What is the important message we must internalise as we step into a new year? On the auspicious occasion of Ugadi, Bhagawan gives us a poignant message.

On Ugadi day, when you wake up, it is a practice to eat “Ugadi pachchadi”. This chutney is made from neem flowers, mango juice, honey, sugar and other ingredients with different tastes. The inner significance of this preparation is to indicate that life is a mixture of good and bad, joy and sorrow, and all of them must be treated alike. All experiences must be treated with equanimity. Everyone should make a resolve to face calmly whatever happens in this year, accepting it with grace. Welcome everything. When you partake of this Ugadi Prasadam, you must eat it with satisfaction. If you eat it resentfully, only such negativity will be your lot. Do not bemoan anything untoward. Consider everything as for your own good. Men should rise above sorrow and happiness, success and failure. This is the primary message of the Ugadi festival. Everything that occurs should be treated as a gift from God. This world is a mixture of pleasure and pain, which are inseparable. Pleasure is the outcome of pain. By developing equal-mindedness, you must cherish faith in God, fill your hearts with love of God, and perform your duties with dedication.