12 Jan The Circle of Yearly Celebrations (FREE gift inside)

With every New Year, we start a new circle of time. All the season changes and astrological changes move in the well-established cyclic patterns, according to the will of the Lord. In Bhagavad Gita, Lord Krishna states that He is an all-pervading Time, and there is no such power in this material world that can conquer or overcome His Kala Chakra form. It carries all the living entities, like the strong current of a river that carries the particles of sand in its waters. We all move according to the rhythm of Mother Nature, in the flow of Time, under the law of God. And we move in circles because this is the only possible form of eternity in this material world. After each night there is a new day, after each devastation, there is a new creation, after each death, there is a new life. The natural rhythm of the cyclic movements of material nature is set by the will of God.

When I got children, I had become more aware of natural rhythm as an important part of our everyday life. With the small kids, we have to put more attention to everyday activities like eating, sleeping, resting, spending time outside. Our days pass more smoothly if we have the right rhythm that carries us through everyday activities. Over time I have started to more appreciate the presence of natural rhythm in the world around me, as well as inside of me.

As mothers, we start to learn about it from the time of pregnancy. During pregnancy, we have to follow a rhythm that our body demands from us – a force too much strong to be ignored. When the baby is born, we have to follow the call of the baby`s needs, which is chaotic in the beginning, but slowly develops into a certain rhythm. Following the natural rhythm of the growing child, we learn to be patient, to not expect quick results, to be more alert to the basic needs of the child and of ourselves, to simplify our daily life and our expectations. This slowing down and grounding process gets us more in tune with the rhythm of nature. This is an essential part of my motherhood experience. As much as we are in tune with nature, like going to sleep early, wake up with the sun (or before!), eating regularly at the proper time, having a balance between activity and rest – as much we are connected to the mode of goodness. And we know that the mode of goodness is closest to transcendence.

This natural flow of everyday life is especially important for our children. It provides them the stability that is necessary for their healthy growth. The modern lifestyle of today`s world has lost its connection with the rhythm of nature. It is artificially accelerated, out of balance, and overstimulated by the sense enjoyment. One of the primary duties of parents today is the protection of our children from this type of lifestyle, which includes too many activities and too little rest, too much studying and too little free play, too much time spent in the front of the screens and too little outside play and practical work.

Living in this world we can not fully avoid all these negative influences. Not all of us can shut all the screens off, get children out of government schools, keep them out of the non-favorable association. But, this is the battle we fight for our children`s and our own sake, and we all do the best we can. Having a strong and healthy natural rhythm within the family is a huge help in this battle. It gives the basic framework for developing healthy habits and self-regulation in our children, which are the main pillar stones for their success in any spiritual or material endeavor in the future.

As devotees, we have annual festivals as part of our devotional lifestyle. These festivals contribute to the rhythm of our year and play an important role in the education of our children. As we have entered into a New Year, we might want to make some new commitments, or we expect some new changes or improvements (especially after 2020 which had hit us in an unexpected way!). One circle is over, so we start a new one! And our yearly festivals are like anchors that keep our yearly rhythm on track. They are the gateways into the special mercy of the Lord, available to us at those certain times.

I like to plan our school activities according to the festivals that we have in that month. That`s why I made a list of festivals for the year 2021 that I want to share with all of you. You can download it for FREE, print it out, and display it as a visual reminder for you and your kids regarding the seasons and festivals that are ahead of us.

This Printable contains 5 pdf pages in color. I did not put the exact dates of the festivals, because they are different according to the time zones. It is just a sweet reminder of the festivals that we celebrate in certain months of 2021, for the inspiration of your family!

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