What is the Purpose of Fasting? Why do we fast? What function
does it serve in our spiritual life? How can being hungry and
thirsty help us connect? The Aish Rabbi Replies: There are six
regular fast days in the Jewish year. During these times, adult
Jews may neither eat nor drink -- even water (there are
exceptions for people with health issues). Except for Yom
Kippur, these fast days were established because of the
catastrophes and suffering that occurred on those dates. Their
purpose is to help us recall the negative behavior of our
ancestors that led to those calamities, and to focus our
attention on our own parallel behavior that continues to drive
our nation into similar negative situations. During these days,
each person is meant to make a personal accounting of his or her
behavior and resolve to return to the positive path. According
to Eliyahu Kitov in The Book of Our Heritage, one who fasts and
spends the day idly without repentance, misses the point. That
person is emphasizing the fasting, which is