Why do we celebrate festivals?

Religion in any human being's life extends a big influence on his daily activities, behaviour, sensibility and why even provides context to his entire life. How do we practise religion? Through some routine habits like prayers to Almighty, charity, visiting places of importance as prescribed in religion and most importantly celebrating festivals.
Here is where, the culture of a place, which in turn is determined by the nature surrounding the place plays a big part in festivals. E.g. Yesterday was Ramnavami which is celebrated in many parts of India in different manner. The reason of the festival is the same across the country which is to celebrate the birth of Lord Rama who is regarded as the harbinger of goodness and adherence to values.

From my younger days I have seen huge celebrations of Ramnavami purely because our house was next door to a Ram temple. I used to see the huge consumption of "Neer mor" (in Tamil) or "Chhaas" (in Hindi) or buttermilk and "panakam" (a drink which has jaggery in it). I used to always think what is the significance of these two drinks and why is it so special on Ramnavami. Maybe Lord Rama used to love it, is it?

Over the years, I realized that, time of the year and hence nature and hence the demands presented by it have a big influence on our festivals. Ramnavami, I understood was a marker for beginning of the summer season in the country.  So the consumption of these two drinks is basically a way to show that heat is increasing and you need to have these coolants to take care of yourself. Ramnavami is potentially also the last big festival in India. Thereafter begins the months of May / June / July / August where there are no festivals. Why we may ask? Logic is simple isn't it! It is difficult to congregate and celebrate in the summer and in the rains right? The cycle again starts with who else but Ganesha during Ganesh Chaturthi.
The entire Hindu philosophy of festivals always has a inner meaning or a double meaning or a multi layered meaning. Hindu calendar is marked with festivals for seasons and every important season identified with festival. Like Pongal / Makar Sankranti / Lohri / Bihu etc signify the harvesting season for the crop post winter, Holi signifies the onset of spring, Ramnavami brings summer, Ganesh Chaturti says end of rains, Sharad navratri is celebration of autumn and Diwali is onset of winter. The customs are also hence prepared accordingly. You cook rice in Pongal and take bath in warm water in Diwali!

Interesting isn't it? Sometimes, I think how interesting it would be to lead a life by festivals and then getting driven by the markers in these festivals rather than living by calendar days and weekdays and weekends and then marking in those days when is a festival?

However, with weather and climate patterns changing it is possibly now difficult to observe the same customs that people have been following for ages. Like nowadays Holi probably signifies summer and not spring as potentially in many parts of India there isn't a spring anymore!

But, let us atleast look at these customs in a different way rather than observing them blindly just by stating "elders have advised this way"!!!

So enjoy the summer holidays and keep thinking! As Krishna says "Swayam vichaar kijiye" (Think about it yourself)!!!

Welcome Back!!!

How does it feel when you come back home after ages? Well not ages but lets a few years? Needless to say its a great feeling isn't it? Well that's exactly what I feel right now just as I type these words out! Its an amazing feeling to get back to writing blogs on BlogSpot after a long time specially when you were a regular back then!


As they say, welcomes should always be short and happy but sustainable! So here's hoping that this short blog post is sustainable and would bring me back to BlogSpot much more frequently than ever before!




Till the next time its good bye for now!

My world and your world

From childhood we have always been taught and advised to adjust, compromise or atleast listen patiently to someone else's point of view. A society gets built with a unique culture based on such multiple views and ideas and practices. Why does this happen? What makes the Indian societies and culture so unique and so different even from each other? Though corporate and businesses demand standard processes, governments demand adherence to standard laws and practicies, we all know inherently that we as Indians are the best in the world to "set" things and do "jugaad" to get around a matter in a way we want. Any amount of standardization does not affect us.
It is all because each of us are in state of subjective truth wherein though the truth is fundamentally the same but has various versions!!! So version 1.0 and version 1.1.0 has different practices based on the truths that they believe in and each of them say theirs is the best version (or latest updated version as we would typically say in our offices!!!). Indians therefore to a large degree have come to agree that things are not always standard and binary but are fuzzy and flexible!!! Now this flexibility gives both bouquets and brickbats. Bouquets because we are always ready to assimilate new ideas and practices and adapt to them and brickbats because we are forever trying find that little flexibility which can let us off the hook.
In a popular TV serial, it was being shown that a builder after greasing all hands has a proper legal document to take possession of a chawl / settlement! He feels that he has done his homework and it is in absolute black and white that the land is his and current occupants should leave the place! Suddenly comes a hero and shows that within the settlement, there is a shiva-linga which has emerged and which deserves a temple to be built around! Now if builder destroys the settlement he has to destroy the temple which he obviously cannot! So there goes the white and black and a grey area enters which puts everyone in a dilemma!
Fundamentally therefore it is always advised that all of us should try and see others' view and perspective as well! For each human, lives in his own version of truth and no one can see the big picture of the complete truth! For Varuna the sea-god has 1000 eyes, Indra the god of gods has 4 and we have only 2!
So lets not try and always say that my world is the world as it is! Because the world is a different world for all of us!

All that has happened so far in the new year

The last post was at the fag end of the last year after which today seems to be the ordained where I attempt to write something! Hence the choice of the title has been about all that has happened so far this year!
Well the year kind of started with a bang with the new year happening during the intermission of 3 Idiots! Yes we went to a night show of 3 idiots on the new year's eve! And movie being what it was I thought what an amazing beginning!
And yes it has actually been amazing all the way so far with a sudden transformation of my nature of work professionally! Within a few weeks I suddenly had people reporting to me and looking up to me and all the works! Though it came up with the pain of guiding absolute freshers into the consulting world but an experience in itself nevertheless! Next comes responsibility of leading not one but 3 long term projects which is a rarity in our world and which require completely different way of management!
Next comes increased activity on our own entrepreneuship venture! Strategies, methods, websites, joomla, action plans and masterplans! Also followed the most difficult part of trying to extract commitment from busy professionals (which includes me) with different busy seasons! Leading to friction and tension about prioritization etc! But the fact still remains that we are still committed to the model and we still believe that it will create a great difference to the intended audience! Lets hope next year this time we see something in a shape size and form which befits our vision!
Next comes the marriage season! Every month you come to hear someone or other is getting married which only adds to the pressure at home! So after dodging for a long time I thought that let me initiate this project without any timelines! So that clients at home and family see some progress always!!!
Next seven months in the year! All the above are poised to show increased activity! And also going to be included are my attempts to write a book and basically many more methods to increase the pain in my life!
Such is the life of the aquarian!