From a Jain perspective, fasting (upvas or vrata) serves to purify the self and progress on the path to liberation. Its primary purposes are:

• Calibrate the mind and body:Reducing food, drink, and sensory indulgence helps lessen external distractions and strengthens inner restraint.
• Cultivate self-discipline (tapas): Fasting trains non-attachment (vairagya) and steadiness of purpose, especially when emotions rise.
• Purify kashayas (defilements): By limiting desires, one reduces anger (krodha), pride (mana), deceit (maya), and greed (lobha), which cloud judgment and cloud right conduct.
• Improve ethical conduct: Fewer distractions aid truthful, non-violent, and compassionate action toward all living beings.
• Support spiritual introspection: Fasting creates space for meditation, self-study (svadhyaya), and repentance (pratikraman), helping one to align with the Jain ideal of ahimsa and anekantavada.
• Prepare for spiritual milestones: It is commonly observed during vrat (periods of discipline) to deepen devotion, humility, and faith in the path toward kevali (omniscience) or spiritual progress.

In Jain practice, the emphasis is on intention and outcome: fasting should brighten right understanding, right faith, and right conduct, not merely suppress appetite. Different Jain traditions (Digambara and Śvetāmbara) may describe specific rules or forms of fasting, but the underlying aim—purification of the soul and moving closer to liberation—remains central.