Festival
Dr. B.R. Ambedkar Jayanti in 2026 will be celebrated on Tuesday, 14 April 2026. It is a national holiday in India, observed across states with government offices, schools, and banks closed in many regions. The day honors the birth anniversary of Babasaheb Ambedkar (1891–1956), the chief architect of the Indian Constitution and one of the … Read more
Every year, on the full moon day of Chaitra — the same sacred month that witnesses Ram Navami — millions of devotees across India and around the world gather in temples, homes, and open-air arenas to celebrate the birth of one of Hinduism’s most extraordinary divine figures: Lord Hanuman, the Pavanputra, the Sankat Mochan, the … Read more
Every festival in the Hindu tradition is, at its heart, an invitation to share joy — to extend the grace experienced in one’s own heart outward into the lives of those we love. Hanuman Jayanti, the sacred birth anniversary of Lord Hanuman, is no different. In fact, it may be the festival where the act … Read more
Gudi Padwa, the Maharashtrian New Year, is a festival of joy, prosperity, and new beginnings. Traditionally celebrated with rituals, sweets, and the hoisting of the Gudi (a decorated flag symbolizing victory and prosperity), it is also a time to strengthen personal bonds. Sending Gudi Padwa wishes to your girlfriend is a beautiful way to blend … Read more
Across India and the global Hindu diaspora, Navratri is among the most jubilant, most devotionally intense, and most spiritually layered festivals of the year. Nine nights — nava ratri in Sanskrit — dedicated entirely to the worship of Shakti: the divine feminine energy that underlies all of creation. But Navratri is far more than nine days of fasting, garba … Read more
In an age of relentless noise, algorithmic distraction, and existential restlessness, millions of seekers around the world are turning — or returning — to one of humanity’s oldest spiritual traditions: the path of Krishna consciousness, known in its most joyful expression as the Hare Krishna movement. Whether you first encountered the Hare Krishna mantra in … Read more
In the Maharashtrian tradition, Jyeshtha Gauri — the eldest Gauri, the supreme form of Goddess Parvati — arrives as a beloved family member. She is welcomed into the home the way one would welcome a daughter returning after marriage: with elaborate preparation, with the best food the kitchen can produce, with new clothes and fresh … Read more
There is a particular kind of silence that falls just before the Eid prayer — the whole congregation gathered in the open air or the mosque courtyard, rows stretching back further than the eye can follow, every person dressed in their finest, and the world briefly, beautifully still. And then the Imam begins, and the … Read more
There is a moment that arrives every year at the end of Ramadan — and those who have experienced it know it carries a feeling unlike any other in the Islamic calendar. It comes after the last iftar of Ramadan. After thirty days of fasting, prayer, Quran recitation, and quiet reflection. After Laylat ul Qadr … Read more
There is a particular kind of Tuesday morning in Maharashtra and Karnataka that carries a different energy from any other day of the week — and those who have grown up in households where it is observed will recognize it the moment they step into the kitchen. It begins before sunrise, with the smell of … Read more