Answer

If you eat at night during upvas after taking pachchakkhan/pachkaan and before paarna, then the upvas is broken.

In Jain practice, once pachchakkhan is taken for upvas, food is renounced until the proper time of paarna. Eating in between means the vow has not been maintained.

Explanation

In an upvas:

• Pachchakkhan means taking a vow or formal renunciation of food for a specific period.
• Paarna means properly ending the fast at the right time, usually the next day according to the accepted practice.
• If food is eaten after pachchakkhan and before paarna, the fast becomes broken.

If this happened by mistake, with weakness, confusion, or lack of awareness, one should not hide it or pretend the upvas was completed. It is better to accept it honestly.

Spiritual Understanding

Jain Dharma gives great importance to truthfulness, awareness, and purity of intention. If a vow is broken, the right approach is:

• accept the mistake sincerely,
• do pratikraman or ask for forgiveness,
• avoid guilt or self-hatred,
• take guidance from a guru, sadhu-sadhviji, or knowledgeable elder if needed.

The purpose of upvas is not only physical fasting, but also control of desires, carefulness, and inner purification.

Takeaway

Eating at night after pachchakkhan and before paarna breaks the upvas. If it happened, accept it sincerely, do pratikraman, and continue your spiritual practice with greater awareness.