Post Diwali detox.

" Diwali is over. Now please report for work.

I posted that in the WhatsApp group....and nobody replied. Diwali hangover? Or perhaps sometimes it’s best to ignore certain messages. The groups have gone quiet. People are sleepy. The brain has had enough dopamine from the festival season. The fairy lights are going off...,.but yes, the inner light is totally on.

We cleaned the house before Diwali. Rumi says:When will you start working on yourself???

There's lots to clean and clear at every stage.

We’re now in the month of Kartik. We always have a choice. We can join the prabhat sādhana in the morning. We can chant as much as we can. We can sit in silence.

Also, let’s begin returning to our daily routines with joy. Let the party spirit remain.....but channelled into purpose. The power is in now.

Let’s start our mornings with gratitude. Instead of thinking about ladoos and “who wore what”, ask: how many people would you like to be in gratitude for? Can you count 108 like the japa-mālā?

Your daily routine can be a saviour....for you and for others. Maybe you could carve out one corner of your home as a meditation corner: some incense, a book, you and  your breath work.

Take hands away from distraction. There is great power in sitting in silence, no music, no messages, just you. And say nothing.

Osho reminds us:

“Be relaxed. Don’t try hard, because it is through relaxation that you can become aware, not by trying hard.”

Hence: the real light is not in the noise but it is in calmness, in inner work.

Small tasks can become a devotion too: cooking, writing, cleaning. Work done with love becomes its own temple. As you slip back into routine, go slow.

Sip your tea slowly—enjoy every sip.

As Thich Nhat Hanh reminds us in his Tea Meditation, “Drink your tea slowly and reverently, as if it is the axis on which the earth revolves.”

Even a simple cup of tea can bring us back home to ourselves .... one mindful sip at a time.

Make someone feel special....not just with gifts, but with your abundant inner warmth.

Light up a soul!!