Yes, the times are changing. Maybe for the better! Who knows? Who really cares? We have a job to do, a family to take care of and feed and our profession to work on with passion and zeal.

The Indian woman ensures the kitchen in scrupulously clean, the fridge is stocked up with chopped vegetables, the kid’s homework is done on time and the lunch boxes are packed with healthy food.

Stress is a part of everyone’s life. And this Indian lady creates her own ways of coping with it. She creates time to drape a gorgeous Kanjeevaram saree on a regular work day, adorns her hair with a mogra gajra and plaits her long hair neatly within six minutes flat before departing to her office.

The impact is instantaneous! The staff in her office looks up with immediate interest and knows it is a special occasion.

Whether it is a simple Haldi Kumkum ceremony for Sankranti or a Satyanarayan Pooja for a special family celebration…… we all want to immerse ourselves in those positive calming vibrations that we derive from culture and traditions.

Culture and traditions are our best stress busters.

Please take the time and the effort to read that again and think for a while (at least) about what we are trying to say.

Indian women make it a point to sit down and have a leisurely meal with their family members. Fresh simple piping hot homemade meals are back in fashion. And it is during such times that the values associated with our rich and diverse cultural norms and traditions are discussed with our children. 

We make our children realize that we are not traveling back in time and are most certainly not old fashioned or outdated when we practice such traditions. We show them by example how these traditions and cultural nuances help us remain grounded. We show them by experience and allow them to realize the positive impact it has on the family. And we do all of this despite our extremely hectic schedule.

The Dhoop, the Deep, the Darshan, the Arti and the Prasadam are all a part of any simple ceremony! And all these rituals are incomplete without that humble fresh betel leaf!

When children see such simple symbolic traditions being performed in their houses they realize how far-sighted our ancestors were. 

This betel leaf is also known as Paan in Hindi. The Paan is a symbol of freshness and prosperity. Lord Vishnu, Goddess Lakshmi, Goddess Saraswati, Goddess Parvati, Goddess Mangalya Devi, Mother Earth – Bhoomi Devi, Indra and the Sun God Surya are all believed to reside in different parts of this fresh green leaf. This betel leaf is revered because it was one of the many things that came out when the ocean of milk was being churned by the devas and the asuras!

Two Paan leaves, a supari and the humble one rupee coin is enough to convey our respects to the Almighty or to the people who visit our homes during a religious ceremony.

When we take the effort to dress up in traditional clothes, when we take the effort to buy things for the ceremony, when we take the effort to clean the surface where the ceremony is going to be performed, when we take the effort to create the Kalash and adorn it with the humble Paan leaf and the coconut, when we take the effort of creating a colourful rangoli outside our home every day, when we take the effort of giving all our guests a simple dry coconut with two betel leaves and a supari as a token of good will …..It means we know how meaningful and spiritually rich these rituals can be.

With so many Gods and Goddesses residing in every part of the betel leaf, the Paan represents the purity of our emotions and thoughts to the guests. The guests simply have to rinse the leaves, put in some supari powder, fold the leaf and eat it. The coconut is used to make chutneys and gravies. Symbolic, useful, traditional and cost effective………what more……..really what more can we ask for from these immensely simple traditions that we have been practicing for centuries!

And then we even use these traditions to create a thriving business. Paan is an edible leaf with excellent health benefits if eaten regularly in a limited quantity after every meal! So we have dozens of Paan shops which remain open well past midnight in most metropolitan cities. A beautiful variety of Paans is created using myriad ingredients to suit your palate. Youngsters and adults alike throng such Paan shops……and a Paan of your specific liking is crafted in a jiffy for a small amount of money.

Healthy, tasty, cost effective and an ideal post-meal sweet after mint!! Betel leaves leave that lovely red color in our mouth along with a lingering fresh smell and taste…… that is how yummy Indian traditions can prove to be!