As the fire rages on north of us, we continue with our forest clean-up. We are using fallen and thinned out trees to build the fence around the Gurukula Colony and cow grazing areas. For now, we are marking off the important plots in the colony with thin rope, soon to be replaced by our new "Colonial fence".
We are continuing our Morning program and Srimad Bhagavatam class in the cabin. Attendance is small, but consistent.
In the garden, cucumbers and zucchini are now in season. After many weeks of eating abundant greens from the garden, we are observing a fast from spinach and lettuce for the first vrata (month) of Caturmasya. There are many items that are not allowed during Caturmasya, such as leafy vegetables in the first month, yogurt in the second month, milk in the third month, and mustard oil in the fourth month. Besides this, throughout all four months, tomatoes, eggplants, and several other foodstuffs are prohibited.
"The real purpose behind the vow taken during these four months is to minimize the quantity of sense gratification. This is not very difficult. On the whole, during the four-month period of Cāturmāsya one should practice giving up all food intended for sense enjoyment. "
Srila Prabhupada purport of Sri Caitanya-caritamrta, Madhya 4.169
