If we look around the world, there are key festivals in some part of some country around Full moon, New moon of some month or other. In India, Holi is celebrated around full moon of March, Diwali around New moon of October or November depending on alignments, Christmas universally is celebrated on 25th December, Guru Purnima in Full moon of July (Ashadha period) , Buddha Purnima on full moon in May , Makar Sakranti and Pongal on 13/14th January , Eid based on certain lunar cycles and many more.
While there are religious and cultural reasons for each of these festivals to be celebrated the way they are, there is also a deeper universal reason on why festivals fall on particular dates and how everyone in the environment feels festive or some form of light in form of joy, togetherness, or going within on these particular days.
We all by now know that everything on Earth is in some way influenced by the planets and galaxies surrounding us. We are also influenced by the constellations and the light that is received via them into the planet and cycles of nature in a way are impacted by same. A lot is said astrologically, but the idea of understanding this piece is from a space of light and consciousness. A lot in nature naturally shifts when fall comes or spring opens up or when spring transitions into summer or monsoons or autumn. The way spring or summer reflects in each piece of land and the way nature behaves is also very different. The way we feel inward or outward or naturally joyous or harmonious or low or high is also in some way related to the shifts of cycles of nature and lands, water, sea etc.
On important days like solstice, equinox, full moon, new moon or certain specific full moon and new moon, lets say Holi that was today for instance, with full moon yesterday, the depth of light that enters from different constellations, star systems, galaxies, universes is relatively very high into the earth purely because of the alignment of these planets and the paths of light that align into the earth. To make it simple, in a day, if there is a circular building or dome, only a specific part of dome receives light from the sun directly and that changes from moment to moment. Similarly, on festivals, there is a direct alignment between certain celestial bodies and earth as well as nature that naturally expands the emotional, etheric and physical space or field of individuals, species and nature. When we feel expanded because of natural light available to us, we naturally feel a little more optimistic, joyful, open and have more of those “aha moments”.
These were and are also the times very beautiful for souls to reflect within or to move higher within their own inner knowing. In a way, on days like Holi and Diwali that falls in November/October, there is a lot of builtup and purging that happens in nature and collective. On these days, a lot gets purged in form of Holika Dahan(fire burning) or Fire that is lit in form of candles and deepam on Diwali. Culturally this transformed as cleaning and painting of houses and getting rid of old. For saints and those who do self work or meditate, these dates and moments signify the ability to shed a lot easily.
To explain it further and easier, just as an example, if you required “x” amount of energy to shed something or transform, on days like this, you only need 0.2x amount of energy to shed the old. Here the “old” represents everything from stagnant energy, thoughts, feelings, emotions, patterns and so on. If you are meditative or sensitive, you shall feel this shift even deeper. Many people who do a lot of self work or transmute their karma, utilize these days to meditate deeper. So, the quality of meditation is relatively higher on these days as compared to others.
The idea of cooking food on these days is to allow that vibration become a part of you. The depth of light that enters the planet becomes a part of natural light that aids your cooking and other processes and becomes a part of you through the food that is cooked and consumed.
Saints often use these times to bring a lot of love, harmony and balance in collective using their meditation and to help those who wish to transcend to deeper inner planes within to be in touch with their soul or enhance their connection to spiritual & conscious part of their soul.
A lot of pre-work is done within nature, within the consciousness of our own existence to simply shed the old. Some do conscious work on same and some shed consciously, some unconsciously, the volume varies for each. If you are a plant lover and observe plants, you will notice the shift in the way plant or leaves behave in these times and just before this time as well. Culturally, a lot of planting, seeding of crops is aligned to these cycles as well.
In many ways, on events like Holi, Christmas, Diwali, Pongal, Eid, a lot of wounds of heart get healed unknowingly and a lot of pain is shed that is stored in cells. This is also the beauty of our human body, and its consciousness that naturally cleanses a lot.
In many ways, these festivals are cycles of old purging and new entering. The depth to which they touch each soul is dependent on the conscious choices and lifestyle with which the soul lives on the planet. Everyone sheds something and receives something new. One may observe that sometimes one may feel irritated or emotional or stagnant just before these days for the depth that comes up up in body to be cleansed and then feels vibrant or better just after these days.
Our cultural practices somewhere in some way align to them unknowingly in the present.
Every festival holds a different vibration of love or light and the way it transforms collective. I use the word collective here for that includes plants, minerals, nature, animals, humans and everything else that constitutes earth. Everything impacts everything else, and when everything feels lighter because of the depth and quantum of light received, we humans, tend to feel brighter and lighter as well, without knowing on outside why we do.
It can be a good practice to keep some time for meditating, cleansing spaces, journal or simply reflect on life on these days. It is also good to keep a tab on festivals celebrated across, for in some way they reflect important days of shift for us as souls, and we can align some practices in life to them regularly.
Conscious living in many ways is also about recognizing how nature impacts us and how we can utilise the cycles of nature to live better, lighter and happier.
I hope that you include these festivals as a conscious way of enhancing your own presence of soul within into your life and make the best of them.
In Joy
Anushree.
Brahmaville 