A Joyful Practice

New Years / New Habits (a post-practice compilation for Monday) September 14, 2026

Happy Church New Year and/or Happy Ganesh Chaturthi, to those who are celebrating. “L’Shana Tovah U’Metukah!” to everyone celebrating Rosh Hashanah and the High Holidays. Many blessings to everyone and especially to anyone responding with friendship, peace, freedom, understanding, and wisdom. 

Stay safe! Hydrate and nourish your heart, body, and mind.

The following post-practice compilation post for Monday, September 14^th, includes new and previously posted content, PLUS a series of excerpts. The 2026 prompt question was, “Under what circumstances do you find yourself responding versus reacting? (In other words, what are the causes and conditions that lead you to have wise/skillful/mindful responses instead of kneejerk reactions?)”

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“It’s time to start all over, make a new beginning”

— quoted from the song “New Beginning” by Tracy Chapman

Depending on which calendar(s) you use, today (Monday) was either September 14, 2026, on the Gregorian calendar; September 1, 2026, on the Julian calendar; Tishrei 3, 5787, on the Hebrew calendar; Meskerem 4, 2019, on the Ethiopian of Ge’ez calendar; or Bhadrapada 19, 2083, on the Hindu lunar calendar. Obviously, there are more dates I could mention; but, I am highlighting these because they are related to new beginnings that, in some cases, were actually kicked off by last week’s new moon.

Enkutatash, the Ethiopian New Year was on Friday; Rosh Hashanah, “the the Head of the Year” and the beginning of the High Holidays, started on Friday at sunset; and today (Monday) was the Church New Year in some Orthodox Christian communities and Ganesha Chaturthi in some Hindu communities. Although the Ethiopian New Year is not considered a religious holiday by everyone who celebrates it and, although, these holidays are celebrated within different religious, the first three holidays have roots in the Hebrew Bible and all are related to homecomings (of a sort).

Enkutatash is Amharic for “gift of jewels” and refers to the gifts given to the Queen of Sheba (named Bilqis or Makeda, in some accounts) when she returned home after visiting King Solomon (son of David) and giving him gifts. Many people celebrate the new year by attending church in the morning; sharing a traditional meal with family; and then dressing up for singing, dancing, and gift giving. The Ethiopian or Ge’ez calendar is a solar calendar that serves an official state calendar, as well as a liturgical calendar. Since the calendar’s inception was originally based on the Julian calendar and related to the annunciation of Jesus (on August 29, 8 AD), this is 2019, on the Ethiopian calendar.

Several Biblical annunciations (or announcements) are celebrated as feast days within the Abrahamic religions. In some Orthodox Christian traditions, the Church New Year commemorates two significant events that occurred on September 1^st (according to the Julian calendar). First, it was the day Jesus “entered the synagogue on the Sabbath day as was His custom, and read these words of the Prophet Isaiah: ‘The Spirit of the Lord is upon me because he has anointed Me … to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord’ (Luke 4, 18:19).” Later, in 312 AD, it was the day Emperor Constantine the Great (the first Roman emperor to convert to Christianity) won a victory over Maxentius, thus enabling Christians to publicly proclaim their faith within the Roman empire. On the Julian calendar, today is September 1^st.

For Those Who Missed It: Some of the descriptions related to Ganesh Chaturthi were excerpted from a 2023 post.

“ॐ गजाननाय नमः।
Aum Gajānanāya Namaḥ।”

— This mantra honoring “the One who carries the elephant head” is a reminder that if Ganesha can carry the elephant’s head to survive and fulfill his duties, we can all put aside our egos and live dutifully.

Ganesh Chaturthi (which started today) is a 10-day festival celebrating the birthday of Ganesha. Depicted as a deity with an elephant head and (at least) four arms, Ganesha is known as the “Remover of Obstacles”, as well the God of New Beginnings, Wisdom, and Luck”. He is also associated with wisdom and intelligence, as well as the arts and sciences.

For Ganesha’s birthday celebrations, people chant Vedic and Hindu hymns and shastras (including sacred texts and scriptures). There is also kirtan (chanting with music), which is a form of bhakti yoga or union through devotion/love. The celebrations include installations of devotional images or murtis, which can be in the form of a “statue, sculpture, form, embodiment, or solid object”). Placing a clay statue of Ganesha in their home or on a public stage is a way for people to host Ganesha for one day, three days, seven days, or all ten days.

Additionally, there are pujas (“offerings”). People will often offer (and eat) one of Ganesha’s favorite treats: a sweet dumpling filled with grated coconut and a special sugar cane. The name of the dumpling, modak, comes from “ joy, happiness, delight”.

On the tenth day, the murtis are carried to a nearby body of water and dissolved so that Ganesha can return to his heavenly home, carrying people’s obstacles/burdens away in the process. In some places, hundreds of thousands of statues are dissolved at the end of the festival. Over the years, people moved away from traditional materials and started using plaster of Paris (Gypsum plaster), which created environmental concerns. Some cities have now banned using plaster of Paris and encouraged people to return to using local clay (and sometimes clay and cow dung). There are also people who will dissolve their Ganesha statue in a barrel of water and then spread the dissolved clay in their garden — which may not seem like much, but can be way for a person’s actions and faith-based beliefs to make a difference in the world.

While Ganesh Chaturthi is not a new year, per se, people will pray to Ganesha before starting something new. So, all of these holidays are a great time to consider what it takes to cultivate a new habit.

For Those Who Missed It: The following note and excerpt where previously posted. Some class details, links, and formatting have been updated/added.

“If a certain stimulus has lost its influence, it can recover the latter only after a long resting that has to last several hours.

The lost action, however, can also be restored with certainty at any time by special measures.”

— quoted from the Dec. 12, 1904 Nobel Lecture “Physiology of Digestion” by Dr. Ivan Pavlov, winner of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine

A “Habit Loop” — the connection between a trigger, behavior, and reward — can also be considered “the Pavlovian response”, which was named after Dr. Ivan Pavlov (b. 1849).

Click on the excerpt title below to discover why Dr. Pavlov might have been in the habit of celebrating his birthday today (rather than on September 26^th).

FTWMI: How Do You Respond [in 2024]?

The post excerpted above includes a link to my video series about cultivating habits!

“abhyāsa vairāgyābhyāṁ tat nirodhaḥ” (YS 1.12)

abhyāsa        Practice over a long period/without interruption

vairāgyābhyāṁ  Non-attachment, without attraction or aversion

tat               Those (referring to the “fluctuations of the mind” as described in previous sutras)

nirodhaḥ           Ceases, controls, quiets, stills, regulates, masters

There is no playlist for the Common Ground Meditation Center practices.

CLICK HERE TO FIND OUT WHY I WANT YOU TO KISS SANDRA’S ASANA!

If you are thinking about suicide, worried about a friend or loved one, or would like emotional support, you can dial 988 (in the US) or call 1-800-273-TALK (8255) for the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline. You can also call this TALK line if you are struggling with addiction or involved in an abusive relationship. The Lifeline network is free, confidential, and available to all 24/7. YOU CAN TALK ABOUT ANYTHING.

White Flag is an app, which I have not researched, but which may be helpful if you need peer-to-peer (non-professional) support.

If you are a young person in crisis, feeling suicidal, or need a safe and judgement-free place to talk, you can also click here to contact the TrevorLifeline (which is staffed 24/7 with trained counselors).

You’re Invited to Bend… & To Take The Deepest Breath You’ve Taken — On Retreat!

September 25 — 27, 2026

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### How Do You Respond In 2026? (& How Will Your Name Be Written and Sealed in the Book of Life?) ###