Celebrate Pollution Free Festivals With Family And Friends

“Let’s clean up our environment and bodies, but most importantly, let’s not permit our future generations to be polluted before they are born.” – Louise Slaughter 

Celebrating a festival needs a lot of preparation, shopping, decorations, and gifting. But besides that, what most people also have to suffer is pollution. 

I am talking about health pollution,  when we neglect the importance of balanced nutrition and regular exercise. Mental pollution, when we become stressed because of being stuck in traffic, long queues before a trial room and then at the billing counter, and trying to fulfil endless expectations of children. 

Most importantly, the air pollution that clogs our lungs and heart. There are other types of pollution as well like wastage of gifting materials and food. 

How are these things connected? All the things are interconnected with each other like a wide programming network. 

The outside surroundings affect the inside – the body and mind, but the inside, brain, has the power to change and transform the outside.  

Some call it being mindful, others relate it to spiritualism, and yet others in the modern world call it minimalism by clearing things that crowd your living space and the mind space. 

This article proposes a few cleaning rituals performed across the world to reduce the physical and mental pollution and help you really be joyous on the  festival day. 

POST CONTENTS
Cleaning as a ritual and an exercise
Warding off air pollution and maintaining hygiene
Utilizing sustainable products for decoration and gifting

Disclaimer: All contents in this post are for general health information only. Please consult a specialist physician or a coach before trying any new exercise, diet or health advice. There are no affiliate links attached to this post. 

CLEANING AS A RITUAL AND AN EXERCISE

In many Asian countries like Japan, China, India, when winter celebrations arrive, cleaning is done as part of the ritual. The act of cleaning is so ingrained in Japanese culture because wealth and success comes in the household when a positive energy or Chi or an aura is created by cleaning a place.  

Indians do spring cleaning before festivals because of huge family gatherings and visiting relatives. Especially for Diwali, we like to draw Rangoli on the floor with natural flower petals, organic colours, or with diyas. 

In Ayurveda, cleansing of the body is recommended by having a moderate amount of food that does not let toxins accumulate in the body combined with rising early and walking after meals. 

Doing regular exercise impacts  breathing, blood circulation, and sweat production – improving overall health by releasing toxins from the body. The best part is that by exercising, you divert your mind from overthinking, direct it towards positive aspects of life, and therefore de-stress. 

Purifying purposes are taken seriously by cleaning the stone floors with milk in Latin cultures. Jewish kitchens have ceremonial cleansing with hot water and prayer to become kosher before cooking. 

The fun tradition of Halloween started during the Celtic festival Samhain in which it was believed the souls of the dead returned to their homes, so people dressed in costumes and lit bonfires to ward off spirits. 

You may also like to read:

The Vibrant Tradition of Garba Dance on Navratri Festival 

WARDING OFF AIR POLLUTION AND MAINTAINING HYGIENE

After suffering from the coronavirus pandemic, people have become even more conscious about infectious diseases that are contagious and spread easily from human contact. Hand washing became necessary to ward off the evil germs of COVID-19. 

Similarly, with air pollution on the rise, dust settles in places causing unhygienic food, toxins in lungs, and falling sick easily. It is especially harmful for children, the elderly, and people suffering from asthma.  

The only reason Earth is a hospitable planet is because it has oxygen in it. The only solution is to heavily contribute to practices that promote oxygen like planting more trees. You can continue blaming people and governments for not doing enough but creating oxygen is impossible even for an AI. 

Therefore, spreading awareness about climate change and coming together to save our planet is urgently required. 

You may also like to read: Improve Gut Health With A Combination Of Cardio And Yoga

USING SUSTAINABLE PRODUCTS FOR DECORATION AND GIFTING

Another amazing way to become less toxic this festival season is by producing less garbage,  reusing stuff creatively, and investing in products that are environmentally friendly. It’s a practice most helpful for middle-class families to maintain a healthy budget since we pay the largest amount of taxes.  

Reusing stuff creatively takes time for some people so you can always arrange a garage sale in your neighborhood and exchange used items. Donating old or unused stuff every 3 months is a great practice to maintain a refreshing interior design style at home. Sharing your stuff is a good idea to encourage community building. 

While markets are anticipating how shopping trends will be affected during the festival season by the fear of inflation looming ahead, it’s vital to break this cycle and rethink the gifting tradition. 

Food is a basic necessity and in some communities, it is a habit to always bring home-cooked food when visiting a neighbour or relatives. 

Bring some light and happiness to the homeless by distributing food packages or gifting basic first aid kits to NGOs. 

Traveling far is exciting but sometimes exploring local tourist spots or eateries by yourself or with friends is a great way to contribute to the economy. 

Decorating your home in snowy winters with beautiful air filtering plants is a unique way that enhances the aesthetics of your home. 

Natural elements like pine cones, branches, holly, is a wonderful decorating idea. Also, you can color small stones,  create a collage with different types of leaves, and use eco-friendly paints for the walls.

You may also like to read: Celebrate Earth Day By Riding A Bike

FINAL THOUGHTS

While researching and writing this article, I learnt so much about different cultures. Whether it’s spring cleaning, cleansing rituals, decorations, exercising, there are varied ways to bring positive energy around us. 

Pollution in life has indeed made living difficult but we can be creative and create a better world inside and outside to live peacefully.

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