guru and Sri Gauranga

Chaturmasya

Here at Sri Chaitanya Saraswat Math the devotees begin Chaturmasya on purnima (the full moon day). The following is a section about Chaturmasya by Srila Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada in his edition of Sri Chaitanya-charitamrita, (Madhya-lila 4.169):

Verse:

At the end of summer Madhavendra Puri returned to Jagannatha Puri, where he remained with great pleasure during the whole period of Chaturmasya.

Purport:

The Chaturmasya period begins in the month of Asadha (June-July) from the day of Ekadasi called Sayana-ekadasi, in the fortnight of the waxing moon. The period ends in the month of Karttika (October-November) on the Ekadasi day known as Utthana-ekadasi, in the fortnight of the waxing moon. This four-month period is known as Chaturmasya. Some Vaisnavas also observe it from the full-moon day of Asadha until the full-moon day of Karttika. That is also a period of four months. This period, calculated by the lunar months, is called Chaturmasya, but others also observe Chaturmasya according to the solar month from Sravana to Karttika. The whole period, either lunar or solar, takes place during the rainy season. Chaturmasya should be observed by all sections of the population. It does not matter whether one is a grihastha or a sannyasi. The observance is obligatory for all ashramas. The real purpose behind the vow taken during these four months is to minimize the quantity of sense gratification. This is not very difficult. In the month of Sravana one should not eat spinach, in the month of Bhadra one should not eat yogurt, and in the month of Asvina one should not drink milk. One should not eat fish or other nonvegetarian food during the month of Kartika. A nonvegetarian diet means fish and meat. Similarly, masura dal and urad dal are also considered nonvegetarian. These two dals contain a great amount of protein, and food rich in protein is considered nonvegetarian. On the whole, during the four-month period of Chaturmasya one should practise giving up all food intended for sense enjoyment.

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