And then God created the Universe

It's a wonderful day. Gudi Padwa.

It's the day Brahma created the Universe...

Happy New World to all of you

Happy Gudi Padwa

Happy Cheti Chand

Happy Ugadi!

A new year begins. A new universe. A new start. 

An opportunity to look at things in a new light.

Happy happy to all of you.

Here's what I have curated from the Wiki page on Gudi Padwa... celebrate!

 According to the Brahma Purana, this is the day on which Brahma created the world after the deluge and time began to tick from this day forth.

Gudhi Padva (Marathi: गुढी पाडवा Guḍhī Pāḍavā), is the Marathi name for Chaitra Shukla Pratipada.^[2] It is celebrated on the first day of the Chaitramonth to mark the beginning of the New year according to the lunisolar Hindu calendar. This day is also the first day of Chaitra Navratri and Ghatasthapana also known as Kalash Sthapana is done on this day.

The word पाडवा(pāḍavā) or पाडवो(pāḍavo) comes from the sanskrit word पड्ड्वा/पाड्ड्वो(pāḍḍavā/pāḍḍavo), which stands for the first day of the bright phase of the moon called प्रतिपदा (pratipadā) in Sanskrit.

In the south of India, first day of the bright phase of the moon is called pāḍya(Tamil: பாட்ய or பாட்டமி , Kannada: ಪಾಡ್ಯ, Telugu: పాడ్యమి, paadyami,Konkani: पाड्यॆ,ಪಾಡ್ಯ). Konkani Hindus variously refer to the day as संसर पाडवो or संसर पाड्यॆ (saṁsāra 'pāḍavo/ saṁsāra pāḍye),संसार (saṁsāra) being a corruption of the word संवत्सर (saṁvatsara). Konkani Hindus in Karnataka also refer to it as उगादि, ಯುಗಾದಿ(ugādi).

·         Ugadi in Andhra Pradesh

·         Yugadi in Karnataka

·         Cheti Chand among the Sindhi people^[4][5]

On Guḍhī Pāḍavā, a gudhi is found sticking out of a window or otherwise prominently displayed in traditional Maharashtrian households. Bright green or yellow cloth adorned with brocade (zari) tied to the tip of a long bamboo over which gaathi (sugar crystals), neem leaves^{[citation needed]}, a twig of mango leaves and a garland of red flowers is tied. A silver or copper pot is placed in the inverted position over it. Altogether, it is called as Gudhi. It is hoisted outside the house, in a window, terrace or a high place so that everybody can see it.

Some of the significances attributed to raising a Gudhi are as follows:

·         Maharashtrians also see the Gudhi as a symbol of victory associated with the conquests of the Maratha forces led by Chhatrapati Shivaji. It also symbolizes the victory of King Shalivahana over Sakas and was hoisted by his people when he returned to Paithan.^[6]

·         Gudhi symbolizes the Brahmadhvaj (translation: Brahma’s flag) mentioned in the Brahma Purana, because Lord Brahma created the universe on this day. It may also represent Indradhvaj (translation: the flag of Indra).^[6]

·         Mythologically, the Gudhi symbolizes Lord Rama’s victory and happiness on returning to Ayodhya after slaying Ravana. Since a symbol of victory is always held high, so is the gudhi (flag). It is believed that this festival is celebrated to commemorate the coronation of Rama post his return to Ayodhya after completing 14 years of exile.^[6]

·         Gudhi is believed to ward off evil, invite prosperity and good luck into the house.^[6]

Happy Gudi Padwa to all! Happy New Universe!

This beauty bit

Three hours after I stepped into a beauty salon last weekend, I walked out and looked at myself. I looked the same!

What?!

In all fairness, I am not one of those who spend long hours at the salon. I dread my trips to the salon. I equate them to prison, exile, whatever you may call it.  And most of them happen because they must. I treat my sojourns to the parlour there with great trepidation. There is prep involved too. I pack for it! I wisely arm myself with an iPod or an iPad, or a book. Sometimes all three. You never know!

At the salon I ask for stuff to be done while other stuff is being done. (If I can multi-task, why can’t multiple tasks be done simultaneously on me?) Right?

Much rearranging of salon furniture happens and I usually get my way! Not that I was ever great at numbers but I calculate the time taken for a manicure with the time taken for a haircut with the time taken for a pedicure! Voila! 3-in-one didn’t ever have a better meaning. And it’s time well utilized (while of course I am on my iPod or tweeting to the world about important advances in analytics and retail!)

So those three (long) hours last weekend were not exactly agonizing.  I multitasked with mails, calls, much tweeting, and much reading up on what the www had to say about various things like coffee to missing aircrafts and of course social media on social media.

While diligent and enthusiastic attendants slaved away at my nails and cuticles, split hairs over my split ends, and fussed over the temperature of the water for my shampoo, I slowly unwound and relaxed. I closed my eyes and enjoyed the warm water as my hair was shampooed. I stared long and hard at myself in the mirror as my hair was being effortlessly blow dried. I felt my stress waning away with a gentle foot massage. When finished my feet were feeling squeaky clean, my hands feeling unfamiliarly soft and my hair looking like… well… like I’d been to a salon!

And when I finally stepped out it was different!

And this whole beauty bit fell into place. It’s not about looking beautiful. It’s not about beauty pageants. Not about a size zero. Not about the choice of your wardrobe or your accessories. It’s how good you feel inside. And I realized I felt different because I felt pampered, cleansed and squeaky clean. And when I looked at it that way, I felt beautiful.

And with a broad smile on my face, I drove home!