​THE TRUE MEANING OF FASTING: A WORD FROM PSYCHOLOGIST MAJA SAVANOVIĆ ZORIĆ

All of the following reflections are the words of psychologist Maja Savanović Zorić:

PHOTO: Ilustracija

Every year, when the Christmas fast begins, I notice the same pattern: people change their menu, but they do not change themselves. Suddenly, everyone is fasting, yet very few ask themselves why.

In a spiritual sense, fasting is the deepest form of self-discipline and purification. From a psychological perspective, it is a process of confronting oneself, of facing who we are when external stimuli are quieted.

However, many fast only to ease their conscience, while everything else in their behavior remains untouched: anger, pride, envy, selfishness, malice, and coldness toward others. It is hard to watch people “switch to fish” while trampling the person next to them.

That is not fasting.

It is just a diet with a religious label.

In therapy, I often say: if a person does not change behavioral patterns, everything else is just decoration. The same applies to spirituality. Avoiding meat without avoiding harmful words makes no sense. Giving up milk while still feeding the ego is pointless. Fasting on the plate but not in character is meaningless.

True fasting is a process that requires courage: to face yourself without excuses, to renounce what separates you from goodness, to confront your own shadows, and to acknowledge the hardest truths:

The problem is not the food – the problem is within us.

Fasting without spiritual repentance is psychologically the same as therapy without readiness for change – a symbolic act without essence.

If while fasting we still:

– gossip,

– attack,

– hurt,

– manipulate,

– lie to ourselves and others,

– refuse to forgive,

then we are not truly fasting. We are merely avoiding responsibility.

Spiritually, this is pride disguised as piety. Psychologically, it is avoiding self-confrontation.

Fasting is an invitation to quiet ourselves and reflect:

Who am I when no one is watching?

Who am I when no one pats me on the shoulder?

Who am I when God sees everything and humans see nothing?

Those who truly fast become gentler, not harsher. Calmer, not more anxious. Humble, not self-righteous. Human, not a judge.

Therefore, this year, if we fast, let it touch us from within. Let it heal us. Let it change us. Let it silence the ego and awaken the conscience.

True fasting is courage:

– not retaliating for an insult,

– not hurting when you can,

– holding back malice,

– forgiving before being asked,

– turning toward others rather than against them.

In the end, God does not count the days we ate lean food. He counts the moments when we were truly human.

If during the fast we do not soften our voices, ease our harshness, and open our hearts, nothing will truly change. We will remain the same – just with emptier stomachs.

All of the above is the word of psychologist Maja Savanović Zorić.