Asrani!

“Made yesterday broken very soon!

Keeping is rare like the dark side of the moon!

Make them and make sure they are set!

Breaking a resolution is an easy bet!”

Oh the resolutions!

So easy to make and so easy to break!

then again; that is what makes you a mortal!

Read on!

I normally try not to make resolutions! Maybe that is my resolution which is to make no resolution! This is because over 90 percent of the new year resolutions do not work!

But if at all there is some version of resolution it can be to make blogs which are shorter and more interesting! It may even be a blog which I have written before but a crispier more readable version!

It is the same with the sketches! and maybe even poems!

To make better versions every single day!

That is the only resolution which is required and it does not need the completion of the revolution of the Earth to start! Which is to be your better self every other day!

Traditionally of course we still believe that our new year is during the months of March-April and we usually celebrate them with much more pomp and conviction! In fact we used to get new clothes for sure only during ‘our’ new  year! 

The ‘English’  new year was only for the cake cutting and watching new years special on the TV! We all used to see the pre recorded program and felt so nice and special! The countdown in the TV was the official countdown since our clocks were never in sync! There was no mobile network and there was no OTT!

So there were no resolutions and we did not think about this “New year” much! The march april new year was the time to celebrate! In fact that was the origin of the new year and new year resolution since it was the time of harvest!

At that time in an effort to impress upon their gods and benefactors, people would like to be better versions of themselves!

The beginning of the year was like a start over of life! From this point onwards was the key! And everyone needs a start over; a turning point in their life!

It is obvious that like India, many civilizations across the world have celebrated the turning of the year for millennia!

Although they didn’t necessarily use the term resolutions, they tried to enter the new year with a positive mindset, as recorded by early first century texts such as the Roman poet Ovid’s “Fasti” — a six-part account of the Roman year and its religious festivals.

They also exchanged gifts of figs and honey or other foodstuffs that represented prosperity, and ensured they worked for part of the day as a good omen for the coming year!

When it comes to ancient forms of New Year’s resolution throughout history and across cultures we see the same principle at play.

In Ireland, having a clean house at the start of the year symbolized a fresh start and the luck of the house for the coming year! This is what we do all over in Indian festivals! The concept of out with the old and welcome the new is spread across almost all the Indian festivals!

There’s also the figuratively regenerative burning of the Año Viejo in Colombia, Ecuador and other parts of Latin America. In this out-with-the-old tradition, which is Spanish for “old year,” families stuff a life-size male doll with memories of the outgoing year or other materials and dress it in their clothing before setting the doll ablaze at midnight! This so similar to the Baisakhi or Lohri festival!

All in all, the new year is a time to try to be the NEW you!

But (yeah, my resolution must be to use less of but!); the most important resolution to make is to just be a better version of yourself every single day! A positive step upwards no matter how small will finally make you much better! 

Like the proverbial Tortoise or the slug which climbs two steps in the morning and then falls one step back, the journey to perfection is a journey! You can never reach the end! The whole point is to enjoy the journey and learn and better yourself if possible!

Fun and joy reminds me of Asrani and his comic timings!

Let this year make you strong!

Shubh ratri!