SHOONYA- A Festival of Nothingness

 

As a human race, we have always speculated about things that accomplish something and has got some meaning. But have you ever pondered about the word "nothingness"? Each and every one of us is in a race to complete something and this leads to a lifestyle encircled by havoc. Maybe, it's time for us to forget everything and do nothing for a while!

And coming to nothingness, how can we forget one of the greatest festivals in India - Shoonya.
Shoonya is a 3-day carnival which occurs every year in Jibhi during the month of June. Jibhi is a small place located in the Tirthan valley near Manali. It takes around 12 hours of drive from New Delhi. It is one of such places where you can literally just sit and do nothing till the end of time. Coming back to Shoonya, it is shrouded around the theme " nothingness". Now, the question is how do you define nothingness? A general survey showed that most of the people who visit this festival are not fascinated by the idea of Shoonya but they became a part of it because of their subjective reasons. Does that serve the purpose of nothingness? Definitely not. But whatever the reason may be, once you designate yourself to the hues of Shoonya, there's no coming back without finding yourself!

The festival of Shoonya assures you an ecstatic 3-day break by engaging you into numerous curated experiences designed specifically to take you out of your chaotic life. The events include drum circles, poetry, story-telling, nature walks, fishing and many more. The most striking event is called Mandala which is an art form specially focussed on meditation. The design is so compelling that an individual generally forgets about everything and tends to complete it in one go. The first attempt might be tiresome while the second may turn out to be boring. But, when you hold up your patience and complete the 3rd one, you will not be able to express the gratitude. You will feel so good about yourself that you had that potential to complete the task that was provided to you. This will help you in your future endeavours. Similarly, all the other
activities are curated in such a way that it certainly leaves an impact in your life for a very long time.

Shoonya is completely a zero-waste festival where the plastic waste produced by the attendees needs to be taken back by them.

Shoonya is a very serene and unique festival which tends to take you away from your regular 9-5 chaotic routine in the cities. It is one such festival where you will find that behind every corner, there will be something waiting for you to explore. It will give you an ample amount of time to know that the world is really simple. It will help you to understand what really matters to you. And in the end, it will certainly help you to find all the answers that were left unanswered !!