The Ganesh Utsav, held to commemorate Lord Ganesha's re-birth, has come to an end with Anant Chaturdashi- a time when we bid farewell to our beloved ‘Bappa’. Throughout our lives, we've had to let go of numerous things- partners, pets, habits, friends, jobs, houses, even our dreams. It'll be a fair assumption to say that knowing how to let things go can save us much grief in life. The Buddhist philosophy of de-attachment talks about how one's entire life is an act of letting go- and who are we to argue with centuries-old wisdom?

We spoke to psychologist, Priyanka Varma (Clinical Psychology, Counselling Psychology, and Psychotherapy), on why we have trouble letting go," Everyone struggles to let go of relationships, experiences, and things. The struggle with letting go is often a result of the emotions we associate with it. Sometimes, it represents being stuck. Unable to make peace with what happened and more importantly your perception of what happened.” Talking about emotional entanglements, she adds, “It is like being entangled in a spider’s web. To break free from it is to disengage - to acknowledge where you are in the present, and where you want to go and if holding on to that emotion or situation benefits you in anyway.”

As we seek solace in God to cope with the harsh realities of the present, we also seek solace in the past- laden with what we once had. Doused in faith and nostalgia, festivals tend to be a remarkable combination of both. Reflecting upon the seemingly mundane has always done humanity good (remember how gravity was discovered?), so why must we not do the same?