Festivals are the backbone of Indian culture, quite simply because they bring the society together for days filled with celebration. Ugadi is one such festival, which is celebrated in different forms across the country, but for the same occasion. The day marks the beginning of the new year according to the Hindu lunisolar calendar, or the start of the new lunar year. It is known as Ugadi for the people of Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, and Telangana, and the Maharashtrians call is Gudi Padwa, while the Manipuri’s also celebrate their New Year as Sajibu Nongma Panba on the same day. .

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But if you think that Ugadi is just about colorful patterns called ‘Rangolis’ or buying new clothes and eating delicious food, think again! Because this festival has many life lessons which students all over the country can benefit from, especially students from distance learning courses! What are these lessons you ask? Let’s find out!

Lesson 1: You can always have a fresh start in life

Preparations for the Ugadi festival begin a week early in some households! People give their homes a thorough cleaning and disperse of the dirt and unwanted items. Also, on the day of the festival, people scrub themselves thoroughly in ritual showers with perfumed oils and even decorate the front of their homes with mango leaves. This is to signify that people are letting go of the negativity of the past and are heralding in the start of a new year with positivity.

So, if haven’t done well academically in your correspondence course last time around, don’t worry. Great things will happen if you decide to stop looking at past mistakes and believe in yourself. Start working hard from today itself and you’ll see that the results will change themselves!

Lesson 2: Learn to take the good with the bad

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One of the most important and famous rituals of Ugadi is the preparation and consumption of the ‘pacchadi’ festive dish, which is a combination of sweet, sour and bitter elements such as jaggery, sugarcane, raw mangoes, and bitter neem leaves. This dish is prepared to remind people that life is a mixture of bitter and sweet experiences, and even in the midst of bitter experiences, there are sweet moments.

If you’re pursuing a distance learning course in MBA or perhaps MCA, and are finding it tough to grasp some concepts, you should know that giving up isn’t an option. Life is all about ups and downs, and in the end, you just have to work harder to grasp the concepts you’re finding tough.

Lesson 3: Positive actions lead to great results

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On the day of Ugadi, people donate clothes and belongings to the needy, decorate their homes with colorful patterns known as ‘Rangolis’ to spread joy and colour, and buy new clothes and items to start the new year on a positive note. These actions themselves signify that the will to do good things is the key to success. And so, if you’re a distance learning student, then you too can start bringing changes with small positive actions. These can include setting up study-schedules, taking up creative hobbies in your free time, making study groups for revising with family and friends, etc.

All in all, Ugadi is all about a fresh start and understanding the temporary nature of life. Whenever things don’t seem to be going for you, just step up your game and bring in the changes with the power of actions. Good luck!