Happy Yugadi (New Year)

[Guest guest]

Greetings:

 

In South India Yugadi (Yesterday) and April 14 (Tamil New Year) are observed

with traditional readings of Panchang (A calendar of Astronomical Postions of

Stars and Planets) and with traditional dinner. Interestingly, the traditional

dinner always include sweet and bitter food items. The most popular is a

preparation using the flowers of the Neem Tree which is bitter but has lots good

medicinal value. There is very good reason for eating both bitter and sweet

items on the New Year Day. It is a reminder to every one on the New Year day to

prepare them to accept both sweet and bitter with equanimity during the rest of

the year! That which tastes bitter to the tongue does lots of good to the rest

of body. On the other hand, the sweets that we enjoy for a shorter duration does

indeed damge to the body in the longer duration!

 

Happy Yugadi!

 

Ram Chandran