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A spiritual comment and prayer to start the day with journalist Vishva Samani, a Hindu centred in Vedanta, the philosophical teachings of the Upanishads.

Good morning. Have five year-olds always had such active social lives?

Among the various administrative responsibilities starting school brings, there seem to be a plethora of party invitations to navigate.
From superhero to princess themed – kids birthday parties now frequently appear to involve hiring out large expensive venues, coordinating décor with the dress of the child in question, and let’s not forget the obligatory cake that is more like a work of art.

I thought Indian weddings were the epitome of excess, but I sometimes feel a similar level of effort and expense is expended by parents keen to give their child and guests a brilliant bash.

While I too am guilty of indulging in all this hullabaloo, I also wonder how much children really care for all the fuss?

Children move on very fast – just as they are quick to discard their plastic party bag contents, you can’t rely on them to nostalgically recall every detail of their special day and so an emptiness often prevails.

In the Hindu tradition, festivals recognise a fundamental human need to break from routine and feast, sing, dance and partake in a joyous celebration. But they are not just occasions for merrymaking – they also uplift the mind and prepare one to face life with greater enthusiasm.

The core principle of bringing people together, getting dressed up and preparing delicious food is a wonderful one, but perhaps children’s birthday parties need a renewed focus on these primary elements, rather than the sugar-coated excess they have taken on in recent years.

Today, let us pray that we can enrich our family celebrations by occasionally stripping away some of the excess and embracing the joy of simplicity.

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