I must also tell you that many spiritually minded persons neglect the body, as if this is a very desirable habit which will promote their spiritual progress. They take on various vows and fasts and starve the body of legitimate food. In spiritual literature, this exercise is called as Upavasa, and ignorant persons assume that it means, “fasting". Vasa means, "staying" and "Upa" means "near”, so “Upavasa" originally and truly meant, "Staying near". Near whom? Near God. That is to say, "Upavasa" means, spending the whole day in the contemplation of God, in the "presence" of Divine thoughts, in Divine company.

-Divine Discourse, 3rd October 1978.