In Bharatvarsha, as Spring blooms, and the month of Chaitra begins, we ring in a brand new year, VIkram Samvat 2081, celebrated by various names, such as Gudi Padwa, Ugadi, Cheti Chand and Navreh. As the Sun transits into Aries this weekend, marking the beginning of a new solar cycle, or Mesha Sankranti, we see a whole host of celebrations continue with Baisakhi, Vishu, Pana Sankranti, Pohela Boisakh and Bohag Bihu. And if that’s not all, the new year also marks the advent of the Devi with the Chaitra Navratri, the nine nights of the Goddess.
It’s a time to be grateful for all that is good in our lives, and release all that which doesn’t serve us in our spiritual and/or physical journeys. It is also a time to plan for the year ahead and look forward to new beginnings, as we look at realising our dreams and hopes and manifest them into reality. After all, Spring feels like a much more natural time to mark the beginning of the year, in consonance with nature, when nature is full of vigour, after hibernating through winter, and is ready to bloom again.
Bharat is a land of diversity, where the culture changes every few hundred miles, so we are really lucky that in cosmopolitan cities like Aamchi Mumbai, we are able to experience a melting pot of all these celebrations and experience the best of the food, dance and music from all parts of the country. It’s also a beautiful reminder that though there may be cultural differences, we still follow the same larger framework of celebrating an event as significant with the new year, in consonance with each other, a true symbol of unity in diversity.
The skies have been quite active lately, with the pair of eclipses that we also witnessed, with a solar eclipse on the last day of the previous year. Even when eclipses aren’t visible, they may leave behind a heavy residual energy, and it’s quite fortuitous that the new year begins with the descent of the Devi, bringing in a very positive and uplifting energy that is available for seekers to tap into.
A new year is a great opportunity for a sankalpa, which by the way is very different from a resolution. Whilst a resolution often operates from a space of lack, a sankalpa starts with the notion that you already have it in you to achieve what you’re aiming for, and you’re willing to dedicate and offer yourself in pursuit of a higher objective. So whether it’s your physical wellness you want to uplift, or adopt a social cause, take that sankalpa during this auspicious period, and give yourself a real opportunity to transform this new year. Shubha Nava Varsha!
