Imagine a cold night, a big fire crackling, and everyone throwing their worries into it. That’s Holika Dahan for me. When I was a kid, my grandma would tell me to write down anything that made me sad or scared, and then we’d throw it into the fire. It felt like magic! But now, I understand it’s more than just magic. It’s about letting go.
You know the story, right? Good wins over bad. But think about it this way: the fire is like a big reset button for your mind. It’s a chance to say goodbye to all the things that are weighing you down. Like a class 10th student really stressed about their exams, or when you couldn’t stop worrying about his new job. One can find stressors in every corner of life, and by nature we are attracted to negative or how things can go bad, that is due to humans’ survival instincts to prepare for the worst. Now one can get stress instinctively, after all that is our nature, but by nature we are not attuned to stop this stress from overwhelming us.
Why Holika Dahan and Your Mind
Our minds are like gardens. Sometimes, weeds grow – those are our worries and fears. So, let’s see Holika Dahan as a tool pull out weeds and clean the garden of Eden called your mind. It’s a way to clean up our mental space. Now the question arises how it can it works for us.
- Letting Go: Just like the fire burns the bad things, and symbolises the win of good over evil, we learn to burn the negative of our mind.
- Feeling Hopeful: Fire has been a symbol of hope, survival a warmth of good things to come, after-all it is one of the greatest inventions of human kind.
- Being Together: When we celebrate with others, we feel less alone. That helps our minds too.
How Does This Help?
Think about when you’re really worried about something. Maybe it’s your job, or your kids, or just feeling sad. That’s called anxiety. When you do something like Holika Dahan of the stresses or stressors of your mind, it’s like a little break for your mind. It helps you feel calmer.
- Mindfulness: When you watch the fire, you’re just in that moment. That’s like mindfulness, being present and enjoying what is right in front of you.
- Therapy: Sometimes, our worries are too big for the fire we are burning or it is just extinguishing. That’s when talking to someone like therapist is like giving fire an accelerant (ghee, oil etc.).
What You Can Do:
- Write it down: Like my grandma said, write down your worries and throw them in the fire, so find what stresses you, and burn them in the fire inside of you.
- Talk about it: Share your feelings with someone you trust.
- Try mindfulness: Just take a few minutes each day to breathe and relax. Just like watching a fire burn (or may be just a candle in a quite room)
- Seek help: If you’re feeling overwhelmed, remember there are people like who can help you, find the fire inside of you.
Wrapping Up:
Holika Dahan isn’t just a festival; it’s a way to take care of our minds. It’s a reminder that we can let go of the bad and make space for the good. If you’re feeling stressed or anxious, remember you’re not alone.
Article is written by Mrs Sapna Singh @therapywithsapna, she is therapist, counsellor and a social worker, working out of Pune. For any assistance help on how to handle anxiety, stress, depression please visit www.therapywithsapna.com.
