Fasting, as a spiritual practice is common among Hindus. Many Hindus fast weekly or as an observance during certain festivals. It is also a common practice to forsake meals as non-confrontational or non-violent protest against injustice or cruelty. Mahatma Gandhi for instance fasted numerous times during his campaign for an independent India, though not to protest the British government, but instead as atonement whenever his followers became violent in their campaigns. A couple of times he fasted almost to the brink of death, and only ended his fasts when his followers renounced violence.
Early this year a group of eight Tamil youth in America, touched by the tragedy befalling innocent civilians in Sri Lanka, decided that they had to do something. They called themselves, People for Equality and Relief in Lanka (PEARL) and came up with a campaign to fast 10,000 meals collectively as act of solidarity for all those suffering in the Sri Lankan conflict.
