--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: If a man has nothing to eat, fasting is…" description: "\"“If a man has nothing to eat, fasting is the smartest thing he can do.”\" — Hermann Hesse" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/46b/hermann-hesse-130_fasting_if-a-man-has-nothing-to-eat-fasting-is-t_3214863.png" --- # If a man has nothing to eat, fasting is the smartest thing… ![“If a man has nothing to eat, fasting is the smartest thing he can do.” quote by Hermann Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/46b/hermann-hesse-130_fasting_if-a-man-has-nothing-to-eat-fasting-is-t_3214863.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/46b/hermann-hesse-130_fasting_if-a-man-has-nothing-to-eat-fasting-is-t_3214863.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/46b/hermann-hesse-130_fasting_if-a-man-has-nothing-to-eat-fasting-is-t_3214863.png) > ““If a man has nothing to eat, fasting is the smartest thing he can do.”” [Hermann Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hermann-hesse/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. When basic needs are unmet, abstaining from food becomes a rational survival strategy. **In simple terms:** Fasting is logical when you have no food. Key Takeaway Consider necessity before judgment. Themes survival pragmatism necessity Mood reflective serious Type ethical philosophical When to use this quote - poverty - war zones - medical fasting - spiritual retreats Key Concepts human needs resource scarcity ethical choices Questions to Reflect On - Is fasting always the smartest choice? - When does necessity become a choice? A Different Perspective May ignore health risks or become an excuse for neglect. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Fasting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fasting/) ## Related quotes > [If a man has nothing to eat, fasting is the most intelligent thing he can do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hermann-hesse/if-a-man-has-nothing-to-eat-fasting-is-the-most-intelligent-thing-he/) [Hermann Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hermann-hesse/) > [If man has nothing to eat, fasting is the most intelligent thing he can do. If, for instance, Siddhartha had not learned to fast,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hermann-hesse/if-man-has-nothing-to-eat-fasting-is-the-most-intelligent-thing-he/) [Hermann Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hermann-hesse/) > [Fasting is not bodily hunger but bodily elevation and purity. 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I can give you nothing that has not already its being within yourself.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hermann-hesse/only-within-yourself-exists-the-other-reality-for-which-you-long-i/) [Hermann Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hermann-hesse/) > [Therefore, I see whatever exists as good, death is to me like life, sin like holiness, wisdom like foolishness, everything has to be as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hermann-hesse/therefore-i-see-whatever-exists-as-good-death-is-to-me-like-life-sin/) [Hermann Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hermann-hesse/) > [A home isn't just a roof over our heads. A home is a place where we feel loved and where we love others. 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Fasting requires that we rediscover all that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tariq-ramadan/we-must-master-our-egoism-and-through-this-mastery-step-outside/) [Tariq Ramadan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tariq-ramadan/) > [The man of wisdom is devoid of ego even though he may appear to use it. His vacant or fasting mind is neither doing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ramesh-s-balsekar/the-man-of-wisdom-is-devoid-of-ego-even-though-he-may-appear-to-use/) [Ramesh S Balsekar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ramesh-s-balsekar/) > [How much more of the mosque, of prayer and fasting? Better go drunk and begging round the taverns. 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Have a really blessed day.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/good-friday-way-of-the-cross-fasting-and-abstinence-examine/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I go by my own body type when it comes to fasting, which means that I would not follow some general advice or rule…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/riya-sen/i-go-by-my-own-body-type-when-it-comes-to-fasting-which-means-that-i/) [Riya Sen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/riya-sen/) > [“Fasting clears away the thousand little things which quickly accumulate and clutter the body, mind and heart. It cuts through corrosion and renews our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-bragg/fasting-clears-away-the-thousand-little-things-which-quickly/) Paul Bragg > [Fasting confirms our utter dependence upon God by finding in Him a source of sustenance beyond food.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dallas-willard/fasting-confirms-our-utter-dependence-upon-god-by-finding-in-him-a/) [Dallas Willard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dallas-willard/) > [Fasting makes sense if it really chips away at our security and, as a consequence, benefits someone else, if it helps us cultivate the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pope-francis/fasting-makes-sense-if-it-really-chips-away-at-our-security-and-as-a/) [Pope Francis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pope-francis/) > [The dogmatic and, therefore, invulnerable core in Islam is understandably simple: acknowledgement of faith, prayer, charity and fasting. 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