Every Day is New Year's Day
New Year's day is upon us and fast approaching. Most people celebrate the end of the year with parties, getting together with family and friends, or having a solo personal event. Whatever we decide to do, there is usually an element of gluttony and overdrinking in these holiday seasons. Interestingly, more deaths and illnesses this time of the year are attributed to the northern hemisphere's cold weather, contributing to more infections and sickness. During this time of year, we see more suicides due to lack of sunlight and more stress from returning to work. By eating and drinking poorly, we can accentuate the opportunities for sickness and degradation of our health.
Frequently we like to finish the year with some relaxation and parties and make our New Year's resolution and "clean up" once the New Year is upon us. Not everyone is asking, but New Year's Day on our Gregorian calendar is an arbitrarily selected day with no cosmic significance.
Yes, there are approximately 365 days defined as a solar year - the time Earth rotates around the sun in one cycle. But there is no good reason why December 31 needs to be the end of that cycle and January 1 to be the beginning of a new cycle.
The Gregorian calendar dates back to 1592 when Pope Gregory XIII instituted it as a revision of the Julien or Roman calendar. Plenty of other calendars worldwide make more "cosmic" sense, and I would argue that they are healthier for you!
There are the Balinese Pawukon Calendar, the Chinese Calendar, the Ethiopian Calendar, the Hebrew or Jewish Calendar, the Islamic, Muslim, or Hijrī Calendar, and the Persian or Solar Hijiri Calendar. While the Chinese and Jewish calendars originate from lunar observations, the Persian calendar is one of the most accurate solar calendars in the world.
The New Year starts at the vernal equinox, when the sun begins to cross the celestial equator or when the day and the night are of equal length. It makes better sense when the New Year starts in the spring when the season is shifting, or we call it the shoulder season instead of in the absolute cold or heat in the middle of winter and summer.
I often joke with my patients that if one misses making new year's resolutions, one can do it during the Chinese New Year, which is usually around the end of January or the beginning of February. If you miss that one, you can still catch up at Persian New Year in the middle of spring. If you miss that one, the Jewish Calendar will save you with their new year of Rosh Hashanah, usually in September. If you miss that one, you should just quit making any resolutions.
The reality is that every day is a New Year's Day. Every day is a new beginning. Every day can be when we commit to our health and well-being. Every day can be the day that we transform ourselves into better living and higher consciousness.
I love the principle of Kaizen in Japanese or Gai Shan in Chinese. It means making one small positive, constructive change every day. Every morning when you wake up, ask yourself what you can do today to improve yourself and your life. If you can do that regularly, every day is a New Year's Day.
Happy New Year!